As you’ll know if you know me well, I’m not one for gossip (don’t give me that look!), but I feel duty bound to tell you all about this vicious rumour going around that crochet is….whisper it….easy.
I know, I know…if you’re reading this you probably already know that it is a laughable rumour with no base in reality. But some people really do believe it! And in the spirit of honesty and crochet love, I’m here to put this myth to bed once and for all.
So what are the dirty details of this ‘crochet is easy’ gossip, I hear you cry? Well, for one, some say it is a lot easier than knitting. Why wouldn’t it be?! You’ve only got one ‘stick’ to wrangle rather than two, so it must be more simple! Surely half the difficulty level of knitting, if anything. No – I’m afraid you’ve got this one wrong. The similarities between knitting and crochet begin and end with them both using yarn and creating stitches. That really is as far as it goes. And I say this with nothing but love for the knitters out there, but some of you come to crochet with such great skill, confidence and knowledge in and of the craft you already know and love, you expect to pick up this new skill with ease…and it’s hard. It’s tricky. It makes you angry when you can’t do it! I get it! My advice is: come at crochet afresh. Leave your knitting mind behind and embrace something brand new.ย
A lot of knitters have been lucky enough to have been taught by their mothers and grandmothers, who have painstakingly taught them the vital importance of tension. But actually, in crochet, you need to let go of this knowledge! Crochet is a different animal: it’s a bit more fluid, a little more relaxed and dare I say it…a lot more fun?! (Don’t be cross, knitters, we all have our favourite!). So in crochet, feel free to release the tension (in more than one way).
I promise this blog isn’t a full scale attack on knitting, but another key difference between the two beautiful skills is that in crochet, there aren’t as many rules to follow. This can be quite liberating! In knitting, you often have to unpick everything you have lovingly created if you make an error, but with crochet it can be easier to rectify mistakes. Dropped a stitch? Bung an extra one in. Simple! Some knitters, understandably, find that really hard, because part of the beauty of their craft is a rigidity in the rules that creates stunning results. Crochet is knitting’s more chilled, rebellious sister: happy to break the rules, rebel, do its own thing. Sorry, knitting: you’re beautiful, but crochet is cooler.
So crochet is cool, but it can also be a cruel mistress! Some people pick it up really quickly and find the movements intuitive, but others find it really tricky. Just because you only have one implement, it doesn’t mean half the work! The other hand works just as hard, getting the yarn ready for you and having it in the right place; it’s not as easy as it looks. I do believe most people will get there if they commit to practising, so don’t be afraid if it doesn’t come easy. I can absolutely teach you to crochet in a lesson, but a lot of the hard work comes in the rewarding graft of practising afterwards and building that all-important muscle memory. Why not read my other blog tips for crocheting? Put the time in after you learn and you’ll have a skill and a passion that stays with you for life.ย
The crochet community is a beautifully inclusive one which I am very proud to be part of, so I say this to preempt any concerns rather than to put anyone off. When you enquire about learning to crochet with The Secret Crocheter, you’ll receive a series of emails which will include lots of information, including the caveat that you’ll need good dexterity in your hands to crochet. Be really mindful of this if you’d like to learn as it can be really difficult if you have lots of pain in your hands or a restricted range of movement. It can be really helpful, too, to increase mobility, but perhaps have a real think about your own personal circumstances before making the decision. You could talk to other crocheters, speak to your GP or physio and think about other activities that have similar demands on your hands (and your ability to manage them comfortably) to help you decide.
Maybe you’ve tried crochet already, so a lot of this is ringing true?! Perhaps you love the idea of it but you just can’t quite get the hang of it. Don’t worry: you’re really not alone! If you haven’t mastered it yet but would really like to, why not try a 1-2-1 lesson with me? It might just be that you need to learn in a different way (and my way is tried and tested!), or that you need to watch someone else do it to truly get it. Probably the most important tip, though, is to really try to adopt a growth mindset with this and learn from your mistakes. As I said at the top of the blog, crochet is marvellous but it’s not easy to learn, and we all remember what they said at school: if at first you don’t succeed, try, try again. Have fun with getting it wrong, dropping a stitch, practising holding your hook right….and you’ll eventually have that incomparable feeling of getting good at something you initially found really hard. As you know, I’m not one to gossip, but there’s a rumour going round that this feeling really is the best.ย