Shell Stitch Queen-Size Afghan

[ManfaMae]

Good Morning,

 

One of my co-workers just came in my office and saw some of my crochet work and asked if I would make an afghan for her. She wants a queen-sized afghan done in shell-stitch made with Caron Simply Soft. I know that SS is running about $2.99/skein, but I have no idea how many skeins it would take or what to charge her for the afghan. I found this pattern http://www.coatsandclark.com/Crafts/Crochet/Projects/AfghansThrows/SB514-001+Soft+Shells.htm that I think would work, but I'm not sure how to enlarge it to make it 60 X 80 (How many beginning chains? How much more yarn would it take?). Also, I read that you should charge 3 X the amount you paid for materials. Is it the same for afghans?

 

Thanks!

Samantha

[FrLopLady]

I know you can figure out how many stitches the pattern is and then add that many more to a pattern, but I won't try. I'm sure someone that is more experienced will know how to figure that out.

 

The afghan pattern you have there is at least pretty good sized already. Not sure if it would work to figure square inches it it, square inches you need, the percent difference and then increase yarn by that much as well. Probably at least close and overbuying a few skeins won't hurt if you keep the receipt to bring back.

 

Michaels around here will often have SS on sale 2/$5...and I think that sale may be going on now??

[mclendon1]

OK, I'm no math wiz, & somebody else can prob come up w/ a better idea.

 

The pattern you show is 50"x69"=3450 sq inches, you want yours to be 4800 sq inches.

 

The pattern calls for 63oz of TLC which has 312yds per 6oz skein, which comes out to 10.5 skeins totaling 3276 yards. you want to do 1350 more sq inches than the pattern calls for, that's an additional 450 yards of yarn.

 

so I would say you need 3726 total yards of yarn. 3726 divided by how many yards are in a skein of SS gives you the # of skeins you need.

 

I many not be right.

 

As far as your starting chain goes, TLC is thicker than SS, so the guage isn't going to be the same, so I would say do a test guage to see what your multiples should be.

 

May be the long way around, but I don't have a math brain.

[Peggy85225]

I don't know how much you should charge as I have no idea how long it would take you to make it. However I do know I would ask for half down or at the very least the cost of the materials up front. That way you won't be out more then your time. MHO

[happily hooked]

I would thumb through some pattern books with her and let her choose what she wants, or at least show her some patterns you already have and give her a choice. Also, get her to specify the size that she wants. Does she want it just to cover the top of the bed, or does she want it to go over the side of the bed a bit?

 

Then take her to wherever it is that you buy your yarn - Michael's, Hobby Lobby, etc, and show her the different kinds of yarn and how they feel, washing and care instructions, colors available in each of the different lines, etc. Let her decide how cheap or expensive she wants to go in that regard.

 

Once you have that information, have HER buy the yarn that she has chosen. Buy the amount that is called for in the pattern to get you started. If you are enlarging the pattern, after you have used one skein, see how far that gets you and then you can estimate the total number of skeins to complete the afghan. If you need more skeins, have her buy those, too.

 

You shouldn't have to be out any money up front. Now what you charge for your labor is another thing. That depends on the complexity of the pattern and how long it takes you.

[acraftylady]

I would go over and look at her bed and measure it. The newer mattresses are higher so if she has one of those she might want to hang down more. Somepeople just chain really long and then take the extra out at the end they don't need. I can't sey how much in labor but I know a lady that does very complex baby afghans and she gets no less than $100 plus materials. She has a lot of wealthy people that don't want to be bothered to crochet and are willing to pay for her work and she does very lovely work so worth every penny. Mary

[Crocus58]

I'd recommend steering her away from Simply Soft if she plans for the afghan to get a lot of wear - It looks lovely but does not hold up very well in my experience- if she wants to use it and wash it and use it again, you'd be better off with a yarn more like the TLC, or Pound of Love. Both wash up very soft and hold up well. Just a suggestion.

[winterlights08]

As far as the number of beginning chains, you could always chain loads extra, get to a decent width, start your pattern rows, and remove any extra chains. This way you don't have to worry about the math, and not having enough chains at the end. When I heard of doing this I was very doubtful, but it works and it makes things so much easier!

[ManfaMae]

Thanks, everyone, for the great information. I'm going to let her know that the Simply Soft might not be the best choice for her afghan. She seems to know a little about crocheting, so I'm just going to let her know that if she's at the store, just pick out some RH, VC, TLC or some other acrylic and get 12 skeins so that I can get started. She already told me she wanted the blanket to be queen-sized (60X80), so I'll work on making it that size and go from there. I'm still unclear on how much I should charge for labor.

[sarisue]

Good Morning,One of my co-workers just came in my office and saw some of my crochet Also, I read that you should charge 3 X the amount you paid for materials. Is it the same for afghans?

Thanks!Samantha

 

Just wondering have you discussed price with her? I think you should know before you start because if you find it is a lot of time, and more than she wants to pay after you start it would be a problem.

I know people who have agreed to anything but change their mind when they find out.