Hello Makers! We’ve all been there…if you’re like me, you have about 10 WIPs laying around. One in the living room, two in the bedroom, three or four in the dining room…yes, we see you. 😊
Conquering your crochet WIPs is a constant challenge because it’s so hard to stay focused when the creative juices get flowing. I find myself getting distracted by so many things, like seeing another pretty yarn to work with, setting it down and starting another project, or thinking “Jeez, this is going to take way too long to finish!”
I know it's hard, but you can do it by using some of these simple tips.
WIP stands for Work In Progress and it's completely normal to have more than one crochet project, or WIP, happening at a time. For instance, if you're working on a complex pattern, sometimes you don't always feel like dealing with it while you're trying to watch “Masked Singer.” Right? So, you pick up a WIP with an easy pattern repeat. Or, maybe you need to whip up a baby shower gift so you have to set aside that beautiful hat you were working on for a week. There are lots of reasons why you may have WIPs, but there's nothing quite as rewarding as finishing a project! ~MAK
Okay, let’s get this party started.
The first thing you need to do to conquer those crochet WIPs is to…
Try to Avoid Distractions
Avoiding distractions while crocheting is kind of hard right? People don’t always respect the crocheter, am I right? “Hey, what are you making?” Oh, I love talking crochet, so I don’t always mind a question or two about what I’m making, but it is a bit distracting.
Although, in a perfect world, we could all hide away in a sunny room, with a nice breeze and a warm coffee. However, it isn't a perfect world, and the best way to avoid those distractions is to find a secluded part of your home, preferably with a door, so you can hide away. I try to keep my room well lit, and I position my chair so it faces away from the yarn stash so I’m not tempted to grab another project.
Another great tip is to be vocal about your intentions with your loved ones. If you need to finish a project fast, and distractions will prevent you from meeting your goals, then make sure to tell your loved ones you need this time to crochet.
Get Motivated!
Motivation is a hard thing to come by when you have a lot to do, but if you sit down and envision your project completed, it is good motivation. Sometimes I find myself staring at the unfinished piece in front of me, and all I need to spark a bit of motivation is to look at a picture of the finished piece.
Another great motivation technique is to set a picture of the person you are making it for nearby while you crochet it. When you feel yourself getting distracted, just glance over and remember why you’re crocheting it, and who you are crocheting it for 😊.
Join a Crochet-Along — also known as a CAL
Joining a CAL is a great way to conquer and finish a WIP because you’re working alongside other crocheters who inspire each other to finish, and help each other work through the pattern, which is wonderful. CALs challenge you to finish just a portion of the pattern by a certain date, so you're basically working on just a piece or a few rows (depending on the pattern) at a time. And, you're doing the same thing as everyone else participating, so you have the incentive of peer pressure to get it done.
Crochet designers who offer free patterns or paid patterns will host CALs either on their blogs or in a group on Ravelry and Facebook. Happily Hooked is hosting a CAL right now, exclusive to our subscribers. It’s a lot of fun! Subscribe to Happily Hooked to be eligible for all of our CALs and MCALs — mystery crochet-alongs, where you won't know what you're crocheting until you've finished!
Here are a few links to some more CAL groups and websites:
- Crochet-A-Long with Us! – Crochet Along — this group is a collaborative of 18 designers who rotate CALs throughout the year.
- Crochet A Long Blog – this is the official blog of the Facebook group, CAL – Crochet A Long.
- And you may have already heard of Stitch Together, which is another great place to join a CAL.
Create a Goal or Approximate End Date!
Setting a goal seems like an easy one, right? I don’t know about you, but deadlines have the word “dead” in them and seem a bit grim, so let’s call it a goal date! Be realistic about your crochet WIP goal date. Give yourself plenty of time to complete it in a realistic time frame so you don’t become disappointed in yourself. There is nothing worse than setting a goal and not meeting it. It can cause undue stress and remember that crocheting is meant to relax you and de-stress.
One tip for setting a realistic timeline is to time your row. I do this often if I want to get an idea of how long a project will take. I will start the timer, and begin to crochet. When I reach 2 finished rows or rounds, I’ll grab my calculator and do a little math. One row at 5 minutes and my project is 86 rows tall…that means, if I keep up that speed, then I will finish in 7 hours or so. This way, you can figure out if you want to speed up your crocheting or not.
The formula for figuring this out is:
(time for 1 row ) * (number of rows left) / 60 minutes = hours until finish time.
example: (5 * 86) / 60 = 7.17 hours
Stay Organized!
Organizing is kind of my specialty, although, on the flip side, I can also be scatterbrained and unorganized. I seem to be great at organizing and messing up my neat piles simultaneously. It's not lost on me if you have trouble with this one.
Recently, I discovered the gallon-sized plastic zipper bags work GREAT for organizing crochet WIP projects with more than one skein or color. I put the yarn in the bags and poke a hole in it and draw the yarn through. Then, I throw the pattern and the hook inside the bag, and it is ready to go with me anywhere. Using a marker to write the hook size on the bag, and the name of the project is helpful, too. You can certainly add more information to the bag, like the date you started or who you are giving it to, as well.
Another great way of organizing crochet projects is to use plastic or wooden bins. I have a WIP shelf where I keep small bins, and each one contains a WIP. You can organize these by date, or just grab one from the shelf and work on it slowly. This leads me to the next helpful tip…
Rotating Your WIPS!
What is rotating your WIPS? Well, it is just like it sounds. If you get bored working on the same project and want to spice it up a little bit, grab another bag or bin. You can work on another project for a few hours. You can even set up a WIP schedule and work a different amount of time for each WIP. Rotating my WIPS helps me feel like I’m making progress on each project.
For more information on the reasons why you might be procrastinating more than you should on your WIPs, check out this post. ~MAK
Make a Crochet Movie Night!
When you have a lot of unfinished crochet to finish, it is easy to procrastinate or feel overwhelmed. Don't let the amount of work stop you from finishing those crochet WIP projects. One thing I do, and I’m sure you do too, throw on Netflix and crochet away. Crocheting while watching a movie or listening to music is a lot of fun.
I haven’t tried listening to an audiobook and crocheting yet, but that’s another great way to conquer your work in progress. It's also a great way to do some “reading” at the same time. There are also some great crochet podcasts out there to listen to while you’re conquering that project.
Create Rewards for Yourself.
This one is a little tricky. Creating a reward for yourself can easily turn disastrous if you decide to reward yourself with candy or sugary treats. This can lead to packing on a few pounds LOL 😊.
Here are a few non-fat rewards!
- Gift yourself that new hand-dyed yarn you’ve been eyeballing, you’ve earned it!
- A new fancy crochet hook or set of crochet hooks!
- A subscription to Happily Hooked Magazine 😉. (had to throw that one in there!)
- A new yarn bag!
(Did you know? You can get the last 3 rewards by subscribing!)
Quick note for you pattern fans! The hat in the picture is from a stock photo, so we're not exactly sure what the pattern is,
but there's a really similar one here. 😊
If you haven’t already become a member of our Happily Hooked Community, please head over here and subscribe to the magazine. You will love it, and there is a community of makers just like you already love it.
Thanks for stopping by and Happy Crocheting!
Author Info
Tasha Margette
Inspiration is everywhere. I love to create crochet inspired by nature, retro, rainbows, classic crochet, modern, boho, pop culture, and more...my style is eclectic. Something for everyone.
Every pattern expresses a style, an emotion, and a feeling of comfort, joy, and most of all I have fun creating something to leave the world a little more beautiful than it was before.
