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Joining Granny Squares Tips


emmilyx3

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Hello everyone!  :waving

 

This is my very first blanket and although it's not perfect I am quite proud of it! My nephew loves Minecraft and can always be seen cuddled up in a blanket, so what better way than to combine the two. :) I used a basic granny square of 5 rounds with one chain between 3dc and a ch of 3 in the corners. Most of the squares were the same size (6 inches) while some were a bit bigger, maybe by half an inch? I blocked them before joining and to join I started with a figure 8 and then went through both loops of each granny square side by side (I hope that makes sense?!) My blanket came out a bit wavy in some spots and the edging also doesn't seem to be straight. (I did one row of sc and then a row of crab stitch). Like I said, I'm still quite proud of it and all that matters is I know when given to my nephew he will LOVE it.

 

Next time I do a granny square blanket I plan to learn the join as you go method but with this blanket I didn't have all the colours at once so I just joined at the end. If I can remember correctly, I believe I read that threading through both loops can cause waviness, and perhaps maybe I was pulling the yarn too tightly since I was trying my best to not let the joining yarn show through. I don't suppose washing it and blocking it as a whole could help? But if I am ever unable to do the JAYG method, I would greatly appreciate any advice you lovely people can give me so next time I will have a flat, straight blanket.

 

:ty

post-77412-0-59020500-1464014365_thumb.jpg

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I didn't think of gauging! I think of gauging more for clothing. But even though this isn't something you wear, it did need to be certain sizes! I'll have to remember that. :) But thank you all for the compliments! I had the thought of making this for him for Christmas and just couldn't bear to wait that long to start making it. Let's hope he still loves Minecraft by December! :P

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Tribble79 I absolutely love the colours!! Great job! :) If you happen to want to give a creeper blanket another go, here's the link to the blog where I found the creeper blanket - http://signedwithanowl.blogspot.ca/2014/02/minecraft-afghan.html :)

 

Thank you! I am bookmarking this. I might try it soon.

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Looks awesome! Any little mistakes add to the character of a handmade blanket. I think it's perfect as is. I had been going to make my son one of these for his birth day last year well that never happened, and it didn't happen this year so I joined what i had ansome made him a pillowcase. I used the sc join.post-73457-0-54351800-1464389955_thumb.jpgpost-73457-0-91761700-1464389988_thumb.jpg

 

He loves skulls also and i couldn't get the creeper face right on this size item, so it turned into a skull... lol

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I think it' great too. This site has some good info on joining, I like the flat braid one but it does take a little pratice to get use to. 

 

joining squares

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Again, thank you very very much! :) I considered joining them with a border of the same colour, however, I wanted the Creeper to look as authentic as possible (as well as I was just copying exactly what the lady who provided the idea because I loved how hers looked). As for the invisible join, I thought I was doing that? I went through both loops and then every so often pulled it taut. However, I think I read somewhere that going through both loops vs I believe the back ones can cause the squares to not lay flat? Also, Because of the many different colours and a lot of the yarn I bought provided just enough to make the squares, I just went with black to join (which I'm sure wasn't the greatest colour choice  but that's okay!) I'm also sure in the beginning I may have pulled too tight in hopes to hide the black as best I could, but eventually I just ended up embracing the black speckles that would show through. :)

 

I'm still new to the wonderful world of crocheting, and while I can't wait until most or all of my future projects come out looking professional, I still love the whole process of learning new things and figuring out what to do for next time. :) I'm also very glad that I found such an amazing forum to help me along the way! :)

 

:manyheart

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You did a beautiful job!!!  :clap  :cheer  :yes 

 

 

 

My personal favorite way to join is the "invisible join"!  But I agree with redrosesdz--

 

The only "right" way to join is the one that makes you say, "Oh! I love this!" Lol

 

Congrats on a job WELL DONE, emmilyx3!!

 

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I agree with what everyone else said. It turned out great! It's going to get lots of love. The more loving it gets, the more it's going to shape into how he uses it most. I wouldn't block any more.

 

Another way to join is to do a decorative join that shows on purpose. It can be as simple as sc or crab stitch them together with the line showing. I like it when all squares are edged in the same color, and then joined. It's just one more idea for joining.

 

The only "right" way to join is the one that makes you say, "Oh! I love this!" Lol

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I too think you did a great job on your nephew's afghan. He's going to love it.

 

Crochet Gauge; Learn about gauge! Especially if using different types of yarn in a project. It's an easy way to calculate the size of each piece, whether it's a square, garment or any other type of crochet that needs to match together. And, saves a lot of grief.

Lion Brand yarn has a very good explanation on gauge. (one of many on the web, including some videos)

 

Join As You Go: Sorry, I don't use this method. I lay all squares out in the desired pattern, then from there start joining them. Maybe someone else will recommend a trusty method. Have fun and keep us posted on your progress.

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Thank you! I'm most certainly not disappointed, especially for it being my first. :) But as I start to make more and more blankets I do want them to look as close to perfect as they can be. I did happen to use a smaller hook on one colour that just seemed to be much bigger than the rest. Not sure why I didn't play around with the others more? Oh well, lessons learned for next time! I think you're right Granny Square about the border emphasizing the waviness. And I can't wait to try the JAYG method! Thanks for all of the advice! :)

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Don't beat yourself up - it's your first blanket and came out this good!

 

All the suggestions already given will help your next blanket be flatter. You'll love it!

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I agree, it looks nice!   Just an observation but IMO the border, because it contrasts to all but 3 squares, might be emphasizing the waviness at the edge. 

 

Half an inch over a 6 inch square is quite a bit.  Sometimes different brands of yarn, or even different colors of the same brand, can vary enough to cause this even if they are rated at the same weight.  "Next time" if you notice this as you go, and find (for example) that the white ones are always smaller than the rest, you might try making the last round triples rather than doubles.  Or in HDC if squares are coming out a bit too big.  Or, change the hook size up or down for certain colors.  Don't be afraid of a bit of ripping out/trial and error, the squares are small and go quickly...

 

I think you'll like join as you go, it's not hard and nice to see the design develop.  One drawback is that you are working on an increasingly bigger piece but if you plan ahead, it can be portable -- make a small section a row of squares apart from another one and then connect them with the in-between row.

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Well thank you! Although I felt like a machine whipping out all those granny squares haha!  :P I had a feeling too that different sized squares might contribute to not laying flat. The girl who I found this project idea from also had some different size squares and hers laid flat but she joined as you went. I assume because hers didn't get pulled taut to join, that's why hers laid flat despite size difference. Hm, next time I edge a blanket I'll have to pay more attention, maybe lay it out before I FO. Although at that point I knew the blanket was going to be wavy so I wasn't too concerned about it being perfect.

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Honestly, I think it looks great.  it looks like it was made by a person, not a machine ;)  :hook

 

as far as helpign it lay more flat,  blocking the whole thing may help....it can't hurt.

if some squares were 1/2 in bigger than others that will contribute to it not laying perfectly flat.  

 

on the edging, the side at the bottom of the photo looks a little wavy, which could be because you did a bit more sttiches there than you really needed.  

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