People Bring Life to My Crochet

ScannedImageThere are times when my crochet needs an awakening. I can crochet for hours on end, pick up a skein and “play”, no pattern, no end goal, and still create something, it is a therapy, a routine. I create, but sometimes it just feels like the motions.

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Some of the woman that shared wonderful inspiration of crochet at the 2015 CGOA annual conference

Now, please, do not misunderstand; I love crochet. I have been placing hook to yarn for many decades, and evenings when I do not have a project in hand, I feel fidgety. I cannot go to long without at least making random stitches. Crochet travels with me, I have a spare skein of yarn and extra hook pin various places, but sometimes it doesn’t quite make me feel alive.

There is a simple fix for me on this, people. Getting together with others that use yarn can be such an energizing experience. It does not even have to be in person, chatting in emails, or phone calls can bring energy back to my work.

It can change a mood, and allow the spirit to soar. Looking back over my body of crochet projects, I took new directions, new types of projects, new types of yarns, after visiting with people that shared their passion. Positive spirits are contagious, and I need to remember that I need this to recharge and bring a new level of joy to my work, so it is not just work to my joy.

 

 

“Wrong” Crochet?

ScannedImageThe other day I was talking to a lady, which put me back on a soap box. She told me that she crocheted “wrong”. When I asked her what she meant by “wrong” she told me that she had she doesn’t do it like her friends do, so it was wrong.

Wrong is all relative. It really depends on what you are trying to do. Would you ever tell your child that they painted “wrong”, just because they may not do it like the other kids? The answer is probably not, because your kids are enjoying themselves. The same is true with crochet. Granted if you want to make an exact duplicate of a pattern sample, then you will have to follow the directions put forth by the designer, but I know plenty of people that simply cannot follow patterns, and they crochet beautifully. They get inspiration from the pattern, and look at the schematics, and closely examine the photos to see if they can figure out the stitches, and have fun creating their own version.

Crochet, like other art mediums, is a process, there are standard ways in which you complete a stitch, but if you make a mistake, and continue to make the same mistake, it is called a stitch pattern. As long as you are enjoying what you are doing, you are doing it correctly. I think that even if you can execute every stitch with exact precision, no errors and perfect tension, if you hate doing it, you are doing it “wrong”, and need to being that which brings you joy.

You can always improve your skill and technique with practice, talking to others, taking classes, or finding a good book or video, but if it doesn’t bring you joy, why bother. Remember what was “wrong” yesterday, is fashionable today.