Antique and Vintage Crochet Hook Inspiration

When I crochet I like to have vintage and antique crochet hooks close by. I get special vibrations from the hooks. From these hand carved wooden hooks, I can almost hear the women who used them tell their husbands how to carve and shape the hooks for her needs. At other times, I can see a woman of the past carving them herself.



Another group of crocheters worthy of our admiration are the Irish women of the 1850’s who supported their families during the Irish potato famine by crocheting the most beautiful lace with little more than a needle made into a crochet hook.



You can view some examples of Irish crochet at the Lacis, http://www.lacis.com/ , museum of needlework, http://lacismuseum.org/exhibits.html . They have an online exhibit of gorgeous Irish crochet at http://lacismuseum.org/irish_crochet.html for all crochet lovers to look at, drool over and gain inspiration from.

So if you are lucky enough to inherit hooks from a relative or collect your own, keep them close while you crochet.

Special thanks to thery4 from the Hook & Needle Forum on Ravelry for her contribution to this topic, http://www.ravelry.com/groups/hook--needle-designs.