Time to show off the completed lapghans that your fellow readers completed!

Ruth made this beautiful lapghan in shades of purple and green:

Theresa made a beautiful lapghan with blues, purples and beiges!

These were the only two pictures submitted for the prize, so they will each get a small package of crochet goodies!  Congratulations ladies, and thanks so much for following the lessons!

And thank you everyone for following the lessons and your comments along the way!  I really enjoyed doing them, and I look forward to more”schools” in the future!  Watch for a learn to knit school after the embroidery school!

If you’ve ever wanted to learn to crochet, make sure you don’t miss our eleven part series:

1. Lesson #1
2. Lesson #2
3. Lesson #3
4. Lesson #4
5. Lesson #5
6. Lesson #6
7. Lesson #7
8. Lesson #8
9. Lesson #9
10. Lesson #10
11. Lesson #11

See all the posts in the Crochet School…

We’ve reached our last lesson! You did it!! You should now have a nice lapghan all sewn together, ready to finish off the edges?

There are two stitches I will go over for finishing the edges, the crab stitch and ruffles. Both are very easy to master, but create completely different looks.

Crab Stitch (a.k.a Reverse Single Crochet)

First of all, you will want to do a row of sc around your entire blanket, working 3 sc into each corner. This gives a nice clean edge to work off of.

From crochetcabana.com:

After completing a row of single crochet, do not turn the work around, chain one, *insert the hook into the next stitch to the right (not in the stitch you just completed, but the next one, draw up a loop. Here’s how you do that – You just angle your hook down and grab that sucker and pull it through. yo as normal and pull through both loops on the hook. rep from * across row.

Follow the link for pictures of the finished edge as well

Ruffled Edge

This edging uses a lot of yarn, so keep that in mind Again, you will want to do a row of sc around your entire blanket, working 3 sc into each corner.

Begin with a chain 4. Triple crochet into the same space, and then triple crochet in the same stitch. Work 2 trc into each stich along the edge, work 4 trc into the stitch before the corner, 6trc in the corner, 4 trc in the stitch after the corner and then 2 trc in each stitch along the edge. Continue around. You can see a picture of the ruffled edge here.

That’s it!! You will now have a wonderful lapghan to keep you warm on the upcoming cool fall and winter nights!

If you want to be entered into the draw for the fun crochet goodies, send me a picture of your completed afghan to heccles at gmail dot com by 10pm EST on Sunday August 5. I will share everyone’s completed lapghans and announce the winner next Tuesday!!

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So now your squares should be nice and flat and even! Time to start assembling your lapghan.

There are a few different methods to seaming your squares together. I found some great pictures and explanations on Crochet911.com

The most common method of seaming is called the “mattress stitch” or “invisible weaving”. Place your squares together in front of you, and collect together some matching yarn with your darning needle. Beginning at the bottom, pick up the first stitch on the right, and then on the left square. Weave back to the right, and then to the left again. Continue the length of the side of the square. This method creates a nice flat seam.

Another method of seaming is backstitching. This method works really well, but the seams are a bit bulkier. You will hold the right sides of the squares together, and weave the yarn in and out along the top of the squares.

You can also slip stitch the squares together, however this also creates a bulkier seam. Holding the right sides of the squares together, you will slip your hook under the loops of both squares, yarn over and pull the yarn through both squares, then through the loop on the hook. Continue the length of the square.

The final method of seaming I will discuss is overcast, which again creates a bulky seam. With blunt-pointed needle and matching yarn, place right sides together and insert needle back to front, bringing the needle over the edge. Insert needle back to front again under the top loops of the squares. Continue the length of the sides.

Using your choice of method, or trying all of them, assemble your lapghans and next week will will talk about finishing the edges of them!!

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First of all, a shout out to everyone who commented last week that they are still following along with the lessons! I haven’t had the time to reply to each comment individually, but thank you for letting me know you are still following the lessons – there were a lot of you!

And don’t forget that if you finish your lapghan by week 12 and you send a picture of it to me, you will be entered into a draw for a gift of crochet goodies!!

So we are done our squares! I don’t know how many you would have right now, it would depend on if you made 2 of each pattern each week, or one. You want to have enough to make a rectangle, say 4 squares x 3 squares. If you are at an uneven number, you will either want to go back and make a couple extra squares from the patterns we’ve had, or you could always leave out some of the squares you’ve made. Or, if you are feeling ambitious, check out this site for a listing of 7″ squares, and try a few new ones!

This week we will go over making our squares look better and getting them ready to seam together.

Weaving in Loose Ends

So, now we are done our squares and they all have long ends hanging from them – so its time to weave those ends in. To do this, you will need a large blunt end yarn needle, you can get them from any craft store in the yarn section for a dollar (they can be metal or plastic).

There are a couple of different methods you can use to weave in your ends. To weave in your ends at the top of your work, you will simply weave the yarn under the top chain back and forth.

To weave in the end in the middle of your work (good for color change ends), you can insert your needles down through the middle of your vertical stitches and pull the yarn into the stitch.

Both of these methods are shown in the video from nexstitch.com.

Yet another method is to weave the ends under the stitches moving horizontally. This picture from about.com explains it perfectly:

So there you have it! Now get on weaving those ends in

Blocking

Blocking is done before you seam your squares together. It helps to relax and even out your stitches, as well as shape your finished object. You can also stretch out your projects if they aren’t quite the size you were looking for – great for squares

I’m going to describe my favorite method of blocking crochet projects. You will need a stiff board with a soft surface (ie an ironing board works perfectly), a spray bottle of water and some rust proof pins. You can make your own blocking board by taking a piece of wood, laying cotton or polyester batting on top (like the stuff you would use to make a quilt), cover it with fabric and staple the fabric onto the underside of the board. I make a lot of squares to use up leftover yarn, so I drew 7″ squares on the fabric, so I knew exactly what to stretch them to without having to constantly measure while pinning.
Start by pinning your project onto the board into the shape you want. Stretch out any sides you need to in order to straighten them, or to get the square into the size you are looking for. Use lots of pins Once you have it pinned, spray the square with water until it is moderately wet. That’s it!! Let the square dry completely, and when you take it off the board it will be in the exact shape you blocked it to!

There are other methods of blocking as well, including submerging your squares and then pinning them wet, or steam blocking with an iron (DON’T iron your actual square – ask me how I know ). But I found the method I describes works the best!

So this week, weave in all your ends and block your squares! Next week we will be putting the lapghan together!!!

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This week we are going to learn how to change colors while crocheting. I know a few of you already figured this out, as I’ve seen some beautiful multi-colored squares on the flickr group.

It is very easy to change colors when crocheting. When you’re about to change colors, work your last stitch until there are 2 loops left on your hook. Leaving a tail, draw the end of the new yarn / color through the 2 loops on your hook. Then continue working with the new color. With a large-eyed needle, weave in the tails of both balls of yarn to secure.

That’s it! Its really simple

Here is a great visual from about.com

Patterns

This week our patterns will be all about the color change

Amber Waves

Cluster Flowers Square

Maze Granny Square

Springtime Square

And don’t worry about those loose ends from all the color changes – we’ll go over how to weave those in for the next lesson!

Also, I was hoping for a bit of a check in..I’m curious how many people are still following the lessons. We had a huge sign up number, and I want to see who’s still around! Post a comment and let us know if you are still following the lessons!!

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This week we are going to learn Tunisian crochet. This type of crochet is also known as “afghan crochet”, and is similar in many ways to knitting. It creates a very thick result, and a unique look.

An important difference about Tunisian crochet is that you don’t turn your work. You will work your stitches from right to left, and then back from left to right. Also, rather than working one stitch at a time, you are working one row at a time, carrying all the stitches on your hook.

For this reason, you will need to use an afghan or Tunisian hook. This hook looks like a long crochet hook with the other end looking like a knitting needle.

From skacelknitting.com

However, there is a trick that you can use to make a hook if you don’t have one, and you are making something small, like a square. Simply take your regular crochet hook and wrap an elastic several times around the end of the hook. This will prevent your stitches from falling off the end of the hook, and it works great because you don’t have to buy a bunch of different size afghan hooks, you can use the hooks you have on hand.

I will only be teaching the basic Tunisian stitches – there are many out there but we don’t have the time to go through them all

Base Row

Tunisian crochet starts with a base row, consisting of a forward pass and return. You will begin as with all other crochet projects, with a row of chains. You will then insert your hook into the first chain, yo and pull the yarn through, giving you two loops on your hook. Then insert into the next chain, yo and pull through, now three loops are on your hook. You continue this until the end of the row, carrying all the loops on your hook.

The return part of the row is completed by yo, and pulling the yarn through 2 loops on the hook. Then you yo, and pull through the next two loops. You repeat until you get to the end of the row.

This video from Nexstitch.com explains it perfectly.

Tunisian Simple Stitch

The Tunisian simple stitch is completed the same was as the base row, except when you are going from right to left, you will be inserting your hook under the vertical loop of the row before, rather than through the top of the stitch, then yo and bring yarn through.

This video from nexstitch.com shows the Simple stitch.

Tunisian Knit Stitch

The Tunisian knit stitch resembles stockinette stitch when it is completed, giving you the look of knit with the ease of crochet. The completed stitch is much thicker than knit stockinette, making it perfect for afghans.

It is explained perfectly at nexstitch.com, here.

Tunisian Purl Stitch

The tunisian purl stitch is similar in appearance to the knitted garter stitch in that both have a horizontal loopy effect. For this stitch, the yarn placement before you start is crucial. The yarn needs to be brought to the front of the work.

You can find the instructional videos on their website here.

Pattern

Afghan stitch Dishcloth This pattern calls for use of the afghan stitch, that is simply the Tunisian simple stitch Also, you can use your acrylic yarn rather than the cotton yarn they call for. The size of the completed dishcloth isn’t stated, so if it is smaller than our 7″ goal, simply continue your sc border until it reaches 7″ in width.

Knit Stitch Square Follow the above pattern, but instead of working the Tunisian simple stitch, work the Tunisian Knit Stitch in the rows. Complete the pattern with a sc border to 7″.

Purl Stitch Square Follow the above pattern, but instead of working the Tunisian simple stitch, work the Tunisian Purl Stitch in the rows. Complete the pattern with a sc border to 7″.

Have fun!

And have a fun and safe Fourth of July!!!!

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After reviewing what I had for this week, I realized its not really a lesson, but more like a week to practice some stitches together to make a new pattern – cables.

Here is the pattern for the square.
It gives a slightly smaller square, so after you bind off you might want to work sc around the edges to make it 7″.

This week will be an easy week, take this week to finish up and catch up with all the previous lessons, learn cables, and next week we will get into Tunisian crochet. If you have a special Tunisian hook, great! If not, no worries, I will teach you a trick that makes any hook a Tunisian hook

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First of all, I apologize for not getting another pattern up last week. It was a crazy week for me, and in all honesty I forgot.

This week, we are going to learn about ribbing.

Ribbing is often used as a stretchy edging for clothing items, such as waistbands of pants (for babies / children) or the edge of a sweater. It is also used to create a bit of dimension in your projects.

Before we can learn about ribbing, there are two stitches that we must learn, front post double crochet (FPDC) and back post double crochet (BPDC). Front and back post stitches can be made from any type of basic crochet stitch, but are most often created with double or treble crochet stitches. Front post stitches will make a raised effect, while back post stitches will cause a recessed effect.

Here is an excellent video describing both stitches at nexstitch.com.

Another popular application for a combination of front and back post stitches is a basket weave pattern, where a series front and back posts are a carefully arranged to create a basket-like effect.

Another way to create ribbing is to work in only one of the loops on the top of the stitch. If you can recall, in previous lessons I’ve taught that when you are working your stitches into the row below, you will slip your hook under both loops of the stitch:

Look here to see how to work into only the front or back loops. By working all stitches into the front loops or back loops only, you will get a ribbed effect.

Patterns

FPDC and BPDC #1: Nooks & Crannies This square doesn’t have ribbing, but it does allow you to practice your FPDC and BPDC. There is a new stitch introduced (double treble) but I am sure you will be able to figure it out no problem

Ribbing Method #2: Ribbed Dishcloth This pattern says to use cotton, you can use your acrylic yarn And the finished size stated on the pattern is 7.5″ x 7″. I would just repeat the rows until you reach a length of 7″, then bind off.

Basketweave: Basketweave Dishcloth This is another great pattern to practice your FPDC and BPDC, and also gives you an idea of what the basketweave pattern looks like. The final size isn’t stated in the pattern, so I am not sure it it will be 7″, it will probably be pretty close (most dishcloths are in my experience). Also, you can use worsted weight acrylic instead of cotton yarn.

If you are feeling up to it, and want to try ribbing with FPDC, then try this easy slipper pattern! Not a requirement for the lessons, but I wanted to put it out there if you finish early this week

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This week’s lesson will be a shorter lesson, with two important things learned:

- increasing
- decreasing

Alas, I believe my camera with video has bit the dust Its not worth getting fixed, and its not in the budget to get a new one for now. So I will use the videos from nexstitch and photos to explain things from now on.

Increasing

To increase when you are working with a piece that is solid (ie all sc, dc, hdc etc), you increase by simply working one or more stitches into a single stitch.

Here is a great page outline all your basic increases from Crochet Cabana.

Increases done with a special stitch (ie shell stitch) will be explained in the pattern that they are required, and so I wont go into them here

Decreasing

Decreasing is actually quite easy once you get the hang of it. Basically, you will start each stitch as normal (yo the number of times required, then insert your hook into the stitch, yo and pull through) but you don’t complete the stitch. You then start to work another stitch into the next stitch and complete it by pulling your yarn through all the loops on the hook. Yeah, I know….that doesn’t make much sense at all (Its early and I haven’t had coffee yet )
Check out the decreasing page on Crochet Cabana for a much better explination.

Patterns

I couldn’t find any patterns online for decreasing / increasing and squares, but I have one in mind and I will try to draft it and write it down by the end of the week for you

Until then, try this easy pattern for a wrist pouch – it contains increases, and should only take you a few hours to complete. Plus its a bit of a break from squares! A note on the pattern, once you start working the sides, you have two choices. You can sc each round, and complete each round by sl st to the beginning chain, chain 1 and start a new row. Or you can simply crochet round and round, like a spiral. The first method will give you an obvious seam, the second method wont. It is up to you

If you would rather do squares, here are a couple more to help you work on previous skills taught.

Heart Sampler Square

Spring Breeze
Have fun and happy hooking!!