Traitors!

I have more projects in the works and I still need to show you the final results of my green hexagons. But right now, I am going to make a small rant about something that's been bothering me for ages.

<soapbox>

Why on god's earth do commercial crochet designers insist on making their crochet pieces look like they were knitted?

Why?

Why?

   And <sob> this??

Are designers secretly ashamed of crochet? Is there some mentality that crochet is inferior, a technique that is valuable only insofar as it can imitate knitting? Do crocheters secretly wish that "if only they could knit" they could make pretty sweaters too? Oh, it makes me really mad.

If you browse any crochet stitch dictionary, you'll find hundreds and hundreds of stitch patterns that are beautiful because they use the amazing flexibility of crocheted fabric structure. They don't try to pass themselves off as (gack! ptooey!) knitted cables. They are true to the craft of crochet. Things like

Like this

And this

And this

And this crazy crocheted afghan from a 1970s leaflet from McCall's Magazine. (Thanks to Green Kitchen for these photos.)

These are fabrics that could never be made on knitting needles.

Now, don't get me wrong. I love knitting, and I love every stitch pattern in Barbara Walker's Treasuries. But I also love crochet for what it is and all that it can do.

If you want a cabled sweater, knit one. Don't use your crochet hooks to make some wan imitation that "almost looks like real knitting." It only furthers the widely-held prejudice that crochet is the domain of second-rate afghans and frilly toilet paper holders. We can do better than that.

</soapbox>

Comments

[Carol Leonard]

Well said!
The middle of the three stitch photographs - which book is it in? It is gorgeous, and I have never seen it before. My hooks are rattling in their tin........

[Elaine]

Hey Carol! I know this as spiderweb stitch -- it's old with a lot of variations. I just pulled this particular image off the web (Shhhh, I don't think it was public domain...) but I don't have directions to go with it. Spiderweb is most often worked in a square, but I've seen these diamond variations in a few places. It's in one of my Japanese crochet stitch dictionaries, for instance. If you can't uncover it, I could probably draw a chart for you. (You read crochet charts... right?)

[Amy]

I love that one too... I've printed that image myself and am going to follow it for my next afghan... as for the sweaters.. I unfortunately understand it a little. I can't knit my way out of a paper bag. I learned it young and just stitch too tightly and that creates many problems, but I love to make sweaters. Luckily, I hate cables so at least I've avoided that part, but I do like the pseudo-knitted look of some patterns, and my hook is all I can use. I'm great at hooking!