All the History You Need to Know About Crochet! Magazine

First Crochet Fun Issue

Hello everyone! Tara here—

Here’s a question:

If the first issue of Crochet! magazine appeared in Spring 2002, how can it be listed as Volume 35?

The answer:

Because before that premiere issue came out, subscribers had been used to getting their crochet magazines under a few other names and in a different size. We kept that volume number to reflect the rich history that came before Crochet! made its debut.

Crochet Fun was the original parent magazine, and Vol. 1, No. 1 was published by The Needlecraft Shop in Big Sandy, Texas, in 1987. The first issue was the October/November issue and it was focused on giving subscribers a wide variety of quick and easy patterns that could be made in a jiffy. It was a handy digest format that could be easily carried along in a purse or small craft bag.

First Crochet Fun Issue
Crochet Fun Oct/Nov 1987

Crochet Fun was the magazine’s original launch title, and it was first published by The Needlecraft Shop in Big Sandy, Texas, in 1987. The first issue was the October/November issue and it was focused on giving subscribers a wide variety of quick and easy patterns that could be made in a jiffy. It was a handy digest format that could be easily carried along in a purse or small craft bag rather than the full-sized magazine we have now.

First Crochet Home Issue
Crochet Home Oct/Nov 1990

Three years later, in 1990, we shifted our focus to home décor and renamed the magazine Crochet Home to reflect that. Then in the fall of 1999, as the marketplace changed, we broadened the selections to include crochet patterns for festive events such as Christmas, Thanksgiving, the Fourth of July and many others. To acknowledge this, the title was renamed Crochet Home & Holiday.

First Crochet! Issue
Crochet! Magazine March 2002

Along the way, the Annie’s publishing group of Berne, Indiana, bought both The Needlecraft Shop and the American School of Needlework. The founder of ASN, Jean Leinhauser, saw that the marketplace was lacking a magazine offering fashion-forward wearables and accessories, and her vision sprang to life as an entirely new editorial concept with a new name, Crochet! Not only was the focus a new one, the dimensions were also significantly enlarged from digest-size to the current standard full size.

Summer 2022 Issue of Crochet!
Crochet! Magazine Summer 2022

That brings us up to now, where we are celebrating 20 successful years of delivering crochet wearables, while acknowledging 35 continuous years of publishing for our audience of crochet lovers, whatever the topic.

How long have you been reading Crochet! magazine, and were you a subscriber to any of the earlier magazines?

 

– Tara Orchard, Editor of Crochet! Magazine

 

Missing issues? Check out Annie’s Craft Store to get previously released issues! 


Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *