Monday, July 25, 2011

Learning to crochet...

So, crochet. I love to crochet. Obsessed with it really, I am. It's the perfect hobby because you can crochet whilst you watch films or whilst you listen to music or when you're sat around with friends having a chat and at the end of all the colourful looping fun you get a wonderful woolly finished one-of-a-kind handmade personal thing, maybe a blanket or a cushion cover or some slippers or a crazy cardigan.

I learnt to crochet granny squares from a lady in America via a great set of videos which she uploaded onto YouTube (consequently I like to refer to her affectionately as my YouTube granny). How amazing is that? The internet really can be such a great source of learning if you're determined enough and you know where to look. The lady in question, whose name, according to her YouTube profile is Beth - Hi Beth! I'm waving! - has recently updated all her videos so that they are even more helpful and snazzy. Here are a few of the more helpful ones for getting started, should you too wish to learn the wonders of crochet:

1. How to hold
the hook, yarn tension, slip knot


2. How to crochet a granny square, Part 1


Part 2


Part 3


(All three videos come from Bethintx1's YouTube Channel which you can find here. I'm just linking to them, in no way are they mine)

Simply googling the words 'granny square' will bring you a wealth of information, instruction and inspiration, but just in case your brain functions better with diagrams, here are some more very helpful instructions to see you on your merry crocheting way. Be careful tho, the Purl Bee website might give you very strong urges to buy lots of deliciously fancy wool!

I got completely carried away when I first learnt to crochet granny squares last year. Well not straight away. I still have the first granny square I ever made. It's yellow and slightly wonky and I use it as a coaster for my cup of coffee every morning.
Bless it's wonky ways!

After that is when I got properly carried away. If you just keep adding on to the outside of a granny square, eventually you get a giant granny square which can function very nicely as a small blanket. It takes longer and longer to get around the square every time, but if you keep changing colours it leads to a very effective and snazzy blanket.
Why, yes that is a small badger sat atop my sofa. What of it?

Time for a close up of my lovely lovely stiches.....
This is what it would look like if you were shrunk down to fairy size and you went clambering over the blanket :)

So this blanket perfectly sized for putting on my lap and keeping my knees warm in winter time. Yep, the name granny square starts making a lot of sense here - a blanket of this style really does make you look rather a lot like a granny!
Snug as a granny!
N.B. All the above pictures of my granny square goodness were taken by me

Linking in with my aforementioned love of poetry and rhyme, I feel I should also mention that this blanket is not just useful for putting on your LAP but also really good when you want to have a NAP. It's the perfect size for curling up under and feeling warm and cosy.

You can learn more about giant granny square blankets
here

If you are very observant you may notice that I have crocheted slippers peeking out from underneath the blanket, and also that there is a crochet cardigan draped on the back of my chair. But I don't want to overload you with crochet brilliance all in one go so I'll save those for another time - ahhh suspense!

Why not learnt to crochet today??

2 comments:

  1. I tried to learn to crochet a few years ago but despite practicing for a few weeks, my stitches would always end up different sizes. This has a lot to do wtiht he fact that I space out and as the mood of my thoughts change, so does the tension of my figners, and the tension of my stitches. I mostly just made big messes.

    I really love the colors int hat last granny square-the purples and reds look great :)

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  2. Thanks faith :) yes tension really is the trickiest part of crocheting. you could always try and make a feature out of it - it would be like a mood blanket mapping your changing state of mind!

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