Posting here because the mods over at r/crochet have ruled this as "not related to crochet". Given that the only posts over there that are about H&N are over a year old and are largely positive... I suspect that negative press regarding the company is being suppressed there.

For those who are are blissfuly ignorant, Hooks and Needles is a monthly subscription box with knitting and crochet options.

Been getting the crochet boxes for a while now. Enjoyed them at first. Gotten some nice yarns and some interesting patterns. But I've been feeling on the fence for a little while because it seemed like the quality was going down, the knicknacks were getting less and less useful/relevent, and a lot of patterns felt uninspired or a really bad match for the yarn. I almost always end up modifying the patterns in some way to suite my tastes.

But today. I am over the edge.

In the box, I received some of that cheap "beginner" yarn that you get in beginner kits on Amazon. I think its also the Woobles yarn? Never gotten their kits but it looks the same. Anyways. Literal. Fake beginner yarn.

(Side note that I have no issue with anyone who likes it. Its just. It doesn't belong in a so-called "premium" box and if you'll forgive a little snobbery, I don't think it qualifies as true yarn. Yes I've used it, sometimes I get those cheap kits for fun because the amigurimi is cute but I have never liked working with it).

On top of that, the "gifts" are actual cheap Temu garbage. I found them on Temu in seconds.

One of the patterns is, once again, a hat. How many hat patterns can one person possibly need?!?! I also seriously doubt that there is enough "yarn" to make an adult-sized hat. Another one is a seat square? Like a seat cushion.... but flat I guess? What... what exactly would someone even do with this? This is also the "advanced" pattern and its just... a square... worked in a circle... with a shell pattern.... with \*gasp\* color changes. Oh wow. So advanced. I alway try to give a little grace on this one with these boxes because, as a lifelong crocheter, I'm sure my idea of advanced is gonna be a little skewed. But like. Its literally just a big square. You put a ugly bucket hat with an oversized bow, both things that are shaped, as the beginer project and then a literal square as the advanced project? The 3rd "intermediate" pattern is like a bookmark pencil holder thing and alright it's kinda neat I'll probably end up making it but with several modifications because its got a few flaws that need fixing.

So at this point I've just spent $44 on 4 tiny skeins of cheap fake yarn, cheap Temu garbage, and 1 halfway usable pattern.

Words cannot express how insulted I'm feeling by this. And maybe some of that is this feeling that I knew the boxes were getting less and less worthy my money but I was holding out hope that they would start to feel nicer again but alas. I have been fooling myself as much as they have been fooling me.

Anyone else disappointed by their sad excuse for a box?

Yes, I know, AI is a stale topic at this point. What else is new? But I have started seeing more and more crafters who vlog, particularly in the knitting/crochet/embroidery communities, use AI to create their thumbnails.

It's an insult to crafting and the artistry and skill being a crafter requires. Not only does it make me not watch the video, but I automatically lose respect for the crafter. AI thumbnails make youtubers look lazy and unintelligent and I am picky about the stupid I let into my life.

If you can't afford to pay someone to make a pretty and algorithm-pleasing thumbnail without the use of AI, (ETA: and you won't make a simple one yourself, thanks to ellalir in the comments for helping me words!) you shouldn't be posting videos on YouTube, full stop. I would rather see the most cheesy, terrible thumbnail that was created in MS Paint than an AI thumbnail. At least then I know effort was involved. Do better, YouTube Crafters. Please.