Crocheter's Tools

It was year 2018 when I rediscovered my hidden talent in crocheting. My mom taught me the basics when I was young. She had a hard time teaching me because I am left handed and she's right handed but I really wanted to learn so she put effort in my crochet basics. Then, my teacher in gradeschool taught us some new designs. After that, I completely forgot everything about crocheting. Although, I still have my crocheting kit even when I moved out. My kit back then only had one IMIA #7 crochet hook and some balls of Monaco mercerized yarn.

Back then, I thought those were the only tools I needed to finish my crochet projects. And for the longest time, I did not need anything else. When I made my very first project, my daughter's Moana costume, in 2018, it felt like the floodgates burst open! All of a sudden, I find myself browsing crochet group after crochet group, pattern after pattern, crochet shop after crochet shop. It is through these that I learned about all the other tools that a crocheter uses.

I have several ongoing crochet projects right now but for this post, let me talk about the crocheter's tools that I have used so far. The first amazing crocheters tool that I learned about was the stitch marker or stitch holder.

As the name suggests, this crocheter's tool marks or holds the stitches. I was browsing through online shops when I found these tiny little trinkets. They looked like safety pins that look safer than those sharp pointy safety pins you use for diapers back in the day. I usually use these to mark the decreases or increases in my project. Sometimes it is also useful for counting long chain stitches. Instead of having to manually count the chains and stitches over and over again, stitch markers/ stitch holders helps me not get confused while I work on a project.

There are different kinds of stitch holders. I personally like the colorful ones that look like safety pins. There's the spiral-looking thingy. I seldom use these spiral thingies. Only when I run out of the colorful safer safety pin stitch marker. But when I do really run out of all the stitch markers I have (that happens when I have so many WIPs in the box of shame), I then get extra resourceful. I use what's laying around like the safety pins or paper clips. The paper clips are excellent but the safety pins are the easiest to use.

When I'm working on a circle design, I use yarn leftovers to mark the start of each round. It's a lot easier to just use yarn leftovers. It's easier to pull it out when I'm done with the counting. Plus those leftovers still get to feel they're still useful.

These little traffic cone-looking thingies, to be honest, I'm still not sure how to use. Until a few months ago, my daughter has been using these as traffic cones for her toy cars. It's fun seeing her have fun with these. She always promises though to take care of them and not to lose any of them. And she did. Then I thought of using these as stitch holder. I'm still not sure if that's how to use these and I don't even know what these are called.

Before, when I didn't have these tools, I just roll the WIP then pull the last open stitch really really long so that it cannot be unraveled accidentally. And it has been a habit actually, even now that I have these tools, old habits die hard. I still park most of my WIPs this way if I don't remember I have the right tools for the job.

I find these row counter extremely useful. When I was starting out, I kinda avoided big projects because I have always been afraid I might not be able to commit to finishing any of those. But so far, I have completed big projects like a dress, a blackout curtain, a hammock, a mini throw rug, off the top of my head. At first, I did not use these because I did not give much thought of its usefulness but now, I have these constantly attached to the my crochet hook ends. I feel much at ease in counting the rows of my projects.

My most hated part of my crochet projects is weaving ends off. But it's part of the job so it still has to be done. I used to just use a smaller-sized crochet hook when weaving ends off. These blunt-ended big-eyed weaving needles made the job a lot easier. It's fun to use too because they're colorful. Although for the longest time, I have been using the metal ones. Maybe a force of habit since I'm used to using metal needles when sewing. The colorful ones are useful though when I am working on an 8-ply yarn.

When I acquired my polycotton yarns from the paid raffle I won last year, it came with this yarn winder. It feels more like a toy than a crocheter's tool though. When my mom visited me, she had a lot of fun winding yarns that she brought home. I was going to wind the yarns myself for her but she insisted on doing it. I guess the kid in her just popped out when she saw my new toy. Now I know where I got that fun childish side of me.

Originally, I thought crocheting was all about counting the stitches and that the official measurement here is the stitch count. I used to measure my projects that way. This would be N stitches wide, and X rows long. But then I figured my clients won't really understand that especially when we're just talking through chats. So now, I know that tape measures are an essential crocheter's tool. It doesn't really need to be a tape measure. Truth be told, I used to use my husband's carpenter tape measure. If I'm working on a small item, I'd grab my daughter's ruler. But now that I'm trying to keep my workspace organized, (our new apartment now has separate workspaces for me, my husband, and my daughter) I make sure that I have my tape measure always handy for my WIPs.

I used to think that crocheting was just as simple as yarn overs and yarn pulls. Heck, I only knew how to make granny squares back then. Now that I have access to youtube and the vast pool of knowledge called the internet, I now know that there is more to crochet than meets the eye.

Now, I learned a long time ago when I was still into photography, that a photographer is never just as good as his gadgets. It's the talent, passion, and dedication that counts. The same goes for crochet and other crafts. One can still create amazing masterpieces with or without these crocheter's tools.

These are just merely trinkets that make it more convenient to create but above everything else, it's still the skills that matter. With or without these crocheter's tools, we still should strive to enhance our skills and knowledge in our craft. Just like what Tony Stark said to Peter Parker: "If you're nothing without your suit, then you shouldn't have it."

_{All photos above are mine. Edited and enhanced through Canva.}