Creating Larry the pickle

Larry the pickle was the first crochet pattern I wrote and the first project I ever free handed. It all started when I made a joke about crocheting a pickle. I always had a pickle ornament on my tree growing up because I liked pickles so much. I thought it would be funny to have a pickle stuffed animal. I started scrolling through my favorite pattern apps, trying to find the pattern for a crocheted pickle. I couldn't find one that I wanted to make; they just weren't what I was looking for. So I decided to make my own pickle. I sat down with my yarn and hook, and I started crocheting away. After what felt like forever, I whipped up a pickle I was super proud of, and they started selling like hot cakes. I then decided to write down exactly what I did so I could recreate it the same way every time. 

I didn't really think about selling the pattern at that time. I just wanted to remember how to make it in case I needed to make another one at a later date. It wasn't until I started seeing more and more crocheters become pattern makers and releasing their patterns regardless of attention that I thought, hmmm maybe I should see what all this takes. I hopped on Canva and started writing out my pattern, crocheting and taking pictures along the way to add to my pattern. 

After writing out the pattern, I did a tester call on my social media. I made sure everyone knew it was my first pattern and I would likely need a little more advice and help, and it might not even turn out right. But it didnt really go as planned. I was hoping for five testers but ended up with three. One of my testers didn't even start on my pattern and informed me it wasn't ready to be tested. The second agreed with her. I never heard back from the third. No information on what needs fixing or where to start. Just that it wasn't good enough to be tested. So I left the entire thing sitting in my drafts for years. I would think about making another pattern, but I didn't know where to start. I was too afraid none of my patterns would ever be good enough to be tested, much less have their release day. I was completely discouraged and even questioned my ability to crochet. 

Years later, I posted about it on social media, and I had some lovely crocheters tell me that's not how pattern testing is supposed to go, and some even offered to take a look at it to tell me what was so wrong with it. The answer? Nothing that meant it couldn't be tested. Just a few simple mistakes like basic typos, spacing issues, etc. I posted another tester call and got a few talented crocheters who were willing to have a go at it, and they gave me such amazing advice. I ended up changing some major things, like hook size and the eye size. This changed the whole look, but I loved it even more!

After two weeks of testing, Larry the pickle had a whole new makeover! He was ready to have his pattern posted, and I was getting super excited. I went to Ravelry ( a couple of days before the intended launch haha) and started working on my post for my pattern. Then I saw that I needed a PDF link. I didn't even know that you could have a link to a PDF. So I went to the internet and started looking up how to convert a PDF file into a link. Long story short, I was scammed. It was only a few dollars, but the website promised to convert the PDF into a link that would take people to that PDF file. But what it did was open the website up and allow people to edit my PDF file. (insert face palm). So I scratched the Ravlery idea, as nothing else that was suggested would work for Ravlery. Then I started getting billed for a subscription for that website despite the fact that I had only paid for the day pass. 

I moved to Etsy, published my pattern, and that was that! One of these days, I will figure out how to post it on Ravlery, but for now, Etsy will have to do. 

This pattern wasn't just a pattern. It was a learning experience. I never realized how much truly went into pattern making and how long it really took. I thought people just wrote a pattern in a day and posted it. This process technically took me years. A few days of making the item, a few days of writing out the pattern and making sure it was perfect, two attempts at pattern writing, and a few years of getting the courage to even get to the end result. Two weeks of the second attempt of pattern testing and then a few days to figure out how to post it. 

All in all what I learned is this: pattern writing is hard. It takes a lot of time. Most first patterns won't make back the time and energy put into the pattern. But it is still so rewarding. If you would like to check out the pattern you can buy it on etsy here or you can buy Larry the pickle already made here