Help with a pattern

[katsinjammers]

I'm making some crocheted rounds that can be combined to make a variety of crocheted goods. I've followed the pattern to a T, but when I finish the round, the first 3 rows (in the center) pop up like a mini volcano. It could be that they will flatten out nicely once they are blocked, but I was wondering what causes this and if anyone has any suggestions that would help them lay flat when I've finished with them. (Since I'm making so many, I'd rather not have to spend the time blocking every piece before I can sew them together.) Thanks for all your help!

 

Please view the attached file to see what I mean!

[Granny Square]

Um, wow!  That's a new one.  

 

I'm assuming that's ruffling in the center, because it looks like it's folding over on itself, not that it's cupping.  Ruffle=too many stitches, cupping=not enough.

 

The only thing that popped into my head (but I don't think it will solve the problem entirely) is, if you started with an adjustable ring and if the tail wasn't already tucked in, to pull the center as tight as possible.  

 

Maybe the above, plus either some DCs or chains should be eliminated in the center rounds  But it almost looks like you could have started with round 3, and pulled the center tight(ish)to fix it.

 

I'd be interested to see what others think.  Is it a free pattern that you could link to ?

[magiccrochetfan]

GrannySquare "it almost looks like you could have started with round 3, and pulled the center tight(ish)to fix it."  That's exactly what I thought when i looked at it closely.     

 

Somehow the beginning rounds are forming a tube instead of a disc.

 

Katsinjammers (cute name by the way!), what kind of yarn is it?  

[magiccrochetfan]

...and, welcome to the ville

[katsinjammers]

Dear Kathy and Granny Square - Thanks for the input! I'm going to start another one and try your suggestions. The yarn is Simply Soft by Caron, it's a synthetic and usually works very well for projects. I don't think it's the yarn - I suspect it's the pattern. I will say that I've ripped out this pattern probably 30 times to try to fix the problem and tried various techniques to get it to lay flat but none of my tries worked and that's why I came to the group! But, I will try your suggestions and see what happens! The name is one from old cartoons, but it works for me because I've retired from two careers and now I work from home for myself. My name is Kathleen and, yes, sometimes I work in my pajamas, thus ' Kats in jammers'. As to the pattern, I got it free from abc-knitting-patterns.com and it's called Hexagonal Motif Shawl. If you download it, try it and get it to work for you - let me know! Thanks for all the input!

[magiccrochetfan]

Kats in jammers---too funny!  I don't really remember the Katzenjammer Kids but I recognize the name. 

 

Not to sound too negative, but in my opinion the patterns on abcknitting are not very good, often there are errors and general problems with them, based on posts i see about them and my own experience with one or two of them.  here are some projects on ravelry that are from the pattern, note the first one modified the beginning, see her notes http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/hexagonal-motif-shawl/people

[katsinjammers]

Well, I will probably be more careful downloading projects from them in the future - I had a friend like that - she'd always give you a copy of a recipe, but some basic ingredient was always missing and they never turned out as good! I've been doing needle arts since I was small, and I can usually figure out & correct when something's wrong, but this one had me really stumped. I am very appreciative of the help! I did see the modifications that CrisInStitches made and I'm going to try them tonight. Thanks again and Happy Holidays!

[magiccrochetfan]

You're welcome, happy holidays to you too!

[Granny Square]

I never thought of 'Katzenjammer' as anything but a name until you explained your name, LOL.  And, I was feeling really old because I do remember them...then looked it up, it was started in 1897 but continued (same characters, the strip renamed 'The Captain and the Kids' & drawn by someone else) until 1979.   Now I don't feel so bad.

 

I hope the above modification from Ravelry helps, if not there are other hexagon spirals that might work better.  The nice thing about these spiral patterns is that even if the pattern is a small thing like a scrubbie, it's easy to expand to any size

this one is interesting & different http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/sisal-spiral-rug

semi solid http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/lace-spiral-coaster

six - even closer to your original pattern; look at the more open center  http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/5-spirals-rug

[katsinjammers]

Granny Square - thanks for pointing me in the direction of other spiral patterns. The modification from Ravelry did help, but I still had to make some more adjustments get the piece to lie flat when I finished with it. I can post the modifications I made for the type of yarn and needle size I used (with a picture) if you think that would help anyone else who wants to try this pattern. I love the spirit of this site - it's great to find a large, avid group of craftspeople to talk to! Thanks again!