Book excerpt: Crochet Southwest Spirit offers laid-back bohemian style inspired by natural landscapes that’s a breath of fresh air for your crochet repertoire. You’ll feel the freedom of the wide-open spaces and deep turquoise skies of the American southwest as you work this unique collection of patterns. Peaceful color palettes drawn from the mountains, mesas, valleys, deserts, rivers, and rock formations of Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, and Arizona bring a relaxed vibe to these beginner and intermediate patterns. Author Susan Kennedy of Pretty Peaceful Crochet is blessed by beautiful geography, living in the gorgeous San Juan mountains of southwest Colorado near Durango. She loves to make boho home décor inspired by the nature around her that is as practical and durable as it is beautiful. You’ll find blankets, pillows, rugs, baskets, towels, wall hangings, wraps, and tote bags in this collection. Here, simple serape-style stripes are right at home next to intricate southwestern tapestry crochet patterns. Susan’s love of math and geometry inspires her to make complex patterns as simple as possible to stitch. Patterns don’t have to be complicated to be beautiful. Crochet Southwest Spirit makes the most of the meditative repetition and soothing rhythm of crochet for maximum crochet enjoyment and satisfaction. Many of the projects are perfect to crochet while unwinding over a weekend. The author holds the fiber arts traditions carried on by generations of Southern Ute, Ute Mountain, Diné Navajo, and Hopi families in the Four Corners area of the USA in great respect. The original projects in this book use natural cotton and wool fibers produced by indigenous artists and shepherds whenever possible to honor this history and promote a sustainable future for this land.