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Crochet - good online instructions / video?


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I'm learning to crochet and I'm very dumb/dimwitted in terms of handicrafts. I need something that will walk me through the process step by step. I was able to create a foundation row and chain (?) about 3 rows last night (which I promptly unravelled by accident!).

Do you have any excellent resources online?

Lion Brand has this book, but it still seems too complicated: skipping steps like how to tie the knot at the beginning (I just made a pretzel shape like theirs and it seemed to work) or turn at the end of a row. (is it meant to be backwards, ie are you alternating which side you're crocheting on???)

 

I have reserved a couple of library books, but would love to get started sooner...

 

Any help appreciated! :D

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I am looking to learn to crochet, too! I am going to take an intro to crochet class at Joann's next month. My store is having a 1/2 price class sign up day I am waiting for. That would make it rather inexpensive! I hope you get some responses so I can check them out, too!

 

Carly

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I am looking to learn to crochet, too! I am going to take an intro to crochet class at Joann's next month. My store is having a 1/2 price class sign up day I am waiting for. That would make it rather inexpensive! I hope you get some responses so I can check them out, too!

 

Carly

 

Oooh I have a local Joanns by me as well. Did you find out about the class online or in store? If it was online which part of the website had it? I wonder if mine has a class too. I know they do sewing classes, but I don't know if they do handicraft classes too. Off to check. :) Thanks.

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I went to the website and found the flyers for my store. They had a classes flyer that had it listed with no dates or times. I just called and they hooked me up (and even told me about the 1/2 price sign up Saturday next month). Good luck!

 

Carly

 

Thank you. :)

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Yay - I'm 9 rows in with what I think is a single standard chain stitch... though my rows are mysteriously getting shorter and shorter, so I may end up with more of a "triangle" than a "scarf"! :-)))

 

(Not to be naggy or a butt or anything, but it's probably a single crochet. A chain is when you don't attach it to anything. Just to keep you from getting confused in the future if you ever follow a written pattern :001_smile:)

 

So far as the tightness, that's a tension issue and very common in the beginning. With practice you'll learn to keep them the same length. I was always taught that your stitches should be the size of the hook where the bump in the middle starts; that's one way to help it stay even. Good luck and have fun practicing.

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Yay - I'm 9 rows in with what I think is a single standard chain stitch... though my rows are mysteriously getting shorter and shorter, so I may end up with more of a "triangle" than a "scarf"! :-)))

 

At the end of a row of single crochet, do you chain 2 before turning? If not, that could be shortening the length of the rows. Or you may be skipping a stitch?

I'm not an expert by any means but these thoughts came to mind.

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At the end of a row of single crochet, do you chain 2 before turning? If not, that could be shortening the length of the rows. Or you may be skipping a stitch?

I'm not an expert by any means but these thoughts came to mind.

 

Ah, that would work. It's not tightening, it's nice and even, just getting progressively shorter. :lol: But I didn't notice that you're supposed to chain 2 before you turn! :-o

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  • 3 weeks later...

Update: wanted to thank everybody... I am still knitting myself a "sampler" scarf as I learn stitches, but I just finished my first REAL project - a rectangle hat for my sister's birthday present. I cinched it shut at the top so it's hat-shaped (it was a bit triangular to begin with because of my bad crocheting!), and added a nice tassel. It's actually really cute. Can't post pics to my blog or she'd see it. ;-)

Wearing it right now... it's ridiculous how proud I am.

 

The main reason I wanted to do this was for my dd6 to have a useful handicraft, and after I realized crochet was not going to be easy for her, I turned her over to my mother who taught her how to do a simple knit stitch (stocking knit?) on a long knifty knitter loom (like the old-fashioned "corking" or french / spool knitting only bigger and way cool).

 

The stitch my mother taught her has her going in both directions on only one side of the spool, so it's very efficient and almost no chance to mess things up.

 

So now we've both learned a useful handicraft... Charlotte Mason would be proud!

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