Getting hooked
Two weeks ago I spontaneously taught myself how to crochet. Of course I already knew how to knit, but having had too much time on my hands to browse ravelry, I saw some cool crochet patterns which appealed to me. So I dug out those old crochet hooks who I’ve inherited from probably my grandmother plus some leftover yarn, and started crocheting. YouTube has once again been a great help, and about an hour later I created a somewhat crooked swatch. Afterwards I tried my luck with a granny square, which still looks a bit crooked, but I think I’ve got the hang of it now. Someday I plan to crochet a lot of granny squares from my leftover sock yarn and make a quilt out of them. I wonder how that’ll work out, because so far I’m having the feeling that the only yarn suitable for crocheting it 100% cotton, whereas sock yarn is usually 70-80% wool and 30-20% nylon. I’ll figure it out, all I need is probably just a smaller hook.
The smallest one I currently own is a 3mm metal hook which I bought two weeks ago, my other ones are 3.5mm+. I only own metal hooks, unfortunately. I’ve been to my Local Yarn Store to see if they have any high quality wooden hooks, but unfortunately not. Another store only has bamboo hooks, but they look completely useless. My hands are very sensitive and get cold easily, a reason why I only knit with bamboo knitting needles – therefore I hope I’ll find a store which sells wooden crochet hooks soon (aside from online stores). The plastic handle of my current hook is more annoying then useful because I tend to hold the hook way up front, and it just causes my hand to slightly cramp.
My granny squares are currently hibernating while I’m crocheting the essential thing everyone has probably crocheted at least once in their life: potholders. We needed spares for our kitchen anyway in colors which suits our blue-themed kitchen better. Our current ones have served for 5 years under a rattly old oven (we have a new one now), and are full of burn marks. Also, they’re pretty much the only yellow thing in the kitchen.
Surprisingly I have never learned how to crochet potholders in school – something pretty much everyone has done. The simple explanation for that is that I went to a lousy school. I did however learn how to knit in school (4th grade), but didn’t knit again until 2005. Until recently crocheting was a total mystery for me, but as with anything it’s pretty easy once you get the hang of it. My next crochet project will be a few very simple amigurumis – at least I hope so.
With this recently found enthusiasm for crochet, I was naturally a bit worried about my knitting projects. But I’ve found a good system to keep both equally balanced – I knit in the living room front of the TV and I crochet at my desk in front of the computer. It works pretty well because knitting requires less attention and I can easily do it while watching a movie or Jon Stewart or something. Crocheting (currently) needs a bit more attention so I do it while listening to stuff or browsing. If I only wasn’t so impatient and crafting wouldn’t take up so much time… so many great ideas, so little time!
You know, not learning crocheting in school doesn’t exactly mean it’s a lousy school. In fact, I don’t know anyone else who learned either crocheting or knitting in school. And why would they teach that, anyway? Their curriculae are already full of completely useless crap…
For me, it was one of the less-than-useful things my mother taught me. She was, in spite of knowing that she had had her part in bringing me up that way, completely amazed that a boy could, much less would, crochet. 🙂
Do not worry about the yarn, IME you can crochet pretty much any thread. Even hair or nylon. Just be careful with the smaller hooks, because they hurt like ass when they scratch the skin.
How come, by the way, it is so oddly satisfying making even trivial things like potholders?
In my case it really WAS a lousy school, what else can be expected of a village school? 😉 I had “textile” (as opposed to art) lessons in 4th, 5th and 6th grade, where it was common to learn knitting, sewing, cross-stitching, etc, but somehow I never learned crocheting there. A lot of people I talk to about knitting and crocheting about have learned it in school, but maybe there are regional differences in this.
Yay for your mother not raising you to gender stereotypes! Though of course a lot of men still have reservations about those crafts, but there seems to be a hidden men-who-knit subculture as far as I can tell from the couple of thousand male knitters/crocheters on ravelry 😉
I learned to crochet and knit mostly from my mum but we had both at school too. And I don’t think it was useless at all. Obviously craft lessons could have been less gendered.
Anyway, I have been opposite, knitting has been bit of mystery for me. But I have now kind of getting it. Crocheting is still the thing I like the most. And like simon said you can crochet anything you want.
That is so awesome! You are really good for just starting out! My mom and grandmother taught me how to crochet when I was younger and once in a while i will make a little blanket or a pillow but I’m not that good at it. I always have good intentions to get back into it but I never end up really doing so. I love ravelry. That site is amazing.