A new week with new stuff! As I have started week 2, I purchased a few extra supplies from Michaels, which would be detrimental to my crochet learning experience. While using said tools, I have learned that when you purchase tools for your projects, you achieve better quality in the finished product.
However, supplies are not the only thing that allows an individual to learn a skill. I was visiting a friend who worked at Sherwin-Williams Paints in Regina. I overheard a painter tell him, “Just because you can hold a brush does not mean you can paint.” Similarly, I have tried to learn from some crochet artists. Some of them include ‘SimplyDaisy’ and ‘Sigoni Macaroni’.
The aim of following these tutorials was to learn the basics of crocheting, and so far I have understood that crochet is not an easy skill to learn. As I kept watching and learning from these tutorial videos, I have gained a significant amount of respect for them as this skill requires patience, and great hand eye coordination. Working with yarns and yarn needles caused my hands to hurt due to awkward movements as I am only a beginner for this skill. I believe as I keep practicing, my skill can improve, and the awkwardness and pain may stop. One of the biggest things I’ve learned this week is how important yarn tension is in crochet. The yarn I’m using isn’t quite suited for the project unless I get the pressure just right. If I hold it too tightly, my stitches come out stiff and it’s hard to move the hook through. But if I hold it too loosely, the stitches look uneven and start to lose their shape. Finding that sweet spot with tension has been more challenging than I expected! Even getting the yarn to consistently catch on the hook was tricky—when the tension is too loose, the yarn strands tend to split or slip. It’s definitely a learning curve, but I can already see small improvements with each attempt.
Documenting My Journey
I recorded a short video documenting my first consistent chain row. It’s nothing fancy, but seeing the visible progress from last week made me smile.
It’s happened that while I am crocheting, sometimes I have no idea what I am doing with my yarns. Sometimes I still find myself questioning whether I’m pulling through the right loops or chaining correctly—but something inside me says, “Just keep going.” Right or wrong, I keep crocheting with joy. I’ve noticed that with each session, my hands move a little faster, a little more confidently. The real secret? Just keep practicing. Let your fingers do their thing and trust the rhythm—especially when you’re holding a hook that feels a little bit like a magic wand in your hands.
Hi Nadia,
Excellent job on your learning journey thus far! I have enjoyed reading about your major learning project of crocheting and the progress that you have already made. I give you a lot of credit, as this is a skill that is very time consuming and difficult to learn. My mother-in-law learned this skill during Covid and has become quite successful with crocheting and made my wife, baby and I several neat crocheted items including toques, fall gnome decorations, as well as a stuffed animal for our 8-month old daughter. Regardless, you have made a ton of progress since week 1. I am sure you will only get quicker and quicker with time. I look forward to seeing the end result and what you end up creating by the final week of our learning projects!
Hey Nadia,
It’s amazing to see how dedicated and passionate you are about learning crochet! I really like how you noticed the importance of yarn tension and how even small adjustments can make a big difference in your stitches. It’s inspiring that you keep practicing despite the awkwardness and hand pain — that determination is exactly what will help you improve quickly. I also love how you described holding the hook like a magic wand; it really captures the joy and creativity of the process. Your video of the first consistent chain row must feel so rewarding, and it’s clear that with each practice session, your confidence and skill are growing. Keep going—you’re doing a fantastic job!
I think you make a really good point about tools being helpful, but not the be all end all of creating a good final product. Having access to better equipment can indeed help make a better end result, but nothing beats the gains that can be achieved by truly learning the ins and outs of a skill. Practice indeed makes perfect as they say. It’s awesome to see that while you’re learning with the help of the tutorials, you’re also learning what methods work best for you through simple practice. I’m sure that if you keep this up over the next several weeks, you’ll be a crocheting pro when all is said and done!
Hey Nadia,
I really enjoyed reading your post! It’s great to see how much effort and patience you’re putting into learning crochet. I like how you compared it to painting — it’s so true that having the right tools helps, but real skill comes from practice and understanding. Your reflections on yarn tension and hand movements show real progress. It’s inspiring that you keep going even when it feels tricky. Keep up the amazing work — your dedication and positivity really shine through!