Hooking With …. Audrey Frieson
In this edition of Hooking With we have the lovely Audrey Friesen from Canoe Mtn Designs!
In this week’s Hooking With, we interviewed Audrey of Canoe Mountain Designs.
Audrey has been a great inspiration in my designing and I have tested quite a few of her patterns. I love the way that she plays with texture. In fact, it was while testing for Audrey that I had to learn the foundation chain stitches and the alternated ch2 and ch3! Its fair to say that I have learned a lot from this lady!
So, lets get to know Audrey a little more …
About 12 years ago or so I was chatting with someone at the post office about being bored while watching TV in the evening with my husband. She told me that she learned to crochet so she had something to do in the evening as well. Crochet?! Well, I went and bought a crochet hook and a skein of yarn, grabbed my computer and found tutorials on Youtube. And the rest is history lol. I started out crocheting scarves that were donated to a couple of missions in the city where our boys lived. “Graduated” to hats, then started also selling at craft fairs, and 2 years ago started designing my own patterns.
I have always been crafty. Used to do wood working, then painting, now crochet. The other crafts were fun and I enjoyed doing them, but crochet has become my therapy. When I’m crocheting and creating a new pattern I don’t worry about anything else. Something about crochet relaxes me, and any stress from the day is gone. With crochet I can give back. Donating to charities has always been the goal when I started and I still donate many boxes of hats, scarves, shawls and blankets every year.
Designing
I started designing when I realized that I was making changes to patterns I purchased because I didn’t like something about the pattern, or it was hard to understand. It’s been an awesome outlet for my creative side J The plan had been to offer all my patterns for free, however after creating the first pattern and realizing how much work goes into making a unique pattern I decided to offer them as paid patterns. I do have different “games” and give aways where people can win free patterns, and offer them for sale with every new pattern release.
What are my favorite projects to work on? That is a hard question. My first answer would be hats I think. They are usually quicker projects and I don’t get bored lol. I love to make blankets, but my attention span is quite short, so quite often they end up in a bag and take a year to make. Scarves would also be on the list of favorites. So basically I love to create anything!
My grandmother is my inspiration. She passed away 7 years ago at the age of 97. She was legally blind, had been since I was little. Every day she knit, cooked, did the cleaning and helped on the farm even when her sight was going. She knit every day until she had her stroke just before she passed away. I want to be just like her, not let anything stop me from doing what I love.
3 Fun facts:
1) I love to watch sports while crocheting. It’s good background noise. Unfortunately my husband isn’t a sports fan, so I have to put everything on the PVR and watch it early in the mornings or while he’s sleeping.
2) I drove a school bus for 17 years. It’s the best job in the world!
3) And I love Moose! I’ve started to collect anything with a moose on it!!
On to our Hooking with questions ….
When did you start designing?
I started designing just over 2 years ago.
Do you have a blog? If so, when did you start that up?
No
What was your initial plan with your blog and designs?
The original plan was to offer my patterns for free. However after writing the first few, having
them tested and correcting all the mistakes I realized how much work it was! lol
How have your designs and designing process evolved?
I have started creating designs that are more challenging, but hopefully still easy enough for
a beginner to crochet. My process hasn’t changed very much.
What designs do you specialize in?
I can’t say that I specialize in any design lol. Hats have always been my favorite, but I really enjoy
scarves and shawls as well because I have more options with stitch patterns and experimenting.
Do you have a favorite few stitches you like to use or do you always try to do new ones?
I really like to try new stitches quite a bit. As far as favorites… probably the bean stitch and also
the X stitch worked from behind.
When you come up with an idea, does it come first from yarn you have or do you find yarn to fit the idea?
Hmmmm. Good question! Probably a little of both. Quite often I purchase yarn because I like
the color and then figure out what to do with it. But usually I have a design in my head and then figure out what yarn would work with it or use what I have on hand.
When did you start crocheting?
About 12 years ago or so.
What made you decide to become a designer?
After purchasing lots of patterns and having to change them to work for me I decided I could
probably make my own patterns!
Are there any patterns not your own that you just love?
Can’t think of any off the bat.
Who/what inspired you? Does this still inspire you? Why?
My grandma was always my inspiration. She slowly lost her sight over the years. My the time I was in my teens she was legally blind. She tried to teach me how to knit, but it wasn’t my thing. However, she knit every day until she passed away at the age of 97. She didn’t let anything slow her down.
Of your patterns, which is your favorite and why?
Another hard question! My favorite pattern is the one I’m working on at any time 🙂
Are there any crochet techniques/stitches you wish to learn this year?
I would like to learn Interlac Crochet, but I’m also pretty sure I won’t have the patience for it lol
What are your biggest crochet challenges and how do you plan on overcoming that?
My husband and I are retired. My biggest crochet challenge is finding something for him to do by himself so I can crochet LOL Have no idea how to overcome that problem ….. 🙂
Have you ever lost your crojo and how did you overcome that?
Oh yes! It does happen once in a while. I usually take a break for a few days, then work on something that is quick and easy. The crojo usually comes back then.
What three tips can you offer to anyone that crochets?
- Don’t give up!
- Try something new (pattern or stitch) at least once a month.
- Have Fun! Crocheting is all about fun & relaxation. It’s a great stress reliever.
Links:
FB: https://www.facebook.com/canoemtndesigns/
https://www.facebook.com/groups/199928530563074
Raverly: https://www.ravelry.com/designers/canoe-mtn-designs
Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/CanoeMtnDesignsCo
Love Crafts: https://tinyurl.com/y4yf6t2w
