It’s been a while since we featured one of our customers, but we just had to share about Carolyn Morton’s passion for creating locker hooked gifts. Carolyn is an accomplished crafter and has been locker hooking for some time. She’s been purchasing Color Crazy kits and materials for over ten years. In fact, she’s probably one of the first customers to shop with Color Crazy when we launched over a decade ago. She’s made a variety of projects inspired from both the Hook, Loop & Lock and Locking Loops books–trivets, panels, and a beautiful journal cover. She’s also recently locker hooked basket and coaster sets to give as gifts. These designs are such a great gift idea, that we decided to create a special pattern and make it available for other customers.
You can download Carolyn’s Gift Basket & Coaster Set Pattern here. The set is locker hooked on 3.75 Mesh Canvas with 3/4″w Color Crazy Hand-Dyed Cotton Fabric Strips. Carolyn locker hooks a set of 4 coasters to fit in the coordinating basket.
A Creative Chat with Carolyn Morton…
We asked Carolyn about how she discovered locker hooking and about her passion for creating:
Carolyn, can you share how you got started?
After retiring ten years ago, I found myself in a craft store looking for a hobby when I came upon Theresa Pulido’s book, Hook, Loop & Lock. I watched her video on making a trivet and have been locker hooking ever since.
What do you like most about creating with this craft?
Most everything is fast and easy to make with an unlimited options of colorful fabrics, textures and designs that can be used.
What projects or designs do you like to create the most?
Lately I’ve been making a set of four 5″ x 5″ coasters with a matching basket to store them in–all gifts for friends and family. I use Color Crazy’s 3/4″W hand-dyed cotton fabric strips and the XTRA FIRM 3.75 Mesh Canvas.
Do you create your own patterns?
Not very often, but that’s what is so great about Color Crazy. There are so many patterns, included in Theresa’s two books, and so many kits to choose from her website.
How do you choose the colors you work with? What are your favorites?
If I’m making something for a specific person I try to choose colors that match their decor. My favorite colors are oranges, corals, teals, and aquamarines.
Some of your projects like the journal cover include a lot of texture. Is texture easy to add with locker hooking? What do you use to locker hook with more texture?
I have definitely added texture to some of my favorite projects–like the journal cover I made. Texture adds dimension and a certain quality to the design. In addition to cotton fabric strips, wools, silk and satin fabrics, you can also choose mohair, acrylic yarns, rayon, and a variety of other textural yarns in locker hooked designs. Adding twine, jute and raffia also adds great texture.
What are you working on next?
I am making more baskets to hold cocktail napkins which I am giving to friends and will include a package of beverage napkins in each basket. I also made 4″ heart ornaments for Valentine’s Day.
Do you enjoy other crafts? If so, what are they?
Over the years I have made numerous craft items, but now stick mainly to locker hooking.
What would you recommend to someone who is trying locker hooking for the first time?
Watch a tutorial on locker hooking and start with something easy like a trivet and go from there. Color Crazy’s fabric strips and tile selections are wonderful. They save so much time cutting or tearing fabric from your own yardage.
Thank you, Carolyn for the sharing your creativity and your inspiration.
Beautiful work and thank you for sharing the pattern! I love locker hooking; it’s so relaxing and fun!
You’re welcome Annie! So glad you found it. We love locker hooking too and plan to make more patterns available free for download.