The Crocheted Coral Reef comes to Portland!

These images are from the IFF website. Photos by Alyssa Gorelick.

If you haven’t already, take a moment and dive into the wonder that is the Crochet Coral Reef Project. It’s organized by the Institute For Figuring, and it involves crocheters all over the world making beautiful replicas of corals, to help call attention to the sad plight of the world’s coral reefs.

That in and of itself is wonderful. But even more wonderful is the fact that the kind of crochet used in this project is known as hyperbolic crochet, and it replicates the geometry of real coral-reef dwellers. This sounds terribly complex, but really, these incredible forms are the result of nothing more than regular increases. So a simple combination of hook, yarn, and math results in incredible diversity.

Anyway, Rose Sabel-Dodge, who owns one of my favorite local craft stores, Gossamer, is bringing the Crocheted Coral Reef Project to Portland. She’s hosting open crochet-times in the store each week. You can stop in, learn about hyperbolic crochet, and make a piece for Portland’s own crochet coral reef. (You can also bring in pieces you’ve completed at home.)

The finished local reef will be displayed in the store starting August 23rd, and then move to OMSI, our local science museum, in December. Everyone who contributes to the project will be acknowledged. So, locals, let’s get involved! You can contact Rose for more information.

By the way, the IFF website has patterns for various hyperbolic forms. Look for “Here’s How to do Hyperbolic Crochet” in the left sidebar.