Many many years ago, when I was still a student, I had taken up knitting. I was quite good, but I decided I wanted to try crochet. My mum crochets, y’see, and she raves about it. So I went to my local Borders (see how long ago it was!) and bought a book all about how to crochet.

Reader, I was hooked. Excuse the pun.

The book was ‘The Happy Hooker’ by Debbie Stoller, and followed on from her wildly successful ‘Stitch and Bitch’ knitting books.

It’s – how can I put this? – well-loved. The pages are falling out, the cover is bubbling and I’ve spilled something or other all over it.

It’s a wonderful book, which is why I’ve kept it, despite its falling to pieces. It has such clear instructions, and cute little illustrations, that I picked up crochet pretty quickly.

It has such amazing patterns too. Some are whimsical and fluffy, some are funky, some are functional, some are girly, some are retro!

All in all, it’s a great book. I’m currently working on a blazer called ‘Prepster’ from it, and I’ll post pictures in due course. But if you’re thinking of taking up[ a new craft or hobby, I highly recommend crochet, and I highly recommend this book!