Venting - Sorry

[tlazer]

I'm so heart broken.I just finished my baby blanket for my soon to be Granddaughter. I finished it and went to fold it and to my surprise, It doesn't line up!one side is longer than the other.

I don't have money to keep buying yarn and doubt I have enough to make another. I'm literally crying as I am typing this. Guess there is no way to fix this, 

Sorry about this. Its just upsetting.

[magiccrochetfan]

Welcome to the ville! No need to apologize for being upset....probably most of us have had similar experiences.

 

Are you sure there is no way to fix it? We can try to help with ideas. How much longer is the one side?

 

If nothing else, it is usually possible to rip it out and re-make it using the same yarn; this is possible with most yarns, although some can be very hard to rip back.

[Skysmom]

Hi!  Please don't be sorry for venting - I know I've been there more than once.    I think you should be proud of the afghan for your new sweet little grandbaby and she will never care that one side is longer.  It will always be cherished because Grandma made it!

[greyhoundgrandma]

This is a good place to vent! Is it possible that the last side is stretched from working on it? Maybe washing it would help?

[tlazer]

This is a good place to vent! Is it possible that the last side is stretched from working on it? Maybe washing it would help?

That was my thought ! 

I'll try to post a picture of it tomorrow

[tlazer]

This is horrendous !

Looks as if I decreased. I didn't think I did.

Anyway, I guess there is no fixing this disaster ????

[magiccrochetfan]

Is the smaller end where you started, or where you finished?

 

Have you counted the stitches to be sure you didnt increase or decrease?

[Real Deal]

From now on, put a stitch marker at each end and you will know absolutely that you're not losing end stitches. Really, all of us have had crooked ends at some time.

[redrosesdz]

When that sweet baby is wrapped up in the afghan that you lovingly made, no one will see the ends.  They'll only see a beautiful baby wrapped in a beautiful afghan! 

 

ETA:  Late last year I made a baby blanket for an expecting friend.  I counted each row.  When I was nearing the end, I kept folding it to make sure that the sides were even and straight.  I blocked it using a ruler.  In other words, I did everything I could to make it square.  When I was done, it was uneven.  I was out of time and out of yarn.  She didn't care that it was uneven.  The pictures of her daughter wrapped in the blanket were beautiful.  You couldn't even see that it was uneven.

[Tampa Doll]

I agree with the washing and then try blocking it.  Sometimes we loosen up when we crochet and sometimes we just pull a little more at the end.  Once you wash it, lay it out flat and try stretching the part that is smaller.

 

It is also good to keep a marker on each end as you crochet, then you do not lose the last stitch. I still do this.

 

But, as we have all been there, and once that little one is wrapped up in the blanket, it will have big hugs in to keep them safe.  Who knows, it may become their favorite.  You know that commercial where the little one sits in front of the dryer and waits for his woobie?  That could be this blanket.

 

Smile, the blanket was made with love.

[tlazer]

Thank you Ladies

 

Is the smaller end where you started, or where you finished?

Have you counted the stitches to be sure you didnt increase or decrease?

The smaller end is where I finished.

[tlazer]

Thank you Ladies,

I just learned a lesson from all of you.Not to be hard on myself and to realize this was made with nothing but Love.

from now on I will use a stitch marker to ensure this doesn't happen again also, I will wash and block it and will let you know how it turned out.

You Ladies are so wonderful and I'm SO happy I found this group ! 

[Granny Square]

:hugs  Sometimes our tension changes when the blanket gets heavier, or when we're watching a scary part of a movie.  You might have picked up the 'wrong' hook somewhere in the middle of your project.

 

I just saw as I was typing that the smaller end was where you finished.  You might try this:  Count your stitches at the start and at the end.  If they aren't the same, count them somewhere in the middle.  What I'm getting at, if you somehow started to lose stitches, it might not have been right at the beginning...in fact from your photo, a narrowing trend seems to start about 4 stripes from the end.  Maybe just ripping a few stripes instead of the whole thing will fix it.

 

edit- or if your stitch count isn't the problem, rip partly back and pick up a bigger hook on purpose, you might be able to make the variation a lot less noticeable.  I know ripping is discouraging, but I think it will make you feel better to 'fix' it.  And somehow the post-ripped stitches seem to go faster, at least for me.

[tlazer]

:hugs  Sometimes our tension changes when the blanket gets heavier, or when we're watching a scary part of a movie.  You might have picked up the 'wrong' hook somewhere in the middle of your project.

 

I just saw as I was typing that the smaller end was where you finished.  You might try this:  Count your stitches at the start and at the end.  If they aren't the same, count them somewhere in the middle.  What I'm getting at, if you somehow started to lose stitches, it might not have been right at the beginning...in fact from your photo, a narrowing trend seems to start about 4 stripes from the end.  Maybe just ripping a few stripes instead of the whole thing will fix it.

 

edit- or if your stitch count isn't the problem, rip partly back and pick up a bigger hook on purpose, you might be able to make the variation a lot less noticeable.  I know ripping is discouraging, but I think it will make you feel better to 'fix' it.  And somehow the post-ripped stitches seem to go faster, at least for me.

You are correct at some point I did pick up a different needle, I didn't think it made a difference. I did catch the mistake then, started up again with the correct size. I was just too much in a rush to get to my next blanket I want to make.

[Becky Morgan]

Ah, that would explain it. If it still bothers you, and you still notice after you run it through the wash, you can pull out the last stripe and crochet it over with the bigger hook. Otherwise, call it a design feature and know your grandbaby will love it

[2manythreads]

When that sweet baby is wrapped up in the afghan that you lovingly made, no one will see the ends.  They'll only see a beautiful baby wrapped in a beautiful afghan! 

 

ETA:  Late last year I made a baby blanket for an expecting friend.  I counted each row.  When I was nearing the end, I kept folding it to make sure that the sides were even and straight.  I blocked it using a ruler.  In other words, I did everything I could to make it square.  When I was done, it was uneven.  I was out of time and out of yarn.  She didn't care that it was uneven.  The pictures of her daughter wrapped in the blanket were beautiful.  You couldn't even see that it was uneven.

This comment is great. Say, if you've counted all your stitches along the way, and you've not missed any or increased any, then block it severely! lol. Then, go ahead and give the gift just like Redrosesdz says.

Everything I make from my crafts are meant to be gifts eventually- that is, virtually everything I make is for someone else - except for my mistakes : I only keep my "mistakes". I don't have too many but there are a few.

 

Can I share a secret on how I acquire my yarns? I hit up all the thrift stores in town. Sometimes I find nothing, or only some ugly discontinued acrylics that are half used up, and sometimes I find a garbage bag sized package full of mohairs and angoras (this happened) I have one bedroom used for my crafts, and the closets are packed almost to ceiling in it for yarns of all kinds- all good yarns, no icky stuff. I have a very large quilt bag full of mohairs and kashmir yarns, new in package from thrift store for a few hundreds dollars. I do not "flip" - I figure hey if I had to buy this yarn myself, it would break me, so why not use all of this for my gifts: Christmas, babies, birthdays weddings etc. Like I said, I have even found a discontinued yarn I absolutely love and thought I would never find again! Found some at a Hospice thrift store- wow what a lucky find.  My secret about thrift or second hand stores is visiting ones that have a larger retired/elderly population, as they will take in the older people's donations, and crochet/knitting seems to be more of a "Granny hobby" you know what I mean. If you live in an area with many retired people you are lucky, I am in Phoenix and there are a lot of older folks, and people just pass by the bags of great yarns in the thrifts as it is so hot here, people don't buy yarns to make winter clothing- leaves more for me! Also, knitting and crochet are not popular here for some reason. I don't know why the crafts thing is rare here, seems everyone's missing out on this wonderful craft!!

 

anyway, that is my secret. The best place I found and has lowest prices is the Hospice thrift store. Also, the Goodwill stores are kind of selective on the items they carry- for instance, the Goodwill closest to me specializes/sells a lot of used electronics. The one further down into town carries mostly furniture. The one by my post office carries most of the crafts/yarn/patterns- so I know which ones to go to on my list. Keep going! that is the trick- you have to go often, and it does not matter what time you go- they say "go early" but they re-stock throughout the day, putting new things out in the afternoon and at night too.

 

I would not be able to afford my hobby at all if I bought new yarn all of the time. It is EXPENSIVE- some patterns needing 14 skeins of even the cheapest yarn run into hundreds of dollars- and I cannot justify spending all of that for a pattern I may give as a gift, and sadly, not every gift is cherished as I hope it would be by SOME relatives (who shall go unnamed and are scratched off my hand made gift list from now on)

 

Give the blanket- if you've counted your stitches, and you haven't made any accidental decreases or increases, block it severely and violently- but give it any way. Tell the mother what you've run into that it won't "line up" for some reason even though it's not a foul up, it will not matter to her OR the baby at all, as they won't be using it "folded up" anyway!