March is National Crochet Month! Incidentally, it’s also the month I had our first-born child. Coincidence? I think not! After all, Mason is the reason I picked up crocheting to begin with! In honor of this momentous occasion, I will be sharing some of my favorite crochet patterns and showing off my past projects as well as my current projects. I will be sure to include links to each of the patterns so they can easily be found. So if you are an avid crocheter, like myself, a beginner just starting out, or someone who has never considered crocheting until now, stay tuned!
First things first! How did I get into the art of crochet?
It was October of 2012 and I was in the 2nd trimester of my first pregnancy. I was still battling Hyperemesis Gravidarum (a story for another day), which made me incredibly sick all day every day. Being pretty much confined to the house was boring to say the least and I decided that I needed something to keep me occupied while I was stuck on the couch or in bed. I was in Walmart with Tommy one evening when the idea struck me to crochet Mason a baby blanket. I called my mom, who learned to crochet when she was pregnant with me, right there in the yarn aisle and asked her what size hook I needed and which yarn I should use. I was ecstatic and couldn’t wait to get home and start on this project.
This is the beginning of Mason’s blanket! I was so proud!
In the middle of working on Mason’s blanket, I decided that I wanted to make Christmas presents for our family. I wasn’t experienced at all and was only doing single crochet, a very basic stitch, but I was determined! I settled on hot pads, a very easy beginner project.
The very first hot pad I made. I gave that one to my mom for Christmas in honor of her helping me learn this beautiful art…over the phone while we were stationed in Virginia and she was back home in Georgia!
After the holidays, I picked up where I left off on Mason’s blanket, and finally finished it on February 17th, a month before my due date, but only 23 days before I delivered Mason!
Mason’s finished blanket!
I was on a roll and couldn’t be stopped. I found a cute baby bear hat pattern and just HAD to make it. It was the most advanced pattern I had attempted. I struggled with understanding the language and made several calls to my mom for some assistance, but I never gave up on it.
Mason’s Baby Bear Hat
We were originally told that Mason was going to be on the smaller side, but he ended up being over 8 lbs! The hat ended up not fitting him because it was too small and I crocheted VERY VERY tightly at the time. I told the nurses that I’d like to donate it to the hospital in hopes that it could be used for another baby. I have since learned about gauge and tension and I was able to make a 2nd baby bear hat for our son, Jensen, that fit him quite well.
Jensen’s Baby Bear Hat
I haven’t stopped crocheting since I started. It has become a passion for me. There’s something about crocheting that soothes my soul and puts me at peace. Eventually, I would love to turn this hobby into something more and start designing patterns full-time! Hopefully, that will happen sometime in the near future!
