For most of my life, I’ve know people who can crochet. Whether it was a family member, a friend or someone who I chatted to online, I feel like I knew a lot of talented people. I found myself owning quite a few crocheted pieces that I was gifted from people and I loved all of them. I love the idea that someone put all that time and effort into making a blanket, gloves, scarf or whatever else, just for me. It warms my heart that someone would put effort and time into something for little old me.
Since I love the look of crochet, I wanted to try it out for myself. I’ve tried a few time in the past but I was never able to stick it out.
I recently tweeted out that I wanted to be able to crochet and people’s responses were so lovely that I decided to give it another go for myself.
So, I set off on a mission to start learning how to crochet..
I headed out to The Range and I searched the wool section. I knew that I needed to get some wool and a crochet hook, but that’s all I knew. I had never bought my own wool before so this was a weird and fun experience in itself. There were so many options of wool that I didn’t know where to start. I decided to start by choosing a colour I liked. I found two balls of wool that were similar colour but they felt very different. One felt fluffy and kind of like a normal wool, and the other one felt more like a t-shirt material. Since I didn’t know too much about wool, I decided to opt for the ‘normal’ wool. This definitely made me want to research wool typed once I got home though.
Finding the crochet hooks was relatively simple. I found a bunch of different sized hooks and just as I was about to become confused, I found a multipack which was the obvious decision to buy. I can’t get the wrong sized hook if I have all of them..
Once I got home, I fully examined the label on the wool. I learned that each wool comes with a size recommendation for the hook. The wool I chose needed a 4mm hook so I grabbed my pack of hooks and checked them all out. I had a 4mm hook but to me, it looked too small. This is where I free-styled it. Instead of using the 4mm hook, I opted for the 4.5mm hook. Rebellious, I know.
I then headed over to YouTube where I found the video I had previously watched which shows how to do a basic double stitch. I am using UK terms for anyone who is wondering. I watched the video one more time while just holding my hook and pretending to crochet in the air. I feel like it probably sounds pretty dumb but I think that this is one of the things that helped me the most. I then watched the video one more time and followed along by actually crocheting this time.
My first attempt really wasn’t very good. But honestly, I’m proud of it.
Even though it’s not perfect, I feel like I slowly began to get the hang of making the stitches.
This is where I found a couple of problems:
1. I kept dropping stitches.
2. The edges were curling.
3. I struggled with the ends of each row.
Even though I had a few problems, I was proud of my progress. In one day, I went from having no crochet skills to being able to make messy rows of stitches. I spent the rest of the day practicing over and over again.
My First Project
Since I only understood a basic double stitch, I decided to create a scarf for one of my plushies. I didn’t know if it would turn out being any good but I figured that it would be a fun project to try and a great way to test my skills.
I started the exact same way as I had last time and I found it growing rather quickly. Within an hour or two, I had finished the scarf and honestly, I’m pretty proud of it.
It’s not 100% perfect but I’m happy with it. Considering it was my first project, I don’t think I made too many mistakes. I’m sure that I will improve my skills over time though.
The Granny Square
I feel like a crochet staple is the granny square. I see so many people making such lovely blankets with them. So, of course I decided to try to make one for myself.
I watched a few different YouTube videos but I couldn’t seem to get the hang of it.
After a little break, I scrolled through YouTube looking for more granny square tutorials and that is when it finally worked. I found a tutorial that I actually understood.
My first few attempts were a mess. I kept having to unravel my work and try again. But I understood the basic idea so I was happy. I didn’t find constantly unravelling my granny square and starting again because every single time I tried again, I improved. As they say, practise makes perfect.
Eventually I made a granny square that I was happy with. It had flaws and it was pretty uneven, but I’m still a beginner so I was proud of myself overall.
I’m still learning but I’m so proud of my progress.
I’m hoping to keep on learning and progress my skills even further. Maybe one day I’ll be able to make something I can wear or use. I hope to even make a plush one day. We will see where my crochet skill take me..
Do you know how to crochet? What’s a project that you’re currently working on?
Positively Eleanor 