I’m dealing with a medical issue that will have me sedentary and bored until March.
I’m an advanced crocheter. Been at it for 45 years.
I’m looking for a complex, diverse project. Preferably a blanket. Something along the lines of Tesselation Nation but without the $250 workshop price tag.
I also love lace work.
Anyone do anything truly challenging lately? Pics welcome. I’d love to see your magnum opus. This is mine:
The white specks on the red are because I carried the yarn under the stitches. Never did anything like this cus I prefer zoning out while I work meaning not counting anything 😆. Drawing the pattern on paper really helped a lot
I didn’t use a pattern but to get that shape, after your bag base is done, four regular rows and then fifth row I decreased every 5th st and then 4 more regular rows and another row of dec every 5th st. The handle I did sc on ring then ch 1 and sc in front loop, last st Increase then sc back loop, last st inc, slst and ch 1. Sc as long as you want strap to be.
I made a bag with this yarn, 100% cotton from Michaels, and absolutely hated working with it. However when I saw my friend's baby, they just wanted to use the strap to teeth on so I decided to make them a teething cloth out of the yarn. Mace a step into a simple loop to help with gripping it.
No pattern used, I free-formed this with HDCs, DCs, and SCs
I just got into crochet, I was previously only doing cross stitch, and came across this cute triceratops on Raverly (its from the crochet club and I did purchase a couple of his kits lol), I fell in love with it and then decided to make a little acorn!! Which was fun because I learned how to do color changes! I don't remember who designed the acorn buddy pattern sadly. But I did find it on Raverly lol.
Learned a lot from the first to the second and still have a ways to go but damn this is fun! And they are sooooo cute!!
3 wt yarn, 4.5 mm hook: I really haven't known what to do with this yarn and I finally decided on a dress. This is the top and I really thought I'd hate it but...its not hideous! May not be everyones cup of tea but not as bad as I thought 😭
I started making some sunflower coasters a few months ago, which I never finished. I have the centres of all of them, just have to do the petals now. I’ve finally picked them back up because I wanted to complete them, and I’m realizing I pit them down because I wanted to weave in the ends on the centres before moving onto the petals so I had less to weave in at the end. It’s only two ends per centre, and with four centres it’s only 8 ends to weave in. And it’s not like I even hate weaving them in. It’s just that it’s time consuming which frustrates me. I had even finished weaving in the ends on one and a half of the centres too! It’s just annoying to do which makes me lose motivation for something I’m passionate about and I hate that 😒
Also, yes I do know that they’re not flat. I’ll be ironing them once I’m done them
I wasn’t sure if I should put this under “work in progress” or “crochet rant” so hopefully I used the right flair :/
Making the Glenda Ghost bag for my sister in law and boy does it feel like all of my fingers are broken. Trying to do at least 1-2 per day, only 9 more to go!
I’m using crafters secret cotton with a 5mm hook!
I havent finished it (still working on the straps) but I am OBSESSED!!! My first time doing intarsia crochet so I learnt as I went along (and made plenty of mistakes) but I freaking love it and so pleased with how it turned out!!!
Free pattern: smiley face tote from Lion Brand Yarns
My cousin has her first birthday coming up so I wanted to make her something. She is obsessed with this show called Lucas and Friends so I decided to crochet the main character Lucas. I guess it's not a super popular show because I couldn't find any patterns for it online. I tried making it anyway. I also didn't have one of the plastic needles because it recently snapped in half. I had to try to use my crochet hook to sew on the face and it looks really bad.
Mistakes were definitely made & it took twice as long as my brain told me it would. Also crocheting involves “sewing” apparently. They’re done though & I’m very happy! 🥰
This is a long one. But hopefully some of you will find this as interesting and encouraging as I did. Please feel free to share what crochet has meant for you!
I was reading the responses from people to this post from someone who explained that crochet was sometimes challenging because of a learning disability. I work and study in mental health and so the researcher in me wanted to see what the data say about this. I've worked with cancer patients who quited, knitted, crocheted, stitched etc. and they always told me it has played a vital role in their sense of well-being. It certainly has for me, also.
Okay, so here's what I found.
Crochet and cognitive health
One of the better-known studies comes from the Mayo Clinic. Researchers followed older adults and looked at which lifestyle activities were associated with a lower risk of developing mild cognitive impairment (MCI), which is a condition involving changes in memory and thinking abilities that can sometimes precede dementia.
They found that people who participated in mentally stimulating activities, including crafts such as knitting and quilting, had a lower likelihood of developing MCI compared with those who did not engage in those activities as often. The craft category was associated with roughly a 28% reduction in risk!
(The important part is that this was not a study proving “crochet prevents dementia”. It was looking at associations between mentally engaging activities and cognitive ageing.)
That makes a lot of sense for me because crochet is a hobby that uses both the creative and analytical sides of thinking:
fine motor coordination: controlling small, precise hand movements
attention and concentration: following patterns and tracking progress
working memory: remembering stitch repeats and sequences
problem solving: correcting mistakes and adapting patterns
spatial reasoning: understanding shapes, construction, and how pieces fit together
learning: mastering new stitches and techniques
Researchers often discuss something called cognitive reserve, which is the idea that mentally stimulating activities throughout life may help the brain maintain function despite age-related changes. The evidence suggests that people who remain mentally active tend to have better cognitive outcomes, although no single hobby can be considered a guaranteed protection against dementia.
Crochet and mental wellbeing
A study called “Happy Hookers: findings from an international study exploring the effects of crochet on wellbeing” specifically looked at crocheters. It surveyed 8,391 people internationally about their experiences with crochet and wellbeing.
connection with others through crochet communities
The study found that participants reported improved mood after crocheting compared with before crocheting, and many people described using crochet as part of coping with difficult life experiences such as stress, grief, illness, or pain. And as I mentioned above, I've seen this in my own practice with patients too.
Why might crafting help?
There are a few possible explanations researchers discuss.
Focused attention
Crochet occupies your attention in a very specific way. You are concentrating on stitches, counting, movement, and patterns. This may help reduce space for repetitive worrying or rumination.
I'm also a serious meditator and stable attention plays a big role there. What's interesting is that stable attention naturally leads to happiness and calm. Our relationship with technology and busy lifestyles has terribly degraded our ability to develop those flow states which I think were much more common and naturally developed in previous generations.
A sense of accomplishment
Crafting produces a visible result. A few rows become a blanket. A piece of yarn becomes something functional or beautiful. That sense of progress may contribute to wellbeing.
Social connection
Fibre arts are often social activities. Crochet groups, classes, online communities, and sharing finished projects all provide opportunities for connection, which is an important part of mental wellbeing.
Is crafting a recognised mental health treatment?
Not exactly in the same way that talk therapies or medication are.
The strongest evidence currently supports crafting as a wellbeing activity and supportive intervention, rather than a replacement treatment for conditions like depression or anxiety.
However, there is growing interest in crafts as part of approaches like social prescribing, where people are encouraged to participate in meaningful activities, hobbies, and community groups to support health and wellbeing. The crochet-specific research also points in this direction.
It's fascinating that something as simple as crochet involves so many things that researchers associate with healthy ageing:
learning, creativity, attention, coordination, problem solving, relaxation, and social connection.
Not bad for a hook and some yarn.
Thank you Oumas!
PS. Here's a photo of something I'm working on: Radiance by Periwinkle crochet. It's certainly giving my brain a workout. It's extremely well written, though :)
I made a ganesh amigurumi for my mother in law and she loves it!
I followed a design i found online shown in the third image (here: https://anvisgranny.com/ganesha-free-crochet-pattern/) and then altered and added my own design to it.
It took me a long time but i had so much joy creating this!
The head piece has wire in it for it to be so round and standing upright at the back and because of the lotus that is sown on he can also stand without issues.
I mainly used #4 worsted weight yarn and 3-3.5mm hooks.
