5 WAYS TO GET GOOD AT CROCHET
Crocheting is a therapeutic pass time for many fibre artists. It is a skill that brings fulfillment when you look back at how good you’ve become and when you finally start seeing a piece coming together.
For many beginners, the goal is to become fast and good at it, but it has to be learned like any skill. Here are five tips on how to become good at crocheting
Practice
We have all come across the phrase, “practice makes perfect,” in different variations. In crocheting, regular practice does produce good results. Start by working on knowing the different types of stitches. Some beginner-friendly stitches are; single crochet, half-double crochet, and double crochet, to name a few.
Practice working on your techniques and how you hold your hook and working yarn. Being able to master the essential beginner skills makes for better work ahead of your crochet journey. Bella Coco’s channel is a good place to start.
Start Small and Easy
Always start on small easy-to-do projects. This will eliminate the likelihood of frustration and the temptation to give up. As mentioned above, go back to basics to learn how to achieve a certain stitch or achieve a neat project, for example.
It can be tempting to jump straight into advanced projects, but this is cause for upset, and it may take more time than if you just started by learning the very easy stuff. Don’t worry. You’ll get there. It’s also advisable to grasp what type of yarn you feel will work best for you.
Watch & Read Tutorials
With the internet, we no longer need to rely on our lovely grandmothers and aunties to teach us how to crochet. That’s assuming these were the only sources for this knowledge. There are an unlimited number of tutorials on the web. You can even find both paid and free patterns for certain projects.
Start with the free patterns until you’re comfortable enough to pay for some. Follow the patterns stitch for stitch, and with time, try the same pattern with different adjustments.
Be Patient
Patience is key when it comes to this. Because it is a skill that takes time to perfect, you will require a lot of patience. Not all crocheting days will go as smoothly as you may wish, and there will be times when you feel discouraged.
It will help if you let go of the idea of perfection, as this hinders progress and only offers discouragement. When following a tutorial, go step by step, even when it seems like a long process. But sometimes, patience runs out, which brings us to the final point.
Take a Break
Take a well-deserved break and come back to your projects later. Taking a step back will help you avoid the frustrations of learning. You can try to work at a skill for hours on end, but eventually, you will spend large amounts of energy, which might lead to avoiding any crochet-related thing entirely.
Be sure to exercise your fingers and wrists on your break and give them rest too. They need it, plus we don’t want sore arms, now do we?
Happy crocheting, and don’t forget to count your stitches!
