Doris Chan, crochet designer and author, enters the teaching arena with the world premier of her crochet workshops. Featuring materials drawn from her latest book, Crochet Lace Innovations, these classes will explore techniques for creating bold, beautiful lace garments, accessories and trims.

Skill Level Crochet skills required: participants must know how to make crochet fabric using basic stitches, including ch (chain), sl st (slip stitch), sc (single crochet), hdc (half-double crochet), dc (double crochet), tr (triple or treble crochet); familiarity with chainless foundation Fsc (foundation single crochet) helpful.

General Materials List:
Please bring basic supplies for crochet, including: various size crochet hooks, scissors, yarn needles, stitch markers or safety pins, ruler, tape measure.

For each session Doris will provide demonstration materials, printed class handout and samples of fabric and lace garments. For those who aren't bringing their own specialty tools, she will have borrower tools, broomstick knitting needles, Tunisian hooks and hairpin looms available.

Ride a "broomstick" as you learn this fascinating technique for crochet lace. Using a normal crochet hook plus a giant knitting needle, you can create gorgeous, swirly, loopy lace for a scarf or stole in a flash. See three different methods of working broomstick lace and choose the one that's happiest for you. Discover ways of incorporating Broomstick lace in your crochet as trims or insertions. After a bit of practice, you'll be ready to work on a project of your choice, in your favorite yarn.

• Workshop Length 3 hours
• Materials
  • For practice: small skein of smooth or slightly textured, light or neutral colored worsted weight yarn ; size I-9 (5.5mm) crochet hook; size 35 (19mm) knitting needle, any length, for broomstick
  • For project: yarn of your choice, with sufficient amounts on hand for completing project (approximately 200 yd for narrow scarf, approximately 500 yd for stole, depending on yarn weight); size crochet hook appropriate for your yarn; large knitting needle for broomstick; suggested size 50 (25mm) for chunky/ bulky yarn , size 35 (19mm) for worsted weight yarn and DK, medium sportweight/medium sock yarn , or size 19 (15mm) for fine sock/fingering weight yarn

Come and try your hand at today's must-do technique, Tunisian (or Afghan) crochet. Using a large gauge Tunisian hook, you'll learn the basics of making Tunisian fabric that has drape, how to start Tunisian fabric, identifying the strands and stitches, different ways of working into stitches, shaping Tunisian stitches, finishing and assembling. For inspiration, and for those already familiar with Tunisian, we'll get a closer look at the Tunisian shell stitch used in the sample garments from Crochet Lace Innovations.

• Workshop Length 3 hours
• Materials
  • Some smooth or slightly textured worsted weight yarn ; size I-9 (5.5mm) crochet hook; size L (8mm) or M (9mm) Tunisian hook, any length.

I love nothing more than taking inspiration from a vintage doily or thread crochet design, exploding the gauge with thicker yarn and big hooks, tinkering with the structure and making things to wear. In this class I will pass along some of the ways I've learned to successfully explode all kinds of lace, from bedspread motifs to handkerchief edgings to doilies.

• Workshop Length 3 hours
• Materials
  
  • Some smooth or slightly textured worsted weight yarn in a light or neutral color ; size I-9 (5.5mm) crochet hook; ideas, images or patterns of vintage crochet you'd like to try exploding.

In this workshop I will discuss my signature MO, how it was developed, how raglan shoulder shaping is achieved, why it works. With demonstration modules drawn from some of my more infamous designs, I will take you step by step through the shaping of a top-down seamless garment. You'll be invited to try on and critique the fit of a range of sized garment samples, in the process finding out how to get your perfect fit.

• Workshop Length 3 hours
• Materials
  • NA

In this two part class, we will take a fresh look at an old-fashioned lace technique, Hairpin Lace. In Session One, using a regular crochet hook and a hairpin loom, you'll learn how to make the basis for hairpin fabric, the hairpin strip. Then, in Session Two, with a short stack of strips, we will touch on some of the myriad ways to finish, edge, join and assemble hairpin strips for garments, accessories and trims.

• Workshop Length 6 hours (3 hours Session One, 3 hours Session Two)
• Materials
  • Some smooth or slightly textured worsted weight yarn ; small skein in main color, small skein in contrast color; size G-7 (4.5mm) or size H-8 (5mm) crochet hook; adjustable hairpin loom.