Crochet Designer Rachy Newin.

Chances are if you’ve recently seen a beautiful, lacy crocheted shawl, it is one of Rachy’s. Racy is also participating in the 2019 Indie Designer Gift-A-Along and has graciously agreed to be interviewed. So…let’s get to know Rachy Newin!

Please tell a little bit about yourself and your designs.

I love crochet and I love hand-dyed yarn and my patterns are designed to pair the two together perfectly. I focus on higher end yarns and love playing around with colors and texture and lace. Lately, I’ve also been super into beads – they’re fun and deceptively easy, and I love the way it sparkles!

How long have you been crocheting?

I’ve been on Ravelry since December 2013, so I’ve probably been crocheting since about November 2013! I’ve been crafting in various ways for my whole life, but only taught myself to crochet as an adult.

How long have you been designing and what led you to design? 

My first ever pattern was a super quick freebie I posted five years ago. I freehanded it and people asked for the pattern, so I wrote it out and popped it up on Ravelry. A few months later, I started getting more involved with creating my own patterns. I walked into a LYS for the first time and fell in love, but couldn’t find any patterns that would work with their yarns the way I wanted them to – so I set out to design the patterns I wanted to make.

How did you first learn to crochet?  

Libraries and YouTube! First step was hitting up the library for every book I could find on crochet and yarn. But it’s hard to follow the steps from books alone, so I spent a lot of time sitting in front of YouTube videos and watching how my hands should move.

Do you have any other crafts or hobbies? or is there one you would like to learn?

Does collecting yarn count as a separate hobby? I’d love to learn all the crafts – especially spinning and yarn dyeing – but I don’t have the time or space in my house to learn it all.

How many WIPs do you currently have and do you think you will ever finish all of them?

I refuse to count all my WIPs all at once, I’m not sure I want to face that reality, but I usually have five to seven WIPs with me at any given time. I would love to theoretically finish them all one day, but with the way I keep getting distracted by new projects, I doubt that’ll ever happened.

What was the last thing you crocheted for yourself?

Most of my design samples are for me! There’s a very short list of people I’m willing to craft for as I only crochet for people who appreciate the time and effort. I’d rather keep the gorgeous lace shawl for me than give it to someone who won’t love it.

What is your favorite stitch?

Half-double crochet! It’s solid enough to be cozy and warm, but has enough flexibility to give the project good drape. I use hdc a *lot*.

What pattern/design are you most proud of? Why?

It’s so impossible to pick just one! Maybe the Bumps in the Road Shawl, I’m really pleased with how the technical aspects of the pattern work out. It’s a super wearable shape and the body features a modified stitch that’s fully reversible and delightfully textured. The pattern is also designed so that you don’t have to cut the yarn – there’s no ends to weave in, except for the start and end of each skein. Plus, the math is set up so you can work any number of rows in the body and add the edging at any point. I absolutely love the finished look of the shawl, but I’m especially proud of the behind-the-scenes technical bits that make it really fun to work up.

 What is your favorite crochet tool or notion?

Bobby pins! They’re the perfect stitch marker. Cheap, easy to slide on and off, and you can pick them up anywhere in case of emergency.

 When you aren’t knitting/crocheting, what are you doing?

I’m pretty low key. If I’m not crocheting, I’m probably hanging out with the dog, playing games on my phone, or deep in a book. My ideal afternoon is a dog on my lap, a soothing mindless project to work on, and a hardcover book so I can read while I crochet.

Where can we find you?

Ravelry: https://www.ravelry.com/designers/rachy-newin
Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/shop/rachynewindesigns
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/rachynewindesigns/

Thanks Rachy! Your designs are beautiful!!!