I’ll hook you up! The joy of crocheting useless things
By hook or by crook …
Crochet saves the day! 🙏
Good morning, all you wonderful people! 🤗🌴 I hope you managed to stay safe, happy and healthy despite the turbulence that surrounds us these days. If you feel stressed out, I might have the perfect remedy for you: Crocheting! 🧶
Madonna does it, Meryl Streep does it, and apparently Kurt Cobain and Walt Disney did it, too… Crocheting is surely not only a thing for grannies! People who crochet - famous or not - usually take their current ‘PHD’ (a.k.a. project half done) with them wherever they go, speak their own weird yarny language, and usually hoard a mad supply of wool and needles at home. So what is it that makes crochet so addictive?
Let’s start at the beginning.
Today’s term ‘crochet’ (when you say it out loud, it sounds like ‘crow-shay’) stems from the Old Germanic word ‘croc’, meaning ‘hook’. Crocheting is the process of creating fabric by interlocking loops of yarn, thread, wool, or any other strands of materials using a hook, or even your fingers. The idea that the term ‘hooker’ originated in the 19th century to describe women who were crocheting lace in factories, and supplementing their income with a erotic side-business, is a plausible story - but unfortunately it’s actually an urban myth.
To crochet is an old art, with no defined origins. It most probably evolved from traditional practices in South America and China. The first official mention of crochet as official technique was found in the “Memoirs of a Highland Lady” (1812), in which Elizabeth Grant wrote about a ‘slip stich’ - as sexy as it sounds, it was nothing more than the meeting of wool with a hook. 😅 From there, crocheting took the world by storm, and is experiencing a DIY craft revival thanks to Instagram & Co. #yeahyeahyeah
Knit happens.
Another reason, more and more young people pick up crocheting is that it is a wonderful tool to calm restless minds. Its repetitive and hyper-focused nature gives the process of even making the simplest of design a meditation-like quality to it. In addition, working with your hands - and being away from all screens - offers you a chance to stay in the present, and not let thoughts wander around.
According to the New Yorker Magazine, working with wool and needles “isn’t just a way to pass the time that’s not spend reading about the apocalypse - it engages your brain in a way that is meditative and highly productive, (…) and is an activity that requires intense mental focus, a hunger for learning, and a willingness to follow instructions meticulously. (…) It has been cited as a cure for all sorts of compulsions and afflictions such as nervousness, insomnia, rheumatism, smoking, mental strain and guilt.” Their words, not mine! 😜
From personal experience, I can tell you: Crocheting makes you feel instantly calmer and happier and you get a nice hat, bag or hairband as a result, too! 🤗
Crocheting takes balls. 🧶🧶🧶
There are also amazing, truly inspiring crochet artists out there. One of them is New York-based artist Agata Oleksiak (aka Olek) who is using the craft as a force for community building. Check out this 3 minute video below, and meet the Queen of Yarn.
Stiches be slipping’
I am constantly improving my crochet skills with the help of YouTube videos and pattern books, and can’t stop exploring new patterns, forms and ideas (such as my ‘Turbat’ - a mixture of a turban and a hat). My friends also have stopped making fun of me being a “ghetto granny” because I carry all my half-done projects with me wherever we meet. Here a few of the designs I recently made:
Welcome to my next adventure: Crochet for Charity!
The world is harsh, and we all need to do our part to make it better. So I decided to take action into (literally) my own hands, create small crochet goodies, and sell them on this website on a regular basis, with 100% of the proceeds being donated to charity. #yeahyeahyeah
In this first edition, I created a series of small ‘doggy bags’. They all come in different shapes and sizes, made out of recycled buttons, leftover wool - and lots of love! For further details, just click here.
I hope, I got you hooked! 🤗
With love from Goa,
Isabelle 🌿
