Each month I’m able to share one of the exercises from my book Hook to Heal with you thanks to the support from contributors through Patreon. Even $1/ month helps me spread this work; consider a micro-donation today. Today’s exercise is a Mindfulness Crochet exercise in crafting a never-ending circle.
What is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness is the act of focusing non-judgmentally on what is happening in the present moment both internally and externally. Mindfulness helps quiet the non-stop chatter in the brain. It’s the process of coming down directly to the present moment and setting aside all of those random thoughts that are intruding on the potential for some inner stillness. Mindfulness is about seeing what is happening right now in this moment.
And yes, there are still plenty of thoughts there, but when you practice mindfulness, you become fully aware of each thought as it arises and you observe it from outside of the emotionality of it and then let it go. It’s freeing. It’s a way of just giving yourself a break.
Crochet for Mindfulness
There are a variety of ways crochet helps us with mindfulness but essentially what it does is gives us a focus for the mind to keep coming back to again and again, stitch after stitch, round after round.
More about mindfulness crochet:
- 5 tips for crochet as meditation
- How crochet can help with mindfulness practice
- 10 tips for more mindful crochet
- Simple mindfulness crochet exercise
- How to crochet for mindfulness and be mindful in crochet
- Tip: use crochet mindfulness cues
- Pocket Prayer Shawls Provide Portable Comfort
Symbolism of Circle
Easy Crochet Circle Pattern
In this exercise, you will crochet a never-ending circle that keeps getting bigger and bigger. Here is my favorite simple crochet circle pattern:
- Round 1: Chain 3 (counts as first dc here and throughout). Double crochet 11 times into base of Chain 3. Sl st to close the circle. (Total 12 dc).
- Round 2: Chain 3, dc into base of ch 3. Dc twice into each sc. Sl st to close the circle. (Total 24 dc).
- Round 3: Chain 3, dc twice into next stitch. *Dc, 2 dc all the way around. Sl st to close. (Total 36 dc).
- Round 4: Chain 3, dc in next st, 2 dc in next stitch. *Dc, dc, 2dc around. (Total 48 dc).
For subsequent rounds, you will keep increasing the number of single dc stitches before each 2dc. So round five will be dc in three stitches, 2 dc all the way around then round six will be dc in four stitches, 2 dc all the way around, etc. The rhythm of the continuing increases, as well as the healing features of working a circle, create a meditative experience.
I like to count as I go, sometimes combining the counting with breathwork. For example, on round six, I’ll count 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 (with stitches 5 and 6 worked in the same spot) and I’ll breathe in for a count of six then out for the next count of six all the way around. The breaths get longer with each round. I like to work at least twelve rounds, usually twenty and sometimes as many as thirty. You can make this circle as big as you want. You can change colors or not; working it as a stashbuster is a good project.
When it’s done, you can either use it as a blanket or take it all apart and start over again. Try taking it apart stitch by stitch as an advanced practice in mindfulness, attending to each detail of the frogging as you go. This is also an exercise in letting go of the end product!