new "Crochet Fantasy"

No, I don't get a kickback from them, I wish I did. The new issue has finally been delivered (there's a major screw-up on the cover, it says "Spring 2005"). It's all pink, so I'm sure that means it's for spring. I have been subscribing to CF for a very long time. Yes, it has had some not so hot patterns. _All_ crochet magazines have them (well, I don't know about "Magic Crochet", never read it.) . All have the patterns that make you wonder "what were they thinking?". Perhaps something gets messed up between the pattern and the execution, maybe the editor says "seems cool" but it isn't, I don't know. I've never been the editor of a magazine, but I'm sure it's like many jobs, sometimes you have an error in judgement.

But "Crochet Fantasy" usually has one project that makes me _think_ about trying a new technique. I can't say that about a lot of other magazines. This issue has the bikini in a bag from "Stitch 'n' Bitch - the Happy Hooker", a felted tapestry bag by Carol Ventura, some ponchos for little girls and a jacket designed by Melissa Leapman that looks pretty cool (as well as some other neat patterns). The "think" part comes from the article about the lucet. I don't remember seeing it at the MD sheep and wool (tho the author of the article did), but now I wish I would have seen it there. I probably ignored it, thinking it was something to do with spinning wool.

The lucet helps to make cording for shoulder straps for purses (you can use it for anything). The example given is for a cell phone bag, looks pretty neat. There's also an article on tunisian mitered squares, as well as one on Irish crochet. I like to read CF slowly. I like to savor the photos first. Sometimes I recognize the designers from the photos. I pick and choose the articles I read. I read the lucet article first simply because the mention of the MD sheep and wool festival. I'll read the other ones within the next week.

I do wish CF didn't have such an erratic publishing schedule. This is the spring issue, which I recieved on Friday, July 14. On the third page of this issue, there is a statement that "next mail date: August 14, 2006". I'll be quite happy to get another issue so quickly, but there was a long wait between the winter and spring issue. I hope CF pulls it together. I know there are other magazines out there, but CF has been there during the times of other crochet / needlecraft magazines failure. There was "McCall's Needlework", "McCall's Crochet" as well as the Herrshner magazine that turned into the "Crochet From the Heart". Now there are new magazines popping up (Coats & Clarks is lauching one in September 2006, "Crochet Today" and Insterweave Press is putting out another issue of their crochet magazine). I think there is enough room and interest for all of these magazines. At least I certainly hope so. Check out a copy at the newstand if you don't subcribe and see how you like it. It's got sometning for almost everybody.
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