Baby blanket not working

[Linmac66]

Hi! I've found this free pattern for a lovely baby blanket on Pinterest. I really want to make it for my grandson to be (due August) but it keeps becoming all bumfled (rippled) and just doesn't look right. I've already frogged it twice and am on third try. Some bits of the pattern confuse me. The pattern starts from the centre and works round in a square, using frond post double crochet on edges and 2 hdc, ch2, 2hdc for corners.

The picture is nice and flat so I don't know what I'm doing wrong. Am I doing stitches too tight? I've been including hdcs into next rows fpdc - should I be?

The pattern is called "The Cuddly Snuggly Baby Blanket".

Please help if you can. I really want to make this!

Thank you!

[Granny Square]

Is this the pattern?

http://thecrochetcrowd.com/crochet-cuddly-snuggly-hooded-baby-blanket/

 

'Chain 3, DC' is a clue it's US terms.  Or HDC come to think of it...SC always must be US, but HDC wouldn't make sense in UK terms.  (Just mentioning this, it could cause ruffling if the wrong terms were followed).

 

When you make a post stitch of any sort, you don't both work around the post(body) of the stitch AND the top of the same stitch.  This would cause ruffling.  Not sure if that is what what you meant by HDC into FPDC.

[Granny Square]

I worked this thru the start of round 4.

 

Round 3 was worded a little oddly at the very beginning; the word 'space' before the asterisk didn't really mean 'space', it meant the top of the first chain of the prior round that you used to complete round 2 by placing a HDC into it.

 

You won't be putting HDCs into FPDCs, you will only be putting them into the corner chain spaces or into the top chain of the beginning of the round as described above.  You will, however, be doing the opposite - the blanket will grow as you will be putting fpdcs into (over) hdcs that were part of the corner from the prior round.  They should have spelled this out in round 4, which was written poorly IMO - it just says 'each round will get bigger' but doesn't tell you how.  Round 4 should have been written as:

Ch 2 (counts as hdc), 1 hdc into same space. * Front Post Double Crochet (FPdc) into next HDC and into each FPDC and into the first HDC of the next corner. In corners, place [2 hdc, ch 2, 2 hdc]. Repeat * around. Final corner is 2 hdc, ch 1, 1 hdc to top of beginning ch 2.

(I kept the 'space' wording, but hopefully that makes sense)

 

The pattern would have been a lot clearer if it spelled out how to increase, and then told you to repeat round 4 (not round 3).  I notice there was some confusion by the comments below the pattern.  

[Linmac66]

Thank you Granny Square! You are a hero! You have identified exactly my confusion. If I'm following you correctly each edge will have an increase of 2 fpdc stitches (one each side) in each round. I have been increasing 4 by putting fpdc into each hdc from previous round.

 

I was also confused by the "same space" bit so thank you for clarifying that too.

 

Can I just check 2 other things?

 

1. When I do hdcs at corners, do I do them into chain stitch or under it? Is it 2 hdc into first ch from previous row, ch2, then 2hdc into second ch from previous row?

 

2. When it states "final corner" does it mean final corner of that square or the very last corner after 9 squares?

 

Hope this makes sense. I am really grateful for your help!!

[redrosesdz]

Welcome to Crochetville!

 

1. Do the hdc stitches in the space, under the chain.

 

2. The "final corner" means the 4th corner of each round.  It's how you end the round.

[Linmac66]

Thank you!! I'll frog my last attempt and start again. Fingers crossed.