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Crochet
The art of crochet is very similar to knitting in that wall or yarn is used to create a fabric. The word crochet is derived from the French word meaning 'hook' and basically it extremely easy to get hooked on crochet! It's an extremely satisfying craft to do because your work grows quickly and patterns are instantly created and are very effective to the eye. Crocheting, like knitting, is a process of pulling loops through other loops. But it goes one step further by wrapping the wall or yarn around the hook one or more times.
Only one stitch is active at any one time so your work is easy to handle and very portable to carry around with you, if you want to do it on public transport, in the garden or in the pub! Once upon a time crochet was used only to produce lacy mats or collars and cuffs on garments, but the full potential of crochet has now been discovered and it is used to make gorgeous clothing and household accessories galore.
There is just one basic stitch to learn and according to the way this stitch is used, it can be combined into groups or blocks and make varying degrees of intricate patterns. Depending on the type of yarn that is used, the finished results can range from thick dense fabrics such as coats to cobwebby lacy designs to make tablecloths, jumpers or baby garments.
There is no definite rule about how you should hold the yarn and hook since most crochet workers find their own method, which is comfortable to them. You need to find a method which controls the yarn so that it is pulled out evenly and allows you to work smoothly. As with knitting, it is essential to check the tension before beginning a pattern as the success of your work will depend on your accurate measurement of tension throughout the project. To check your tension, follow the instructions that are given in our section on checking tension in knitting. Do a sample square and if it is too big try using a size smaller crochet hook. Vice versa, if your sample is too small then try a hook one size larger.
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