Friday Focus: Joyce Overheul

How was your week, friends? I hope you had a delightful week and accomplished everything that you set out to do. Unfortunately, our week was a bit stressful and we are very much looking forward to the weekend! You know what helps me relax and recover from life's stresses? Crochet! Especially lively, colorful crochet. In fact, just perusing the patterns of today's featured crocheter makes me feel a bit lighter. Joyce, aka The Flying Dutchman, has written many popular and imaginative patterns. I'll wager that her designs can put a smile on your face. You might even find that you're dying to work one up! But that's not all... Joyce also creates compelling concept art. What a multifaceted and talented woman! Let's take a moment today to learn about her.

Who taught you to crochet? How long have you been doing it? 
I taught myself to crochet almost three years ago, after I got my first crochet hook from my grandmother. I still use that hook, I make almost every design with the same 4.0mm needle.

Why do you crochet?
The reason I started to crochet was because I loved being able to make nice accessories and stuffed animals. Also I was trying to raise some funds for my concept art projects, which can be found here, by selling those items on Etsy. I noticed I didn’t have that many sales and that it wasn’t really working out as I hoped because of the high international shipping rates. At the same time people started asking me if they could have the patterns I used for creating those items, since they wanted to make everything themselves. From that moment on I decided I was going to be a pattern seller. I also found out I love to make something entirely from scratch; to design a 3D crochet item is like 3D printing something with your hands and just some yarn. ☺

Crochet Favorites
I love crochet animals! They’re so much fun to design. I also love making funny hats, too, and crochet food. 
I don’t really have a favorite yarn, I only work with yarn that is donated to my web shop. In exchange of your left over yarn you may pick as many of my crochet patterns as you want! This way, I can keep on crocheting in the most inexpensive way possible, and save up more money for my concept art.

What are you working on right now?
Currently I’m working on some Autumn themed items (I know, it’s January….), like toad stools, forest animals, gnomes and cute gnome houses. I really like to work on a theme for a couple weeks, I just finished two ancient style hats (a Roman helmet and a Viking helmet) and previous to that I made some plants in pots. Feel free to follow me on Facebook and Instagram to see the latest pictures of my work-in-progress. ☺

A few finished objects...
I’m really proud of my 3D alphabet. It was a pain to design, but in the end it’s so much fun to decorate your house with these lovely letters. ☺ 

Rocket ship

Lobster

Wow! Such variety and lovely shapes. My personal favorite of Joyce's patterns is her Monsieur the Lobster Chef. Joyce is a true citizen of the web. In addition to the links above, she can be found on Ravelry, Twitter, Etsy for patterns, Etsy for FOs, Craftsy, and her blog. Thank you so very much for sharing with us today, Joyce. I can't wait to go check out your concept art!