The Little Black dress can be your best friend,

sketch and photo by Noreen Crone-Findlay copyright

or,

It can be a nightmare.

In the case of  opera singer, Deborah Voigt, the LBD was a turning point in her life.

She got fired by Covent Garden for not fitting into the costume-

You guessed it…..

A Little Black Dress.

Humiliating.

She took her life in hand, and lost a phenomenal amount of weight, and by gum, she was invited back to Covent Garden, and wore the Little Black Dress.

She made a very tongue in cheek video about The Little Black Dress:

I hope that your experiences with your Little Black Dress are MUCH happier!

A couple of my designer friends will make sure that you do have a very happy time, indeed, with your Crocheted LBD!

Jill Hanratty’s gorgeous Little Black Dress is featured in the current issue of Crochet! magazine.

photo copyright Mary Jane Hall used with permission

And, Mary Jane Hall’s wonderful book, Crochet That Fits features a gorgeous LBD on the cover! Yum!

Thanks to Mary Jane and Jill, we can all sing the praises of the crocheted, perfect, Little Black Dress!

The ‘Little Black Dress’ is a  design concept that is an archetypical.

I’ve been thinking about classic designs lately, and wondering-

What exactly is THE PERFECT LITTLE BLACK DRESS and can you crochet it?

sketch and photo by Noreen Crone-Findlay copyright

The perfect little black crocheted dress absolutely must:

1.Be Comfortable - it has to fit without binding, drooping or emphasizing places that prefer to be blessed, not blushed over.

2. Be Versatile- The Perfect Little Black Dress must be a champion of  multi-tasking. It needs to be able to be worn in several different ways, and be suitable for many different occasions and events.

3. Be Layer-able- Worn over, worn under, worn with …. shrugs, shawls, sweaters, fancy tights, bluejeans, leggings, bare legs

4. Be  Timeless- Well, perhaps not ~quite timeless~ but certainly needs to be able to stand up to several seasons of changing fashion.

5. Be Fun to make- That may mean that it is incredibly complex or it could mean that it is super simple. Both are definitely fun.

6.  Be Yarn appropriate- It must be made in a yarn that is a pleasure to work with and wears well.

7. Probably have drape through the skirt.  Having drape integral in the skirt is going to mean that it moves beautifully and won’t get pulled out of shape by sitting. Nothing looks worse than having the bum of a skirt go all droopy.  A little flex and drapability goes a long way in alleviating humdrum bumdrop on the back of the skirt.

8. Have a stitch structure that gives stability over the shoulders. Have lots of stability through the upper bodice and over the shoulders is essential. It’s going to make the dress much more durable and will sustain the shaping, which will make it fit better.

9. Make you feel absolutely DIVINE! There has to be a certain something that is totally magical about it, that makes you want to hug it to you like a teddy, but makes you feel like a million dollars when you wear it.

10.  Inspire your Creativity! Perhaps the PERFECT LITTLE BLACK CROCHETED DRESS  IS NOT A DRESS!  It might just be a wonderful tunic, like Doris Chan’s, or a spectacular skirt (like the tunisian stitch skirt that I designed for Crochet! magazine), paired with a brilliantly designed little top ( like Angela Best’s Sweetie Pie Top) , or Halter top (Like Amie Hirte’s spectacular Amelia), and possibly topped off with Doris Chan’s fabulous circle jacket

11. The most important and final rule: It has to be something that you will enjoy. So, get out your hook and black yarn, and a really good light (crocheting black yarn can be challenging!) and  ENJOY your perfect LBD!

So, tell me, have you crocheted your PERFECT LITTLE BLACK DRESS? I would love to see pics!

Have you ever seen a great looking shirt at a second hand store or garage sale, but didn’t buy it because it had somebody’s logo on it?

Well, now you can treat yourself to that shirt and upcycle it by crocheting simple flowers to cover the unwanted logo.

photo & project by Noreen Crone-Findlay (copyright)

The other day, I was looking at my summer clothes (finally - what a long winter!)

And, I realized that I needed a new black t-shirt.

My old ones  are beyond wearing, and are destined to become fabric strips for weaving.

They’ll also become rags and other ‘green’ options.

Later that day, we were at a garage sale, and Tah-dah!

There was the PERFECT shirt- black, short sleeves, cute button front…. perfect!

photo & project by Noreen Crone-Findlay (copyright)

The only problem was that there was a very obvious company logo on the back of the shirt , just below the collar.

I had been working on the Simple Crocheted Flower Jewelry tutorial, so immediately, it struck me-  Whee!

I could use the crocheted flower motifs to cover the unwanted logo!   YES!!!

(click the link in bold letters to go to the tute and instructions)

So, I got out one of my most favorite ever threads: South Maid mercerized cotton in Mexicana, and a ball of Aunt Lydia’s Size 3 Fashion Crochet thread in Warm Blue, and a ball of Red Heart Hula in Orangina. I used a 1.75 mm hook for the rainbow thread and a 3.5 mm hook for the orange and blue. I crocheted up a medley of flowers and pinned them over the logo:

photo & project by Noreen Crone-Findlay (copyright)

Then, I stitched the flowers to the shirt, and added a couple of vintage buttons, and a bead or two:

photo & project by Noreen Crone-Findlay (copyright)

and the ‘new to me’ shirt is now gloriously and completely mine all mine!

photo & project by Noreen Crone-Findlay (copyright)

I am really pleased with the way this shirt turned out. I have another one that has an unwanted logo on it, and guess what?

It’s going to get upcycled with crocheted flowers, too!

Okay… the model looks like she’s stepped out of a zombie movie, and some of the ‘way far crazy out there’ architectural shaping is too bizarro for words,

but….

there is some seriously gorgeous and innovative shaping going on in Sandra Backlund’s designs.

She’s good. She’s very good.

Check it out: Sandra Backlund

If you’re on Ravelry, hopefully, by now, you will have seen the ad for ‘Strapped for Bags’

I am part of a group of wonderful designers who are working together to self publish booklets of our designs. This is the first of 3 booklets of crocheted bag patterns.

Hope you’ll like it!

Image source: Straight from the designer’s hip copyright