Get To Know a Crocheting TikTok Influencer Who Went Viral With Her Pandemic Pastime

Liv Huffman’s debut book, Contemporary Crochet: 35 super-easy garments and accessories, is chock-full of daring fashion choices and retro-inspired pieces, most of which are constructed from the classic crochet granny square — and all of which reflect her personal style.

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October 04, 2022

By: Beth Braden

Show: HGTV Handmade

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Photo By: Jordan Knight © CICO Books 2022

Photo By: Getty Images; NBC / Contributor

Photo By: Jordan Knight © CICO Books 2022

Photo By: Liv Huffman

Photo By: Jordan Knight © CICO Books 2022

Photo By: Liv Huffman

Photo By: Jordan Knight © CICO Books 2022

Contemporary Crochet

Long before her crochet book hit shelves, Liv Huffman was a well-known TikTok creator because of her outstanding makeup skills. The Los Angeles resident regularly showcases looks ranging from fantasy and horror to costume, retro and glam. She has also been known to use her eyebrows as a blank canvas, turning them and her forehead into works of art like Van Gogh's Starry Night.

In 2020 Liv began crocheting to pass the time during the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, and she went viral after she re-created the iconic Harry Styles’ JW Anderson patchwork cardigan. The self-taught crocheter then turned her pandemic hobby into her debut book, Contemporary Crochet: 35 super-easy garments and accessories.

Buy the Book: Amazon, $17.99

Beginner-Friendly Fashion

Contemporary Crochet offers 35 patterns for skirts, tops, shorts, pants and accessories — all made by crochet. Liv included a 14-page guide at the back of her book for beginners to understand the tools, techniques and terms needed for their crochet creations.

The Funny Hat, featured on the cover, comes together quickly by crocheting two striped squares and then sewing them together. Each pattern in the book provides information on how much yarn is needed, what size of crochet hook to use, and instructions on constructing and finishing the garment or accessory. Most of Liv's creations begin with a simple crocheted square.

Buy the Book: Amazon, $17.99

Self-Expression

Liv did all her own makeup and styling for the photos in her book. “Beauty and fashion are my true passions," she says. "So I really wanted it to feel like a wholehearted representation of myself.”

Buy the Book: Amazon, $17.99

Yarning For Something to Do

Liv took up crocheting as a hobby and lost interest long before she saw this now-iconic look: Harry Styles in a JW Anderson patchwork cardigan during a soundcheck on the Today Show in February 2020. “It wasn’t until early 2020, during the lockdown, that I really got back into it because I desperately needed some kind of outlet — I think that's what made me stick with it the second time around.”

Quarantine and Cardigans

As the pandemic forced the world indoors, Liv — whose TikTok was primarily focused on makeup looks and eyebrow experiments — decided to use her time and basic crochet skills to re-create Harry’s cardigan.

The Viral How-To

She documented her process, which included using a cardigan she owned as an estimate for sizing, and then making dozens of crocheted squares she later sewed together to make the sweater. Her video went viral on TikTok and has more than 3.2 million views to date.

Unexpected Adoration and Museum Artifacts

Liv was shocked by the popularity of her video. “It was very unexpected, especially because it not only happened so fast, but it was the first crochet video I ever posted, so I didn't know how it would be received. I do think I owe a little bit of its success to Harry himself — he's a very popular man, that one … but I never could have imagined it becoming as big as it did,” Liv explained.

She was even more surprised when the V&A Museum in London asked if she would donate her re-creation of Harry’s sweater to their fashion exhibit to hang alongside his JW Anderson original. In exchange, she was sent her own authentic JW Anderson cardigan.

Oops ... She Did It Again

Her second viral project was a crowdsourced granny square cardigan. Granny squares are a classic crochet staple made by working stitches into a foundation chain that builds from the center of the square outward. When complete, they resemble a chunky doily and can be sewn together, most often to form blankets — unless you're Liv.

She asked her social media followers to mail her 4-inch-by-4-inch granny squares, and she soon had a PO box stuffed full of original creations from around the world. She documented the process of selecting squares and building the cardigan on her YouTube channel in late 2020. That popularity spawned her book deal.

Buy the Book: Amazon, $17.99

Original Patterns

Liv took a “less is more” approach when she wrote the 35 patterns in her book, but still found the project to be daunting. “There was a surprising amount of math involved, but luckily I had people much more experienced than me make sense of the patterns I had written,” she said. “My biggest goal with this book was to make pieces that not only reflected my personal style, but were also beginner friendly and easily customizable.”

Buy the Book: Amazon, $17.99

Liv's Favorite Piece

Liv has a hard time picking out her favorite pattern from the book, but she is particularly fond of “The Liv Hoodie.” Constructed of 101 granny squares, the Liv Hoodie features a hood and relaxed fit, and gives us serious afghan blanket vibes.

Buy the Book: Amazon, $17.99

Crochet and True Crime

While crocheting, Liv likes to listen to music or watch some of her favorite shows on TV. She is also a true crime fan and enjoys watching true crime content on YouTube. “They’ll sit down and do their makeup while they tell stories, so it feels like we’re just hanging out doing stuff together, talking about murder.”

Unhelpful Helpers

Like so many crafters, Liv also deals with pets who can't help but interrupt the creative process. Her cats, Kidd and Zombie, have been exiled from Liv's crochet time. “I love them to death, but one will attack the yarn as I’m pulling it from the skein and tangle it all up, and the other will literally try to eat the yarn,” she said.

A-Very Cool Vest

Many of the patterns in her book are named for people she loves, and each pattern includes some information about the piece and its namesake. “Named after my friend Avery, this high-neck cropped vest top was the very first thing I made when I started this book, and it challenged my creative thinking, just like she always has,” Liv wrote for the Avery Vest's description.

Buy the Book: Amazon, $17.99

Homemade Doesn't Have to Be Pricey

Liv prefers to use affordable acrylic yarn for her projects — think Red Heart or Caron Simply Soft, both of which are widely available at craft stores and come in a variety of colors. The exception is when she’s making something particularly special. For personal projects or gifts, she leans toward cotton or wool yarn, so the item comes out warmer and softer.

Knot Your Average Outfit

While most beginning crocheters start with a blanket, one of Liv’s first projects was a bikini top because they’re small and simple. She then branched into hats, tank tops, vests and other small items, many of which have patterns in Contemporary Crochet.

Buy the Book: Amazon, $17.99

Everyone Loves Her Clothes

Liv wears just about everything she’s ever made. “There’s nothing cooler than getting stopped at the post office or the grocery store and being asked where my outfits are from, because then I get to say, ‘I made it,’” she said.

There's More Where That Came From

Now that she’s done with Contemporary Crochet, Liv looks forward to creating another book so she can see how much she’s grown as a crafter since she began working on the patterns for this book. She is also learning to sew and continuing to hone her skills with the crochet hook.

“I always say it’s never too late to learn, and it's not nearly as scary as it looks. It's honestly quite straightforward once you learn the basic stitches and terminology," she said. "There is a lot of depth to what you can make, and there are so many great resources to help anyone learn anything these days. I learned everything I know from watching YouTube videos, and I still am learning new things every day."

Buy the Book: Amazon, $17.99

Get To Know a Crocheting TikTok Influencer Who Went Viral With Her Pandemic Pastime

Related To:

Shop This Look

Contemporary Crochet

Beginner-Friendly Fashion

Self-Expression

Yarning For Something to Do

Quarantine and Cardigans

The Viral How-To

Unexpected Adoration and Museum Artifacts

Oops ... She Did It Again

Original Patterns

Liv's Favorite Piece

Crochet and True Crime

Unhelpful Helpers

A-Very Cool Vest

Homemade Doesn't Have to Be Pricey

Knot Your Average Outfit

Everyone Loves Her Clothes

There's More Where That Came From

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