Welcome to the MFY x TL Yarn Crafts Collaboration

We are beyond thrilled to be working with Toni Lipsey of TL Yarn Crafts to provide a comprehensive and exclusive Tunisian crochet experience for our MFY Family! This experience will include an immersive virtual class on Tunisian crochet, as well as a crochet along event! In the three-week course, Toni will teach you everything you’ll need to know in order to create a gorgeous Tunisian crochet shawl that she has designed specifically for MFY and our CAL!

Opportunities

The Full Experience - REGISTRATION IS NOW CLOSED

🔸  An invitation to private course group moderated by Toni
🔸  A three-week immersive course that begins March 18th
🔸  3 skeins of Hayfield Bonus DK yarn to use for classwork
🔸  An invitation to a private CAL group moderated by Toni
🔸  Access to weekly live events with Toni beginning April 8th
🔸  5 skeins of Koigu KPPPM (fingering weight, 100% Merino Wool)
🔸  The exclusive shawl pattern featuring stitches learned in class

The CAL Only option - IN PERSON REGISTRATION OPEN THROUGH APRIL 4

🔸  An invitation to a private CAL group moderated by Toni
🔸  Access to weekly live events with Toni beginning April 8th
🔸  5 skeins of Koigu KPPPM (fingering weight, 100% Merino Wool)
🔸  The exclusive shawl pattern featuring stitches learned in class 

Say Hi to Toni

Toni Lipsey is the designer, instructor and author behind TL Yarn Crafts. She has designed more than 200 patterns for modern stitchers from sweaters to shawls to blankets and more. Her skills, smile and warm and bubbly personality have made Toni a sought after expert in crochet and Tunisian Crochet, who can often be found sharing her knowledge via social media and YouTube videos. Toni has been in the fiber industry full time since 2017 and has been back home in the Detroit area since 2022.

You can connect with Toni on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest, Ravelry and YouTube.  

For more information on Toni Lipsey click over to her website! We were also fortunate enough to have Toni answer some questions for us about her crafting and how her relationship with her mother ties in to her love of fiber! Find the full interview here!

What is Tunisian Crochet?

The easiest way to think of Tunisian crochet is a cross between knitting and crochet. It is completed using one long hook with a stopper or a shorter hook with  an attached cable that holds stitches as they are being worked. 

The history of Tunisian crochet is murky at best. Other names for the craft have circulated including: Afghan crochet, hook knitting, tricot crochet, hakking, railroad knitting and shepherd's knitting (to name but a few). Tunisian crochet stitches have been found in publications as early as the 1800s, and it is believed that Queen Victoria herself participated in the craft. As such, you may also hear it referred to as "Royal Princess Knitting".

While the origins of the craft are unclear, it enjoyed it's heyday during the Victorian era - along with all manners of other fiber and needle arts. By the 1920s and 1930s Tunisian crochet was all gone from the crafting scene. The recent resurgence makes for a wonderful middle ground for knitters and crocheters, and provides a whole world of opportunity for makers to stretch their creativity! For example, the grid-like fabric made from the Tunisian Simple Stitch makes a fabulous backdrop for duplicate stitch, embroidery, cross stitch, etc. The possibilities are truly endless!

Toni has written a fantastic beginner's guide to all things Tunisian crochet. Learn the tools, techniques and tricks to go from beginner to savant in no time! Pick up a copy to add to your craft library and have her knowledge in print and right at your fingertips! Get your copy of The Tunisian Crochet Handbook from Toni's website.

Course Overview

Toni will be teaching a three-week virtual class on Tunisian crochet that will include all of the stitches and techniques needed to craft the shawl she designed specifically for our crochet along!

Course material will be released weekly in an exclusive course Facebook group with live check-ins each week for questions and clarifications. Toni will moderate any written questions in this group during the event as well. Class begins March 18th and participants will receive an emailed invitation to join the private Facebook group. 

Crochet Along Details

Immediately following the course will be a crochet along event featuring a shawl pattern Toni designed to utilize the stitches from the course. This will fully cement the new skills and techniques while creating an absolutely gorgeous shawl.

Everyone signed up for the CAL will receive the pattern via email before the Cast On Party on April 8th. Live streams will be hosted and remain available to watch in the private Facebook group that participants will be invited to join. Invitations will also be sent via email.

Why KOIGU Yarn?

One of the things we love most about Toni is her relationship with her mother. The love and strength of their bond reminds us so much of Swaran and her mother that we felt instantly connected. Top that off with Swaran's daughter Divya helping behind the scenes at MFY, and we knew this would be a special, SPECIAL project.

To find a yarn that would capture the joy, the love, and the heart behind this collaboration, it was immediately clear that we needed to include the ladies of KOIGU. Our dear friends have three generations of mothers and daughters involved in their business, and the quality of their product can't be beat. Each of their stunning hand-dyed colorways will be highlighted through the Tunisian crochet stitches, and we cannot wait to see the projects you create with their hard work!