Can anyone learn to Crochet #2

teachingcrochetThank you to you lovely people who replied and gave me your experience of learning to crochet, it was fabulous to hear so many stories. There was a hidden reason for me asking. As part of teaching programme on apprenticeship I was asked to teach someone to crochet in front of hundreds of people. We chatted about how I had learnt to crochet and what my motivations of learning were. Then we were in to full demonstration mode. It was all a bit of fun and if the objective was to quickly learn how to chain stitch, then I succeeded.

But the whole process got me thinking. How easy is it to learn to crochet?

Firstly I think you have to WANT to learn, in my case I had seen something I wanted to make and was determined to work out how to recreate it. I had MOTIVATION.

Secondly, it is about finding the method of learning which suits your LEARNING STYLE. I am a self-directed learner. Ideally sat comfortably with a book. I am not such a big fan of video tutorials, but diagrams and photos work well for me. Perhaps this is a creative part of my life I don’t really want to learn in a workshop or classroom scenario. But all of this is about how I learn best as an adult, and is not true for everybody.

Thirdly crochet sits well with my SKILL/TALENT set. I have always been drawn to handcraft activity. I liked to sew, knit and draw as a child. I felt relaxed and inspired when I was creating with my hands. This has always been part of me for as long as I can remember. I can’t for instance sing like Ella Fitzgerald, I will never play the piano for relaxation, my ability to hit a tennis ball is laughable and the likelihood of me speaking fluently in any other language apart from English is very, very slim. But ask me to make a frog costume or rustle up a range of baby toys, and I am your woman and I will think of nothing else until I have completed the task.

So there you are, I think that just about anyone can learn to crochet, but their success will be based on whether they really want to learn, whether they choose the right way to the learn the skill and if they have some basic dexterity.

Finally from being a beginner to an accomplished crocheter, I would add a number of additional attirbutes which seem to help.

If you are a completer finisher – those people who see a project to the end seem to get more satisfaction in having a good stash of finished items.

Having an eye for detail will ensure you like to work out the complicated patterns and are not daunted by ripping back the mistakes you have made.

If you like patterns, perhaps even mathematical forms. I often find that some of my most logical and scientific friends are drawn to crochet. The formation of pattern appeals to their brains – they love to see the consistency in the patterns and this provides an additional joy in their craft.

Whatever your motivation – let’s not forget, craft is good for the soul, a joy to behold and ultimately fun – if you love it, share it and you never know you might be teaching the next top crochet designer.

It might be worth saying that teaching crochet on the big screen is not for the faint hearted – you cannot imagine how big my derriere looked as I got up on that stool.

Needless to say if you want to learn to crochet you could purchase this fine book (cheeky) or my tutorials for Crochet Now magazine are appearing here.