Meet the 11-Year-Old Crochet Prodigy Whose Afghans Went Viral
*By Kate Gill*
Jonah Larson has threaded a small empire with his even smaller hands. The 11-year-old Wisconsin native and crocheting prodigy who learned his craft at age five has a massive following online (40,000 and counting) through his viral [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/jonahhands/) account. He even has a business manager ー his mother, Jennifer Larson.
But Jonah, who captured the internet's fickle attention with his elaborate creations, isn't motivated by fame or money. (Although he does take commissions.)
"I just sit back and relax, and that helps calm me," he told Cheddar Big News.
"And the best part is, I get to sit by my mom and spend quality time with her, and she can teach me important life lessons."
As with any prodigy, practice is essential. But Jonah admitted his practicing fluctuates with the seasons.
During the winter, he crochets roughly five hours a day, "because I kind of hunker down," he said. "But in the summer, I'm usually outside, playing sports," he added.
What's his item of choice to crochet?
"If I had to choose, it would be afghans," he said.
They are playfully called the “forgotten five”: A handful of toys — the pogo stick, the Fisher-Price Corn Popper, My Little Pony, PEZ dispensers, and Transformers — that regularly approach toybox royalty as finalists for the National Toy Hall of Fame, only to be tossed back on the pile.
Taylor Swift's concert tour has dominated the box office in recent days and it's also the top-grossing concert film of all time here in the U.S. But a conversation on social media raised questions about movie etiquette and videos shared show film audiences singing, shining their phone flashlights and dancing in the aisles.
Cheddar News is getting into the spirit of the spooky season. Senior reporter Michelle Castillo spoke with Cameron Lang, general manager of the Color Factory New York, an immersive art museum in Soho that focuses on exhibits of interactive art. Lang explained the displays of seasonal colors, a ball pit along with other fun exhibits.
