Over Thanksgiving, I asked my mother to teach me how to crochet. I stunk at it. I'm not trying to brag here, but I pick up things relatively easily and this was something that I just could not grasp. Literally. My fingers cramped up, I couldn't figure out which way was the proper way to "yarn over". Clockwise? Counterclockwise? How do I get it through the loop without catching everything else? What part of the stitch do I put it through?!? I don't get it!! And my lovely mother took some well deserved cracks at me and my lack of comprehension. We shared a lot of belly aching laughs. And that was the end of crocheting for me.
Except that I am a stupidly determined person, and when I'm terrible at something it makes me want to learn it more. (Groan. I know. Maybe someone should have told me I would be a terrible investment banker.) Anyway, I sat down with my Teach Yourself Visually book - note: I do not get anything for endorsing these books, they're just great, um, visually - and single crocheted my heart out. Then double crocheted and before long, I had a few example swatches.
It was as if a light had switched on - I just "got it". Before long, I had made a few snowflake ornaments for our non-existant tree.
Okay, not a few. More like a gagillion.
And now I understand why people like this so much. Yes, it is quick (more so than knitting?) but it is much easier to fix mistakes not to mention easy to hide mistakes.
The problem I'm having is how to bring it into the 21st century. I'm not really interested in making hats or tea cozies and all the patterns I've been finding look dated in a not-so-cool way.