Elizabeth Metcalfe - from the fabulous Toast Magazine - reflects on the history of crochet – a meditative, rhythmical craft that has gained popularity over recent years.
“Anyone can do the Granny Square...Grab a crochet hook, yarns of any colour, and get going.” This enthusiastic call to action formed the opening lines of a ten-page feature that appeared in a 1973 issue of the American magazine, Woman’s Day. The Granny Square – a simple motif, created in rounds from the centre to the edges – was once the preserve of grandmothers and village fetes, but by the ’70s it had become something of a fashion statement.
Put simply, crochet is the art of looping yarn through yarn. Taking its name from the French word crochet, which translates literally as “small hook”, it involves using a hooked stick to interlock loops of yarn. It is thought to originate from tambour embroidery, a technique that became popular in China and India from the sixteenth century onwards, where chain-like stitches were threaded through a piece of taut fabric to create lace-like patterns. Unlike tambour, crochet doesn’t require a background fabric: instead, it forms the fabric itself through a rhythmical process. “When I learnt crochet, I found a sense of freedom in it, as I could make any shape I wanted,” says Brooklyn-based crochet artist Taryn Urushido who learnt the craft at the age of seven. “I would make clothes for my dolls and beach bags for my mum’s friends, which leads to my approach today where I want to crochet just about everything.”
The fact that crochet simply requires a hook and yarn and can be done almost anywhere accounts for why it became popular in Europe in the latter half of the nineteenth century. In the 1840s and 1850s, Irish farmers’ wives took to crochet as a way to generate income during the potato famine. While resembling Venetian needlepoint – at the time highly covetable – it took 90 percent less time and used readily available, affordable materials. Unlike knitting, which was more prescriptive, women could make motifs in almost any shape, and it was soon a booming cottage industry. It wasn’t, however, until a piece was presented to Queen Victoria that crochet started to take off in Britain. Not only did the Queen wear the gift, but she also took up crochet herself, eventually making eight five-feet-long chunky brown scarves, which were subsequently presented as military awards to fighting soldiers. In response, women across the country turned to crochet hooks and yarn.
By the 1920s and ’30s, entire garments – everything from evening gowns to hats – were being crocheted, as well as table runners, curtains and blankets. In the Second World War, crochet became a thrifty way to extend the life of a piece of clothing, with embellishments such as cuffs, trims and collars becoming all the rage. The ’50s and ’60s saw mercerised cottons and tiny crochet hooks swapped for chunkier primary-coloured yarns, which quickly found form in the versatile Granny Square motif. In the ’70s and ’80s, magazines continued to be filled with DIY patterns and ideas for everything from crochet curtains and blankets to vests and dresses.
The fact that crochet simply requires a hook and yarn and can be done almost anywhere accounts for why it became popular in Europe in the latter half of the nineteenth century. In the 1840s and 1850s, Irish farmers’ wives took to crochet as a way to generate income during the potato famine. While resembling Venetian needlepoint – at the time highly covetable – it took 90 percent less time and used readily available, affordable materials. Unlike knitting, which was more prescriptive, women could make motifs in almost any shape, and it was soon a booming cottage industry. It wasn’t, however, until a piece was presented to Queen Victoria that crochet started to take off in Britain. Not only did the Queen wear the gift, but she also took up crochet herself, eventually making eight five-feet-long chunky brown scarves, which were subsequently presented as military awards to fighting soldiers. In response, women across the country turned to crochet hooks and yarn.
By the 1920s and ’30s, entire garments – everything from evening gowns to hats – were being crocheted, as well as table runners, curtains and blankets. In the Second World War, crochet became a thrifty way to extend the life of a piece of clothing, with embellishments such as cuffs, trims and collars becoming all the rage. The ’50s and ’60s saw mercerised cottons and tiny crochet hooks swapped for chunkier primary-coloured yarns, which quickly found form in the versatile Granny Square motif. In the ’70s and ’80s, magazines continued to be filled with DIY patterns and ideas for everything from crochet curtains and blankets to vests and dresses.
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