http://www.frugalvillage.com/photopost/showphoto.php?photo=416&size=big&password=&sort=1&cat=509

This was difficult for me to finish. :( I honestly don't know what I am doing when it comes to crochet. I do know I turn wrong, so I just made sure that I turned wrong consistently. lol

It's a little crooked. I tried to add and drop stitches to even it out a bit.

I wanted a nicer border, but if I ever wanted to actually finish this, then I needed to just add a border and be done. It's been over a year. lol I never seem to have the time to work on these types of things.

I am hoping that I can keep practicing and do better next time. It's so tough for me to learn stitches from pictures. I just don't learn well that way.

Zachary wants me to make him one now. :eek: I better start soon, so he has it before age 18. rofl

It came out beautiful! I know what you mean about starting on Zacharys blanket now,lol. I have this cross stich wall hanging I started for my sisters son before he was born. The kind with birthweight ,birthday etc. Well he's 10 and it's still not done,lol.

It's LOVELY Sara!!! - You made it sound awful in your post LOL.

I can't crochet AT ALL - I remember my Nan was really good at it but that was years ago and I've never met anybody since that can do it.

I think you did a GREAT job! I'll have mine after Zachary ;)

Well done

It is great!! I have one that I started when I was pregnant with my ds...he is almost four now... and i still haven't finished it. I plan to work on it more this winter. Maybe someday I can post that I finished it!

You did a great job Sara. :smball:

Thanks. You can see on the ends before the pink border how I turned it wrong. I started in the first chain instead of skipping a chain, so it has kinda like a laced edge to it...so now looks like little holes..lol
Overall, I am just happy that I finished it instead of staring at it and wondering if I'd ever complete it.
I really really want to get better at crocheting.
I like crocheting because it's somewhat forgiving. I like that I can set it down and stop anywhere too.
I see some of the things people make and just think ohhhh someday I really want to learn to make that.
I have wanted to make one of those crocheted character graphed blankets for the longest time and am not even sure how to do it.
I'm going to try a zigzag one for Zachary's next project.

I think it turned out great! I don't think I could ever learn how to crochet, I don't have the patience for it.

You did a wonderful job Sara. I have never been able to figure out crocheting, although I'd love too.

It looks just perfect to me Sara!

I used to do crochet and knitting when my children were younger - crochet baby sweaters for each to come home from the hospital with, crochet afghans for gifts, knit sweaters, etc.. I haven't done any in years but I'm sure I haven't seen the last of my crochet/knitting days .... but I think I'd need a refresher course! ;-)

My mil took over afghans for the kids and I was happy to hand it to her because it makes her happy....and she's 5 times faster than me! :D

Sara,
I think you did a great job! Very pretty indeed. Is there no end to your many talents???:)

Sara, you did great!! I turn wrong as well but I don't mind and neither does my family

I think you did a wonderful job! :thumb: I always love to see what pattern a varigated yarn is going to make.

You're right, if you turn wrong do it consistently that way no one but you knows! I think your stitches are pretty even for your first try at it and you FINISHED!!! :yippee: I always feel great when I finish something. I can't count how many projects I have started and are still waiting for me to complete.

The character blankets are a little difficult but the ripple (zig-zag) afghans are pretty easy once you get the first couple of rows done. If you need any help, send out a smoke signal or a pm and I'll help you. :)

It's beautiful Sara ....... Congrats on finishing it !!!!! I have many unfinished projects too.... I just don't have the small motor skills anymore to do it....... I love it !!!!!!!!!

Sara I thnk its perfect!
I keep trying to learn crochet, but i just can't seem to get the hang of it!
I can knit sort of, so I guess my afghans will have to be knitted!

Sara, it is beautiful. You did a great job. I would have never guessed it was your first one.

Zachary has been on my butt about his blanket. lol It really is funny. I asked him what colors he'd like and he at first said yellow. Today, right before heading to get some yarn, he says I want yellow, green, and purple. Then added and black. ugh
I found this kids yarn that is variegated in green, yellow, and purple. Then I bought some yellow solid yarn. I was excited to find all his colors. I get home and he was smiling knowing it was the yarn for his blanket. He also noticed there wasn't any black yarn. rofl

I practiced my ripple stitch last night and I think I got it down. I need to practice it a bit more before starting his blanket because I want his to fit a single bed and don't want to goof up the first two rows.

It's crazy, but I am excited to be crocheting. I've always wanted to do better at it and making the extra time to learn something new feels great.

I have so many crafts that I want to learn, but I like crochet mostly because it's not real costly to start out.

Thank you again for all the compliments. For anyone that crochets, you guys know it's a pretty easy stitch, but I am thrilled to just finally do it, kwim?

Sara, I do know what you mean. My grandmother (Mom's mom) crocheted all the time and never taught one of us. I used to watch her hands and figured out how to do it myself after MANY trials and errors.

If you need any help, don't hesitate to ask! :)

Diana,
My mom is amazing at crochet. She tried desperately to teach me when I was about 9 or 10. Of course, at that age I thought this is a pain in the butt and didn't really care to learn it much.

She made the most beautiful projects. Tableclothes, doilies, dolls, hats, slippers etc. You name it....she made it. She could whip things out in days. She is self taught too. I'm hoping when she comes to visit that she can just help correct any mistakes I make and let me know what I am doing wrong. I plan to just make a list of stitches and little samples that she can kinda walk me through, so I feel more confident about my own work. She is an old pro, so when I tell her I need some help she says "Just read the instructions". Welllll, it's not that easy. lol

It's really tough when I am learning a stitch and I am not sure if I have it right or not.

Hopefully, I'll keep making some time to fit it in and Zachary's blanket will be done before he changes his mind on colors. lol

I'll take you up on your offer to help. I have a question already on hooks. Some of mine have letters and some numbers. The one I used for the blanket in the gallery is a 5.50mm. (says USI9 I find it a bit chunky, but I'm comfortable with it. My sample that I did in the ripple is only 22 chains long. I am noticing though that it seems that maybe I might want a smaller hook for this stitch, but it could also be because it's my sample and with learning and it only being 3 rows right now that I wasn't using as much tension too. I was curious your opinion on hook size that I "should" use.

A US I or 9 is a good size to learn with when using a 4 ply yarn. What size yarn are you working with, you mentioned kids yarns before, but what ply does is say on the wrapper? I can then better tell you what size hook to use with that type of yanr.

You will notice when making a ripple afghan, the more rows you do the more it is going to pull in. i.e. you start out and it measures 6" wide and after doing 20 rows it is only 4" wide! That may be a little drastic in my example, but it will pull in considerably. Are you following an actual blanket pattern or did you just like the stitch and are going to figure out how many stitches you need to make it "X" wide?

It is always a good practice to make a swatch to figure out your guage. Everyone crochets differently so this will help you know whether you crochet tighter or looser than the patterns guage. They recomend a 4" square. That way you will know how many stitches per inch and rows per inch. If the tension feels too loose - drop down 1 hook size, if it is too tight - go up 1 hook size.

Standard aluminum hooks start at US ?/2 - smallest (can't remember the corresponding letter) and go up to a K/10 1/2 - largest. These are the US sizes, UK and European ones are in mm.

In case I don't see this again tonight, if your yarn is a 3 ply, try a size G/6 or even a F/5. If your tension is fairly even, either one of these sizes will work great.

HTH :)

Sara the blanket is beautiful. You did a great job. It's nice to curl up under a soft, crocheted blankie and know that you did it yourself, isn't it? Congrats on finishing it. Gosh I've got soooo many unfinished projects....I think I have crafting deficit disorder.

Sara, you did a beautiful job, it is very pretty!! Way to go!! Keep those needles click clacking away!!:D

The yarn is four ply. I haven't decided exactly how wide yet, but am going in multiples of 11. My sample is 22 chains.
In my sample, it doesn't look terrible with the US I9, but it kinda seems like I might want to go a little smaller gauge.

I just went on a hook hunt and can only find a few. ugh Might have to buy a couple. This is what I have in hooks-USH8, USG6, USF5, USJ10, USI9. I'm thinking the H8 or G6 might work. I'm not sure about how well I'll do with a smaller hook. lol

When you say it pulls in. Should I make it an extra multiple of my 11 chain to accomodate for it pulling in? Or would a solution be crocheting slightly more loosely so it doesn't look pulled in so much or just don't think about it and crochet away? lol

Thanks for the help.

Yes go down to an H/8 and try that.

Once your sample is at least 4" long, measure the width and then calculate how many multiples of 22 you will need to make it the desired finished width.

i.e. you want a finished width of 40" Your sample of 22 stitches X 22 rows measures 4" wide, so you will need 220 chains plus your turning chain to start with. But read on....................

Also there are "UPS" and "DOWNS" with this pattern. Which ever one you start with you will want to end with, i.e. start the pattern going "UP" you will end the row with an "UP" point also. So you will need for a 38" wide blanket (going by the example guage above) 209 chains + your turning chain. If you want it 42" wide it would be 231 chains + your turning chain.

I'm not making much sense. Okay, say ___ multiples of 22 + 11 + turning chain. Does that help? :loop:

Doesn't matter which size hook you use as long as you like the effect it gives and you use the same size hook throughout the blanket. (I have a bad habit of putting things down and then can't remember what size hook I was using!)

I think your blanket is beautifull Sara. I'm so impressed! I remember the post when you said you wanted to learn how to crochet and now just look at you already starting on another blanket!

I think I will either try a new crochet stictch or start a new quilt for the winter. I find them both satisfying and I believe it is a great way to relax. Just don't fret over it if it doesn't come out right. My 3 rd one looks worse than my first two but for some reason, it's my favorite.:toothy:

hmmmm. ok...maybe I am not figuring properly. Math is a definite weak area for me.
I'm chaining into the 4th chain from the hook. dc in next 2, 3dc in next ch, dc in next 4 ch. Chaining 3 and turning. (in my mini sample) It does end right though) but I am thinking I didn't count the turn chain.
hmmmm
I also have a leaflet on making an heirloom afghan. lol 63 different squares. (how's that for jumping way into something else) That looks fun, but I was thinking I might like that for myself vs. for Zachary.
ugh, see? I am way too new at this and now am afraid I'll get going and find that I did the math wrong and that would really frustrate the heck out of me.

Give me a minute to get a hook and some yarn, I'll figure it out for you. :)

The heirloom afghan would be nice and it would be a way to learn a lot of new stitches. Give it a try! :thumb:

I have been playing with this stitch for a 1/2 hour and can't figure it out! :bang: I have never done a ripple afghan in double crochet only single crochet. I did find a simple single crochet pattern on the web. http://www.bevscountrycottage.com/cp2.html

I worked this one up and it works out fine, but every time I substitute double crochet it comes out lopsided! :grrr:

Are you working from a pattern? If so could you type exactly what it says for me?

http://www.crochetcabana.com/learning_to_cro_ripple.htm

I liked the link you posted too. That looks nice too.

Sara I love your afghan. One of the most striking ones I wver made was made with scraps. The only yarn I actually bought was black. I crocheted a few rows of any one color the the same amount of black then another color etc. It was great.

I learned after so many crooked afghans that the secret is where you begin as in where you insert the hook when you are turning. I had to practice and count to get it right, for me it almost feels like I am skipping a stitch when starting a new row, but the chain 1, 2 or however many you do before makes up for it. well there is my two cents, I love it and can't wait to see Zachary's. Next Gabe will be in line I guess...

The blanket is beautiful Sara. I think you did a great job, even though you don't think so.:)

Okay I'm a :dunce: or just plain tired. LOL

The lady is right for this pattern (btw it worked up great!) Because this is more of a wave than a ripple, work the sample as she suggests, measure it across and then divided that measurement by 2 (that will give you the width of 11 stitches).

Mine measures 6" wide divided by 2 = 3" So 11 stitches = 3"
(This is because she is working with a multiple of 11 stitches)

I want my blanket to be 39" wide. Divide 39 by 3 = 13.

Multiply 13 x 11 = 143

So for me to make a blanket 39" wide I need to chain 143.

Does that help you?

I must have been having a 'blonde' moment even without my hair! :crackup:

I'm getting :loop: so I'm off to bed. I'll check this thread again in the morning. Post any more questions that you have and I'll try to help out.

Hurray. That means that I would be ok with what I thought I was planning. lol

BUT, I have to admit the single crochet one you linked is looking mighty nice to me.

Thank you for your help. I appreciate it. I can't wait to get started. (and finished of course lol)

I think it looks great Sara!! I started on one when I was pg with katie and never finished...so when I was pg with jackson I started on it again for him...well then I was pg with jayme so I thought I'd finish it for her...well the dern thing is still not finished and honestly..it prob will never be done... :(