By Maribel · Maribel Designs 4 U · My Story
I want to be completely honest with you — crochet did not come easily to me.
When I first picked up a hook, I was not one of those people who just got it right away. My tension was all over the place. My stitches were uneven. I frogged — that’s crochet talk for unraveling your work — more times than I can count. There were moments I put the hook down and genuinely thought, maybe this just isn’t for me.
But something kept pulling me back. And I am so glad it did.
The Beginning — More Frustration Than Fun
Like a lot of beginners, I learned by watching YouTube tutorials. I would pause, rewind, pause again, and still somehow end up with something that looked nothing like what was on my screen. My first attempts were honestly a little rough. My yarn was twisted, my edges were uneven, and I had no idea what I was doing wrong.
I remember feeling like everyone else around me seemed to pick it up so much faster. Like there was some secret that experienced crocheters knew that nobody was telling me. And that feeling? That self-doubt as a beginner? It is something I have never forgotten.
What I did not realize at the time was that every single crocheter has been exactly where I was. The tangled yarn, the confusing patterns, the moments of pure frustration — it is all part of the process. Nobody starts out perfect. Nobody.
The Turning Point
Slowly, stitch by stitch, something started to shift.
The rows started looking more even. The tension in my hands began to relax. I stopped dreading sitting down with my hook and started looking forward to it. And that was when I realized crochet wasn’t just a hobby I was trying to learn — it was becoming something I actually needed in my life.
There is something almost meditative about crochet. The rhythm of the hook, the feel of the yarn, the quiet focus it requires — it has a way of slowing everything else down. On stressful days, picking up my crochet was the thing that helped me breathe again. It gave me something that was just mine — a creative outlet, a quiet moment, a little victory every time I finished a row.
What Crochet Has Given Me
I never expected a hook and some yarn to give me so much. But looking back, crochet has brought things into my life I didn’t know I was missing.
It gave me patience — with my craft, and honestly with myself. Learning to be okay with imperfection, to start over without giving up, to trust that practice actually works — those lessons go way beyond crochet.
It gave me creativity. I went from following patterns step by step to eventually designing my own. There is nothing quite like holding something in your hands that came entirely from your imagination.
It gave me community. The crochet world is one of the warmest, most generous communities I have ever been part of. People share their patterns, their tips, their encouragement — freely and genuinely.
And it gave me confidence — the kind that comes from doing something hard and not quitting.
Why I Share What I Share
That struggle I went through as a beginner? It is the whole reason I started Maribel Designs 4 U.
I wanted to be the tutorial I needed when I was starting out. The one that goes slowly, explains the why behind the steps, and makes you feel like you can actually do this — because you can. I know what it feels like to be confused and frustrated and on the verge of giving up, and I never want someone watching my videos or reading my blog to feel alone in that.
Whether you are brand new to crochet or you have been at it for years, I am so glad you are here. This little corner of the internet exists because of that bumpy, beautiful, yarn-tangled journey — and I would not change a single stitch of it.
Have you had your own “struggle to love it” crochet journey? I would love to hear about it in the comments below! And if you are just getting started, check out my beginner crochet series on YouTube — I made it just for you. 🧶
Maribel Designs 4u 