I hope everyone enjoyed the break in difficulty we had last week — those bobbles weren’t too bad, were they?  This week we’re doing a bit of a chevron/ripple that I’m calling the “mirrored chevron,” so let’s get started!  Don’t forget, we’re using US terms.

Last week, we finished with row 29:

row 30

With new color, dc across

row 31

For this row and the 3 following rows, the turning chains do NOT count as the first stitch as they have previously been doing.

Change to a color you have a lot of.  Ch 1.  In the first stitch, bring up a loop.  Bring up a loop in the second stitch as well:

Yarn over and draw through all 3 loops on hook:

That counts as our first stitch.  It’s essentially my way of making sc decreases without just skipping a stitch entirely, as some books and patterns recommend.  In the next st, make a hdc.  In the next st, make a dc.  In the next st, make 3 tr.  In the next st, make 1 dc.  In the next st, make 1 hdc:

We’ve made a “mountain!”  Now it’s time to decrease again, only this time we’re going to pull up loops from the next 3 stitches, not 2; yarn over and pull through to finish the st:

In next st, make a hdc (the start of another “mountain”)… Continue this way, making the mountains and decreasing, until the end.  It should look like this:

At the end of the row, you should just have 2 stitches left to work into for your last decrease instead of 3.  We’ll do the same as we did in the beginning and pull up loops from the 2 stitches, preparing the decrease:

row 32

With your next color, finish the decrease of row 31.  Ch 1 (again, this does NOT count as your first stitch like it usually does).  This row is the same process as row 31 only we’re just using sc.  Pull up loops from the first 2 sts:

Yarn over and finish the stitch:

Sc in next 2 sts, then sc 3 in the middle treble of the row below:

Sc in next 2 sts, then make another decrease over the next 3 sts, just like we did in the last row:

Continue this until the end.  It should look like this:

At the end, you will only have 2 sts, left, so do like we did in the last row: pull up loops from last 2 sts, yo, pull through to finish st.  Yes, go ahead and finish the stitch.  We’re not changing colors yet!

row 33

With the same color, repeat row 32, but do not finish the last decrease stitch because we will change colors now:

row 34

With the same color as row 31, ch 3.  This does not count as your first stitch!  Make a tr into the second st.  That counts as your first stitch.  dc in the next st, hdc in the next one:

sc 3 in next st, hdc in next st, dc in next st:

Now we’re going to decrease over the next 3 stitches.  Make a treble into each of the 3 stitches but do not pull the last loop through any of them.  When you’ve done that, yarn over and pull through all loops on your hook and it’s a treble decrease:

You’ve got it now; continue until the end.  It will look like this:

At the end, there are only 2 sts left so we will just decrease with 2 unfinished trebles.  Do not finish, we’re changing colors:

row 35

This is a normal row of hdc, so ch 2.  This does count as your first stitch again, so make your first hdc in the top of the dc in the row below:

At the end, remember that the ch 3 of the row below didn’t count as a stitch, so make your last hdc in the top of the treble (but don’t finish, we’ll change colors):

I’d check to make sure you have the correct stitch count at this point.  Should be the same number you started the blanket with.

row 36

Make a normal dc row.

row 37

Make a normal hdc row.

We’re done for this week!  I had to take this last picture on the floor because the whole thing no longer fit on my white paper, which is what I’ve been using for all the close up pictures.

Also, we’ve now completed all of the stitch patterns we will use in this blanket!  I was considering doing surface chains but I figured we’ve got enough eye-catching stuff going on as it is.  Feel free to add them if you like, though, if you’re looking for a little extra something!  Just make sure you do them on the front of the work.  These might be good for any scraps we have at the end.

Anyway, as usual, if you have questions, don’t be afraid to ask!  And again, I look forward to seeing your pictures on facebook and Ravelry and Instagram (#nyaccal)!  Everyone’s doing a fantastic job so far and I love seeing all the color variations/palettes everyone’s got going!  I’m having a blast and I hope you are too!

Thanks for stopping by!

Everyone’s blankets are looking fantastic!  I’m so excited that so many people are taking part — there’s even a group in South Africa working on it!  I hope all of the rows so far have been do-able.  This week is going to be a bit of a break from the difficult stitches, although there is still a “special” stitch!  Ready to get started?

Don’t forget, we’re using US terms!

Last week, we finished here, with row 21:

row 22

With new color, dc across.

row 23

With new color, hdc across.

row 24

With new color, dc across.

row 25

With new color, hdc across.

row 26

We’re going to do 3 rows of 1 color, so I’d recommend starting this row with a color of yarn you have a lot of.  With your chosen new color, dc across.  I’m using my lavender color for this:

row 27

Do not change colors.  This is a row of hdc with bobbles interspaced.  You can space your bobbles however you like, but I’m personally putting 9 hdc stitches in between each bobble.  The bobbles will be a different color, so pick one that goes with your current working yarn.  If you want to space your bobbles like mine, here’s what to do.

ch 2, hdc 8 across.  Leave last stitch unfinished:

Finish the stitch with your bobble color.  Crocheting over the working yarn of your background color, make 1 dc in next st, but do not pull the last loop through:

Make 3 more unfinished dc stitches in the same stitch.  You will have 5 loops on your hook:

Switch to your background color and pull it through all 5 loops of your bobble stitch.  Make a hdc in the next stitch:

Working over your bobble yarn, make 8 more hdcs, leaving the last unfinished.  Repeat the bobble.  Keep doing this until the end!  You will not have 9 stitches of background color at the end (I have 7) but that’s OK — it looks fine, right?

row 28

With the same background color, dc across.  That completes the bobble section!  Aren’t they cute?

row 29

With new color, hdc across:

That’s all for this week!  Pretty simple compared to the star stitch and the Catharine wheels, no?  Next week we’ll have yet another challenge, but soon we’ll be repeating the stitches we’ve used already and you’ll have all of them down!

Don’t forget, you can post photos of your progress on the facebook page or on the Ravelry group.  If you’re on Instagram you can use the hashtag #nyaccal to share your progress!

As always, thanks for stopping by!

It seems like everyone made it through the Catharine wheel stitch pattern last week, so I hope you’re ready for the next installment!  Might I suggest doing this installment in at least 2 sit-downs — I did it all at once and my hands are very tired!

Here we go (and don’t forget we’re using US terms)!  Last week, we finished with row 13:

row 14

ch 3 and turn with new color, dc across.

row 15

This row begins the star stitch pattern.  I’d recommend choosing a lighter color so that the stitches really show up!  Each time we make the star stitch pattern, the first row of it needs to be on the right side of our work.

ch 3 and turn with new color:

Now we’re going to work into the chains we just made.  In the middle of the 3 chains, insert your hook and pull a loop through.  Then in the bottom chain, insert your hook and pull another loop through.  It’ll look like this:

Now insert your hook through the last st of the previous row (or 1st st of this row) and pull up a loop.  Pull up loops through stitches 2 and 3 as well:

You should have 6 loops on your hook.  Yarn over and draw through all 6.  Ch 1 to close the stitch and form the “eye” of the first star:

Insert hook into the “eye” and draw up a loop.  Insert hook around the last “spoke” of the previous star and draw up a loop:

Pull up a loop from stitch 3 of the bottom row, where we pulled up the last loop of the previous star.  Pull up loops from stitches 4 and 5 as well:

Yarn over and draw through all 6 loops, ch1 to close the star and form the “eye.”  Continue in this same way (pulling up loops through the eye, around the last spoke of previous star, in the same st as the last spoke of the previous star, and in the next 2 stitches, and then chaining 1 to close the star) until the end.

At the end, you should have 1 stitch left.  Make a hdc in it and keep the same color going:

Here’s what the back of your work should look like:

This is why the blanket has a front and a back to it.  Next, ch 2 and turn.

row 16

Make 1 hdc in the “eye” of the last star of the bottom row:

In the next eye and all the rest to follow, make 2 hdc stitches:

At the end of the row, make 1 hdc into the top turning chain you made in the row below, but don’t finish it because we’re done with the star stitch and we’ll change colors now:

Here’s what the front of your blanket should look like after the star stitch rows are done:

Ch 3 with new color and turn.

row 17

This row is a regular dc row except we’re going to make our stitches in between the hdcs of the previous row.  This is so there won’t be a ridge/line between the top of the star pattern and our new row (if you crochet across like normal you’ll see what I mean).  I’m crocheting over my yarn tails here so I don’t have to weave them in later.  Here’s what the first few stitches look like:

Keep crocheting into the spaces between the stitches of the previous row until the end.  Since crocheting into the spaces shifted us over slightly, we’ll have to make what seems like an extra stitch at the end:

If you count, however (which you really should do now), you should have the same number of stitches as your very first row of the blanket.

row 18

With new color, dc across.

rows 19 – 21:

With 2 new colors (or 3 if you prefer), make another section of granny stripes.  When we do granny stripes we also want the first row to be on the right side, and we must do an odd number of granny stripes or we won’t have the same number of stitches across (weird, I know, but the even granny stripe rows just don’t have the same number of stitches).

That’s our last row for the week, so I’d recommend counting your stitches to make sure you have the same number as when you started your blanket just one more time to be safe.  Also, don’t forget to weave in your ends!

I hope you’re all enjoying the CAL so far.  I’m certainly having a blast!  As usual, if any part of this week’s installment was tricky for you, feel free to ask questions.  If you can’t get the star stitch to work for you, just make 2 rows of hdc straight across instead and you’ll be fine!

And I should say thanks for joining us to anyone who’s just now starting — we’re glad to have you along!  And thanks for all the facebook page likes!  I’m enjoying all the photos being put up on facebook and Ravelry, as well.  Please keep them coming — you’re all doing a fantastic job!

Well, until next week everyone!  Thanks for stopping by!

I love all the pictures you’ve posted on facebook and Ravelry so far!  Your blankets are all looking great!  Ready for the second installment?  Off we go!

By now we’ve established how we’re starting rows and changing colors, so let’s skip those details now to save time.  You’ve got this!  Oh and don’t forget we’re using US terms!

row 6

With new color, dc in each st across

row 7

With new color, hdc in each st across

row 8

This will be the Catharine wheel pattern.  DO THESE 4 ROWS LOOSELY OR YOUR BLANKET WILL HAVE UNEVEN EDGES.  With new color, ch1; sc in same st:

Skip 3 sts, 7 dc in next st:

Skip 3 sts, sc in next st.  Skip 3 sts, 7 dc in next st.  Continue this shell pattern to end, leaving the last sc unfinished so as to change colors:

row 9

Remember to keep your stitches loose!  With new color, ch 2:

In the next 3 sts, make a dc but do not pull the last loop through any of them yet:

When you have 4 loops on your hook and it looks like this, yo and draw through.  We’ll call this a “cluster” of 4:

Ch 3, sc in top/middle stitch of the bottom shell.  Ch 3, in next 7 sts dc but do not finish stitches, as in the beginning. Yo and draw through to finish the st  (making a “clutster” of 7).  Ch 3, sc in top of shell below.  Continue this pattern until the end.  The last “cluster” will be 4 sts only:

row 10

Remember to keep your stitches loose!  With same color, ch3 and dc 3 in first stitch; sc in the sc below:

In the center space of the next “wheel,” dc 7.  Sc in next sc.  Continue this shell pattern until end:

In the last st, there is only half of a shell to be made, so dc 4 and prepare to change back to the same color as our first row of the Catharine wheels:

row 11

Don’t forget, loose stitches!  Ch 1, sc 1 in same st:

Ch3, make the same “cluster” of 7 dcs as in row 9, ch 3, sc in top of shell.  Continue until end:

Leave the last sc incomplete, as per usual, to change to the next color:

row 12

Back to regular tension.  This is a row of dc, but the tricky part is getting the right number of stitches.  Ch 3 to count as first st:

You can see that stitches 2 and 3 are around the chain below, stitch 4 is in the “eye” of the wheel, stitch 5 is in the stitch right before the next ch 3 space, stitches 6, 7, and 8 are over the next ch 3 space.  Continue this method of 8 stitches until the end.  Keep track by remembering that each sc in the row below signals stitch 1 of the pattern of 8.  Dc in last st:

Before moving on to the next row, count your stitches to make sure you have the same amount as when you started the blanket.

row 13

In new color, hdc in each st across:

That’s all for this week!  I hope it’s not too much at once, but it was pointed out to me that at the pace of 6 rows a week we would probably not finish by Christmas (which was the original goal, so that we may gift our blankets to others if we wish).  Since so many of you finished within a couple of days last week, I thought adding 2 more easy rows wouldn’t be out of line.

If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.  I know that the Catharine wheel pattern can be tricky and it is a bit difficult to explain.  Hopefully the pictures will be enough to get you through so that you get the hang of it, but if not it’s OK, just ask about it and we can work through it together!  Good luck and happy hooking!