The Basics

Chain Stitch = Your Foundation:
Let's take a minute and recognize that this is the most important stitch you will ever use. You might not think that because you only typically use this stitch at the very beginning of your projects, but think of this as the foundation for your entire work. Your house will fall down with a faulty foundation, and so will... No, your crochet won't fall apart but you may have variances in your tension, gauge, and spacing of your stitches if the foundation is not done well. A good chain stitch needs to be evenly spaced, have equal tension that is not too loose or too tight, and make sure that you are counting, because in a pattern, if you miss one chain it could mean ripping out the entire project after the second row (and sometimes rows are 300+chains long!). It's a good idea to place a stitch marker (or a small piece of a different color yarn) every 10-20 stitches to help you keep count.
 

What about the other stitches?:
Other crochet stitches will be necessary if you have hopes and dreams of creating something more than a necklace or bracelet, but like I said, without a chain stitch, you will not be able to work the other stitches. Also, you will notice a similarity in the way all crochet stitches are made. As a matter of fact, there are only a few instructions you will need to know how to do to crochet. This is where I break it down to just three things: You will need to know how to insert your hook into a stitch, place the yarn over the hook, and draw the yarn through some loops that are already on your hook. WOW! That actually makes it sound pretty manageable! So, are you ready to learn some basics?

I have made up a cheat sheet for a few basic stitches, as well as the most common abbreviations. I would encourage you to print it out and carry it around with your current crochet projects so that if you get stumped and are not near enough to YouTube or a computer, you will still have the help you need.

***And remember, crocheting is a very forgiving art, so if you find that your masterpiece is not looking too good, here's a little quote to get you through: "When in doubt, rip it out." 


***Whatever you do, don't get discouraged, don't give up, and stay focused on the three little things I mentioned above: insert hook in a stitch (or space or chain), yarn over (once or twice or whatever the stitch calls for), and pull the yarn through a few loops. That's all there is to it!



YouTube and the Basics:
I would LOVE to say that I had amazing video tutorials for you to watch, but unfortunately, I don't have a video camera, or I just might have had that done by now. However, there is a woman who is affectionately known as the Crochet Geek on YouTube, and she has some AMAZING videos, and even does tutorials for LEFTIES! Are you as excited about that as I am? It is very difficult to teach a lefty to read patterns, work stitches, and make things "right" - lol - but she does a great job at it.

I'm listing a series of YouTube videos that cover all the basic stitches here for you to use when you get stuck. I've also included the abbreviation for each stitch to you can start to associate the stitch name with its abbreviation. Please note: This is not a complete listing of the videos that YouTube has available for crocheting, I just like the Crochet Geek's style of video. She works slow, speaks clearly and explains what she is doing in great detail, and on a lot of her videos, she even has a button in the beginning to click for a LEFT-handed tutorial!

• Slip Knots 
• Chain Stitch (ch)
• Single Crochet (sc)
• Half Double Crochet (hdc) 
• Double Crochet (dc)
• Slip Stitch (slst or ss) 
• Trebble Crochet (trc or tc) 

Learning a New Language

One of the great mysteries that surrounds the art of crocheting is reading patterns. Upon first glance, you may even think that you are looking at a foreign language or some top secret spy code. Trust me, it's really not as difficult as you may think it is, and you'll find that a lot of patterns are just common sense abbreviations.

Why learn to read patterns?

As a beginner, you can get by fine without knowing how to read a pattern, and just focus on learning the stitches. However, just knowing the stitches will soon not be enough, and you will be looking at patterns and dreaming of making those items, so don't limit your abilities. In fact, learning to read the patterns and abbreviations while learning to crochet can be beneficial since you aren't already set in your ways about crocheting.
Once you have learned the basic stitches, I would highly recommend learning how to read patterns. Pattern reading will help you enhance your skills, develop new skills, and learn even more stitches. Plus, there are TONS of free patterns online, and some really great magazines for crocheters, too!
The main reason I wanted to learn to read a pattern at just 10 years old was because I wanted to crochet a teddy bear I had seen in a book. It was a pretty advanced project, and I couldn't wrap my brain around the concept of making my rows bend and curve to the contours of a bear's body as a beginner. We all have to start somewhere, and for me, I started with pattern reading. Perhaps, for you, it's not a teddy bear that you desire to create, but a nice sweater for yourself or a newborn baby? After reading patterns for some time, and working with various different items, you will get to the point where you will actually be re-writing some of them, too, or maybe just writing your own patterns when you can't find exactly what you're looking for.

The Language of Crochet

Like I mentioned earlier, a crochet pattern can look overwhelming upon first glance. I know the first time I saw a pattern, I told my mom I thought hieroglyphics was easier to learn than reading a crochet pattern. But rest assured, pretty soon, I'll have you in the craft section of your favorite book store looking at the crochet patterns and being able to interpret them, too!
There are a few different types of crochet patterns, but for right now, I want to focus on the most common type: written instructions. There are also graphs and charts, which I'll go over in another blog. A written pattern is nothing but a series of abbreviations, broken up row by row (side to side) or round by round. See? Looks better already, doesn't it? Now, lets take a closer look at some of the different abbreviations you will be using in pattern reading. The most commonly used abbreviations are bold to make it easier to locate them.

Abbreviations and meanings

abbr.	meaning	abbr.	meaning
alt	alternate	htr	half triple crochet
approx	approximately	in	inch
BP	back post	inc	increase
BLO	back loop only	incl	including
BPdc	back post	inst	instructions
beg	beginning	lp(s)	loop(s)
CC	contrasting color	lt	light
ch	chain	MC	main color
cl	cluster	med	medium
cont	continue	mm	millimeter
dbl	double	no.	number
dtr or dbl tr	double tripple	oz(s)	ounce(s)
dc	double crochet	pat st	pattern stitch
dec	decrease	pc st	popcorn stitch
dir	directions	prev	previous
dk	dark	rem	remaining
dnt	do not turn	rep	repeat
ea	each	rnd	round
ex sc	extended single crochet	RS	right side
fig	figure 1(picture of stitch)	sc	single crochet
FLO	front loop only	sk	skip
FP	front post	sl st	slip stitch
FPdc	front post double crochet	sp	space
fo	finish off	st(s)	stitch(es)
foll	following	tch	turning chain
fsc	foundation single crochet	tog	together
g or gm	gram	tr or trc	tripple (treble)
gr	group	"x" times	(as in repeat "x" times)
hdc	half double crochet	WS	wrong side
hk	hook	yo	yarn over

In addition to these abbreviations, there are also some symbols used in crocheting:
( ) - brackets: Used when making clothing for alternate sizes.
* - asterisk (star): Used to note the beginning of a repeat pattern

That's really all there is to reading a pattern! If you break it down row by row, stitch by stitch, it's suddenly a manageable and controllable thing to do. Don't let the fancy looking symbols and equations get you down, it's just abbr words and simplified instructions. If you don't yet know how to work the stitches that are listed above, don't worry! We'll get to that, too. However, if you're anything like me and you want more and you want it NOW, then check out some of the how-to links below.
Before I leave you and let you go running through the book store to the very back corner (which is where most book stores have their craft section), let me leave you with a few helpful hints on pattern reading:

1. Don't get intimidated! They're just letters on a page!
2. It's a great idea to print a chart similar to the one above on card stock, laminate it, and carry it around with your patterns.
3. If necessary, write out some of the hard stuff in the margins. Don't be afraid to mark up your patterns, though you may want to photo copy them first, or the next time you want to use that same pattern again, you may not be able to read it!
4. Practice, practice, practice!
   
   
   Practice pattern reading NOW!
   I'm not going to tell you what this makes, so you will have to get out your hook and yarn, and get to stitchin'! At the end, please answer the poll question and see if you got the same thing others did.

CH 17
Rnd 1: 3 sc in 2nd ch from hook, sc in next 6 ch, sk next 2 ch, sc in next 6 ch, 3 sc in next ch; turn to work in unused lps of beg chs, sc in next 6 ch, (sc, ch 2, sc) all in ch-2 space (2 sk ch from top), sc in last 6 ch – 32 sts. DNT.

Rnd 2: [2 sc in next st] 3 times; sc in next 5 sts, sk next 2 sts, sc in next 5 sts, [2 sc in next st] 3 times, sc in next 7 sts, (sc, ch 2, sc) all in ch-2 space, sc in last 7 sts – 38 sts.

Rnd 3: [2 sc in next st, sc in next st] 3 times, sc in next 4 sts, sk next 2 sts, sc in next 5 sts, [2 sc in next st, sc in next st] 3 times; sc in next 7 sts, (sc, ch 2, sc) all in ch-2 space, sc in last 8 sts – 44 sts.

Rnd 4: Sc in next st, [2 sc in next st, sc in next 2 sts] 3 times; sc in next 2 sts, sk next 2 sts, sc in next 4 sts, [2 sc in next st, sc in next 2 sts] 3 times; sc in next 8 sts, (sc, ch 2, sc) all in ch-2 space, sc in last 9 sts – 50 sts.

Rnd 5: Sc in next 2 sts, [2 sc in next st, sc in next 3 sts] 3 times; sk next 2 sts, sc in next 3 sts, [2 sc in next st, sc in next 3 sts] 3 times; sc in next 9 sts, (sc, ch 2, sc) all in ch-2 space, sc in last 10 sts – 56 sts. FO. Weave in ends.


CONGRATULATIONS! You have read your first pattern! Now... What did you make?

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.