Fall is here, and you know what that means... It’s time to buckle in with a cup of pumpkin spiced chai, fuzzy slippers, and your weapon of choice: needles or a hook. (Or felting needle or sewing machine or anything crafty!)
I don’t know about you, but the yarn bug bit me hard this year. All I want to do is crochet the chilly days away. I’ve just got sooo many projects I want to make!
However, guess what happened...
Guess.
Your girl got Crocheter’s Thumb cuz she didn’t take breaks for days on days.
PSA: Don’t be like me, and take care of your hands. Stay hydrated, eat well, the whole bit.
Here's a resource you can check back on from time to time to remind yourself of how you can keep your well-being in check when performing superhuman feats with yarn. This is great advice in general, so also consider this a general reminder to just take care of yourself!
Stretching (Hands AND Body)
Sitting for hours is a must when meeting yarny timelines. But your hammies probably won’t like it. Every hour, get up and stretch!
The same goes for your beautiful hands.
Pipetting and crocheting have something in common: you use your thumb A LOT. As someone who has pipetted for years, I had to share a couple of more super helpful links. The following stretches help the scientist AND the crocheter. This diagram requires free registration, but maybe you can see the super helpful exercises in the preview. Or you can also look at the link below, which is also for your shoulders and arms as well.
Source link here
Marathon crafting doesn't just affect your hands!
Stay Hydrated
Water is good for you, no matter what you do. Your body needs the refreshment. It’s the most subtle way to keep your body happy while stitching away.
Fuel (stitch-friendly foods)
Here are some knit/crochet friendly snacks so that your yarn doesn’t get soiled with cheese puff powder
Wrapped nutrition bars (or anything wrapped)
Smoothies
Yogurt
Grapes
Coconut water for electrolytes, and they actually give you a ton of energy
Or you can dedicate a separate table space for your meals that you can eat slowly. It's also a good reason to get up once in a while while crafting.
Bedtime (try to stay consistent)
I know, I know… staying up at night is when you do your best crocheting. After all, no one is bugging you, the daylight distractions are gone, and you can really get into the crochet zone. Just try to keep to one or two extra hours. Rule of thumb, if it’s not a number of hours you want to make up for the next morning, don’t do it. A routine may be more helpful in the long run.
Extra tips
When crocheting or knitting, posture and form are definitely game changers!
Raise your legs! Sitting all day pools the blood to the feet.
Rest your arms on a pillow so your elbows are at 90 degrees
Rest your back with a pillow. A lumbar pillow works really well for this.
Keep your neck straight and not bent over. This is where a pillow on your lap comes in handy. So just remember to pull your shoulders back, and the rest of the form will come naturally.
Get a compression wrap! Or in my case, a wrist brace. There's also something called a thumb stabilizer. Why wait until a problem happens to buy these? Minimize the movement of your wrists and thumbs in advance, and maybe you'll be able to happily stitch for longer.
Lastly, I wanted to share a few videos to really drive home the message. Meet my new favorite knitting YouTuber Tiffany Liew:
And an amazing crocheter Maya DIY Crochet who has some fun and unique hand/arm stretches:
So be kind to yourself, and stretch and take breaks :) Happy (and safe) making, friends! :)
(all images are provided with the appropriate source links)