Hey! I’m Hailey, the mind behind the patterns at MyCocoLily.

Let’s talk about how I came to be here:

I have 14+ years of crochet experience, and knew that this was a hobby worth pursuing after finishing a slouchy Bob Marley hat that I had no patience to learn how to weave in the ends properly.

A few years before this, I had found some yarn and a hook no one had put to use at my parents’ home.

I learned how to make chains from my dad, who had retained some of what he had learned from his grandma.

Before picking up some skills I could implement into my projects from trusty old YouTube, I completely winged it with the scarf I was trying to make, and came up with something resembling a giant 90’s wind spinner.

It would be a while before I started on my next crochet project, where I would actually learn stitches and follow a pattern.

My niche:

I loved making mostly hats at first (especially the slouchy ones—those were my preferred aesthetic), then I would transition to accessories like little purses.

For the longest time, I admired those little crochet plushies that I would find in crochet pattern magazines, and I decided to give it a shot! I got a book from the craft store on how to make amigurumi cats.

I made the most disproportionate little cat in a frog suit, and gave him to my sister as a gift. She still has him to this day.

I practiced making more accessories and plushies from there.

After about a decade with yarn and hook, I knew I wanted to pursue creating whimsical amigurumi and cottagecore pieces of my own, once I became more comfortable with improvisation and modification.

Learning to crochet is not unlike trying to learn another language, and it’s so rewarding!

Favorite brands:

My brand of choice for hooks that you’ll see me use—especially for amigurumi projects—is “Clover”. I think their hooks have the perfect grip and smoothness, and are overall just really nice and durable.

I use “I Love This Cotton” yarn quite often for keychain plushies and bags. Sometimes I’ll switch to thin chenille yarn (no brand to recommend in particular) for that tiny, fuzzy teddy look.

“Loops and Threads” medium weight acrylic yarn works great for winter hats!

I also like using “Coboo” for more breathable hats that are meant for spring. The material feels so good and it’s very soft! The caveat is that the yarn splits, so it takes some practice and a decent hook—like “Clover”.

My patterns:

I do my best to ensure that my patterns are backed by straightforward, easy-to-follow instructions that have been tested by my fellow crocheters of various backgrounds. I’ve also made a point to include visuals and videos for the visual learner.

My patterns are free here on my website. But if you would like to download and print them, you can also find my patterns in my Etsy shop (linked in the website’s header) for a small fee.

I hope you enjoy your time here!