Sunday, September 8, 2019

Crochet, Back in the Day


I learned how to do a single crochet stitch as a kid and recently took it up again a few months ago. 

Since then, I learned a few more stitches (double crochet, half-double crochet, slip stitch, magic circle) and figured out how to crochet in a round, so I bought some random bags of yarn at Goodwill and made a bunch of baskets.





I am going to sell them at a store in our town that sells handmade items by locals. It’s been a fun way to relax from the day job of writing, and the all-consuming job of being a mom to twins. If they sell, it will also bring in a little spending money.

All this crafting got me thinking of how 19th century women had very little time to themselves. From all my research for my books it seems that women had to focus on running their households from sunup to long past sundown. And if anything extra or fun got done, it was usually late into the night.

One of my favorite scenes in the TV show, Little House on the Prairie, was when Ma stays up all night to sew dresses for the girls, out of fabric she’d picked to make herself a new dress.

(quick sidenote: I have the boxed set of all the Little House books, and I’m not kidding when I say that I read the entire series at least 15 times as a kid, and 3 as an adult.)

I then wondered how old the art of crochet is, and where it began. 

I found an interesting history of crochet (CLICK HERE FOR THE LINK) that pointed out how some feel the Irish potato famine is what brought the art of crochet to many American households.

The article linked above also gives a detailed history of how crochet patterns and styles have changed throughout history. 

Another change is how we get our supplies. Instead of going to town, browsing a store or a book, we can simply go online and purchase everything we need. Even items from the past!

Check out this pattern for a crocheted hair net I found on Amazon (CLICK HERE FOR THE LINK)


I’d love to hear from you! Are you interested in crafting? Do you crochet or knit? Let’s chat in the comments.


3 comments:

  1. The women in my family all crocheted but it skipped me for the skill. I tried but was always too tight for my stitches. Now i have all these beautiful crocheted doilies but no idea what to do with them in a house with cats, where whatever sat on a doily would end up on the floor. My mom even made a gorgeous crocheted lace table cloth. Such patience and such beauty. Women did so many crafts that only a few of us do now.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hi, your baskets are Beautiful! Have you made any Easter baskets also? Well, I don't crochet at all. My grandmother would crochet all the time, but it didn't stick with me, I used to love to embroider instead. I did have Home Ec. in HS, and we did crochet, I crocheting a purse, but that was about it. I think crocheting is beautiful though. Thank you for sharing this. Have a Great week. God Bless you.

    ReplyDelete
  3. You baskets are amazing, Christi! I have always wanted to learn to crochet and to knit. All I do is write, market, and each evening I sit in the family room with my Hero and watch a movie on TV. My friend crochets while she watches TV, but I can't. I can chain stitch but that's it.

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for visiting Sweethearts of the West! We are very sad to require comment moderation now due to the actions of a few spam comments. Thank you for your patience.