Nicki Trench

Make your own crocheted toy with this wonderful craft kit. It comes with everything you'll need to start crocheting so you can make your own adorable super-cutie, Melody the Kitten, plus all the items are packed in a handy re-usable tin.

If you dream of growing, harvesting and eating your own produce, here's how to begin. Author Nicki Trench, who has created her own garden farm from scratch, shares with you everything there is to know about growing vegetables, fruit and herbs, including making your own compost, growing in raised beds and protecting your crops from pests and disease. Nicki also explains how to rear chickens for eggs and bees for honey, and gives advice on keeping goats and pigs. The benefits of creating your garden farm are not just economic - the energy once obsessively expended on the exercise bike can now be channelled more productively by digging the vegetable patch, turning the compost or cleaning out the hen coop. Communities are reappearing over garden fences as neighbours share their harvest of courgettes, spinach and eggs. Whatever you choose to grow or rear on your garden farm, this book offers a taste of the good life that is easy, satisfying and inexpensive to achieve.

Crochet a cosy for your phone, your teapot, your laptop, your favourite books, your passport and more! Cover all your most precious items with cute and colourful crochet, and then why not make something for all your friends too? Start with simple vase cosies to brighten up your mantelpiece, keep your tablet or e-reader safe with a wave-patterned striped cosy, then move on to more complex designs such as the adorable crocheted flower tea cosy, the pretty lace tealight covers, and the soft and warm hot water bottle cover. Expert crafter Nicki Trench, a crochet teacher and author with over 20 years' experience, has designed a series of patterns that will guide you through making these beautiful projects incorporating a wide range of crochet techniques. There is a comprehensive techniques section that explains all the stitches with clear artworks and instructions, followed by three chapters packed with patterns that will delight and inspire you.

Wrap up in style with these 35 cute and colourful crocheted scarves and cowls. It takes no time at all to crochet a cowl or a scarf, and some of these are super-fast, using chunky yarns and a big hook. Nicki Trench has created a wide range of contemporary designs, with a variety of stitches and fashionable colours, so you'll really stand out from the crowd. Start with the soft and cosy pom pom scarf or the bright shell stitch scarf in red, yellow and peach. Not every scarf or cowl has to just be for winter! The pretty silk lace scarf and the cool Mexican-inspired tasselled scarf can be worn all year round. There are also handy stash-busters such as the patchwork scarf and the horizontal striped cowl. Whether you want to match your scarf to your outfit or give them as gifts, there's something for everyone in Crocheted Scarves and Cowls.

Follow Nicki Trench's simple crochet patterns to create a wonderful collection of 35 animal hats. Choose from a wide variety of wild and wonderful animal hat designs; there are hats to keep little babies cosy, such as the super-cute rabbit and kitten and hats for toddlers and bigger kids such as the cool penguin, fierce (but sweet) shark and the cuddly polar bear. Most of the hats can be made in a range of sizes so adults who are young at heart won't feel left out, and can have their very own tiger, fox or wolf hat. Each hat has easy-to-follow instructions and uses the simplest of stitches, with clear photographs to help with the all-important snouts, ears, eyes, noses and whiskers! With essential yarn information as well as a helpful techniques section, you'll be ready to start crocheting fun animal hats in no time.

Have you ever thought that you'd like to learn the craft of crochet but have been mystified by seemingly incomprehensible patterns and jargon? If so, this is the book for you. Crochet Basics is the perfect starting point for anyone wishing to learn how to crochet. It is a structured course of 20 workshops and projects, which starts by showing you how to hold your crochet hook and leads you through all the techniques and stitches you will ever need to know. The Getting Started section provides advice on yarns and equipment, step-by-step illustrations show how to work the stitches and there is essential information on how to understand crochet patterns. This is followed by the workshops, each of which introduces new techniques and reinforces those already learned. Each workshop finishes with a project which consolidates these skills. Projects range from items for the home, such as cushions and throws, to clothes and accessories, including a striped sweater, cute camisole, beanie hat and bobble bag. Crochet Basics takes you by the hand and shows you the easy way to learn. And with plenty of projects to spur you on, you'll soon work your way up from crocheting simple squares to creating your own garments.