HOOKY TREASURE

Ilearnt to crochet a few years ago. I’d always made things out of fabric and yarn since I was a child and enjoyed making my own clothes. However, living in a small flat with no dedicated space to set my machine up meant that I’d fallen out of love with sewing. I was missing something creative to do when I discovered crochet; a craft I could do while I watched TV in the evenings and could easily store away. I was, as they say, hooked!

I made this little hat shortly before I gave birth to my daughter. It was the first shaped item that I’d ever made and I didn’t use a specific pattern; I looked at how different people suggested to make the crown of the hat and went from there. I didn’t think of myself as designing patterns at the time, I just found that I enjoyed the process of trying things out. I was really into zigzags at the time and had just learnt to make crochet rib so I added a band at the bottom. I remember feeling excited to meet my new baby and imagined her wearing the hat when I brought her home from hospital.

There were some complications following the birth and my daughter needed hospital treatment, including spending some time in the neonatal intensive care unit. The staff were absolutely amazing, so kind and caring. With their support she was able to make great progress and soon she was well enough to go home. I remember putting the hat on her head to take her home. It wasn’t what I’d imagined when I made the hat but we were all OK.

My daughter wore the hat until the spring arrived and the weather got warmer and I have lots of lovely photos, and memories, of her in it.

Making this hat started my love of designing and making crochet garments for children. I really like how, because you are working on small pieces, you can make useful garments quickly, and you can be adventurous because if something goes wrong it won’t take much time or yarn to start again.

My daughter is now a very healthy toddler who knows her own mind and won’t wear a hat even on the coldest of days. Oh well!