Failing to learn to crochet

[FingonTheValiant]

Help please!

I decided I would try to learn to crochet, largely because I fancied doing some amigurumi for soon to be ds1, and also because someone gave me a "crochet a baby blanket" kit from John Lewis.

I got myself The Happy Hooker, and could make the first chain, but that's it. So I got a "Teach your child to crochet" book, thinking the simpler the better, and I still can't work it out! Aaargh! I taught myself to knit without too many problems, but this is hopeless. I now have 4 weeks to whip up the blanket (not going to happen), and I cant get any further than the first row.

Is there anything else that anyone can recommend? I can't believe how useless I am at this. And sadly I don't know any real life crocheters.

Thanks in advance :)

Have you tried looking for crochet videos on Youtube and copying them? That's how I taught myself to crochet and knit :)

Super idea, thanks for that! Are there any that are particularly good? I'll get searching now :)

Oh it's such a shame because it's so easy once you get the hang of it. You do almost need someone to show you where to stick the hook as it isn't always clear. Can you describe what the problem is and where you think you are going wrong?

Agree with other post about you tube tutorials.

Either of these links any good?

www.dummies.com/how-to/content/how-to-make-a-double-crochet.html

or www.nexstitch.com/a_single.html

Don't forget American terminology is different UK so what is a double crochet in the US is a treble in the UK (should give you the conversion in any crochet book).

I never seem to do the right number of stitches once I turn it. I think I'm sticking the hook in the wrong place, or in the same place twice or something. And I'm not sure whether I'm even starting with the right V. I'm having a look at those sites now, so I'll let you know if they help. Thanks very much!

I'm never going to make it to amigurumi standard :(

Don't give up just yet!

I decided to learn to crochet when pregnant with DS. I wanted to make this cuddly rabbit/blanket. I completed the main part of it but got frustrated on the ears and gave up.

During the summer holidays (more than a year later) I picked up the Super Cute Crochet book in the library as DD fell in love with the animals.

I have now made several animals, hats, headbands, gloves etc.

It really is worth the struggle to learn as it will just 'click'.

Youtube is your friend :) I watched loads of videos to get the hang of it. A simple hat video may help as it was just a case of double crochet stitches in rounds with occasional increases.

I still have to use stitch markers as I often get distracted and lose count of my stitches so I mark my first stitch iyswim either with a plastic marker or a piece of different coloured yarn.

I can post a link to the videos I started out with if it helps?

Is there a particular pattern you are trying to follow at the moment?

That would be so helpful, thanks!

No, I'm just trying to master the stitches, I didn't want to try with a patter in case I messed it up. But maybe that would be better as it would give me an incentive to get it sorted.

I might see whether the blanket one looks like it's remotely possible for a beginner and have a crack at it. If I posted a wee bit of the instructions here, do you think you'd be able to tell whether it's complicated or not? I'm not really sure what should be do-able for someone starting out.

Thanks again :)

These are two of the videos i started out with. I would watch it through and watch it in bits as I went along. If I am following a written pattern I have to read it through a couple of times as I have a habbit of rushing ahead and misreading the pattern!

I started out with the happy hooker and tried to practice the different stitches but I have found it more encouraging to attempt some projects following youtube. It was'nt always easy, I would have to restart a couple of times but being able to complete a project has given me the confidence to keep going.

I now follow the patterns in the books from the library and refer back to the happy hooker for descriptions of any stitches that are new to me.

Like Bumperlicious said, always check if its a UK or US pattern as the stitches are different - I found out the hard way!

If I can help with anything else just ask. I am really loving crochet at the moment

Ok, blanket pattern is

Foundation row: make 6 ch, and join with sl st to form ring

Next row: 3 ch (counts as 1 tr), 2 tr into ring, 3 ch, 3 tr into ring, 3 ch, rep from twice more, join with sl st into 3rd of 3 ch, break off yarn.

Obviously there's more, but does that seem like a basic-ish pattern, or is that going to be really hard? Or is that not enough to go by? It's basically to make up lots of little squares eventually.

Thanks so much for the videos, I'll check them out now.

The pattern booklet suggests I need Ch, Sl st, Dc and Tr - are those the english names or american?

Sorry to be so ignorant!

The problem is the American and English terminology is the same - it just means different things but I am guessing English as the most basic stitch is the dc, which Americans call sc (single crochet).

Sounds like the blanket pattern is for granny squares, is it a bit like this? This is good because you will be crocheting 'in the round' which is what you would do for amigurumi too.

Ok, let's see where the problem is:

Can you make the chain ok?
Can you slip stitch to form a ring?
Now do you know where to stick the hook to crochet into the ring? I'm guessing this is where you are struggling.

You need to use your finger nails to try and find the middle of that circle and then stick your hook through the circle, yrh (yarn round hook - or yo - yarn over - usually American) and bring it back through the circle to make the stitch. Can you get that far?

Hope I'm not being patronising! I love crochet so much, I genuinely want to talk you through it!

You are going to be crocheting in a circle rather than backwards and forwards. There are two ways of crocheting in a circle, one is a continuous spiral. If you crochet like that it is a good idea to mark the beginning of each 'row' with a yarn of a different colour. Don't worry about that for now, because with granny squares you usually do one row at a time with a different colour.

A good way to know if you are making stitches in the right place is simply to count the number of stitches that you have and make sure it corresponds with the pattern. So with anything bigger than a dc you skip the first stitch of the row and make sure to crochet into the turning change at the end. For double crochet you crochet into the first stitch but not the chain 1 at the end.

This will all make sense eventually.

BTW the Happy Hooker is an American book. I have it somewhere so if you need help with something in that I can look it up.

Let me know how far you get and I can keep talking you through it. I'm such a crochet evangelist! Once you get the hang of it it is easy to progress I promise.

In fact this is a pretty good granny square tutorial, probably v similar to your pattern.

Thank you so much Bumperlicious. I'm just about to run out, but when I get back I'll give it all a go, with the tutorial, and then get back to you.

It is indeed granny squares. And no need to worry about being patronising, I need all the help I can get :)

No prob, just shout if you need a hand (bearing in mind I am due to have a baby any day now so if I disappear that's why!)

I'm so frustrated I want to cry. Basically all I can do is make a chain. I just can't work out how the stitches work. I've tried following the instructions for slip stitch, but I don't understand how many stitches it leaves me with, and which one to put the hook through next, plus everyone seems to have a different method of doing it!

And the blanket kit has the tiniest hook and thinest yarn imaginable. I think I'm going to have to abandon it, and hope I've learned to crochet before DC2 arrives, if we ever have one. I'm certainly not going to get it done in 4 weeks!

Aaaargh!

I taught myself from these videos. They use the American terms.

What I would so is make a short chain (somewhere between 10 and 15 chains) and try doing a few rows in sc. That will help you learn to count stitches and see if you're missing a stitch anywhere (most common place is either the first stitch or the last). Lots of people say to count the V's but I find that confusing as I always forget whether I need to do the end or not so I tend to count the curvy loop bits.

Then when you've got the hang of that, have a go at doing rounds in sc (there's a circle tutorial on the page I linked to)

www.knitwitch.com/crochet%20videos.htm duh I forgot the link

Meant to add, slip stitch is just really a way of moving across a stitch without adding any height, it doesn't alter the number of stitches you have (though when working in rounds it can make it look like you have an extra one imo)

You'd def be better off learning to count stitches in the flat.

Thanks very much, I'll give those a try once I've calmed down a bit. :)

oh fing sorry to see its still causing you frustration.

I feel your pain!

If it makes you feel any better I realised the other day that the pony I was half way through for DD was looking a bit odd. Turns out I was doing US double crochet and not the UK version that the pattern required (I am blaming the anesthetic I had in hospital, I stupidly thought it would be relaxing to have some crochet to hand post op and now I have had to restart the whole project!)

Looking at the pattern you posted whereabouts are you getting stuck? Is it the slip stitch at the end of the foundation row or is it at the end of the next row?

Perhaps geting some larger hooks would help you see the stitches better? If you have a Lidl's nearby they had a load of crochet and knitting items on sale the other week or there is always ebay?

Thanks frazzled. I've put away the project for a bit to go back to basics. I'm going to dig out the biggest hook I have and see if I can work it out that way as you suggest.

Embarrassingly I get stuck literally as soon as I have to do anything other than a chain pretty much, so I need to crack it large scale I think.

Sorry to hear about your pony :( definitely the anaesthetists fault, you should ask him/her to redo where you were up to :o