Friday 2 May 2014

Already off to a bad start!

So I'm already off to a bad start with my Blog every day in May challenge by not posting yesterday! In my defense I did have to go see a consultant at the hospital and talk about how they're running out of tests but still don't know whats wrong with me. Just what every ill person wants to hear when they're in constant pain! So to make up for this I am going to put up 2 posts today

So the challenge for yesterdays blog was "What is you blog about?". My blog in essence is about my crocheting so I guess its just me rambling on about my hobby. Although to be honest if you're going to write about something it makes sense for it to be something you enjoy!

I have been able to crochet since I was about 10. I asked my Yaya (my greek nan) to teach me to knit and she said no because she didn't like knitting and taught me to crochet instead. This is something I'm super grateful for now. I watch my mother-in-law and sister-in-law crochet and it blows my mind. Having to have a needle in each hand and still be able to keep track of your yarn seems like far too much work, especially for something that in my opinion, isn't anywhere near as versatile as crocheting. It amazes me that by using the same techniques you can make pretty much anything you could possibly imagine; from chunky jumpers to delicate table cloths. Then there's also amigurumi which I must admit is my favourite type of crochet! The things you can make are adorable and so easy to do.

The older I get the more I realise that most of my memories of my Yaya involve her with a crochet hook in her hand. I sometimes wonder if she herself realised how versatile crochet was. She only used to crochet using Egyptian cotton (rather than the brightly coloured yarn that fills my house) and she used to make the most spectacular bed spreads and table cloths. This is what she taught me to do when I was 10 and unfortunately table cloths don't hold the attention of 10 year olds and despite being able to crochet I never really did anything with it.

My Yaya passed away when I was 20. It was one of the hardest things I've ever dealt with. Trying to grieve and also write your Uni dissertation is not something I would recommend. About a year later I was looking for a new hobby. After finishing Uni I suddenly had a void in my evenings that would have usually been spent sat in the library waiting for inspiration to hit. This is when I stumbled across amigurumi. I thought it looked amazing and I watched a few YouTube videos on it and thought to myself "I wonder if I can still do it". So I took myself down to HobbyCraft and bought myself a hook and some yarn (My understanding of hook size vs yarn thickness has improved significantly since). I sat at home and was thrilled when the crochet skills came back straight away.My first attempts at amigurumi were not great! I think they're actually quite disastrous but I was so proud at the time.

That was 18 months ago and I've not really stopped since. I think the progress I've made is incredible and I know that this sounds very big headed but I truly believe that anyone would be able to make this progress.
This is a picture of the first thing I crocheted 18 months ago...

I clearly had no concept of colour changes haha. This was meant to be a chick and the orange was meant to be an upside down triangle to look like a beak!

This is a picture of the most recent thing I've made and incidentally is the only thing I've ever made for myself


I think its safe to say that there has been some definite progress made, and yet I'm probably less proud of this than I was of the awful chick! I think the better I get at crocheting the more critical I get of the things I make. Everyone else though is very complimentary!

This little elephant now has pride of place in my house just in front of the last photo that was taken of me and my Yaya. I think part of the reason why I love crocheting is because it makes me feel closer to my Yaya, its nice to know that we shared a passion despite being so far 40+ years apart in age. I wish she could have seen my crocheting, I like to think she'd be proud - although she would probably ask me why I'm making elephants and not bedspreads haha!


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