I don\u2019t know how many times I have tried and failed to teach myself crochet. The closest I\u2019ve come to grasping it was when my crochet extraordinaire friend Laura (aka @lauralovescrochet<\/a>) gave me a lesson during a weekend away a couple of years ago. When I was with her I managed to just about get it, but as soon as I was left to my own devices, it just didn\u2019t seem to work, so I gave up again. I\u2019ve tried learning from books and video tutorials over the years but nothing seemed to make it click in my brain.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last month I randomly decided to give it another go. This time I must\u2019ve found some better videos as I quickly got the hang of some of the basic stitches and it wasn\u2019t long before I felt I was ready to progress onto a pattern.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve been following The Pigeon\u2019s Nest<\/a> on Instagram since I was introduced to her account via a small creative business community during lockdown. I knew one of her patterns would be the perfect place to start, so opted for her granny square cowl pattern<\/a>. The clearly written instructions, alongside video tutorials for each stage of the process, were easy to follow and helped me quickly get into the rhythm of the pattern. I found making each square really therapeutic, and I could see progress being made far quicker than with knitting – one of the main reasons I wanted to learn; I think I\u2019m too impatient for knitting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I had a crafternoon with a friend where we both sat in her living room crocheting while we chatted. On the journey home on the bus I continued to make squares, the portability of the craft immediately appealing to me. Before I knew it, all 18 squares that I needed for the snood were done.<\/p>\n\n\n\n