Dr. Carol Ventura is one of the rock stars of crochet!
But she isn’t just a talented crochet pattern designer; she is also well-known for being a weaver, fiber artist and educator. She is knowledgeable about a variety of textile design techniques. Her work has been featured in various exhibitions, and she educates others about tapestry crochet and other fiber art techniques through her website, blog, and occasional classes and workshops.
Carol holds a Ph.D. in Art, Theory and Criticism from the University of Georgia, Athens.
I found Carol because of her contributions to multiple crochet pattern books that I read and reviewed for various crochet and craft websites I’ve worked with.
I’ve reviewed the following crochet pattern books that include tapestry crochet patterns by Carol Ventura:
Crochet Master Class
This book is unlike any other on my bookshelf. It’s different because in this book, the authors, Jean Leinhauser and Rita Weiss, focused on giving us some of the most amazing, complex and masterful crochet patterns known to humankind.
The project Carol contributed to this book is epic, and I learned a great deal from reading her contribution.
Before I read this book, I knew how to do bead crochet, but I did it the old-fashioned way: counting out beads and stringing them in order, by color, onto my thread. It is tedious and NOT FUN to do it this way, so I typically stuck to doing bead crochet patterns with either one color or very easy color patterns.
Carol is a freaking genius, because the method she teaches totally freed us from having to do it that way.
For that reason alone, I think this book is a must-read for serious crocheters — and that doesn’t even get into any of the other valuable knowledge it contains.
In this book, you’ll find a beaded tapestry crochet bag that Carol designed. The bag looks like it was both beaded and woven, but upon closer examination, it’s actually crocheted. It’s an amazing project. If beadwork is your jam, I think you’re going to love it!
Unexpected Afghans:
Carol contributed a stunning round blanket she calls “Desert Sunrise” to the Unexpected Afghans book by Robyn Chachula, published by Interweave.
The Best of Interweave Crochet
The editors at Interweave selected carol’s charted pattern for a Diamonds Silk Scarf to be included in The Best of Interweave Crochet.
Simply Crochet
This Interweave book includes Carol Ventura’s tapestry crochet basket pattern, in addition to bunches of patterns contributed by other designers. Robyn Chachula is the author of Simply Crochet.
So there you have it: That’s an overview of Carol’s Ventura’s tapestry crochet and fiber artwork, along with a list of the books I’ve reviewed that include her crochet designs.
Please keep in mind that this is NOT A COMPLETE LIST of all the books she has contributed to or written. I’m an avid reader and frequent reviewer, but I can’t read everything (So many books! So little time! You know how that is…) I only review books that I have actually read, learned from and benefitted from in some way — so this is a relatively short list, and there are many more publications beyond these that you’ll want to check out if you are a fan of Dr. Ventura’s work.
0ver to Y0u:
Did you ever take a workshop or class with Dr. Carol Ventra? How did you like it?
Which of her articles, patterns, books, and workshops are your favorites?
Let’s talk about it in the c0mments!
By Amy Solovay
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About the Author:
Amy Solovay is a real person; she is NOT a robot and does not use artificial intelligence (AI) to write book reviews or articles for this website. She is a real, live, human content creator and educator who holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in mathematics from Sweet Briar College; she has also earned a separate Associate of Arts degree in textile design from FIDM LA (The Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, Los Angeles).
Amy learned to crochet as a small child, and she still enjoys crocheting all these years later.
As an educator, Amy Solovay used to teach in-person college courses in trend forecasting, marketing and surface design at California Design College in Los Angeles.
Nowadays, Amy uses online platforms to teach digital courses to craft pattern designers, content creators and influencers all over the world. If you’re an artist, crafter or DIY enthusiast who is interested in earning income from your creative work, you’re invited to visit Crafterprise.com to learn more about monetizing the arts, craft(s) and / or DIY projects you do.
This page was last updated on 10-12-2024.