I was unemployed at the time… and bored. I found myself in the craft section of Walmart and decided I’d like to learn to crochet. I’d always wanted to, what better time than now?
So I picked up a 6 pack of Susan Bates Luxite hooks, a couple skeins of cheap acrylic yarn (I believe it was Caron Simply Soft), and a beginner’s stitch guide that I found in the yarn aisle.
…and I read through the entire booklet. I tried every stitch in it and made countless little square “coasters”. I made a long scarf in which I switched between stitch patterns and, since I still wasn’t very sure of what I was doing, lost and gained stitches all over the place. I put some nice fringe on the ends of the scarf and ended up donating it to a shelter. I don’t even have a photo of this atrocity but I hope it kept someone warm in the winter regardless.
Once I practiced enough with the stitches in the booklet, I looked to the internet and found lots of helpful info on YouTube and the Lion Brand website. Of course I’ve found a ton more instructional information online since then, but that’s where I started. I found pretty much all of my early project patterns for free at Lion Brand and Crochet Pattern Central.
Now, almost 6 years later, I find my patterns (free and otherwise) almost exclusively at Ravelry. You have to be a member but it’s free and worth it in so many ways. There are tons of knitters and crocheters and designers there that are willing to help or point you in the right direction. You can also view notes and photos from other people’s experiences with specific patterns… so you can see if yours looks the way it’s supposed to. You can read about alterations others have made to the pattern and check out what other things they’ve made. I didn’t mean for this post to turn into a commercial for Ravelry but it is pretty amazing the way it has opened up the “crochet community”. If you seriously want to learn to crochet and you haven’t already checked it out, I definitely recommend it :)
So how did YOU learn to crochet or knit? What do you recommend?
