knitter learning crochet has questions

[macscout]

I'm several rows into a ripple afghan using the double crochet stitch, super bulky yarn and a size N hook. Each row is getting wider and shorter. When I spread it out it doesn't look V shaped but the stitches are becoming further spread apart and more difficult to crochet. What's wrong?.

[magiccrochetfan]

Hi again :-)

I don't think i can visualize what is happening.  if you could take a clear well-lit photo so we can see the stitches, it would help to diagnose the problem.

 

to post a photo, start a reply and then click on More Reply Options at the bottom right, and you will see Attach Files, click on Choose Files and you can upload a photo from your computer.  

[macscout]

Here is a photo. Itook a better one but I can't access my photo files through this thing. It had me take a picture specifically for this reply. But as I said before, it's not as visually obvious as it is while I'm working on it.

[macscout]

I forgot to mention that the blue side is the beginning. The green side is as far as I've gotten. I crocheted an addition blue row under the first row because I didn't like how delicate that first row looked compared with the rest. I'm guessing it's because of the weight of the yarn.

[magiccrochetfan]

Honestly, it looks fine to me.  It doesn't look like things are too spread out.  In what way are the stitches difficult?  

 

when you say it becomes wider and shorter, do you mean wider in length along the row, and shorter in height of each stitch?  

 

what pattern, if any, are you following?  

[macscout]

Each row is further spread apart making it more difficult to reach the next spot to insert the hook. I feel like I may be making the stitches too loose but don't know how to fix it if that is even the problem. Here's another photo that might illustrate the problem better. See how wide the stitches have become? It started with a simple chain 12 rows ago. I anticipate needing 30 - 40 more rows.

[magiccrochetfan]

can you describe where you are in the stitch pattern, in that photo?  is it the beginning of a white row?  I don't understand why the loop on the hook is attached to the green section.  

 

Are you using an afhgan pattern, or a stitch pattrn from a stitch dictionary, or what?  

[FlossiePotts]

If it is the beginning of a white row, you don't seem to have made a turning chain. I would think that you would have to do a three block of dcs (two with the turning chain) right at the beginning of the row.

[macscout]

It was the first stitch of a new white section. I got the pattern from a tutorial on youtube. This is the first crochet project I've ever done. I don't know what a turning chain is. Isn't "three block of dc" the pattern? See first photo. That's not what it was called on youtube but sounds like a description of the pattern to me.

[macscout]

It's called Crochet Grannie Ripple Pattern on Youtube.

[magiccrochetfan]

Whenever you start a new row or round in crochet, you need to do a "turning chain" which lifts up the yarn to the height needed for the next stitches.  here is a tutorial about it http://www.nexstitch.com/a_turning.html  Note the "garment turning" is not frequently found in patterns, but it does illustrate that there are different ways to use the turning chain and this changes the way it is counted in the stitch count for the row/round. 

 

Do you have a good reference book?  I would recommend one, such as Crochet Answer Book or Complete Photo Guide to crochet.  Also there is a lot of good basic info on the Nexstitch site i linked there, or on CrochetCabana or Kim Guzman's site http://kimguzman.com

[Granny Square]

After viewing the first couple of seconds of the video I can see that there are turning chains at one end, and a single DC on the other end to 'match'.

 

At around 5 minutes, after the chain is done, she tells you to insert the hook into the 5th chain from the hook.

 

Most commonly for DC patterns you would insert the hook into the fourth chain from the hook.  The 3 unused chains take the place of a turning chain.  

 

THIS pattern is a bit unusual, it uses 4 chains for turning, not 3, which is why she tells you to use the fifth chain from the hook.

 

At about 12:20, she does 3 dc into the second to the last chain, then the ending 1dc (to match the single turning chain at the beginning of the row) into the last chain.  Continuing to watch, she then chains 4 to start the next row.  This is your turning chain. You should be chaining 4  at the end of each row to bring your yarn up to the level of the next row, and making 1 single DC in the last stitch to match.