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Show Notes
The last two weeks we have been looking at the history of crochet; the overall history and Lydia’s personal history. Now it’s time to switch gears and look at some more practical information (not that the history wasn’t practical). This episode is going to be focused on our thoughts revolving around all things crochet and we will be discussing things such as the usefulness of crochet, the benefits of it, and how it differs from other crafts like sewing or knitting.
What’s the Use?
First up, is it useful? The answer to this is, of course, YES! Lydia has shown time and time again that what someone else can knit, she can crochet…and also knit! As we saw in a previous episode, people who didn’t have much money were still able to actively pursue crocheting and make items to send to soldiers who were in the war. It is also a great way of making unique and useful pieces of clothing like hats or socks to keep you warm. There are no restrictions on what yarn you can use either. Although when most people envision crocheted goods or knitted goods, the first thing that comes to mind is larger and softer yarns like wool. However, there is no reason why you couldn’t use a thinner yarn and make a more “modern” looking clothing item. It will take you a lot longer though, since the smaller the yarn means the smaller the stitches, the smaller the stitches means you need more of them and…you see where I’m going with this. Therefore, crochet can be even as flexible as something like sewing and can produce similar results.
One interesting thing you can do with crochet which can make something more useful, is felting. If you have crocheted something from wool (it must be pure 100% wool), say a phone case, or a little pouch for your keys, you can then use a method known as felting to give it more durability. When the wool has undergone this felting process, the fibers in the wool are then compressed together which hardens and makes the item a lot more durable. These are just some of the many ways in which crochet can be a useful craft, not just something to do for fun. Although, it is fun!
What’s the Point?
Speaking of fun, within crochet, are you limited to what you can do? Is there any flexibility in how creative you can be? Not at all! Crochet allows you to open the doors to almost endless possibilities. All you need is an understanding of the basics and to know the different types of stitches and patterns and away you go. Part of the fun of crochet is the creativity it allows you to have. Whether you are making your own brand-new pattern or altering somebody else’s, a lot of the fun comes from figuring out how to make it work. The more experience you gain in crocheting, the easier these alterations will become and soon you will find yourself making anything you want to make, with ease! Here are just a few ideas: if you want to liven up your living room, you can make something like a pillow case or a doily. Go ahead and make a dish cloth or a tea towel for your kitchen. Our favorite things to make (and receive) though are definitely baby items! We’ve made hats, scarves, booties, blankies, stuffed toys, gloves, socks, you name it. Whatever you want to make, you can. Just grab your crochet hook and your yarn and relax as you start working on your next art piece.
What’s the Benefit?
The last topic we want to discuss encapsulates everything we’ve said so far and is a fitting place to draw our conclusion and summarize for you. We’ve looked at how crochet can be useful and how creative you can be, but, why crochet? Why not knitting or sewing? What advantages or disadvantages are there to crocheting? The answer really is none. There are no real disadvantages, just like there are no real advantages. Sewing, knitting, and crochet are all separate crafts and they will all allow you to be creative and make the same items, they just involve different processes and use different stitches. Once you’ve learned the basics, and the stitches of one of these crafts, you can begin your journey in discovering the possibilities it brings. The only advantage we can say that crochet has over knitting, is its transportability. The fact that crochet has only one hook as apposed to two needles and doesn’t require you to have as many stiches on the hook, allows you to move your work easier. Even this we are clutching at straws to try and find a difference. Our advice is just get started! Try crochet, and if you find you like the idea but not the procedure, try knitting, the bottom line is just try something! It won’t take long before you can be sitting at home and enjoying this wonderful craft, it just takes a little time and effort to get started, so why not give it a go?
We hope you have enjoyed todays episode and we hope as always, we have inspired you to try something new today. If you have any questions regarding the content of today’s episode, please feel free to write to us at info@fggdesigns.com.
