No matter where you are in the world, or what holiday you are celebrating, I hope you all have a good one! Be safe and have fun! Oh, and don’t forgot to take some time to crochet 😉

In part 2 of my adventure, I told about the items I decided to crochet for my cousins and my aunt. I even had the chance to finish my aunt’s shawl. Now, I’m proud to announce that I finished all my gifts for the holidays (and I hope you have too)!!!

Although I only chose a select few people to make gifts for, I’m so glad that I was able to finish them in time. Here is a run down of what I was able to accomplish and the crochet pattern and pictures that goes along with them:

Shawl for my aunt – Crochet Pattern: The Yuet Shawl
Headbands for one cousin – Crochet Pattern: Classic Headband Set
Finger puppets for the younger cousin – Crochet Pattern: Animal Finger Puppets

Thanks to you all for your support and helping me stay on track with gift making this year! It sure was fun!!!

What gifts were you able to get done?

Do you find yourself too busy to crochet? Whether you are too busy working, studying in school, or taking care of the kids, here are some good excuses to indulge in your favorite hobby: crochet!

1. Scientifically proven to be healthy. The repetitive action of crocheting helps manage stress, pain, and depression. It can also strengthen the body’s immune system and decrease the chances of memory loss by 50%. You can even watch the CBS video clip for more info here: Studies Show Knitting and Crocheting is Good For Your Health
2. Reduces stress. This is related to the above “excuse” but needs no scientific evidence to prove. Just ask any avid crochet out there, and he or she will tell you how relaxing and stress relieving it is to crochet. It’s great to be stress free!
3. Makes you happy. We all know that life can be a handful. Taking time out for yourself is the best thing you can do. After all, if you are a happier person for it, I bet everyone else will be happy you did it too. (no one wants to be around a grumpy person)
4. Enhances your dexterity. The more you work with your hands, the better you get at it! Ever want to impress someone with how super fast you can crochet? Well, the more you practice, the better you get.
5. It’s for a good cause. Lot of crocheters all around the world enjoy crocheting for a cause. Whether it’s crocheting hats and scarves for the homeless or blankets for babies, you know that your work is making a difference! (check out the crochet charity page, if you would like to find a charity to donate your crochet items to)

Do you have an excuse to crochet more often? Feel free to leave a comment to share!

The only reason I hesitate to give crocheted gifts is that I fear they would end up in someone’s closet collecting dust. This year, I decided to take a shot at making some of my gifts. Here are some of the precautions (mostly common sense) I’m taking so that my gifts don’t end up as useless stuff:

Ask them what they want. If I ask, they should give me some sort of clue, right? If you know the person well, you would probably already know if he/she would like what you’re making. But if not, it never hurts to ask.

Make what they ask for. Another no brainer! If they ask for it, there’s a good chance it is what they want. You can even take out all of your crochet patterns and let him/her pick from them.

Give hints. If you want your gift to be a surprise, try to give subtle hints as to what you are making to find out if he/she would like it.

Add a donation tag. I got this idea from a Crochet Spot reader! She advised to add a tag with information where the crocheted item can be donated if the gift was not to his/her liking. Just about any crocheted item can do donated somewhere! You can check out my crochet charity page for a list of places to donate to. So if all else fails, hopefully your recipient would donate your gift to a good cause.

I bet there are a bunch of other tips, that you have! Do you have a tip to share?

Dishcloths can be fun, fast and environmentally friendly to make! But some of you out there may be hesitant to make them. I remember when I made my first crochet dishcloth, I was so scared to use it, because I thought that I would mess it up! Why would I work so hard to crochet something if I was going to wipe dishes and clean the counters with it? To my surprised the dishcloth worked great and I didn’t really mess it up, since I was able to toss it in the washing machine when I was done. Plus I could always make another if I wanted!

Now I find that I clean more than I used to, because I want to hold my crocheted dishcloth in my hand! I love using dishcloths for cleaning surfaces (counters, tables, etc). I find that they are great for picking up crumbs or scrubbing messes. Dishcloths aren’t just for dishes anymore. Depending on the pattern you use, they can be used for general clean around the house or even bathing.

One thing I don’t like about crocheted dishcloths is that they take a long time to dry. Most dishcloths are crocheted with 100% cotton yarn. If you haven’t noticed, it is pretty thick and absorbent. On a side note, you can make dishcloths with other yarns and materials.

If you are one of those people that doesn’t think crocheting a dishcloth is right for you, I think you should give it a try, at least one time! It’s okay if you end up not liking it, but what if you’re missing out on a good thing?

Here are some of my easy and simple dishcloth patterns for you to try:
Crochet Pattern: Dishcloth with Ridges
Crochet Pattern: All Purpose Mesh Dishcloth
Crochet Pattern: Surface Cleaning Cloth
Crochet Pattern: Facial Cleaning Pads

You can always ask me for help if you get stuck.

Are you a fan of crocheting dishcloths? Why or why not?

Have you ever gotten tired of the stereotype that only old ladies in rocking chairs crochet? Well, I am! Although I think most stereotypes have some truth behind it. Old ladies in rocking chairs do crochet, but I bet most of them learned when they were young. In my opinion, crocheting is a hobby that is timeless and once you learn it, it sticks with you for a long time. Maybe that is why lots of people think that it’s an old lady’s sport. I learned to crochet sometime in middle school. I’m not exactly sure what my age was, but I’m going to guess I was around 10 years old, give or take a year or 2. I don’t think a 10 year old is considered an old lady.

Now, lets prove this stereotype wrong once and for all! What age did you start to crochet?

Last week I told you about my Holiday Gift Making Adventure and how I didn’t even start making anything! This week I’m proud to announce that I got some DONE! Not all the way done, but getting there.

Here is the break down of what’s going on: Aunt’s shawl – I decided to give her my “The Yuet Shawl” that I just finished. It’s lacy with a nice flower on the back of it. I think she’s going to love it! Here is the pattern info if you would like to make one too: Crochet Pattern: The Yuet Shawl 2 cousins – Last week I didn’t even know what to make them but since then my aunt gave me some great ideas. For one, I’m going to make her headbands with flowers using my Classic Headband Set Crochet Pattern. For the other, I’m going to make her animal finger puppets! (I’ll be making a pattern for these as I make them, just in case you want to make them too) Mom – I still don’t know what to make her. I might just browse the stores to find her something if I don’t come up with anything by next week. I’ll let you know how my brainstorm goes. That’s my update! What have you been doing? Are you further along with your gift making?

If you’re like me, WIPs (works in progress) and UFOs (unfinished objects) drive you insane. I remember when I was working on opening my crochet pattern store, I had so many WIPs that many just became UFOs. Totally not productive! There’s only so many things a person can crochet at a time, before you start putting stuff in the “I’ll finish it later, but I’m not really going to” pile. So here is the one and only rule that I’ve been using myself to prevent having WIPs and UFOs:

#1 Rule: One At a Time This is going to sound like common sense, because it is! Just do one project at a time and you’ll never have WIPs and UFOs ever again. It’s just as simple as that. I’ve been doing this for a few months now and I’m super productive! No more unfinished things laying around. No more piles of stuff that I’ll never even finish. When I set my mind to accomplish crocheting a single thing, it gets done, because I’m not thinking about the hundred other things I’m crocheting. Honestly, I’m surprised that I was able to follow this one rule, because I have such a short attention span. I’m like one of those people who get bored very fast and always want something new to do. But it seems to all work out well since I’m able to get things done faster and move on to crochet even more things!

If I can do it, so can you!

Do you have a tip for preventing WIPs and UFOs?

I’ve always wanted to know what other people thought about different crochet hooks. I’ve heard some people claim how great a certain material or brand is and how terrible others are. Honestly, I think it’s a personal choice.

For me, I’m a fan of Susan Bates hooks, just because I’ve been using them the most. They come in all sorts of sizes, from the tiny ones you need for thread to the regular sized ones for popular yarns. What I don’t like about them are the plastic ones. They tend to break too easily. But the metal ones are great (haven’t broken a metal one yet)!

I’ve been wanting to try other hooks, such as bamboo, clover touch (I think that’s the name), and the ones that light up, but they seem so costly. I’d love to know how you like them if you’ve tried them!

What about you? What hooks have you tried? Which ones do you like and dislike?

Since it is Thanksgiving here in the U.S. I think I should stop and take some time to say thank you to you, my Crochet Spot reader.

Thanks for inspiring me to crochet more and more. Thanks for the support. Thanks for visiting all the time. Thanks for helping to make Crochet Spot a welcoming place for all crocheters. Thanks for challenging me with your pattern requests. Thanks for all of the friendly emails. Thanks for keeping me on my toes with your crochet questions.

Okay, I hope that didn’t sounds too cheesey. But seriously, thank you!