Why I'm a Hooker

I started crocheting when I was just 10 years old and was watching my mom crochet a baby afghan for a co-worker. I asked her to teach me how, and shortly after, I was "hooked." Since then, I have honed my skills, and have realized that there are several reasons why I have continued to crochet throughout the years. Here are just a few:

• It's cheaper than therapy: There are many activities, substances, and methods to calming one's nerves after a long and stressful day, but there is really nothing quite as satisfying as hearing someone say, "You made that?" and seeing the look of awe and appreciation for your craft written all over their face. So, the therapeutic benefit of crocheting is two-fold. It will help relieve the stress and tension you're feeling while you are actually creating your masterpiece, but you will also experience a moment of calm and release when someone, anyone, takes notice of your work and admires your craftsmanship.
• It's a whole lot easier than knitting: There are some who would argue with me, but that's most likely because they are knitters, and to them, I say I'm too legit to knit! Knitting requires two hands to be simultaneously involved in motion, while crochet utilizes one dominant hand, and one that simply holds the yarn. Yes, that yarn may be woven through your fingers, but it is relatively still while you are at work. When knitting, you have to place all of your stitches on a needle, thus allowing for a greater possibility that something will distract you and you will lose all your work in progress when the stitches fall off of that needle. At least while crocheting, your stitch is held neatly in place by the hook. One final note about knitting: it curls, it's thicker, it's much more difficult to get nice decorative stitching, it takes twice as long, and it uses more yarn than crocheting. Think I'm a little biased? Look it up.
• It's a dying art: Crocheting, as well as it's cousin, knitting, have been around since at least the 1800's. There is no actual known date or time period when this craft came into existence, but trust me when I say it was a long, long time ago. Probably further back than any of us can trace our own ancestry. However, there are fewer and fewer people today that pick up hook and yarn and still engage in creating their own textiles. The tragedy of allowing one of the most beautiful crafts go extinct is one I can not bare, so I continue to grace others with my hand-made gifts, written patterns, and even lessons. I refuse to let crochet die without giving it a good fight.
• It's customizable: Like I said before, there is nothing like having someone admire your handiwork, but more than that, you can make exactly what you want. Have you ever been shopping and found that a sweater didn't fit you the way your body type demands? Or shopped for a new purse that didn't have enough room or pockets? Or what about looking for a gift, have you ever just settled on something that wasn't quite right for the recipient, or was very impersonal? When you can crochet, you can fix all these problems. You can adjust the shape of a sweater, add pockets and depth to a pocketbook, and even stitch a monogram or saying into a gift that no store would ever even dream of selling. Simple put, you can make whatever your imagination will limit you to.
• It's a pattern addiction: Why stop crocheting when there is always a new pattern that hasn't been tested, or a new technique that hasn't been developed? There is already a vast pattern collection in books, magazines, websites, and graphs, but on a daily basis, I see designers asking seasoned crocheters to test their new patterns out, which means the pattern pool grows daily, too! I have a pattern collection that ranges from baby and kid's clothes and toys to wigs, fake beards, and fake food. I get so excited when I see a new pattern and stitch or technique, and immediately add it to my pattern library, knowing that there is no way I will ever get to actually make all of them before I die, but I'm addicted. You know the old saying, "She who dies with the most shoes wins..." Well, that's how I feel about patterns. I have not been diagnosed with ADD, but I believe if a doctor would examine me while I'm scouring through books, catalogs, and websites looking at patterns, they may have to give me a clinical diagnosis. I sometimes start out looking for a specific purse type, and somehow end up looking through gun covers and toaster cozies. Be warned: patterns almost always multiply.
• It's relatively cheap: Yarn is not that expensive, and if you're particularly interested in making clothing, go price the cost of a new sweater versus about 5 or 6 skeins of yarn. See which one wins. Depending on your taste in clothing, the sweater may win this round, but now check out a quality, well-made one. See? Now the yarn most likely wins, and guess what? If you are the one making it, the sweater you make will probably last longer than anything you ever buy because you don't want to wear a holey sweater, but you also won't be able to throw away one you've made, so you'll make sure it's done perfectly. Try this pricing method with other items: purses, diaper bags, rugs, i-pad cases, diaper covers, slippers, mittens (can you even find mittens for adults anymore?), hats, scarves. Yarn wins!

These are just some of the reasons I choose to be a hooker, and I'm sure you have other reasons I have not mentioned here, and that's good. Whatever the reason that you are passionate about crocheting, keep that focus. I have heard too many people tell me lately that they used to crochet. That makes me sad. Crocheting used to be considered a life-skill, not a hobby, and I'm not sure why we ever diminished its value. My challenge to you is to help carry on the legacy of crochet by either learning how to crochet, if you don't already know how, or by teaching someone else how to. Let's not let crocheting die.