A Tale of Two Crochet Magazines (and a website)

In my ever-ending quest for crochet stim, I’ve been reading Interweave Crochet and Crochet Today. I like both, and it’s interesting to me how very different they are.

Interweave Crochet, as you may know, was recently re-worked and re-launched with Crochet Me‘s Kim Werker at the helm. Kim is a hero of mine, and while we’re on the subject, Crochet Me just re-launched as well this week — if you haven’t been there before, go! It’s an awesome resource for crocheters.

Being just barely a toddler at crochet myself, I tend to look at Interweave Crochet as a “wish book.” The patterns in the Fall issue are lovely, more refined than funky, and a bit more on the intermediate-to-experienced side. (Although, Jennifer Orr’s beginner shrug pattern is quite genius in its design simplicity, and there’s a solid chance I could make that without tears.)

On the article side of things, there’s an awesome piece about crochet in the 60′s and 70′s, and a great article on felting crochet work. And the production quality is gorgeous – the project shots are uniformly well-lit and show off the work nicely. (Love this felted bag with the French squares overlaid on it!)

In short, I love Interweave Crochet, and hope someday to be worthy of it. By the way, it’s just now available as a subscription, too.

Now, in Crochet Today, I find myself a little less drawn to the overall design quality, but the magazine more than makes up for this in great beginner-friendly instruction. They do a Crochet School series in each issue, and these articles provide excellent visual instruction. (If you’ve ever wondered about filet crochet, I highly recommend the lesson in the Sept./Oct. issue. It finally cracked my filet-block.)

The projects tend toward a bit less of the couture, and a bit more of the playful. There are more beginner-friendly projects here as well. I like how Crochet Today mixes up traditional crochet forms, like this doily-appliqued denim skirt. And, I like that two of my favorite crocheters, Linda and Regina, make regular appearances.

I also like that Crochet Today tends to include projects for a wider variety of things — the current issue has this amigurumi, and an ipod cozy, and ‘ghans, and a backpack, as well as sweaters. And, they’re beginning to include crochet diagrams along with their written patterns. I love diagrams! They increase my understanding of structure and shaping so much more easily than trying to decipher all those abbreviations.

So, Crochet Today is more like a kind aunt who says, “Don’t worry – you can learn to make armholes. Here, I’ll show you.”

Update: It also bears mentioning that Crochet Today, being owned by Coats & Clark, uses only their yarns in the magazine’s patterns. Interweave Crochet, owned by Interweave Press, uses products from a variety of manufacturers.

Clearly, both publications are necessary for a balanced crochet diet.