Today I can tell you about something that has been the highlight of my crocheting “career” thus far: I did a crochet demonstration at a local department store on Saturday! I didn’t want to say anything before the event as I didn’t know what to expect (or if anyone would turn up), but it went so well and people did arrive!
My “public appearance” took place at Tudor Williams in New Malden. I have a soft spot in my heart for Tudor Williams. It was there that I bought my first Pony 4 mm crochet hook and my first ball of Stylecraft Special DK on that fateful Saturday in August 2009 when I decided I wanted to learn to crochet. Never in my wildest dreams did I think that crochet would become such a big part of my life when I walked into the haberdashery department four years ago. I certainly didn’t think that I would return one day to give a demonstration on granny squares in that same department, or that the store manager, Peter, would announce my demonstration as “Our crochet queen, Natasja, will be giving a crochet demonstration…..” Hahahahaha for crochet queen! Very apt considering my surname is King 🙂
In the two hours that I was there, I taught three ladies how to crochet and chatted with another three or four customers and the haberdashery staff about crochet in general. I enjoyed every minute! I managed to be calm enough so that I could focus my mind and just be in the moment, taking my queues from the “students”. The teaching part was kinda huge for me. I’ve never taught anyone to crochet. I just told myself to take it slow and I made sure that the ladies took away a copy of my granny square photo tutorial, and photocopied pages from Simply Crochet magazine’s beginners guide on how to crochet. That way I knew that even if I messed up, or the student forgot everything I said, they will have something to refer back to. I repeated John’s supportive words “You’ve got this. Crochet is your thing.” to myself a couple of times too.
The best bit was when Tina arrived….. Tina came to the haberdashery department to buy a crochet hook for a friend, after having spent a morning in the coffee shop trying to figure out how to make a granny square. Imagine her surprise when she walks into the haberdashery department only to find me sitting there, ready to demonstrate granny squares! It was such an amazing serendipitous stroke of luck, we were both sooo happy! Tina showed me the granny square she had been working on. I pointed out the tiny mistakes and used her square to teach her further. She, and the other two ladies I had seen that morning, were extremely fast learners. When it was time for Tina to leave she actually told the cashier she thinks she is “hooked on crochet” now and that I was a great teacher. Wow! That made my day!!!
I hope Tudor Williams will have me back for more crochet demonstrations. I enjoyed myself thoroughly and it gave me a taste of what I would love to do full time.
If any of the ladies that I spoke to on Saturday is reading this, please let me know how you are getting on with your granny squares. I’d love to hear from you!
crochetime 
Congratulations and how brave of you. I am glad you have found your thing in life. I have found that breeding and showing cats is my thing – and its made so much difference to my life. I taught myself how to crochet a few years ago having knitted since I was 6 years old. I would never be able to demonstrate to a friend let alone in a shop. with best wishes Stephanie
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We all need “a thing” don’t we? I’m glad you found yours too.
How exciting! It sounds like you had a great time.
I am so pleased that you had such a positive experience. It is a real pleasure to be able to pass your love onto others. Sounds as if you have a real gift. Xxx
thats awesome , congrats
THank you everyone for your kind supportive comments. You are the best!
Dear Natasja ,, I am an Amateur Crocheter. So far I’ve only made hats;booties;scarves,wash cloths.. I am in love with Peaches & Cream cotton yarn. I want to make an Afghan with this yarn. I am trying to figure out how many skeins to buy for this project. I am worried about getting enough of the colors I want before they are discontinued. I was planning to use a simple 4 color striped pattern of my own design. Also adding a braided fringe edge. Or maybe a border around. I’m not sure about size. If you could offer any advice about the approx. # of skeins I should have before I get into this It would be much appreciated.
Your Crochet Sister,
Donna Lynn
This Donna again,,, I will probably be using a size H hook. Each skein of yarn is 2.5 oz and 120 yds long. It looks like the same diameter as Baby yarn. Do you think 6 of each color for a totle
For a total of 25 skeins is enough?
Hi Donna. I’ve seen a lot of people do amazing things with Peach & Cream cotton yarn. I haven’t been able to buy it in here in the UK, but it looks lovely. You don’t say how big you want your Afghan to be, but if I think of the average afghan size, and I compare the yardage of the Peaches & Cream yarn you gave me, I would say that 25 skeins should do the trick. If you do get to the end of your afghan and see that you don’t have enough yarn, you could always use another 100% cotton worsted yarn for the border in a similar colour. As long as the main afghan is made up of what you want it to be, the border / fringe is only there to “frame” your afghan so it can be another brand of yarn, as long as it’s the same weight and also cotton. I hope this is helpfull. Good luck with your afghan!
Thank You for responding to my questions so quickly I’m just a little nervous about beginning without being prepared. This brand does not publish any patterns for anything other than small items. The climate here is to Hot and humid for acrylic and wool yarns. I was not interested in crocheting until I discovered the cotton yarn.
I will let you know how it turns out.
Your Crochet Sister,
Donna Lynn
Oh how cool – well done Natasja! And so funny that it is the place where you bought your first yarn and hook – what comes around goes around, so they say!
xx
So true.
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Such a small world. I was with some knitting (shhhhh) friends the other week and one of them mentioned that Tudor Williams were holding demos. Congrats on your public appearance!
No way, that’s amazing! I love it when things like this happen! (Your need for socialising with knitters is safe with me :))
Oh, I’m sorry to have missed this workshop. I am very keen to learn crochet and I had made a mental note that this demonstration was happening some time this summer, but it seems I am too late. I would love to come if there is another one in future. It sounds like it was a success so hopefully might be repeated…