The Purple Wave Blanket I Made Without Knowing Yarn Weight Mattered

After I had been crocheting for a few months and had finished my two-toned blanket with different dye lots, I was a lean, mean, crocheting machine. I was turning out things right and left. Of course, at that time, I did not work outside of the home.

My kids were all young and still at home, but somehow I found more time to crochet than I do now. Funny how life gets so busy. I guess it's just a different kind of busy now.

A Daughter's Blanket That Went Oddly Shaped

I was crocheting dish cloths, scarves, hats, beanies, all kinds of things. Eventually, I decided to make my 13 year-old daughter a blanket. It was a wave pattern, not quite a Chevron, and in different shades of purple.

I didn't realize that yarn weight mattered. It seems like a no-brainer to me now.

About a third of the way through, I noticed that the blanket was getting oddly shaped. This is where my lazy side came in, and I just figured, "Oh well." It didn't turn out but too badly, and she used it for years afterward. Remember Wabi-Sabi?

That blanket was Wabi-Sabi.

Confessing I Never Make Gauge Swatches

I've been really lucky with gauge. I hate making gauge swatches, and I don't know if I've ever really made one. There, I said it.

I confessed. Luckily, everything has worked out so far, as long as I followed the pattern instructions completely and used the same hook size and yarn the pattern recommends. I would not recommend this approach to anyone.

It's my lazy side, like I told you.

The Antique Chart I Never Finished

Within a few months of starting to crochet, I felt confident that I could follow an old crochet chart from an antique pattern. Boy, was I wrong. I thought I knew what I was doing until then!

Now I can read them, but I still have to really think about it. I prefer typed patterns. Needless to say, I never finished that old crochet chart pattern.

Scared of Crocheting in the Round

At first, I would only do single crochet, half double crochet, and double crochet. The rest scared me. Crocheting in the round scared me, so I stuck to rectangles or granny squares and easy things like that.

It just looked too daunting, and I didn't want to figure it out at that point.

But I have FOMO, so eventually, I saw patterns that involved harder stitches and crocheting in the round, and I attempted them. Afterward, I thought it was silly that I'd been so worried about trying.

The Battered Octopus and Loose Ends

Some of my early projects fell apart in the wash. I wasn't good about weaving in my ends and making sure things were secure. Weaving them in properly helps keep things from unraveling so easily.

Also, the first amigurumi pieces I made came apart pretty quickly in my grandchildren's hands. Well, I know the octopus stayed together. Last time I was at their house, it was still in one piece, but it was looking quite battered.

It makes me feel so good to know my grandkids loved something that I made with my own hands. Thinking of them with every stitch.

Why I Hold My Yarn My Own Way

I've heard people say that there is only one "right way" to hold the hook or only one "right way" to hold the yarn in your hand. I never listened to them. You shouldn't either.

The right way of holding the yarn never worked for me.

I hold my yarn similarly, but I stick my finger out and move it as the yarn goes over it. I think the way we crochet is as unique to each of us as our handprints are. We're all different, and there is more than one way of doing things.

Buy More Yarn, Slow Down, Love the Mistakes

If I could go back and give myself some advice when I had been crocheting for three months, I would tell myself to buy more yarn, buy some comfortable hooks, and slow down.

Take your time. Love what you make in spite of the mistakes. Don't discount your hard work.

Focus on the love you put in each stitch.