I have always dreamed of finding more time to design garment patterns. Designing your own crocheted sweaters can give you a remarkable chance to become your own designer-creating a unique garment through yarn, stitch pattern, style, and embellishment selection.

With designing, as with many new projects, it's generally best to start small. Small projects can be completed quickly, and who doesn't love baby garments. In her new Crochet Me Workshop DVD, Design Your Own Crocheted Baby Sweater, Robyn Chachula shares several tips to keep in mind when designing for babies and small children.

Yarn
Babies spit up frequently, and small children are better than a GPS at finding dirt, making handwash-only yarns purely impractical. Many tightly spun and plied superwash wools stand up well to both the washer and dryer, requiring no additional blocking. Robyn shares her favorites as well as some great acrylic and cotton options.

Color

For a unique sweater both Mom, Dad, and child will love, walk right past those pastels. Kids love bright colors, and a fun garment in vibrant shades will often become an instant favorite. Next time, don't be afraid to reach for jewel tones, bright yellows and oranges, or lively greens.

Stitch Pattern

Despite lace's beauty, the many openings in the pattern are the perfect obstacles for little fingers as they slide through sleeves. So look for stitch patterns that provide interesting texture without lacey holes or those openings created by rows of double or treble crochet. Linked double and treble crochets provide a quickly crocheted solid fabric. Robyn walks you step by step through creating linked stitches as well as several other beautiful stitch patterns.

Neckline

If you have ever tried to dress a baby or toddler, you know that getting a pullover over their head is the most apprehensive step of the process. Tears and frustration often arise when the neckline gets stuck. Because children have proportionally larger heads, the neckline needs to open larger than for an adult sweater. But you don't want a gaping collar that will fall down around their shoulders. Using zippers and snaps, you can create garments with large necklines that can be fastened to normal dimensions. Stay away from buttons as children's inquisitive fingers will quickly stretch the buttonholes. But if you like the look of buttons, stitch them firmly in your desired location as embellishments.

Robyn shares more information about these tips and how to apply them to your garment design as well as how to create schematics and step-by-step instructions on working several stitch patterns in her latest DVD. Her structured approach to designing makes baby sweater design accessible to even beginning designers. Order Design Your Own Crocheted Baby Sweater with Robyn

Chachula today and give your creativity another outlet as you design your own garments.

Best wishes,