You might have been crocheting all your life and never asked: ‘When did crocheting begin?’ However, crocheting has a rich history, one that’s well worth the time getting to know.
- Our favourite activity emerged in the early 1800s, where it was referred to by the name ‘shepherd’s knitting’.
- The craft was invented as a means of cheaply producing lace, and as such, gained a nasty reputation as a talentless skill. Queen Victoria was instrumental in changing this perception, buying crocheted lace and learning how to crochet herself.
- In the 1920s and 30s, crocheting ceased to be solely for the creation of embellishments and began to be used as a way of making entire garments or accessories.
- Wartime in Britain became a time where crochet production flourished as women crocheted items for soldiers on the Front. During clothes rationing, crocheting allowed individuals to customize and individualize outfits and garments.
- In the 1950s, crochet remained a popular way of creating clothes and keeping up with the trends of the day. Against the backdrop of increasing rates of machine-produced clothes, crochet remained a craft carried out by hand.
- The 1960s and 70s ushered in a crochet renaissance when the craft was used in the production of everything, particularly all aspects of home ware, from cushions to tea cosies! These two decades also coincide with the creation of the granny square.
- Now, crochet has come back into fashion in a big way and can be seen all over the catwalk, particularly in 70’s inspired designs!