Crochet: Where do I even begin?

So somebody asked me about knitting on twitter and I thought I’d make a post on crochet. I’m contrary like that. There are lots of instructions about crochet online so I’m going to talk about what worked for me. Think of it as a sort of recipe.

For the first project, I would recommend going big. Large size hook and bulky yarn will give you the satisfaction of a quick make. And satisfaction is important here so we don’t give up with beginner blues.

For an affordable yarn, go to one of the bix box craft store websites like Joann or Michael’s.

Choose Lion Brand Yarn Wool-Ease Thick & Quick OR any super bulky / size 6 yarn. Two skeins for a scarf for the specified brand. There are lots of colors to choose from.

One/two skeins of bulky yarn should be enough for most brands.

*So these brands are for people in the US. I don’t know much about elsewhere but lovecrafts.com is a website that probably delivers to other places. In the UK, Lion Brand yarn is available on Amazon. This is the page on the Lion Brand website which may help choose a substitute.

Right. Now buy a hook in size 10mm. For now, just get one of those plastic ones so you won’t feel guilty about. This one works fine.

Look at a crochet video that teaches you how to “make a foundation chain”. Or look at this site.

Also one on a basic crochet stitch like “double crochet”. Also called DC.

1. Chain 10 or 12 stitches.
2. Chain 2/3 additional stitches. Some videos will tell you to make three chains and count it as your first stitch. My advice is to not count it. (IMO, this makes a neater edge). You can make three if two seems “tight”.
3. Make a DC in the third chain.
4. Make a DC in the next chain and in every chain until the end.
5. Turn.
6. Chain 2. Now, in this recipe, this is not your first stitch. This is your edge.

6. Make a DC in the first stitch. This is your first stitch in this row. Continue making DCs until the end.

7. Repeat above steps until you have a long enough scarf. Here are instructions on binding off.

Now, you have a scarf.

So the chain 2 you make will form a sort of curve on alternate sides every row. This is ok and natural. It will end up giving a slightly scalloped edge to the scarf.

Note: The featured image is of a crochet blanket in Bernat blanket yarn. Something to look forward to in the future.