American School of Needlework

Much of this book's value is entertainment. It gives patterns for a wide array of 1970s fashions that are hilarious to say the least. Take, for instance, the lovely sweater on the cover. All joking aside, there are some interesting ideas in this book. One is the "Giant Floor Ball," a crocheted ball made with twelve pentagons and stuffed with twenty pounds of polyester fiberfill (my son is getting this for Christmas). Another is describing how to make pictures by using various colors of small show more granny squares--a precursor to pixels, if you will. This technique would lend itself nicely to video game crafts that I have seen a rash of lately. For a lot of laughs and some solid crochet patterns, pick this one up. show less

Love this book! I have made several of the afghans in this book and everyone wants one. Great instructions and different options if you like to knit, crochet or create fabric in other ways. It's great because it has a retro feel that you can build your own ideas from and either make them more modern by using different colors or keep them as they are and impart a feeling of tradition to your work.

Another great book for crocheters and knitters. I have made a few of the crocheted afghans concentrating on those with cross-stich patterns over Tunisian or single crochet base.

Assumes some crochet knowledge. Full of patterns for using 'granny squares.'