I’ve always been a “knitter”. My grandmother taught me, just as she taught all of her grand children, and it’s a skill I’ve continued to practice over the years.
I’ve always been fascinated with yarn work and the overall concept of something as simple as a series of loops interwoven together can create something substantial, all from just a skein of yarn. Knitted gifts have also always been one of my favorite diy gifts to give to friends and family.
My relationship with crochet though has not been as long or as engaging. I tried crocheting briefly while in a student run ” Stitch n Bitch” club in college years ago, but otherwise haven’t delved into crochet since.
I found the perfect yarn for a baby blanket for my cousin in law’s baby shower gift. I was drawn to this Caron Yarn Baby Cakes in “Candy Hearts”. The pastel colors reminded me of “Unicorn colors” and the yarn is super soft. While picking it up at Michaels, I noticed a free crochet pattern for the blanket, and figured this would be the perfect opportunity to just jump right into the world of crocheting. I grabbed variety pack of crochet hooks knowing that I’d need size 8mm and 2 skeins of the yarn as well as one white skein (for the blanket border) for this project.
Beginning the Project
Instead of using the printed pattern, I ended up finding a video tutorial by the Crochet Crowd, which provided step by step instructions for the entire project.
As a visual learner and as a crochet newbie, this tutorial was easy to follow along with. Did you know you can slow down the speed of videos in YouTube? I ended up replaying certain sections to learn the pattern, but once I had it memorized it was a breeze. This was the perfect project to work on while watching TV. I also listened to the audiobook of Rachel Bloom’s new book while crocheting. Audiobooks will definitely be my new go – to while working on long term projects.
The biggest difference between the tutorial and the printed pattern is that the tutorial explained how to add on a border at the end, while the printed pattern provided directions on how to add the border at the ends of each row. Using two different yarns simultaneously, as the printed pattern suggested, would have been too complex for me as a new crocheter, so I am so glad I found the video tutorial. As I practice my skills, I would loved to get a better understanding of the crochet lingo printed on the pattern, but for now it was too much information to wrap my head around. Plus, I was on a time crunch to finish this gift before the shower!
Take Aways
Crocheting the baby blanket was such a great experience! It only took me a little over a month from start to finish. It was also my first time making a blanket and this entire project made the idea of a creating blanket, which usually feels so overwhelming, actually so accessible. I guess the next step is to try my hand at making a blanket for a full-sized human!
I’m excited to continue to practice my skills and take on more crochet projects in the near future.
Which crochet projects do you recommend I try next? Comment below!
Stay crafty,
Anissa
Asamatterofcrafts 