If you’re new to crocheting, first of all, welcome! We’re glad to have you in the community. Crocheting is a fantastic hobby that will bring you in contact with all sorts of wonderful people and projects.
Whether you’re looking for something to do to make projects for friends and family, or you want something to relieve stress, crocheting is the thing that keeps on giving.
Thankfully, crochet is going through a real renaissance now. It used to be relegated to the realm of older folks, but it’s now being enjoyed by people of all ages. Parents are making scarves with their kids, and joining clubs where people have common interests.
But how long does it take to learn to crochet well?
It only takes a few hours to learn the basics, but what if you want to try something more aggressive?
Just like with any hobby, you’re going to need to put in the time to get good at crocheting. Luckily, we’re here to help you set expectations and make your journey from novice to expert more quickly and smoothly.
Here are some things you should know about the crocheting journey and what you can do to learn to crochet well more quickly.
When You Are Starting Out
It used to be, all you needed to learn to crochet was an older friend or relative with time on their hands.
Within a few hours, you could sit next to them, watching how their hands worked the yarn and hook to make something simple. Then, with your own tools, you’d set out practicing. It was a wonderful tradition of passing something down from one generation to the next.
A lot of crochet learning still happens that way, only we have more resources available now.
Today, you have the internet, and sites like YouTube are filled with crochet how-to’s for people at all levels. You don’t have to stick solely to the area you’re familiar with. A few hours of watching video tutorials can give you everything you need to take on bigger and more complex projects. It all depends on what you’re looking for.
Specializing Is a Good Idea
Practice makes perfect, so if you want to get good at something, you should do it over and over again.
The same goes for any type of crochet work. If you only try an item one or two times, it may come out looking a bit rough. By the fifth time, though, it’s going to start looking nice and tidy. Your knots will be neat and close together, and you’ll move through things faster.
It may not be as fun to try to crochet the same hat several times, but that’s essentially what you have to do if you want to learn to crochet well.
Specializing in a small number of items is a great way to lay a solid foundation and build more skills as you go.
Buying Quality Materials Helps
When you’re starting out, you want to hit this happy medium of spending enough money on your hobby but not too much. You’re going to make mistakes as you learn and stretch yourself, so you don’t want to buy expensive yarn and other materials that limit how much you can crochet.
On the other hand, you need nice enough stuff that makes crocheting enjoyable and something you want to keep doing!
Invest in hooks and scissors and other equipment that are durable and fun to use. Buy yarn colors you love and want to make something with.
It will help you put in more practice hours and get better faster.
Keep Consistent Tension as You Go
One thing that stops beginners and gets people frustrated is loose knots. They tend to make something look a little sloppy, and things can fall apart more easily. To combat that from happening, you should always keep tension in the back of your mind as you crochet.
With consistent tension, your gauge will remain steady and your project will look, in the end, what you thought it would look like when you began.
Move Up When You’ve Mastered a Skill
OK, so perhaps “mastered” is a little strong, but you get the point. Don’t try to double crochet until you can successfully and reliably single crochet.
It will build a toolbox of skills that you can pull from when you need something instead of constantly worrying about whether what you are doing is right or not. Focus on the basics and they will take you far.
Expect Around a Year of Learning
So you’re thinking you want to start crocheting as a hobby? That’s terrific! Many people who crochet dream of opening their own Etsy shop where they can sell their wares to eager customers who appreciate small artisan crafts.
It happens, certainly, but it’s probably not going to happen in your first month.
You should expect it to take around a year to start putting out polished items that look like something you would want to wear on your head, hands, or around your neck.
If you’re thinking about tackling large projects, like a sweater, then tack on several months to that.
The key is to start small and claim victories as you go rather than shoot for the moon in your first month. Your odds of sticking with your new hobby go up as you enjoy and see the fruits of your labor!
Leave Room for Creativity
One thing to keep in mind is to leave room for creativity in your crochet work. You’ll know you are doing well and can say you know how to crochet well when you can come up with projects yourself and bring a vision to life through your hobby. That takes time.
Don’t rush yourself, and enjoy the work as you go. Join some online or in-person crochet groups where you can trade tips and tricks or ask for help when you need it.
The community will help you keep going and it’s a place where you can show off your progress no matter what stage you’re at!