Many people enjoy crochet for its relaxing qualities andsatisfying results. It appeals to a wide number of people, asmost of the materials still remain inexpensive and easy toobtain. Young children are often taught crochet to increasetheir fine motor skills, to help in their learning to count andfollow instructions and to bolster their self-confidence.Amongst older people crochet is popular as a social activity andto help keep arthritic symptoms in check.

Many people find that crochet can reduce stress levels. It's aneasily portable craft and can provide inexpensive and originalgifts. Crochet can help with dexterity; help with eye-handcoordination; help develop concentration and can be incorporatedas part of other crafts.

Crochet means hook in French and this is the name given to thecraft amongst French, Italians and Spanish speakers. It's knownas haken in Holland, haekling in Denmark, hekling in Norway andvirkning in Sweden. Although other forms of handwork can bedated far back in time, owing to archaeological finds no one isquite sure when and where crochet began.

Crochet is a series of interlocking loops of thread onto a chainusing a thin rod with a hook at the end. A chain of loops iscreated, with each new loop catching the thread and pulling itthrough the previous loop. After the chain is completed, thethread is then turned to start a second chain. There are a largevariety of patterns and stitches. Some of the more commonstitches are chain, single crochet, half-double crochet, doublecrochet, popcorn crochet, and cluster crochet.

In the past it was very common to work directly from a pictureof finished work or from a sample. This is why in early patternsmany of the directions seem to be missing. Women in thenineteenth century were familiar with crochet and thereforeinstructions that we need today were unnecessary at that time.

The story of crochet continues. By referring to old books,magazines and brochures, people find techniques that have beenforgotten. Often crocheters think they have invented new crochetstitches, when they are actually reinventing stitches that havebeen around for over a hundred and fifty years.

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About the author:Providing Tips and Help with Crochet for the beginner and moreexperienced.

Left Handed Crochet

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