Have you been hearing a lot about crocheting? Are you friends and neighbors so much into this hobby that you also want to try out but do not know where to start?

Crochet is gaining its name back again in the needle craft industry. This hobby started a long time ago, probably in the 16th century, but still staying alive especially with its popularity now even in the fashion industry.

Crocheting may not be that easy to learn and master. A lot of patience is needed when starting out with this new hobby. You should be able to learn how to read the patterns, understand the terms and know the basic hand moves and stitches. Also, you would need a pattern to start with. The pattern will guide you how to make those designs that you choose.

There are books and magazines available in your local bookstore that has several patterns in them. But there are also web sites in the internet that offer tons of different patterns for free. Some even have a free tutorial for beginners to learn how to make a successful crochet project.

Here are some of the free resources that can be found online:

– Craftown. This site is indeed a “Crafter’s Resource Center.” The site offers thousands of crafts projects and patterns including crochet. There is also a learning center section which offers free lessons on the craft you want, be it crochet or any other needle craft hobby.

The free crochet lessons page on the Craftown’s site shows the different chains and crochet styles that are usd in almost all projects. It has drawings that show the correct hand form, how the stitch should look like and the needle position. It has clear instructions that any beginner can surely follow.

Of course, to get you started in your crocheting adventure, the site offers a lot of crochet patterns with different difficulty levels. Thus, a beginner will surely find an easy one to start with.

– Crochet Pattern Central. This site is like an online directory of thousands of links to sites that have free crochet patterns. All kinds of crochet projects can be found here like afghans, doilies, hats, kitchen decor, baby items, ponchos, scarves, and many more. For the beginners, the site also has the Crochet Instruction Directory section where you can find a list of links to crochet tutorials and lessons. These tutorial sites are illustrated with clear and easy-to-follow instructions to make your first crocheting experience a lot more fun.

– Crochet in About.com. The crochet section of About.com also has several links to sites that offer how-to’s of different crochet stitches and patterns both for beginners and experienced alike. There is also an A-Z index of free crochet patterns available in the internet.

– Lion Brand Yarn. One of the most popular yarn brands, the Lion Brand offers several resources for free to the hobbyists which is a good marketing strategy for them. First of all, it has its own set of crochet tutorials that can either be viewed online or downloaded for offline use. It even has an illustrated dictionary for beginners who cannot fully grasp yet the terms being used in most of the crochet patterns.

And, of course, the site also has almost a thousand free patterns available that feature their different yarn products. These patterns have different categories such as adults, children, infants, home decor, and pets. These patterns are also classified according to the skill level required so hobbyists can easily determine which pattern to choose.

– AllCrafts. This web site is also like a one-stop-chop for all your needle craft needs, be it crocheting or knitting. It has several links to free crochet patterns organized in different categories. The site also offers reviews of crochet books and magazines available at Amazon.com or from your local bookshops.

– Crochet N More. This online site offers over 300 free crochet patterns for hobbyists to start a new project. There are also premium patterns available for a certain fee. The site also has links to some web sites of other people who just love crocheting, with free patterns and free advising on your project.

These are just some examples of the many resources online that are all about crochet. Even if you are just a beginner, you will not feel left out because of the different help and tutorials that you can get for free. So start checking these sites now and make your very first project that you can show off to your friends!