Meghan’s Crochet Display
Over the summer of 2021, junior Meghan Ke took up crocheting as a way to pass time following a surgery on her torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL). Previously, Ke spent her time on active hobbies–dancing and surfing-but while recovering, she turned to YouTube to learn about crocheting and Pinterest to gain inspiration for her creations. As Ke’s creativity and interest in crocheting flourished, she bought yarn from stores such as Michaels and JOANN Fabric and Crafts to dive into her new hobby. Ke was familiar with using a hook to create various stitching patterns due to her prior experience with the bracelet-making kit, Rainbow Loom. The hooks used in these two activities are similar in shape and function, which made the transition to crocheting easier.The first project that she worked on was a bucket hat, which allowed her to practice foundational stitches; Spending time working on her projects has allowed Ke to discover how crocheting benefits many different aspects of her life.
“[Crocheting] is kind of like meditation,” Ke said. “Your mind is focused on doing one thing at a time, [which] calms me down. It distracts me from things like school work [and] offers a nice little escape.”
The items that Ke creates are inspired by patterns she sees on various social media platforms. She occasionally tries to add her own flair to these styles and create items that correlate with people, patterns and characters that she is currently interested in. Recently, she has been working on recreating Baby Yoda, a character from a Disney+ television show “The Mandalorian”. She is also giving by nature, which has led her to share her creations with others. In July of 2021, she started crocheting blankets to donate to the Torrance Memorial Hospital, a project she partook in as a member of Novas–a volunteer program open to high school students in Palos Verdes and Torrance. Ke also creates thoughtful pieces for her friends, and one of her favorite items to crochet and gift are produce bags, also known as french market bags. One of Ke’s friends, junior Jessica Spencer, has seen Ke crocheting at lunch and finds it inspiring to see her constantly striving to improve. Spencer admires Ke’s commitment to her craft, as well as the community outreach that she has achieved through her projects.
“Meghan is so creative [with her work],” Spencer said. “She is always coming up with new patterns and is very passionate about it. She likes to share [her passion for crocheting] with others and I think her crocheting makes everyone around her so happy. Seeing her doing something that [she cares so much about] inspires the people around her.”
To create her projects, Ke has many options when it comes to types of crochet hooks and yarn. Hook sizes can range from 2.25 to 30 millimeters, with different lettering and numbering systems depending on the country (Craft Yarn Council). For yarn, there are a variety of thicknesses, referred to as weights. There are also recommendations on the ideal hook size to use for the specific weight of the yarn. When Ke first started crocheting, she used acrylic yarn, but as she gained more experience, she started to experiment with yarn of higher quality. The acrylic yarn that she previously used mimics the cotton and wool fibers of natural yarns at a lower cost for more mass production, making it lower quality. She purchases kits from Wool and the Gang, a shop that sells yarn, tools, kits and patterns for crocheting. Ke hopes that by producing high quality projects as a young crochet designer, she can encourage others to break through the age stigma surrounding crocheting.
“I want people to [see] that crocheting is cool [for all ages],” Ke said. “Even if you are not doing a full-on business, it is still a nice hobby. Spending time making good quality things for yourself [is fun].”
Despite feeling slightly self-conscious about her newfound hobby, Ke was able to fight the stigma surrounding crocheting. She reminded herself that it did not matter what others thought because she liked it and that was all that mattered. Seeing other people around her age who share the same passion on social media made her feel more comfortable with crocheting. Crocheting has raised her competency level in matching colors and patterns, as well as honing her eye for flattering shapes regarding her own personal clothing style. Ke is now able to disregard the criticisms of others and proceed confidently on her adventures with crocheting.
Due to a lack of free time, Ke has not been crocheting as much as she would like to, but she tries to make up for it on the weekends. Occasionally, Ke will experience briefly discouraging mental blocks over not getting the right stitch, accidentally dropping a stitch or adding an extra one. When this happens, Ke remains patient because she understands that her first try will not always be perfect. As she does not let herself become discouraged by minor setbacks, Ke continued to pursue her passion and decided to create the Instagram account, @saltydazecrochet, for her crocheting content. In the future, Ke hopes to open a shop on the platform Etsy, where handmade items are sold, as an extension of this Instagram account.
Ke’s friends and family fully support her ambitions with crocheting and what she will do with it in the future. Ke’s mother, Emily Ke, is proud of what her daughter has done so far and hopes that Meghan Ke can even create her own patterns at some point. Emily Ke has also noticed the influence her daughter has on others through her work, as she has inspired her friends to crochet and her grandmother to start knitting again. Seeing how far her daughter has come and how much determination she possesses, Emily Ke is excited to see the development of Megan Ke’s plans with crocheting.
“It makes me happy to see how she can find happiness staying at home, reading books and crocheting,” Emily Ke said. “Her personality is kind, generous [and] detail-oriented, and [she always] strives for perfection. She has the perseverance to never give up on one project, even if it takes her six months to complete.”
