It starts with a knot, then a chain of smaller knots by hand one by one. The tricky part is the hook.
Or actually, the tricky part is showing other people to use the hook. Deanna Merriweather can crochet yarn “without looking. That’s what I love about it, it’s a muscle memory,” she says. But as a left-hander, not only did she have to learn the craft usually taught to right-handed hobbyists, she had to learn to teach herself to teach others.
It was an unexpected challenge that she faced head on during a wet December night at Detroit Police Department’s 5th Precinct on Conner Avenue on the east side. A Facebook post and other social posts went out last November that raised eyebrows and more interest than a usual DPD post: The 5th Precinct would be offering a crochet class, and anyone, regardless of where they lived in the city, could join in.
Of course, the first question on everyone’s mind was why a police department would offer a crochet class instead of, well, anything else. The 5th Precinct in particular had been trying out several community-minded events in recent months: A Keno night, a bike ride with neighborhood police officers, other game nights.
As the precinct searched for more ways to connect with residents, Merriweather suggested something that brought her comfort since childhood. “It’s near and dear to me. I’ve literally taught myself how to do crochet and knitting when I was in 7th grade,” she said.
Merriweather is a Philadelphia native who matriculated there and was part of a burgeoning crochet and knitting club in high school. It became more popular, more students joined, and pretty soon the club was crocheting, bedazzling and even selling some of their creations.
She would have stayed in Philadelphia, but moved to Detroit a few years ago and stayed with friends here to escape a difficult situation. Merriweather found her way to the police force, and has been an officer for two years.
The inaugural crochet night was a hit, drawing mostly senior women to a community room inside the precinct who were either there to brush up on an old skill learned years ago, or to commune with fellow crocheters — the majority falling into the former category. Many remarked they had learned to crochet as young girls, and now they could make things — or pass down the art itself — for their grandchildren.
“It’s a dream and a goal to make this work because i just love to be able to get people together to learn new skills,” Merriweather said. “This is a skill that can take you far.”
It’s hard not to think of Gigi Hunter, the Detroit native and recently retired knitwear designer who would crochet and knit on the set of “Solid Gold,” where she was a dancer, and spin off her intricate designs into a fashion house that would one day dress the likes of Beyonce and Zendaya. That’s not Merriweather’s ultimate goal — for now, her aim is to get the crocheting gatherings going at the precinct at least twice monthly going forward.
“When it comes to crocheting, it’s something you need to practice until you get it down,” she says. “Honestly, you can do this in your sleep.”
DPD’s 5th Precinct posts all of its events to its Facebook page here.
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