Crocheting is a hobby I’ve had my eye on for years. There is no short supply of cute stuffed animals, stylish outfits, and useful creations like coasters and plant holders on my Instagram feed. Despite this, it took me years to work up the courage to begin the hobby. The main barrier I encountered was where to begin. If you’re wondering the same, let me tell you how I’ve fallen in love with the hobby and removed the stress of finding a good step one.
I found getting a starting kit to be a great way to begin. The one I personally have is this one. It has everything I’ve needed and more, including multiple hook sizes so I could work with varying widths of yarn. The travel bag it’s in is also great. I did find the yarn to be a little hard to work with when I was first learning, so I’d recommend getting a ball of yarn or two that are a little thicker and less soft. Walmart carries small balls of yarn by the brand Peaches & Creme, which I purchased with a recommended hook size of 5.0mm, a size already included in the starter kit. It is inexpensive at only $2 for a small ball, so if you make something you don’t like, you haven’t wasted anything fancy. It would also be reasonable to buy a couple cheap balls of yarn and a single hook if you don’t want to invest in a starter kit. Michael’s and Hobby Lobby both have a massive yarn selection!
Once I had all my materials, I decided to learn my first stitch. Although jumping right into a project was tempting, I realized I a) couldn’t read patterns and b) didn’t know how to do anything they were asking even once I could read the patterns. I also found the couple of books I got from my local library on learning how to crochet were difficult to follow. That’s when I discovered simplydaisy on YouTube. Her tutorial videos, “How To Crochet for Absolute Beginners: Part 1 and Part 2” were absolutely crucial in how I got the hang of the basics. She walks you through how to hold the hook, do a slip knot, and how to chain. These were the fundamentals, like knowing the alphabet when learning to write. The first video then displayed how to do a single crochet, or a half double crochet (region dependent for name) stitch. It was so simple once I got in the rhythm, and I was able to make a very nice little square:
Having some initial success/visible progress was great for me to stay motivated and continue learning new stitches. Simplydaisy’s sequel to the first video taught a double and triple crochet stitch, two more fundamental stitches in basic patterns. Once I had these under my belt, I chose my first actual project: a star blanket. When looking for patterns, they will be labeled by difficulty from beginner, to easy, medium, and hard. “Easy” can be deceptive, so it may be good to stick to patterns classified for beginners at the start.
I followed the simplicity star pattern by SamanthaJaneCreations. This was a free pattern I could download as a PDF. There are tons of free patterns out there, so I’d recommend sticking to those in the beginner stage, and making purchases later on when you’re making something very specific and complex. This pattern was a great starting project for several reasons: there was a key at the beginning defining what the pattern abbreviations were, clear instructions, and periodic pictures of what your project should look like. I’m sure there are video tutorials out there, but I liked the written pattern for this one. Plus, it helped me learn to read basic patterns in the process! Here are some photos of my personal progress and the completed blanket:
I am so proud of how this turned out. I worked on mine for about two weeks in my spare time, but it is important to give yourself grace. You might finish way faster, or you might take more time. Ensuring you give yourself (and your hands!) breaks is important. It’s a new hobby, it’s supposed to be fun! You’ll also notice, if you look at the example in the pattern and my blanket, my project is imperfect. I struggled to keep the sections that form the inner corners of the stars even. It looks a little funky up close, rather than having the nice dotted openings all the way up like at the points. But if I hadn’t told you that, it really isn’t too noticeable, and hasn’t impacted my enjoyment of the final product. Remember, we’re beginners! I’ve had to remind myself to be kind to myself and the project. Learning something new is going to come with some mistakes here and there.
At this point, I decided I wanted to try and make something I could wear. And ideally something that wouldn’t take so long to complete. A sweater seemed daunting, so I decided to make the easiest clothing item I could think of: a backless tank top. I found a great tutorial by Bronte B on YouTube. It used a new stitch called the Moss Stitch, which is really a Frankenstein of the skills we’ve already learned. And the final product turned out so cute!
It was great to make something I could actually wear! It is, unfortunately, freezing cold at the time I made this. But I’ll get to wear it eventually. For this tutorial, I would advise more or less disregarding the exact number of rows and instead going off your own body and desired fit. Just make sure the initial first row is an even number of stitches. I made my straps way too long initially and had to go back and shorten them. Trust your instincts! I also made the base thickness of my straps less, again customizing it how I thought would fit/work best on me.
And that’s everything I’ve made so far. I’ve got my sights set on a winter hat next. There are so many patterns, stitches, and yarn types out there. This was a great way to start practicing the basics and learning how to work with the yarn. I hope it was helpful. Take the leap into the hobby! The possibilities are endless and it is super fun.