How to add lettering to a crochet piece

Hi everyone,
I’ve recently become a passionate beginner at crocheting. The birth of my son sparked my interest in crocheting and knitting. I’d like to gradually turn this hobby into my career, if everything works out the way I hope it will.
Now I have a question: I’d like to add lettering to a crocheted piece. I know the methods of crocheting the lettering directly onto the piece or sewing it on with a needle. But I’d prefer to work more precisely, possibly using a thinner yarn. What would be the best method for this? I’d be very grateful for any helpful ideas. I’d also like to try using a sewing machine, but I’m not sure which materials to use so I can, for example, mark the design neatly first, etc. Sorry if this got too long, but I’d really appreciate any feedback.
Best regards

Hello Tusim-sanane,
first of all, congratulations on your little boy.
If, as you say, you’re a beginner and want to turn this hobby into a career, then I can only say that you have to find your own way. It doesn’t help if others tell you how to do things. Let your creativity run wild—try different things and experiment. Look online, let yourself be inspired. I wish you lots of luck and success.
Warm regards, Petra

I sometimes do this with foundation chains, which I shape into cursive lettering and then sew onto the crocheted piece.

Hi ruthk,
thank you so much for your reply. That’s exactly what I tried—crocheting it directly onto the foundation chain. Since it didn’t turn out quite the way I wanted in the end, my next thought was to shape it and then sew it on. I even ordered some transparent thread—let’s see how that works out????????????

Hi Ursula Petra,
regarding your post, I can only say that you can gather information however you want, or exchange ideas—that’s what forums are for, right? That’s part of the research process, too. But whatever—there are always people who think they have to act smarter than everyone else. Thanks anyway! 

Hi tusim-sanane,
Of course, the forum is meant for sharing ideas and offering help!
I don’t think ursula-petra meant any harm. It just makes you think when a beginner considers writing her own patterns, because that requires a lot of expertise and the ability to help customers with any problems that might come up. Please don’t take this the wrong way—it’s definitely a wonderful goal once you’ve gained enough experience in crocheting and knitting!
I hope you continue to have lots of fun with your new hobby and with your little one!

Hi Nadeleule,
Who’s even talking about writing patterns here?! Here on crazypatterns, the concept is writing patterns. As a beginner, I’ve already taught myself quite a lot about crocheting and knitting — and I’m still learning! How hard can it be to answer a question about which method can be used to add lettering?! Just jumping in and making assumptions without even understanding what this is about :-) Well, I guess it was my mistake to mention that I have bigger plans for this — naturally, that wakes up the competition right away :-) But don’t worry, my concept won’t be about writing patterns, Nadeleule ;-)

Please excuse me, but your initial post led me to believe that you wanted to turn this hobby into a career. I think we might have misunderstood each other a bit. You shouldn’t feel personally attacked by this. By the way, there’s no competition among us authors here—it’s more of a pleasant, collaborative atmosphere.

Regarding your original question:
If you want larger letters, you can crochet them individually and sew them on, or iron them on using this self-adhesive hem tape. I did that on my daughter’s iPad case. For finer lettering, you could also form the letters using a foundation chain made from embroidery thread with a thin needle and then sew them on. The invisible thread works well, and you can also sketch the outline first with a tailor’s pencil, which washes out. Don’t pull the thread too tight when sewing it on, so the whole thing doesn’t warp.

Yes, I did say that I might want to turn this into a career, but that doesn’t mean I want to write patterns—there are plenty of other things you can do besides writing patterns.
Of course, I felt attacked because this was already the second post where someone accused me of not putting any effort into this at all, but just asking for other people’s ideas. I think I’d be one of the last people to go about things that way, no matter what it’s about.
If there’s no competition among us, but rather harmony, then it was probably already the wrong approach to be so prejudiced toward me (including ursulapetra!).  I think this topic has been dragged out pointlessly long enough; it was never my intention or expectation to write in the forum
for this reason. But thanks anyway
for your advice, Nadeleule! There are some very helpful tips in there.