Lookbook #24 - BLANKETS BLANKETS BLANKETS

MEET JANNEKE

Hi, my name is Janneke Termeulen. 39 years old, living in Zwolle. I am married to Jos and together we have 3 wonderful, active boys. From a young age I have loved being creative. Crocheting is my greatest passion, but of course painting, diy projects, photography and interior are things I also love to do. I like to create, making things myself. That is so satisfying. Working with my hands brings peace to my mind. It's not just a hobby, it's a way of life, necessity in life… I can get really cranky and restless if I don't take the time to do any crafting.

I have been crocheting for about 9 years now. I learned it from my sister when we were both pregnant and a crib blanket made from granny squares was my very first project. That's where the love for crochet was born. There are always several projects I work on and our living room is full of baskets filled with yarn. I am very proud of the ‘Cocoon!’ book that I wrote/made in 2020 with Laura Borgers. It’s a book full of feel-good crochet projects.

Color and combining colors makes me happy. Soft pastel shades, combined with a bright accent. Sweet combined with cool. A little quirky. Old combined with new... Mixing and matching is characteristic for me. I always add with a bright touch, so that it is in balance. Making color combinations is what I love most about starting a new project!

I like to work with natural materials, such as wool, linen and cotton. I also like to be in nature. I enjoy walking with my family, in the woods or on the beach. I'm always looking for beautiful treasures; a bunch of picked wild flowers, a stray feather, shells, a weathered branch or a beautiful stone.

When I was asked to design a blanket for Yarn and Colors, I didn't have to think twice about it. Of course it had to be a design where you can go wild with color and vary endlessly with different color combinations. I chose a simple, rhythmic pattern, which you can do almost mindlessly, so that you get into a wonderful crochet flow. I am very curious which color combinations you will choose!

More inspiration from me can be found on my website www.ge-woonjans.nl and on Instagram @ge_woonjans.

MEET JOLANDA

“Color, color and more color. Oh how I love color!”

“My name is Jolanda and I come from Ermelo, a village in the Netherlands. You can find me on Instagram and Facebook as @_naald5. I've always had much love for color. It probably will not surprise you that I once dyed my hair in all the colors of the rainbow. At that time I was also called the "Rainbow teacher" at work. In daily life I work in the swimming pool in Ermelo as a swimming lesson coordinator. Swimming lessons, aqua jogging, trim swimming - you name it and I'll do it. I feel like a fish in water.

Besides my work I like to be creative, my main hobby being crochet. I started with that in 2008. With a book, ball and a crochet hook from my mother I taught myself to crochet using patterns.

I crocheted for hours on end: during breaks at work, in the pub, at festivals and on the train. Everywhere I went my balls of yarn came with me. Together with a friend, I started crocheting bedspreads to order via the internet, under the name "Crochet in Progress". We had a waiting list of 8 months and once every 2 weeks a 1 or 2 person bedspread rolled off our needles. We crochet most projects with crochet hook 5 and so our follow-up name ‘Naald5’ was born.

In 2018 I took the plunge and registered for the competition "De Haakster van Nederland" via Wolplein/Yarnplaza. I made it to the finals and ended up second. For me this was the first experience with making and writing patterns. It's so cool to come up with a project, convert it into a pattern and then make a lot of people happy with it.

I fell immediately in love when the yarns from Yarn and Colors came onto the market. The beautiful bright colors really appeal to me! Working with Yarn and Colors as a designer is really a dream come true. In the past I have worked with them on lookbook #11 – the Sunny Side of Autumn. When they asked me to work on a blanket for the Blankets Blankets Blankets lookbook I didn’t have to think twice.

Have fun with my colorful designs and share your work on social media with #yarnandcolors.

MEET HELEN

“Hi, my name is Helen and I live in a small town in the Yorkshire Dales called Skipton in the United Kingdom, with my lovely husband and our 2 beautiful daughters. I started crocheting nearly 5 years ago now and I have never looked back! The first item I ever made was a hat for my eldest daughter, she loved it but has since outgrown it! I learnt to crochet from watching youtube videos and soon discovered my love and passion for it.

Crochet is my escape and definitely my happy place! It's not often that I don't have a hook and a ball of wool in my hand, not forgetting all the projects I have dotted around the house, yet to be finished! I will get to them one day!!

For the first 3 years of my crochet journey I made a lot of amigurumi things but I must admit since becoming a designer these are not my favourite to make! I became a crochet designer at the start of 2020 and I have never looked back. I find inspiration everywhere and my head and project book are bursting with so many ideas, I just wish I have more hands to crochet with! My main designs are blankets, I love doing a drawing and watching the design on paper come to life! That's why I loved designing the Mosaic Window blanket for Yarn and Colors too as they just let me run free with the colourful and bold design and I love how it turned out!

I share my crochet journey and designs over on my Instagram page @emkatcrochet and just love the craft community and have made lots of friends along the way too!“

MEET MARISKA

When Mariska van der Neut lived in Sweden for 3 years, her love for crochet started. She preferably works with natural tones. She followed a workshop in Sweden (together with friends in the Netherlands) via Skype and then learned a lot via YouTube and various blogs. You can find many more patterns on her website handmadejolie.nl.

As Mariska says herself: “I prefer to work with natural tones such as different shades of white, grey, sand and taupe. Within all these natural shades there is a huge variation in color nuances and materials. By combining fabrics with crochet or by crocheting using different kinds of yarns, your projects get a personal touch.

Natural tones provide peace, space and simplicity. They fit perfectly with an interior with white, gray and sand-colored tones. Combine these colors in your interior with natural materials such as wood, jute, linen, cotton, wool and seagrass. Also a few large plants should not be missing. I like a house with lots of light and find it a challenge to create a pure atmosphere with natural warmth.”

MEET ANNEMARIE

Annemarie, who’s well-known for her Studio Hip en Stip, discovered she could make the most beautiful and colorful creations using some yarn and a crochet hook. This discovery opened up a whole new world for her. Her colorful crocheted creations inspire people all over the world to pick up their crochet hooks and bring their colorful dreams to life.

Because she loves color so much she knows how to make crochet projects that use all kinds of surprising and gorgeous color combinations.

We weren’t surprised when her book ‘Haken met Studio Hip en Stip’ was released in November of 2017. Her second book, 'Haak je restjes op' is also a great success and was released in 2021. Annemarie also shares her cheerful crochet projects on her Instagram account @studiohipenstip.