Crochet Binge

Free Pattern: Us 5.5 mm or 5.00 mm crochet hook Size 4 medium worsted weight yarn Heart Pattern: This pattern is worked in all one row so I am going to list the steps in an ordered list but everything is worked in the circle. Magic circle or chain 4 and slip stitch into the first stitch. Chain 3 3 triple crochets 3 double crochets chain 1 1 triple crochet chain 1 3 double crochet 3 triple crochet Chain 3 and slip stitch into the circle and fasten off. I personally tie the two ends together and use them to tie them onto something or cut them off. Well, this is later Carolann and all of this was a waste of time. This is still a cute idea and a great pattern but he did not appreciate any of it really, hated one thing I made him, wanted to throw it away but wouldn't give it back, and then broke up with me a few months later to be with his best friend. Not to be one of those downers but not everyone is going to appreciate your work. Which sucks and hurts and if anyone else has felt th...

I have both ADHD and ADD (I think they are the same thing but who knows). I am not sure which but it can be hard to focus on one thing for so long. This brings the question of how can I crochet when crocheting is a mindless task. I actually like mindless tasks but normally I can only focus for so long and then find another. I have a few theories on why crocheting works so well for me but also some things I just love so much. Finding a stitch/pattern It has taken me many years but I found a stitch that most of the time I don't get bored of. Which happens to be the granny stitch. This is so relaxing to do and once I get started it's easy to get lost and have fun. Seriously explore different types of stitches and ways to crochet things, I spent years on a single crochet stitch blanket because I could not focus on it. Now I can pop out multiple blankets if I want to focus on them because I found a pattern/stitch I love and that keeps me going. I do still love doing things with sin...

I actually have a few crochet bags but I am going to be talking about my main one today. It is a small clear bag that I keep all my essential crochet tools in that is small enough to fit into a purse or bag of any kind. I am just gonna list everything inside and why I have it, in case there is any confusion on why I consider it essential. I really do recommend having some sort of set of tools. Even if you are just starting out because maybe you get lost or forget something or lose something. Even if it is not a bag specific for your tools, try and keep all your stuff together it really helps. I personally like having a handheld bag because I can stick it in my backpack to bag when I go somewhere and all I have to grab is a ball of yarn and I can figure out a project on the way if I don't already have one laying around.  Hooks - This one is obvious, when you crochet you need hooks because that's the whole basis of crocheting. I also happen to keep my loom knitting tool so I don...

If you might have seen last year I made a post about a temperature blanket. and it failed miserably. I started way late in the year and was already behind and I wasn't motivated with the style and I made my own chart, which was a good chart in theory. But I realized soon that it wasn't actually the best idea. It was evenly spaced between high and low. But the temperatures here don't get super hot or super cold and the two months that I did do last year were all green except for maybe less than 10 rows of other colors. It just didn't look good and it is because where I live it doesn't really get higher than the  80 nor really lower than 40. Like currently in January we are in the middle of winter it is still not even the second to lowest color on my new chart.  This year I wanted to do something different and I set it up to use a stitch that I will enjoy because I always enjoy it. I would defiantly recommend making yours based on your average temperatures and stitche...

  If you know anything about crocheting or knitting you know that comes with mistakes. And honestly, I love my mistakes. Well to a point. I have spent years perfecting my craft and even after 8 years there are still people who are better than me, but I think that's always the case or at least everyone feels that way. Every single pattern and thing I have crafted, there has been at least 1 if not many many failed attempts. For the first 5 years, I could not even make a straight-sided blanket. But with every mistake, I have gotten better and better and honestly so much better than I ever thought I would be. I actually made something today that I am just so proud of myself, over the moon proud of myself. There are only maybe less than five patterns online and they all require tons of adding and sewing and it was just something I would not have fun with, but I made my own pattern that is fun and looks amazing. As I digress I have learned so much and with every mistake, I make normally ...

What to do with your yarn scraps. I save every piece of yarn scraps I make. If you don’t know what I’m talking about, I’m talking about those little yarn pieces you cut off when you change yarn or finish a project, I mean if you don’t weave them all in like a psychopath. I keep all mine in a small bag in my main crochet bag and then when it gets full I transfer them to the universal ziplock bag I have in my room. Well, you are probably looking for the answer to the question at hand.  Use the scraps for stuffing. Hear me out, might sound weird or maybe you don’t make anything that needs stuffing and I hear you. I normally never do because I like to make things that are “useful” (in quotes because stuffed animals can be useful but I’m thinking of more things you physically can use day to day) but you will get that itch at some point. I have been crocheting for eight-plus years and I always felt stuffed things were way too complicated for my preferred way of crocheting, I never tried ...

I want to talk about paying for patterns. I wanna start by saying I understand the point and as someone who makes an income online I get it but at the same time I hate it. I personally don’t believe in paying for patterns nor will I ever sell a pattern unless let’s say it’s in a book. A book is different than just buying an individual pattern, a book is a physical copy that you’re paying for with multiple patterns, tips, and information. Well, online people pay out words of six to ten dollars for no physical item but a downloadable word document. Again I get the point, I have made my own patterns and spent hours upon hours of time and testing to get it just right, and yes I would like the credit, but I also believe at some point someone has either come up with it already or will in the future. Crocheting is almost like math it’s just sets of numbers that you put into a pattern that creates something. And even if I think of a brand new thing to make there is probably some version of it ...

As someone who crochets, makes patterns and actually sells those items as well you’d think I’d have some sort of Etsy shop. Because there are a ton of crochet or knitting related Etsy shops out there and I want to tell you why I won’t ever use Etsy.  The first thing is I hate paying for patterns and would never charge someone to use my pattern. I actually made an entire post about why I don’t sell or buy crochet patterns you check that out here on my blog. It mostly talks about how I believe in the community and not the money when it comes to patterns, though i understand I will never do it myself nor will I ever buy one.  Another thing is the charges. Etsy has tons of different fees and percents that they get. If a pattern or item doesn’t sell you need to pay them? That’s insane. I know they are popular and it might seem like you will get more views and buys by going through a big company but I have heard many people that use Etsy for years say most of their traffic came from...

  Last month I started posting on a new Instagram page just for my crochet projects, I have wanted to sell my craft for a long time but I finally got the courage, and it is going well! I have only got one commission so far but I wanted to talk about what I have learned so far just from the first-ever commission.  1. Shipping is expensive I also see things about small businesses online and their shipping is only a few dollars. But a lot of small businesses sell things like jewelry or lipgloss or something that can fit into a padded envelope. Which some things I create can but things like blankets are a whole other story. I finally found a set price that I could base it on, I have looked at shipping and all that stuff in the past but it is different once you get an order, I didn't take into consideration how big/small the boxes were and that I'd need a bigger one. About half my projects won't be able to fit into an envelope making the prices more expensive. I think the most i...

I don’t know if you can tell by my patterns if you’ve ever seen any of my patterns, but I hate the long increase and decreases in most patterns. With my ADHD I have a hard time focusing on certain aspects of things. One of my favorite things about crocheting is the repetition. The main thing that I love doing is being able to make my pattern anywhere I go. So all of my patterns are very simple and easy and I look for patterns to either try or configure into what I like, look for simplicity. But if you’ve ever tried to make any sort of stuffed animal or something that needs to be stuffed, you’ll know that most of the time it requires a slow increase or decrease. What I mean by slow is that it is one increase every 20 stitches and then the next row is one increased every 19 stitches or something random like that. To make it extend longer but also go short and I understand the concept of that but I don’t like personally doing it. Something I can’t remember of the top of my head and I love...

  I talk in a recent post about how some people do not support my design to follow my dream. I feel too many people live in the future rather than the present. I want to be here, I want to enjoy today because I really do not know if there is going to be a tomorrow, no one does.  I did not have a goal in life for a long time, I did not want to be around long enough. Even in high school when my graduation depended on it, I had nothing. I did graduate just to clear the air, but not the same way as my friends because I do not have the same motivation they did. I have had a youtube for almost a decade, I have had a blog for years. I have been on the internet for 70% of my life. I know it is a common dream nowadays to become famous over TikTok or Youtube but it is not famous that I want. I do not want to be known by millions or stopped on the street. I want to live by doing things I love. I want to write, I want to crochet for a living. Blogging is the best way to do that nowadays u...

One thing that took me a long time to get past, was the worry that if I gift people my crochet crafts, they wouldn't like it. And I am not saying they all do, but only recently I started giving people my items, because well, I'm running out of space. So I started gifting people, and so far no one has complained, I've actually had two people message me showing that they were using the bags I made them. Honestly made me really happy. Being recognized for your work is an awesome thing. I try my hardest to always and only make useful things. So like some people make stuff like stuffed animals which some people like, but most of the people I gift are adults. But even then there are some things people crochet or knit that I'm sorry are just kinda useless. I assume it's mostly for looks or clicks online, but I like to make things I hope someone could actually end up using. Recently I had an annual party where I was the host. I decided to make things like hats, soda co...

So I have said before that one thing I love about this community is the fact that we share our ideas, some people sell their patterns and I understand the appeal but I am not a huge fan of that side of the community. Anyway, I recently went to a blog trying to get ideas for a project/pattern, and it is common knowledge that a lot of people abbreviate things like single crochet and double crochet, which is easier but I have never been a fan of. But that now that bothered me this time. They made an entire key for abbreviations, fine sure, but they abbreviated stuff like "next" "skip" and such which I'm sorry just seems like overkill. Like why do you feel the need to like abbreviate everything? Like again I understand the stitches because most people try and memorize the stitches for quicker understanding like I understand but they abbreviated everything in the sentence like it made absolutely no sense that I just couldn't read it and gave up. I am not tryin...

I love to crochet, I have dozens of projects that I just have in my closet and in a small tote under my bed. I have tried for years to find ways to sell my projects, or I guess, just do something with them. I finally decided the other day, since I learned how to make a cute little produce bag, that I wanted to gift them as presents. I obviously thought about it before, but I know for a fact, not everyone will appreciate or use my creations, and since I put so much love into each one, I refused to do that. Since then I have changed my mind, why? Well mostly since I'm running out of room to put stuff. But also it goes to more waste sitting in my room rather than having the chance with someone else. And as long as a take a picture I remember. But also I love to crochet because it almost keeps me grounded. I think it's because of my ADHD, it keeps my hands busy. Anyway, I make so many projects that I just need to let go of. I have been having trouble figuring how I want to share...

I could easily add these posts to my main blog. But I realize one reason my main blog isn't one everyone follows directly is because I don't have one single theme. I post about my life, my hobbies, and just about whatever I want. I like it that way, the theme is me. For a long time I tried to change my blog, make new ones, just to try and earn some money. I was going through a dark time and not realizing what I was doing. Of course, when I work hard and long on a blog, it isn't insane to like/want ads on your blog. I am not selfish, I am human. But to apply for Adsense, through google, since that is my personal opinion is the best one, there are some requirements. For the blogger, google requires the blog to be live for 6 months, need to look clean and organized, and about 50 posts with over 500 words. Obviously, they have a longer list of requirements, but these are the main ones. Meaning if you have a whole bunch of different ads clouding your blog you won't get ac...

Hey, my name is Carolann. I have a few blogs like Cermit Talks and Cooking With Cermit. Crocheting is my all-time favorite hobby, I've been crocheting since I was 13. I originally started with kitting, and then found the wonders of crocheting. For multiple reasons, I feel like crocheting is better for me. For example, I can stop at any point since it's not all stuck on the needle, like knitting. And in the past, I have lost a single knitting needle and had to buy a brand new set. Kind of annoying. I have grown a collection of tools and patterns that have become my favorite. And since I use crochet blogs a lot to look for new patterns or ideas, I thought my knowledge after so many years could do the same for someone else. I have been putting off making a blog because I know I will have to write a lot. Not that writing its self is hard, But I always hate those blogs that have an entire book before the pattern, and have 30 or so ads making it impossible to read and enjoy withou...