How it feels to teach a crochet class-Part one

How it feels to be a crochet teacher (PART ONE)-I would like to start this post with others comments from their experiences then go into my own
Teaching Crochet to Modern Stitchers
Posted by: "Becky Brent" handmadeheirlooms@sbcglobal.net HYPERLINK "http://profiles.yahoo.com/kraftwiz2"kraftwiz2
Sun Mar 9, 2008 10:46 am (PDT)
I have been a crocheteer for almost 40 years, but I taught crochet classes for the first time last Summer. I started with the chain and single, etc., the way I was taught. And many had trouble with it and did not come back for continuing lessons. I like your idea very much and will try it out this Summer. I can see where it would give the beginner a way to make projects and be successful without having to practice and practice. Thanks for sharing your Syllabus.Becky
Teaching Crochet to Modern Stitchers
Posted by: "VICTORIA CARROLL" victoriacarroll@sbcglobal.net HYPERLINK "http://profiles.yahoo.com/yrndsgns"yrndsgns
Sun Mar 9, 2008 5:56 pm (PDT)
The way that I see it is that not everyone is able to pick things up on the very first day no matter how you teach them. If someone was willing to quit after only 1 class then all I can say is that they weren't all that committed to begin with. Don't blame yourself for the few that felt they couldn't learn & gave up. A truly committed person would've asked a lot more questions & kept coming back at least 1 or 2 more times. The problem with today's world is most people want instant gratification & creativity takes more than 1 class to learn. I understand that everyone learns differently but that is where the extra questions come in if they were having a hard time with the way that you were teaching.Basically, I just want to tell you that it's great that you are out there teaching others & you should not feel like it's a reflection on you in any way that those few never came back.. Keep up the good job or passing along your skills to another generation of crocheters.Vikki
teaching and learning crochet can both be frustrating. i'll tell you thatafter the first 30 minutes of trying to learn cross stitch years ago, iactually threw down the sample piece and have never attempted again.however, crochet was different. i tried to learn years ago in college froma friend. no go. about 5 yrs after that, a course was offered at night atthe local high school. i attended all semester and learned absolutelynothing. i couldn't even make a good chain. not necessarily the teacher'sfault - and i recall absolutely nothing about her. again, several yearslater, i took a class at michaels. no go. then, i signed up for a crochetclass at a small local craft shop which deals mainly in beads and modelrockets (what a combo, right??). now, this was easily 20 years after myfirst attempt to learn to crochet. about 5 minutes after that teacherpicked up hook and yarn, i could SEE it and i have crocheted almost everyday since. the learning curve was very quick. as a teacher, tho' (which iam in real life and have taught crochet too), i would not feel a great dealof incompetence because a student failed to master crochet. sometimes themix of yarn, hook, student and teacher just isn't right. another time andplace might produce a diff result.i joke that learning to crochet (for me) is developmental - like learningalgebra. my mind wasn't ready for it til i was 50! that's the year ilearned to crochet. i don't think it was all the teacher(s) - AND i know itwas not for lack of motivation on my part as i kept coming back to it. now,knitting is a whole diff thing. had a good knitting teacher (several yrsafter learning to crochet) and actually did learn to knit and purl - butBORING....TENSE.... not for me. great for others, but i have no plans tomaster knitting. got too much crocheting to do!now, last weekend i learned to finger weave. hmmmmm. another great usefor my yarn stash - and FUN.jd in st. louis
Teaching crocheting
After years of teaching crochet I have found that the students are less frustrated if I make up a single crochet swatch first and teach them the stitches using the swatch vs starting them with a chain. After they get comfortable with holding the yarn and doing the stitches (usually the second or third class) I then go back and teach them to chain and do the first Row. They seem to have a better time doing that since they are now comfortable with the feel of things. Sheila Sanchez
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Hi, my left-handed friend taught me this trick: When teaching someone how to crochet and you are right-handed and they are left, have them sit on a chair right in front of you and just mirror your actions as you crochet right-handed. tingeys8@allwest.net
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John D." <Banacek@coslink.net > teaching some one to crochet a chain loosely & reading patterns When teaching some one to crochet a chain loosely, which is often times hard when first starting out. Have them use 1-2 sizes bigger crochet hook. When reading patterns, often times people have problems as they try to hard by reading a whole paragraph then try to work it. I found by first reading from beginning to the first comma then work that, then proceed in that manner until you're done.
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From: Roxannmoor@aol.com , SHi, I'm a lefty and was taught to crochet by a right-handed woman. She placed a mirror on her lap and had me watch her in the mirror and copy what I saw. I was three and don't really remember but my mom tells me the story often. Roxann
Reasons why potential students would like to learn to crochet (from www.crochet911.com )
Here are some of the reasons why over 24 million people say they love knitting, crocheting and crafting with yarn....
It has a calming effect -- helps relieve stress.
It feels good to work with beautiful yarn colors and textures.
Create sweaters and accessories for yourself.
Gifts "you make yourself" for family members and friends have special meaning.
It’s a social activity to share with your friends and family.
It’s portable -- take it anywhere.
Provides a sense of accomplishment when you complete a project.
Adds balance to a high-tech, fast-paced lifestyle.
Cost-effective hobby -- you can spend a lot or a little!
Maximizes your time while you watch TV or travel.
Carry on a family tradition.
Knit and crochet for charity.
Bazaars and shows -- sell your finished items to raise funds and for business.
Express yourself--design original garments and accessories.
Now as for myself, I have 34 years of crocheting experience and am in the process of becoming a certified crochet instructor by the CGOA (and I think as you read on, you may see why I beleive this is necessary!). So one day, when I was tired of feeling sorry for myself and my predicament (being disabled and unable to return to nursing, my fisrt love and passion,had too many children to even think of trying to go on and geteiter my P.A. or nurse practioner degree-and I had been online and doing craft shows in crochet/sewing under various venues with only sporadic success),I decided to write a letter of interest to BOCES in Liverpool,NY and much to my good fortune (actually all the credit goes to God), they were looking for an intructor as their long-time teacher was moving to something else in life. I was hired after the interview, reference check and of course, seeing pieces of my works, and began teaching shortly there after in January. My very first class was nervewracking due to it being my first time,having 9 students (fairly large, as most classes have 5 on average), and as I was to discover, I had a staff member in my class who belonged at a higher level as she had experience and this class was for people who never picked up a crochet hook before. I do need to stop here and fill in some past relevant points: 1) when I was in 6th grade, I belonged to F.T.A [Future Teahers of America], and I tutored a second grader in math and reading.2) When I was between the ages of 16-20, I would fill in while my mother (a high school English teacher) would run quick errands and help out with her classes, and more so, when she taught night school classes in "Positive thinking, achieving goals and meditation", I was her assistant many times and 3) I served as a tutor for nursing students in groups of 3-4 or one on one during my senior year in R.N school.
Back to my fisrt class-so there were 7 students anxious to learn, one who seemed to be very attatched to knitting and was very frustrated ;as a result she would make her stitches super tight and get into this self-fulfilling prophesy of failure (we tried the extra large "N" hook and she resisted)..and of course there was the staff memeber who tried to sort of "run the show", demanding special attention for her private questions in the middle of me trying to teach the majority a new concept, etc...she belonged in an intermediate class or a one on one situation, but there was nothing I could do about it. I should have been more authoritative and assertive, but instead I tried to use humor and reality centering to attempt get her to let the others learn at the pace of a beginners class...as a result, although my students graded me highly in all areas, they all pretty much complained about the one student who tried to "speed up" the class and requested special attention inappropriately. Many of them wanted the session to continue for another few weeks. The frustrated "knitter"? She eventually lightened up and actually enjoyed herself, mastering one of the stitches called "half double crochet" and went on to create some lovely blankets for her baby.
As I continued to teach, my classes went along very nicely,even as a reult of my students aptitude and newfound passion, we added "intermediate and advanced" levels to the core curriculum fairly quickly. this was beautiful, and I even applied to a local craft store to teach there but discovered they were not offering fiber arts. Then my happy little world came crashing down.
It was an intermediate level class that was seemingly "normal" in many ways...one student had liked me when I was her beginning crochet instuctor, 2 other ladies were very close friends I surmised by the way they behaved together, one student had recently suffered a terrible personal loss and asked if I could tutor her (so she left, understandably) and the final student was a sweet lady who did bead crochet and showed me some of her works (which were beautiful). So by the second class we were down to 4 students which was just fine, as that number is perfect for attention giving and such. I was following a course outline and left room for flexibility of course,and during that class, I made a mistake when trying to teach them something-it actually was that the pattern had an error in it that I had not caught before, so I said "let's scrap this and move onto something else and I will discover/go over it for next week"..for some reason, this turned the 2 ladies that were friends off immediately-I could see it in their body language, on their faces,how they left together during the break (which no one ever took normally) whispering and shooting looks at me. Well I had apologized profusely and tried to remain calm and light in good spirits. Then the stuff really went bad...I was teaching them how to follow a pattern for a basic granny square. I actually worked up a sweat because everyone seemed to be quite bothered by this initally as it doesn't look like a square until the corners are created. well, after a bit three caught on and held up their completed squares and some wanted to and did continue, but remember the "sweet lady who did beaded crochet"? She refused to show me her square and when I gently tried to persuade her and told her how I knew it was difficult for some, but I could surely and wanted to help her get through it. She refused and at break time, she and the rest of the class walked out, down the hall and said they would not be returning. I had to hear from the truly lovely secretary how much my class thought I was a "terrible teacher"...yes, even the lady who was from my beginner class now was disgusted with me. But my story doesn't end here! Part two tomorrow....

Marie Raymond

Improving sales including observing body laguage -by Louis Marquette

Another fantastic article about improving sales by Louis Marquette of www.craftlister.com -ESPECIALLY TRUE AND INFORMATIVE ABOUT THE BODY LANGUAGE (take it from someone who has read many books on this topic)
Another needy customer. Oh, your neighbor looks like they might need you as a relief booth-sitter? Learn to read body language and you WILL sell more of your work!!! - Only smile or say hello at the most until the customer says anything other than a hello greeting response!!! I can't count the number of booths I've left because I was continually 'harassed' with niceties even though I never so much looked at or smiled at the vendor, and maintained a corresponding body posture and browsing demeanor, clearly showing I was a customer and was looking at what they had that did not want to chit chat. Crossed Arms - they feel they need to protect themselves from you Hands in Pockets or Behind Back - they do not want to be seen as potential buyer yet and do not need help as they are 'just browsing' Eye Contact Avoidance - they do not want to acknowledge that you see them and now need to say hi Smile - they only want to smile, not say hello or hear how you as the booth owner could help them Torso facing direction - if they are pointing away from you as you talk, they signaling their intention to run at first opportunity Shoulders Hunched, head Down - they want to keep to themselves Disarm the husband - Often his pushing makes or takes the sale. He pushes her on with 'why don't you pick out something for...' or he pushes her on to further their booth march. Often occupying HIM with chit chat, questions, plain old BS, etc. will make the sale. He might simply not urge here to leave the booth by his non-attending to her, but there are many times that after the game of 'so where are you from', and others that he will not only approve of her pick-out but even suggests she buy MORE with a 'why don't you pick out a matching... too?' Encourage touch and try on! - Feature SEVERAL prominent mirrors. Don't have items behind glass! Too neat of a display and some folks will fear touching, slightly shopped is best!
Image, Appearance, and Branding.
Improve your display and thereby image. You should look presentable too. Appearance is the name of the game here folks. Make Clear that your Items are Hand-Made by YOU ( IF they Are...) This MUST include a SIGN, a PHOTO ALBUM of your shop, and your VERBALLY STATING it to customers you do talk to as in 'we do make everything ourselves, so I can answer anything' . Everyone with such a sign and album has told me it DOES INCREASE SALES. It has also been said that product price tags that say 'HAND-MADE By ...' increase sales and even that folks will then later seek out your name if they see the tag - branding!.
Product Diversity, Quality, etc.
BE NECESSARY! - do you have 'functional', necessary items, that folks buy anyway? Repeatedly or even regularly?? Do you offer easy reorder, contact, and 'find us again at shows' methods? Sell something Different or at least Better; stand out! State on a sign why yours is better. People love to be informed and have a better product that they understand and can relate the superiorities of. Keep up with fads, and colors; also your own sales trends! Photograph old best seller designs Adjust your product line and prices. Drop your least profitable items after calculating profit on each multiplied by the number sold per year, then diversify and improve upon the types of items you made the most on. Any items that sold faster than you could stock a few, should be raised in price! A product for every price should be your goal. If you don't have an expensive item, you can't sell an expensive item. Packaging - Offer some units in a new types of packaging and see how it affects sales! Folks love gift boxes, little jars, anything they think they can re-use.... especially for gift packaging/wrapping.
Show & Event Selection
Raise your show standards and drop the lowest quarter or so of your shows and try new ones each year. Ask vendors where they do well and ask customers where they go that they think are great shows! Often customers will ask, 'do you do ...?' This is their telling you that '....' is possibly another great show in that area. Ask them more about it! Write the info about it down and then investigate further!
General Advice To Increase Sales
Quantity & prices Vs. show prices and your options Consider that you might be ready for the next level of show where you may pay more for a booth, but where you will have many more people make purchases and where you can ask a higher price per work, and receive it with smiles! Clearly post Prices; sometimes the same item with a higher price actually sell BETTER! Also, all shows are NOT the same, prices should not be either. Charge tax as added, not included. Add tax onto even dollar priced items. $5 sells as well as $4.95. Since you must pay the sales tax anyway, you might as well not have it come out of your product price and your profit. Production & Manufacturing Business Advice
Bulk - Assembly line production - Reduce the time needed to produce a unit. Your production time is your most valuable! Make it more productive. If you make 10 items at once, but finish them in later stages differently as appropriate, your time for each will be much reduced that if you had only made one. As artists we must maintain uniqueness, but to compete with bulk crap from china, we must also ourselves produce in bulk - but with quality. There will always be a market for true one-of-a-kinds, but even then, other supplies and prep steps can be production lined so you do many items at each stage on many at a time rather that each item all the way through at a time. As craftsmen we have the obligation to be resourceful and fruitful, productive manufacturers of the goods we are experts at producing. From those that much is given, much is expected in return. Create your own tools, devices, jigs, clamps, patterns, templates, etc. to help you do your repetitive work faster and more accurately. Have someone help you construct it once you conceive of it, heck it might be sold online already! Experiment with new production methods and designs. Tinker, Play, and have Fun! Consider that changing an existing design in some small way may not affect sales and might half your production time for it. Keep up with industry techniques, tools, knowledge, alternate supplies, etc.
Buy Supplies in Bulk - Ask for 20% off if you order $1,000 at once. Seek out cheaper sources for your most costly components. Review your suppliers and sources. If you are buying thousands of dollars of anything, make sure you are getting the largest volume discount available, find out what is necessary to qualify for more. Shop around for new possible suppliers each year! Prices are never stable and there are almost always deals to find. Buy surplus, with friends in group-buys, only when on sale, off-season, in-person to reduce defective/damaged supplies that otherwise are a loss, etc.
Finally and MOST IMPORTANTLY - Think BIG! You will unlikely see much more, let alone many times, your current yearly profit unless you do better shows and sell more and make more profit on each item and sell more items per sale and.... It takes allot to make a lot. Book larger, better shows, and ask more for your quality products. The top customers are still to be had and still even travel in packs! They also maintain artist loyalty and repeat their purchases year after year whenever they can find the vendor.
Feedback??? Please!!!!
Artists & Crafters: What other sales methods do you find success with? How can CraftLister.com help serve you in those areas? I've heard a few times from what seem like authoritative sources that artists and crafters make about half their revenue at shows. Where then the other half? Most folks I know make 100% or 90% at shows, and the few that I know of who do make more elsewhere than at shows would hardly seem to make up the difference, unless you start to consider high priced fine art that sells in a gallery or by artist reputation. Could that be the offset? Any advice that you would like to share on this topic, Please send via the Online Customer Service Interface:
http://www.CraftLister.com/contact
- Louy

Ideas for using granny squares, plus a few of my own

Posted by: "Heinrich03054" heinrich03054@comcast.net bonnebellnh Sun Feb 8, 2009 8:29 am (PST) (From the yahoo group called "Crochet partners)
If a scarf: sew them all together and maybe do a row of sc around the entire thing.
If a blanket: you might have enough to make the size blanket you want to make more squares or make solid strips to put between strips of squares - depending on final size of the blanket (baby blanket, lapghan, full sized blanket, etc)
Maybe a poncho or a shawl - again same questions. I have also seen vests and skirts of granny squares - some have the back solid and the front of squares...
Anyway - you get the idea. Once you decide what you want the final project to be then you can decide what you need to do to complete it.Pat
Marie says, obviously ,especiallly when doubled, a rug, also some nice placemats and matching coasters,toaster cover, etc...jackets, especially nice one on the caron free patterns website,thin ply for lovely and unique curtains,4 around and one on top for toilet tissue holder(after affixing them to a firm cardboard, of course)..oh yes, slippers, leg warmers, a retro belt! Another day, an article onn uses for scrap yarn, and "mistakes"..

Law that is a victory for crafters-regarding lead testing

Law that is a Victory for Crafters!
*Not impose penalties against anyone for making, importing,distributing, or selling
**a children's product to the extent that it is made of certain naturalmaterials, such as wood, cotton, wool, or certain metals and alloys which the Commission has recognized rarely, if ever, contain lead;
**an ordinary children's book printed after 1985; or
**dyed or undyed textiles (not including leather, vinyl or PVC) and non-metallic thread and trim used in children's apparel and other fabric products, such as baby blankets.
(The Commission generally will not prosecute someone for making, selling or distributing items in these categories even if it turns out that such an item actually contains more than 600 ppm lead.)Sellers will not be immune from prosecution if CPSC's Office of Compliance finds that someone had actual knowledge that one of these children's products contained more than 600 ppm lead or continued to make, import, distribute or sell such a product after being put on notice. Agency staff will seek recalls of violative children's products or other corrective actions, where appropriate.
*Issue an interim final rule effective February 10, 2009, which establishes alternative lead limits for certain electronic devices, in order to prevent unnecessary removal of certain children's products from store shelves.
*Accept a manufacturer's determination that a lead-containing part on their product is inaccessible to a child and not subject to the new lead limits, if it is consistent with the Commission's proposed guidance or is based on a reasonable reading of the inaccessibility requirement.Paint and other coatings or electroplating are not considered barriers that make a component inaccessible.
This enforcement policy will remain in effect until superseded by action of the Commission.
CPSC still expects companies to meet their reporting obligation under federal law and immediately tell the Commission if they learn of a children's product that exceeds the new lead limits starting on February10, 2009. Companies also should know that the CPSIA generally prohibits the export for sale of children's products that exceed the new lead limits.
As announced on January 30, 2009, the Commission approved a one year stay of enforcement for certain testing and certification requirements for manufacturers and importers. Significant to makers of children's products, the 'stay' provides limited relief from the testing andcertification for total lead content limits, phthalates limits for certain products and mandatory toy standards. Manufacturers andimporters - large and small - of children's products will not need to test or certify to these new requirements, but will still need to meet the lead and phthalates limits, mandatory toy standards and otherrequirements. Certification based on testing by an accredited laboratory is still required for painted children's products and soon will be required for children's metal jewelry, as well as certain other products for non-lead issues.....
In other words, this law originally was going to put folks like me, and any other small business owner that made anything for children under the age of 12 TOO cost prohibitive, and now, thankfully, someone inside came to their collective senses and "we" can go one merrily producing our dolls,afgans,quilts,wooden trains, etc...without fear..!

Teach one person or a class in beginning crochet

Teaching A Beginner Class or just a person...
Passing on your love of crochet is one of the greatest joys!
Since your class is free, I recommend you check out the site offered by the Craft Yarn Council of America called: "Each One Teach Two."www.eachoneteachtwo.com The idea is, after you teach them how to crochet,you challenge them to teach two other people. And with March, NationalCrochet Month, just weeks away, what better way to celebrate??? :)
I recommend keeping the first lessons simple, concentrating on the basics of crochet, explaining why such things as counting, turning chains & such are important. Let them each make a simple square and then as a collective youcan join them for a quick lapgan you can donate to someone in need (who perhaps attends your church/religious institution). After that you can increase the project difficulty based upon how quickly they progress withtheir lessons.
For supplies, there is nothing more gratifying to a beginner than watching aproject grow quickly... stick to large hooks (H, I, J) and worsted weight(size 4 based upon the yarnstandards.com measurement chart).
I also recommend you stop in at your local library to see what they have avaliable for loan, then take this information, along with the other booksalready recommended in this discussion, and create a handout for yourstudents to use as reference.
I hope this helps,~Dee StanzianoCGOA Professional Member/Mentor..
My two cents...spend an hour,depending on the student or class on holding hook (pencil like or knife like,teaching slip knot then chain, if things are really rough for the person, crochet off the finger to start and build confidence, if possible, let them get "good" at making a super long chain that is fairly uniform and untwisted, then begin to teach single crochet, explaining the concept that crocheting is building upon, hence our work is getting taller...First projects: cat or dog collar,hair tie,fancy tie to gift wrap, scarf,doll blanket)

Article on Abe Lincoln for my AWANA kids

Abe Lincoln-
He was largely self educated,he loved to read the Bible, but he was not a Christian.
His birthday and Charles Darwin are ironically shared on the same day,(February 12th 1809) but that is where the similarities end. Their views on God were polar opposites. Lincoln spent his early life in a log cabin,in abject poverty and fought his way up the political ladder. Morally he was oppossed to slavery and in 1860 he won the presidency based on his anti-slavery plank. Then because the south was vehemently oppossed to this affront on their loss of free labor on vast plantations, the civil war broke out. In 1863 the "Emanciation Proclimation" was issued, and in the same year,at the victory of Gettysburg, Lincoln delivered the strong address that defined for all time what democracy is about and what this country should be. The war ended the following year and soon after he was assasinated. (A side note for the children's benefit; President Obama is a great admirer of Abraham Lincoln).
Lincoln is know for saying many spiritual messages, but one of the very finest is in regard to the civil war "We should not say God is on our side, but pray that we are on God's side."