Crochet Epiphany No. 1

Stitches Too Tight...

OK, over the years in my time crocheting, I've discovered some, "tricks," for making crocheted life easier. Recently, in my amigurumi adventures, I discovered a way to make that first round in the magic/adjustable ring easier. I have a really, REALLY, tight crochet stitch which makes that first round super difficult. I could spend 10 minutes just trying to get my crochet hook through this TINY little stitch that I'm not even sure how I created. I've tried loosening up. I think to myself, when I make that notoriously obnoxious stitch, "Don't make it tight! You know you are going to end up throwing it out the window if you get to that stitch and it's tight!" However, it doesn't matter how loose I'm feeling or what nice relaxed thoughts I'm thinking, because I get to that first round and in that stitch I'm stuck.

SO, I cheat. My crochet hook is too big for the hole, so I get another hook. This took me a while to figure out because when I started crocheting I thought all you ever needed was 1 hook. I had a size G, teal crochet hook that my grandma had given me to use. I guess I saw that she had other hooks, but I obviously didn't think that much about it. This was MY crochet hook, and the only one I could ever need, right? (Interestingly, I had the same opinion about flutes before I got to college. There, I learned that like crochet hooks for crafters, musicians typically have more than one instrument. This was a major eye opening moment. Anyway...) Well, I was also living in the dark, dreary land of half-double crochet at the time, so with my ONE stitch and my ONE hook I just dealt with stuff. When the needle crafting world began to open up to me and my mom started crocheting these bracelets with thread, I realized I had been living in a crochet sock drawer all my life. So, I took a serious look at the craft isles in my favorite stores and realized those hooks weren't just aesthetic... they actually do different stuff! Now I have this whole wonderfully colorful assortment of crochet hooks to choose from, and those hooks allow me to cheat...

I'LL be the first to admit that the magic/adjustable ring is a beautiful thing. However, right after admitting that, I will incessantly complain about the initial stitch into said magic ring. It is completely and utterly obnoxious. I'm quite sure all of this is due to the fact that I have an inability to make stitches that actually allow anything of substance to pass through. So, this technique is for all of the crocheters that suffer from Stitches Too Tight - herein referred to as, STT...

My process begins with a magic ring, of course... I used 5 single crochet stitches for demonstration using a size F hook and Caron Simply Soft yarn. For more detailed magic ring instructions, check out this page: Magic Ring Link

NOW, the hard part. THE FIRST STITCH!!! Don't panic, grab a teeny tiny size 5 or 1.90 mm crochet hook and you'll be fine. Because that first stubborn stitch is just too darn tight for me,

I make sure that the tension on the F hook is tight, and grab my size 5 hook. Leave the F hook attached to your work, maintaining that tension, and insert the size 5 hook into the stitch in question.

Draw up a loop with the size 5 hook.

Make sure to open up a WIDE loop so you can fit your F hook into it.

Insert your F hook, tighten, and complete your single crochet.

THERE! You've done it! If you are like me you are overcome with emotion knowing that you didn't waste 20 minutes of crochet project time trying to jam your giant hook into a tiny stitch!

I use these little hooks for EVERYTHING. Whenever I need to pull multiple stitches through a tight spot or need to maneuver around something too tightly woven together, these small hooks save me TONS of time!

AT first, it seemed like more trouble than it was worth. I mean, you had to push your original hook out of the way, find the microscopic hook, (because it was never where I thought I left it and most likely somewhere underneath the cushions of the couch...) then hold all 400 things at once to make this little loop so I can get on with my crochet life. WHEW! However, after I did it a few times, I got a rhythm going. I figured out how to hold things and where to keep things handy, (not in the couch cushions), so that the cheat became worth it.

I'm sure I'm not the first person to do this, but I hope I can give someone somewhere some STT relief! :)

Thanks for reading,

~Paige