Teté García, an illustrator and designer from Madrid, Spain, taught herself how to crochet almost two years ago, and is always looking for new things to try in the world of crochet. Now, she considers it one of her favorite hobbies, and on her Instagram you can see all of her fun creations!
On her blog, The Happy Crochet, Teté shares her projects, which range from unicorns to hair turbans to stuffed animals. We got the chance to chat with Teté about where she learned to crochet, her favorite place to crochet, and much more…
How long have you been crocheting?
Since I was little I always liked sewing, cross stitch, and snoop when my mother made me carnaval costumes (I still have some projects saved from when I was only 3 years old). I started to crochet, really crochet almost two years ago.
How did you learn to crochet? Who taught you?
What I like the best is crocheting, and I taught myself with tutorials on Youtube. Little by little, and with lots of patience, I have perfected by technique and I am getting daring with more difficult patterns each time.
A little while ago, I dared to try with two needles and my mother has been a great teacher, although your tutorials have helped me a lot.
How did The Happy Crochet come about? What can we find?
My first projects were very basic and I almost always reproduced patterns that I found. I am an illustrator and designer and I wanted to try and bring some of my illustrations to the crochet format, and thus arose the unicorns, followed by The Happy Crochet. Thanks to the help of many people, that liked what I was doing and always motivated me to bring my projects to the next level.
In the Happy Crochet you can find rounded, adorable unicorns, that are a very important part of The Happy Crochet. Also turban headbands, for Winter as well as summer, stuffed animals, cactus…
In 3 words, how would you define what crocheting is to you?
Learning, relaxation, and creativity.
Do you prefer to crochet for yourself or for others?
I love to crochet for others, and I do it with so much care. I like to give my projects as gifts because people appreciate handmade things so much. Although I have to confess that I always leave a few pieces for me, overally when I make an accessory, like the turbans.
I also love to make things for babies, like stuffed animals and hairbands. I have a niece and whenever I make something new I always have to give it to her.
What is your favorite stitch?
I like the herringbone stitch a lot, the first time I crocheted it I was surprised at the beautiful texture it created.
But with single crochet and double crochet you can make amazing things. You just have to add a little bit of creativity and done!
What is your favorite kit from We Are Knitters?
I am going to say my first kit, the Broome Beanie. I was given it as a gift, and it was my first contact with knitting needles. It was a challenge for me, and I loved the result. I hope to be able to make a garment one day, it is one of my next challenges.
Wool, petite wool, cotton, fabric yarn, or baby alpaca?
Petite wool. I love to make amigurumis and I always end up choosing wools that are a little finer. Although for a period I have been hooked on fabric yarn, it is much faster to knit and almost immediately you have a basket for clothespins or a handbag.
What time of day do you prefer to crochet?
If I had to pick a moment, I wouldn’t be able to, any moment! I usually crochet on the ground when I am watching a series, or listening to music, in bed or on the sofá, and I also like crocheting outside.
Any trick for crocheting that you would like to share?
The only trick is for the art of crocheting is patience and being excited to learn. With these two things you can do anything. I still consider myself to be learning, and I think that I always will be, every day I find new things that I want to start to crochet.
Advice for someone who wants to start to crochet?
To practice a lot before starting any project, because if not you can get tired of not seeing results. Practice, practice, practice. Also, it is important to have good material, a good wool or cotton and a crochet hook that is comfortable in your hand will always result in easier learning.
The best part of crocheting or knitting is that you can do it anytime and anywhere, all you need is one needle (or two) and a ball of yarn.
