From so many crafts to choose from... why crochet?

Hint: it's not because of granny squares.

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I love crafts, but crochet conquered a special place in my heart and in my hands. And in my mind. From all, from so many I could dedicate myself to, why crochet?

"It ticks all the boxes."

• It's a simple concept: one needle, one thread.

• It’s portable: we can carry a crochet project with us anywhere, as long as it fits in a bag. We can even crochet while walking (believe me: I've done it before!). I always carry some crochet project with me to and from work. If you use public transportation and spend more than half an hour on buses or trains, crochet is perfect to make time pass by and make the trip both useful and pleasant. It doesn't even bother me if there's traffic jams. Quite the contrary. :D

• It's a world with no end. There's always something new to learn and experiments to do. Traditional and simple crochet, new stitches, lace, mosaic crochet or tapestry crochet, colour work, freeform, amigurumi, combinations with other crafts like sewing, knitting or even ceramics. It knows no end! And it's also an entryway into other worlds, like that of tools and materials, and to something that speaks to me, since I majored in History and like to learn about the stories behind crochet and textile and handicrafts in general. But I'll get a chance (or make one) to digress about it around here another time.

• It's very versatile. By changing the thread and the hook, the technique and the construction method, we can make all sorts of pieces, from accessories to clothing, to objects for the home, like rugs, lampshades or baskets.

• It's a community. And a wonderful, generous, enthused and understanding one. If you have access to the web, it doesn't really matter where you are because we can always find someone to inspire us, teach us and root for us. From Youtube channels to blogs and websites, Instagram and Pinterest, and even podcasts, it's easy to fall in a rabbit hole and never leave again. And if you so wish, you can find and create this community offline too, with ever more opportunities to meet other crafters and crocheters through workshops, meetings and events of all sorts.

• It's a refuge. An opportunity to relax and calm down, something you can find solace in. Its repetitive nature or complete freedom from rules and openness to creativity and experimentation; its potential to be very simple and almost mindless or, if you wish, complex and demanding of your full attention: crochet lends itself to zone out and allow you to be fully present in what you're doing or to be able to think problems through and find solutions.

• It's a teacher. If you set yourself to learn crochet and keep developing your skills, if you're not already patient and persistent, you will learn these important life skills sooner or later. You'll also learn how to show (gift) yourself some grace and learn that you actually can do things, new things, difficult things. And you'll understand that you are creative, as all humans are.

But crochet is only my craft of choice among many other possibilities

(And almost all of the above applies to all crafts, I must add, if they engage your hands, your body and your mind.)

I've already got my hands on many things at some moment, from origami to polymer clay, to embroidery or woodcarving, and I want to get back to some of them again eventually.

Experiments some years ago with lettering, calligraphy and book binding.

Going waaay back in time, I remember my mom getting me those embroidery kits for kids that came with a drawn canvas, a plastic frame, materials and instructions. I made several of these and I still keep some. I've always seen my mom making something, specially knitting (she made clothes for my brother and me) and, in the 90's, Arraiolos* rugs.

(*Arraiolos is a traditional embroidery technique from Alentejo, one of the southern regions in Portugal, used mostly to make rugs.)

Today, I regret not taking the opportunity to learn more from her when I was young enough not to have the responsibilities that come with adulthood. But I was under the false impression feminism was something I no longer think it is, and that it implied not doing anything even resembling feminine or domestic. Fortunately, a person grows up.

You can still see some embroidered necklaces on my instagram @ananimatelier.

I want to try and learn many more. I'd love to do ceramics, weaving, macramé, stamping, leatherwork, all the things, but I didn't get there yet. And it's possible or even likely I never will. I bought a loom from Bzugo in 2020, at the beginning of the pandemic, as a birthday gift to myself. And I'll get to use it much more than I did so far, but... I always end up getting back (obsessively) to crochet. Some crafts demand space that crochet doesn't, and I'm still in transition mode to a space I can call my own. Each thing in its own time.

Sometimes (or often) one craft takes you to another, like weaving taking you to try woodcarving…

From time to time, I wonder about this: why do I love crochet so much?

Like love, some things can't be explained, but it's still good to understand.

I've learnt the basics with my mom when I was in my late 20's, I think. When I say "basics", I mean it literally: slip knot, starting chain and single crochet stitch. She showed me only how to start in a class that probably didn't take more than 5 minutes standing near the dining table. And believe me that it was and is enough to start crocheting.

Some of my early makes, when I only knew the single crochet stitch.

For a long time, I didn't do more than this. A small pouch or another, a little basket here and there with the thinnest of strands, that I worked together to make a thicker thread. Little by little, I started exploring stitches and, with the precious help of the internet and amazing online teachers (even if unaware of their student’s attention), have been developing my skills. At some moment, I also used t-shirt yarn to be able to make bigger and sturdier projects, because I've always been into accessories like bags or things for the home. I like the idea of objects that are both beautiful and useful, that you can use and enjoy daily.

I guess the big turning point was when I sold my apartment back in 2018.

Having to take care of all the things, particularly the move, left me in a state of complete anxiety. As I have eczema on my hands, which, as you can imagine, loves anxious people, I needed to figure out some strategy to survive this stage and come up with a shred of sanity in the end. Enter crochet, the saviour of the day! Nothing like keeping your hands busy.

(I still remember watching the guys from the moving company opening each and every box. With everyone eager to pack all the things, my little crochet project bag disappeared, and no way I was going to be without it for not even an hour!)

But of course this isn’t the only reason I love crochet. It’s much more than a stress reliever, though it’s worth doing for that reason alone. It’s revolutionary philosophy in practice.

I guess this occasion (the moving) gave me enough quality time with it to focus, explore the technique, feed my grey cells and put them to work imagining all the creative possibilities crochet opens up, and realising how good it is for me. Time to develop a relationship of love, dedication and respect with crochet and handicrafts as a whole.

It may sound excessive, I know. But what’s the harm? We all need not only someone, but also something that gives us opportunities for pleasure, fulfilment, expression, and even reflection. Of moments for ourselves. We all need to find “our jam”. And this jam can be a full meal. :P

Making by hand is philosophy in practice. It’s revolutionary.

I’ve enjoyed hand making since ever, and always appreciated craftsmanship and the know-how that goes into it. I find it fascinating how human beings, since the beginning of time, create objects and come up with techniques to solve practical problems and, at the same time, try to make them beautiful. Not only useful, but also beautiful.

It’s so human, isn’t it? Using our hands and surrounding ourselves with beauty. And have you ever stopped to think how genious some inventions are, like a sewing needle, with a history that goes back thousands of years? Or how sophisticated a loom or thread made from wool or plants are? Genius, I tell’ya. Genius.

And when I speak of history, I also speak of relationships and the transmission of knowledge from generation to generation, and among families or our kin. I also speak of community and a thread that connects past, present and future.

The discussion on what sets apart art and craft seems to be ever-present, with the latter being deprecated relative to the former. I don’t see it that way.

Maybe something that sets them apart is not only the utilitarian character of the objects created, but also and mostly the way technique is transmitted and developed, the relationship between master and apprentice, the duty practitioners feel to transmit a knowledge that does not belong to oneself alone And this is beautiful and precious.

At a time when we seem to be obsessed with complex technology, and with everything and anything that allows us to not use our hands (which means not using our brains), in getting everything at the speed of light with the push of a button or a voice-command, making by hand is revolutionary. Or it can be.

More than a hobby, or a possible business, a stress reliever or a way to set my imagination and creativity free, doing crochet - or any handicraft - is a form of revolutionary philosophy in practice.

Making by hand is a declaration of intentions and principles

Making by hand with intention is understanding things take time, that the time of the machines is not the time of humans and Nature, That our time *is* Nature’s time.

It’s realising there’s nothing like touching and interacting directly with materials and the world we live in. Making by hand is about how, instead of setting ourselves even more apart of the natural world and trying to deny our - mortal, imperfect - nature, we should return “home” in some way. (I don’t mean it in a nostalgic sense.)

And it’s understanding as essential, to give meaning and substance to our existence, this connection to places and people, alive and dead, human and non-human, built and nourished through the objects and the knowledge a “craft” brings into existence.

There’s so much talk today about sustainability and climate crisis, but we’re only digging ourselves a bigger hole the more we look at complex technology as *the* solution for everything and lose sight of everything else. What is not sustainable is maintaining the pace and least of all increasing it. It’s important to look at what really sustains us: Planet Earth, Nature, each other and ourselves.

(Besides, if/when there is a system collapse, we’ll want someone who knows how to use thread and needle by our side, together with people who know how to tend the land, identify plants, care for others, cure ailments or get guidance from stars, just to name a few survival skills.)

And all of a sudden, a text about crochet got here and I don’t exactly know how that happened.

Or I do. Crochet is a world. And it’s an important part of my world. When I say I love crochet, I really love crochet. And I want it to be a part of my day-to-day, and increasingly so. And I also want everybody to have their own “crochet” in some way.

I speak of crochet but it could be any other manual activity that allows us to use our hands in a creative and gratifying way, hands that work together with our brain and our whole body, that connect us to each other and to the world. Something that puts us in touch with our homo faber nature, with our creative and also social self.

Because entering the world of crafts is entering a community of makers, of connection, stories and knowledge and skills, that are passed through generations, and it’s being a part of that web to make it stronger and richer for generations to come.

This project of mine is, in some way, a little speckle of fibre I’d like to add to that web. I hope you stick around and join me!

Thank you for getting here.

Ana

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PS: Looking for a link to show you what is Arraiolos embroidery, I found two really interesting websites/projects I had no idea existed. If you want to jump to yet another textile rabbit hole, be my guest! I’ll be there too. ;)

Selvedge Magazine

Textile Research Center