Tanya Chin, who can be found on Instagram @love2loop, describes herself there beautifully as a “soft yet resilient” person who is a crocheter, fiber artist, feminist and spirit junkie. She has been crocheting for about three years and says, “I’m just as passionate about it and about the benefits of it as ever. Wool and colour are my passion!” Asked to share a bit more about the benefits of crochet in her experience, she shares,
“Crochet has helped me with emotional issues (rather than physical ones). I went through a very stressful and difficult relationship breakdown which has resulted in me raising two children completely alone. My own father abandoned my brother and I as a child and although I had dealt with my own issues relating to my father, my children’s father acting even worse than him doubled my pain.
Before I had crochet I was just on my own after they went to bed. I am not really into housework beyond just doing the minimum to keep things looking okay I just used to watch television and mull over things, some nights feeling very down and alone and then eventually I’d go to bed feeling glum. It wasn’t a nice time. I am not naturally a miserable person so it was uncomfortable being that way.
Since I have had crochet I rush to get all the jobs done – lunchboxes, dishes, tidying, ironing, etc. then I can sit down undisturbed and get on with whatever I am making. I find that concentrating on what I am doing doesn’t give me the time to think about things excessively and I am much happier for it. When I read that they teach crochet to patients in mental health wards, I can see why, because it is relaxing to have a break from just being you!”
Tanya had learned to crochet when a very close friend told her that she was trying for a baby. She immediately knew that she didn’t want to just buy something from the store but would love to make something for the baby. At the same time, another friend was beginning to take a crochet class. Tanya couldn’t join her at the class physically since they don’t live near one another but it inspired her to decide to learn the craft. She says,
“I ordered a cheap pack of metal hooks and a ball of wool. When they arrived I taught myself from YouTube videos. I have used YouTube before to teach myself how to plait my daughters’ hair; it is my first port of call if I need to learn a new skill!! First I learned to chain, then single crochet and then double and treble. I taught myself off of US videos so I use US terminology not UK when crafting. I took to it quite well and started to make small things like crochet hearts, butterflies and then scarves. Then I started making squares which I made into a blanket for my youngest daughter. I haven’t really stopped since.”
Tanya typically crochets alone. She would love to go to a group but she works full-time and finds that most groups near her are on weekdays. She waits until her youngest child is bed and then crochets while listening to the television. She especially loves to crochet blankets, watching the work group, seeing the colors come together; it gives her happiness. She loves gifting blankets to others, especially friends who are having babies. She’s made both blankets and cushions for her mother, daughters and niece. She worries sometimes that people aren’t going to like their handmade gift and is working to gain more confidence about that.
Crochet is her only craft and one of the only things that Tanya gets an opportunity to do regularly just for herself. Her children are young, so although she loves to walk by the sea on her own, it’s not something she gets a chance to do regularly. She believes that crochet could help others and encourages those who might benefit from it to give it a try (or try any craft really) but she knows that if someone isn’t ready to learn then they won’t. She has tried teaching a few people who have asked but found that, “sometimes people see you doing it and think that they want to have a go but sometimes it doesn’t stick”. As for herself, she says that she crochets because it is her best creative outlet. She writes, “I have always felt creative but I can’t draw, paint, etc. Through crochet I feel like I have found my way to make something beautiful. For me working with the colors is as much fun as the crochet stitches themselves. I really love to make something that alternates a variegated yarn with a plain yarn. I enjoy watching multicolored yarn run through my hands, letting the colors hypnotize me.”
Check our Tanya’s work on Instagram.