Spotlight on a Crocheter: Pamela Tasny

Several years ago, when I first opened my Etsy shop, I joined a group of other Etsy sellers who specialized in thread crochet. It was through this group I met the talented Pamela Tasny, who has since become a dear friend. Pam was the first to follow my blog, the first to ‘like’ the BellaCrochet page on Facebook and she has also tested several patterns for me. Pamela creates some of the most gorgeous doilies I have ever seen; her color choices are stunning and her stitching is flawless. I asked Pamela if she would share a bit about herself and her crochet work. Here is what she has to say:

I live with my husband and father-in-law in Michigan during the summer and Arizona during the winter. All my family live in Cincinnati, Ohio except for my oldest sister who lives in England. I have 2 sisters - one older and one younger- and my brother is the youngest. I have one daughter, 3 granddaughters and twin grandsons.

I have a 8 year old Chihuahua named Ginger who is the joy of my days.

I like to crochet - mostly doilies - and read and geocache. I studied geology at the University of Cincinnati with a 4.0 grade average.

My ex late mother-in-law taught me to crochet when I was 17 years old (40 years ago) and the first thing I made was a ripple afghan. The second thing I made was a pineapple doily. My favorite doily I've made so far  is this Hairpin Lace Doily.

I make on average 12 doilies a year. I love to make them  using several colors. I haven't made very many using all one color.

My favorite hooks are Susan Bates and my favorite thread is Lizbeth in  sizes 10 and 20. I used to not like symbol patterns but once I got used to them I like them the best. I have all 155 issues of Magic Crochet, and make doilies from them often.

I have a couple of favorite crocheting tips. One is to use rubber knitting needle point protectors for my crochet hooks to protect the hook end.

And sometimes my thread starts twisting real bad while I am crocheting.  I put a safety pin in the stitch I'm on and hold the ball of thread as high off the floor as I can and let the doily hang as close to the floor without it touching. The doily will spin and when it stops spinning the thread from it to the ball will be untwisted. Some thread - especially good quality thread- twists a lot, so I do this periodically when the thread starts twisting again.

I get pretty frustrated when I find I have made a mistake in a doily. My husband

blocks all my doilies for me, and occasionally he will notice a mistake that can’t be fixed without frogging nearly the whole doily.  I'm embarrassed to say I have actually cut up

a few doilies with scissors and have thrown some in the trash!

 Pamela has an Ebay store where she sells craft books, supplies and her gorgeous doilies:

http://stores.ebay.com/tadrickcrafts/

And a blog:

http://crochethuahua.blogspot.com/

And you can find Pamela on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Crochet-Creations-By-Pamela/126471237368354?ref=bookmarks

Thank you, Pamela, for sharing your expertise and love of crochet with us today!

All pictures are used  courtesy of  Pamela Tasny.