Perfectly Imperfect - Knitting or Crocheting Your Own Way

It's been a number of years now since I started knitting and crocheting and things have never come naturally to me.  I have always loved making things even as a young child but when you introduce a level of complexity then it tends to go awry.

If you are anything like me, you started off either by watching tutorials on YouTube or by buying how to guide books.  Most of which make everything look so simple and easy right? Wrong.  I could not wrap my head around even the basic stitches and I got so frustrated that it made me cry.

But one day, things just clicked - the knitting became easier and flowed more neatly and the crochet became obvious and (annoyingly) easy to recover if you make a mistake. 

But what I'm here to say is, who cares how long it takes you?  Who cares if your work isn't picture perfect straight away?  Everyone starts somewhere and you should be proud of how far you have come!

My determination to not give up got the better of me, so I wiped my tears away (multiple times) and tried again.  And again.  And again. 

Then I realised something.  Why am I trying to follow a pattern when I could make something myself?  Do you know how many things you can make from a square/rectangle, regardless of it being knit or crochet? 

So, I perfected my simple knitting and simple crochet so it wasn't so messy, missing stitches, gaining stitches and uneven.  By perfecting the simple, I have made items that I am very proud of.  Most of the time, all I use is a tape measure and go from there.  I don't want to spend hours trying to understand a pattern before I can even start making, I just want to get on with it.  

Now, even though I have just said that I make items that I'm proud of, there are some that are either made very badly or just plain wonky.  But, at the end of the day, I've done what I planned in my head and if it didn't turn out how I thought it would - so what?  You live and learn.  Move on to your next work in progress.  I have added some photos of the wonky projects just to prove that I really am the Imperfect Knitter.  

You can also check out my work on my Instagram page - I post photos of pretty much all of the projects that I do on there (with the exception of this years Christmas presents as my family follow my page).  You will be able to see just how simple or imperfect my work is but I'm proud of it and I like showing it off.  Check out The Imperfect Knitter on Instagram.

Remember, it's your work, your project so you can take your time doing it how you please.  You do not need to live up to impossible high standards because most social channels say you should.  If you can't get past a certain point but you enjoy doing what you can - go with it.  If you think you're ready to move on to more complicated projects - great, go for it.  

Believe in yourself. 

 This is a crochet purse with a sewn in lining - I wanted to use my sewing machine and as you can see - I need a LOT of practice.

 This is my most hated project.  I was given some thick soft yarn in orange so I decided to make a pumpkin with 2x2 rib stitch. Then in my infinite wisdom, I made that stalk. 

 The bag itself was the easiest thing to make.  Then hell opened up with the strap and granny squares.  My Nan has this, she is actually very proud of it. And yes, where the strap comes out of the bag at the top is where it is attached. Don't ask.

 The wonky tea pot cosy. Does it fit? No.  Does it work properly? Also no. Is this pom pom in the middle? No.