Hello everyone and welcome to another blog post!!!

If you’re new here, my name is Kiana-Moon and I’m attempting to create a blog about various creative mediums I’m into. This is my little corner of the internet to explore my creative endeavors and share them with the world.

In this article, I’m going to be talking about my journey with crocheting and show some of the projects I’ve completed. Additionally, I’ll link my small, crochet business link at the end of the post for those that want to check that out.

Anyway, without further ado, let’s get into the article.

Crochet journey thus far

My memory of my middle school years is a bit (okay, a lot) fuzzy, so I don’t remember what inspired me to start crocheting. I just remember that I told my grandma that I wanted to learn how to crochet and she signed me up for a class. During that one class (yes, I only took one class), I learnt how to create the slip knot, chain, slip stitch, and single crochet. I remember I was so nervous at first, my hands were shaking (undiagnosed anxiety at the time made everything scary).

My teacher was really nice though and calmed me down enough for me to hold the hook properly and begin the motions. My first ever project was a really long, pink scarf made of this bulky yarn that I think she gave me for free. That or my grandma purchased the first yarn that she saw. Either way, it worked out for me because starting off with a bigger needle and yarn helped me become more confident in my abilities.

As much as I would like to say that my crochet journey has been smooth and linear, it has been anything but. I would stop crocheting for months, sometimes years at a time and then randomly pick it up again one day. So, I acquired the basics from the time I was 12 until I was about 17-18 when in reality it will probably take a month MAXIMUM to learn the basics if you keep at it often.

I thought that was going to be the pattern for my life until one day, I became really addicted to the art of crocheting. Suddenly, I couldn’t go a single day without picking up my needle and yarn and working on some kind of project whether it be a blanket or skirt. Even throughout my degree program, you could always find me with my crochet materials on me. Deadass, I was crocheting at my graduation because I needed something to pass the time.

As you can see, crocheting is something I’m passionate about.

It wasn’t until I started getting serious about crocheting that I started seeing an improvement in my skills. And it wasn’t until I was passionate that I realized there’s a whole community out there of people who crochet and post videos and photos online of their creations. That’s when I started watching YouTube videos on different patterns and making whatever I thought was interesting to me.

I’ve developed my skills so much to the point where I made my own outfit for a Valentine’s dance at my college.

Like, how cool is that!?

And after having so many people compliment me on my crocheting skills and projects, I finally decided to open a crochet shop on Etsy called HandmadeCrochetbyKay. There’s not a lot on there right now, but I’m working to increase the options and styles of products on my shop. Truth be told, I opened the shop initially because I didn’t want to do a paper for class and was doing anything and everything to avoid doing that paper (I locked in and did it after setting up my shop though).

As previously mentioned, I will leave the link at the end of the post for those that are interested in checking it out.

Now, onto some of my completed works and WIPs (works in progress).

Crochet projects

Okay, so, the first piece(s) I’m going to show is this crochet shirt and skirt set. One thing about me, I hate the color pink, so you’ll rarely see me pick the color for anything whether that’s crocheting or painting. But, this yarn was in varying shades of pink and I couldn’t help but fall in love with it as the lighter shades of pink are the ones I don’t mind.

I crocheted the skirt off a tutorial on YouTube because for some reason, I couldn’t figure out how to make it from the image in my mind. The skirt, however, came purely from my mind and is a WIP because when I tried it on, it didn’t fit. I think I know where I went wrong and hope I can correct the error in the future when I re-make it. I have yet to where this fit or post it on my Etsy, but I’m hoping to change that in the future (probably as soon as I figure out the pattern for the shirt).

This next crochet piece is another shirt and skirt combo. You can actually see me wearing the top with different bottoms because I hadn’t created the skirt yet. This is another WIP because if you look closely at the first image, I haven’t weaved in the loose ends for the skirt. Additionally, I’m trying to find a fluffy yarn that matches one of the shades of the skirt to add ruffle layers to the skirt. I’ve had no such luck finding a yarn so far, but if anyone has any suggestions, I’m open to them.

This skirt is very similar to the pink skirt you’ve previously seen except there is no string at the bottom to wrap around your leg. The yarn for this project is so soft and brushed, and I love the color scheme for the yarn. I’m trying to create a top to match the bottoms, but I have no idea where that WIP is at and may very well end up having to re-make it (oops).

Believe it or not, I’m still working on this blanket (if you look at the top, right corner of the blanket, you can see my crochet hook in the blanket). After making a granny square baby blanket for a family member, I wanted to make my own granny square in colors that I would like. Introducing the Winter Crochet Blanket. I plan to make these for my Etsy in these colors as soon as I finish this one. I might even offer an option to make the blanket in the preferred colors of my consumers. Haven’t quite figured that out yet.

Speaking of that baby blanket, here it is!!! This was my first time making a granny square anything because, despite being an intermediate crocheter, I was always intimidated by granny squares and feared failure. I’ve mentally grown now and know that failure is another opportunity for success and decided to just go for it. After watching a few minutes of a tutorial, I realized just how insanely easy it is to make a granny square. No wonder it’s recommended for beginners.

These shorts were a crochet order (that ended up getting lost in the mail so I had to re-make them) that I was more than happy to fulfill. I loved these shorts so much, I almost wanted to keep them for myself. But, alas, I had to mail them off to the nice person who purchased them. I still may make a pair of these shorts for myself. What do you think?

Okay, this post is getting kind of long, so this will be the last crochet project I show. These hats were Christmas gifts for my family since money was tight at the time and crocheting them something would not only be that much more meaningful, but it didn’t cost an arm and a leg. The red hat was the hardest to make because for some reason, I wanted to knit the hat. I am by no means a good or fast knitter and I almost didn’t finish the hat in time compared to the other hats. The only reason I talked myself into knitting is because knitting requires less yarn and I wasn’t certain that I would be able to make the hats with one ball of each color (spoiler alert: I did).

And there you have it. Some of my crochet creations on display for all to see.

As promised, here is the link to my crochet shop on Etsy: https://www.etsy.com/shop/HandmadeCrochetbyKay?msockid=1c1d0ee3d4e668db023f1d47d5ca6997

As you can see, there’s not much on there because I don’t know what I’m doing, but I have gotten a few orders, so that’s nice. Imagine what I could do if I actually got my act together and started marketing and crocheting more items (I’d be unstoppable).

Thank you so much for reading this post and I’ll see you in the next one!!!