Learn the stitches, tools, and techniques you need to get started with crochet! In this course produced by Bluprint-the popular online educational site dedicated to creative projects of all types-you join author and popular blogger Kim Werker as she provides step-by-step instruction for getting started-from selecting the right yarn and deciphering tricky yarn labels to properly holding your hook and working yarn. You'll love Kim's down-to-earth approach as she teaches you a basic chain stitch and demonstrates single, double, and half-double crochet and the slip stitch! Learn how to work in rows, keep your crochet on track, and troubleshoot rows gone wrong. Then, learn three different ways to get started working in the round and become comfortable reading patterns! Finally, combine your new skills to create a charming granny square blanket you'll be proud to display or give.
Crochet: Basics and Beyond
Learn the stitches, tools, and techniques you need to get started with crochet! Join author and popular blogger Kim Werker as she provides step-by-step instruction for getting started.
Overview
About
Kim Werker is a writer, editor, instructor and maker who has tapped into the immense power of the internet through blogging, teaching and running the online magazine-turned-social-media-network Crochet Me. Aside from her Web-based endeavors, Kim was also the editor for Interweave Crochet from 2006 to 2008. You might recognize her from her multiple books, including Make It Mighty Ugly, a project about shrugging off the negative internal voices that hamper individual creativity.
Trailer
01: Getting Started
Meet your instructor, Kim Werker, as she introduces you to the world of crochet. Learn about yarn, hooks, and other tools and start with the most basic crochet stitch: the chain stitch. Kim will offer advice for how to hold your hook and show you the way she tensions her yarn.
25 min
02: The Basic Stitches
Now that you feel comfortable using a hook and creating a basic chain stitch, move on to the fundamentals of crochet: the single, half double, double, and treble crochet stitches. Kim will walk you through each stitch, one at a time, and show you exactly how it is formed. Examine the anatomy of each stitch and learn to recognize and prevent common mistakes.
30 min
03: Working in Rows
Build your stitches into fabric as you learn to create the foundation chain, the beginning of any piece worked in rows. Learn how to work into the chain and keep crocheting as you turn your work to create rows of beautiful textured fabric. Then, finish your first swatch as you learn to fasten off and weave in your ends.
34 min
04: Troubleshooting Row Work
Did your swatch not turn out exactly as you had expected? No problem. This lesson is all about discovering what can go wrong and how to avoid making the same mistake in the future. Witness how losing or adding stitches and improper hook insertion affect the shape of your fabric as Kim shows you how to fix mistakes and offers tips for keeping them from happening again.
20 min
05: Working in the Round
Now that you're comfortable working in rows, expand your crochet abilities to include round projects as well! Kim will show you how to create fabric that spirals out from the center as you learn three ways to start rounds: chain ring, expanding slip knot, and magic adjustable ring. Learn to increase stitches and calculate how many you'll need to add from one round to the next to create a flat circle.
29 min
06: How to Read a Pattern
Get a crash course on pattern reading as Kim takes you through the written directions for a granny square blanket and also shows you how to read a crochet diagram. Learn common pattern abbreviations and how the stitch symbols in a diagram help you visualize your stitches. Then, Kim challenges you to make your first granny square using the pattern only!
16 min
07: The Granny Square
How did that granny square turn out? Need a little more help? Don't worry. Kim will diagram the elements of a granny square then walk you stitch by stitch through each round as you watch her square form before your eyes. Learn how to turn the corner and join each round, and how the granny square pattern builds on itself to create a relaxing item to crochet.
31 min
08: Rounding Out Your Knowledge
Finish your exploration of crochet with the essential techniques that will take your stitches to the next level. Learn how to change colors in the middle of a round and at the end of a row. Discover how to measure gauge so that your projects always end up the right size and learn how simple changes in the way you make stitches can create fabric with a completely different look. Finally, learn how easy it is to decrease and witness the curvy, flowing fabric that can be created quickly and easily in crochet!
25 min
