President Obama never looked so good!
I finished this portrait of President Obama a couple of days ago. It’s the third project I had to do towards my certification to be a Crochet By Numbers (CBN) instructor. Since it was my second attempt, it only took me about 25 hours to complete.
The process of learning CBN was a little harder than I thought it would be only because I thought I could do it differently than the way Todd Paschal, its creator, was teaching it. That’s why I had to do the second and third certification patterns twice. But I’m glad I did it the way I did because now I am aware of many of the mistakes some students will probably make, and I know how to correct them. I’m really looking forward to teaching Crochet By Numbers and hope to be doing so very soon.
I still have to decide what I’m going to do with this piece. I could make a pillow or stretch it over frames to create an objet d’art I can hang on a wall in my home. What do you think I should do with it?
Just about any photo you own can be turned into a Crochet By Numbers pattern. And now you can learn this fascinating crochet technique via my online course. Check HERE for details on how you can get started creating beautiful works of fiber art.
Very nice! It looks like a complicated but amazing technique to learn. One day soon I think I’ll have to check into it. For now, I have my dance card full!
Thanks, Sedie. And no, it’s not complicated at all. You just have to know how to read the patterns and make a couple of shifts in the way you normally crochet. But I know what you mean about having a full dance card. It’ll be here if you decide to check it out. Thanks as always for your comment.
The portrait is an amazing likeness. Hard to realize that it is thread and crochet. I think it would be a lovely wall hanging, perhaps in a wall grouping of some other framed news photos and articles. I think you are correct about attempting another way than the instructor was teaching and as a result of remaking the piece you were able to understand much about the mistakes that would be those that students might make. Are you thinking to teach a Craftsy course online in CBN?
Hi Karen, I’m glad you like the end result. And yes, it’s a very good likeness, probably because the pattern is based on a photo of the Prez. I’m thinking wall hanging, too. The creator, Todd Paschall, wants his certified instructors to teach the course at the big box craft stores (e.g., Michaels, AC Moore). Here in Hawaii it’s Ben Franklin Crafts. Perhaps also at a senior center. And I’ll use the Obama piece to market it. But I’m hoping to teach it online as well, through my blog. Thanks for stopping by and commenting
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Patrice, that piece is wonderful. I did the same thing. Well, I thought the same thing. I thought I’d be able to make his patterns via carrying yarn behind the work. I didn’t actually give my thought a try but I totally understand thinking you can do something one way and end up needing to do it as the instructions say. I’m so thick headed sometimes.
I think if you have it stretched it would be something you can take with you and/or hang in the stores as an example to students you’ll be teaching the technique too.
Example: When Todd showcased his pieces in his local Starbucks
Hey Sara, I think part of it is the fact that we’ve been crocheting for so long and are used to doing things a certain way. So when we see it done differently we don’t want to change our habits. I tried carrying the yarn on another piece I attempted but it just didn’t work – too many colors. My mistake on the Obama piece was in the way Todd begins and ends his rows. I thought I could do it the way I usually end and begin my rows. But his way is incorporated into the pattern numbering, so when I did it my way, it threw everything off by a stitch – and you could tell
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That’s exactly what I intend to do with this piece, use it to pitch the idea for a class at Ben Franklin and for marketing. I just restarted another piece last night, this one a photo of my daughter. I hadn’t gotten far on it, so I took all the stitches out and re-crocheted them following Todd’s instructions, without having to unknot the yarn. Looking forward to seeing your piece when you get it done.