Origins of Crocheting

Some theorize that crochet evolved from traditional practices in Arabia, South America, or China, but there is no decisive evidence of the craft being performed before its popularity in Europe during the 1800s. Many find it likely that crochet was in fact used by early cultures but that a bent forefinger was used in place of a fashioned hook; therefore, there were no artifacts left behind to attest to the practice. These writers point to the \"simplicity\" of the technique and claim that it \"must\" have been early.
Other writers point out that woven, knit and knotted textiles survive from very early periods, but that there are no surviving samples of crocheted fabric in any ethnologic collection, or archeological source prior to 1800. These writers point to the tambour hooks used in tambour embroidery in France in the seventeenth century, and contend that the hooking of loops through fine fabric in tambour work evolved into \"crochet in the air.\" Most samples of early work claimed to be crochet turn out to actually be samples of naalebinding.
Beginning in the 1800s in Europe, crochet began to be used as a less costly substitute for other forms of lace. It required minimal equipment and supplies, all easily accessible to persons of all social classes. At this time, thread spun from natural fibers was used without dyeing, and worked with handmade hooks of ivory, brass, or hardwood. Those that survive to this day are often ornately carved or inlaid with mother-of-pearl.

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