Pattern help, linking motifs

[Katie S]

The pattern is Pineapple Celebration from Annie's Crochet book "Doily Afghans".

I'm just not getting how to hook the first motifs together. Since it's not a specific stitch it's hard to ask or help without reading the pattern. You make the center one & finish off. Then the second one & finish off. I got that, its 3-6 that are the problem. You start the motif & then start joining it to the first & second one. I know this makes no sence without seeing the pattern, so what do I need to do to help you see & understand it?  Thanks for any help. 

 

[magiccrochetfan]

at the bottom of this page, it tells how to email them, or call, to get help  https://www.anniescatalog.com/pages/customer_service.html

i would consider doing that, if you haven't already.   you know, it's possible there are errors in the afghan pattern, and Annies just hasn't realized it yet because no one has contacted them about it.  They are still selling it so they should have active support for it.  

i can't visualize it at all and i don't have the book---though if its only written, w/o some photos of it in-process, I'd probably still be little help.  (my username refers to the fact that I LOVED Magic Crochet magazine with its beautiful stitch diagrams!  so much better for me than written patterns)

if you sign up on Ravelry and take a look at this doily project, http://www.ravelry.com/projects/Dawby8791/pineapple-celebration-by-dot-drake  click on the second photo, it is a pretty good closeup and you can fairly well see the number of connected picots at least.  maybe that is some help.

 

[Katie S]

Thanks to all who tried to help. Sometimes it takes a little kick to the noggin to think straight! 😄

[Granny Square]

  Hooray!  Glad to help.   

[Katie S]

Thanks Granny, I went back again and went over the second motif, the lightbulb went off!!! It does connect to the center motif. Some how I missed that! 🤔 The light went off when you pointed out there were 12 picots. I had 12 on center but only 10 on the second one & I had not attached it. Hence, I was two short. Thanks again for rattling my brain!! 

[Granny Square]

Thanks!  I didn't have a specific pattern, I saw a photo somewhere and improvised using a generic swirl motif pattern.

I hope you can get answers from Annie, but barring that, Magiccrochetfan's suggestion to check the photos of someone's project on Ravelry (her post above my first one), you can see the connections.  

I'll try to describe it.  The first flower has 12 picots, as do the other 6 flowers (flower # 2-7).  Think of the picots of the 6 surrounding flowers as bottom 6, and top 6. Ignore the top 6 for now (they don't connect to the center). The surrounding 6 flowers will connect the center 2 of their 6 bottom picots to the center flower, and the remaining 2 sets of 2 picots will connect to the adjacent surrounding flower's corresponding picots, like they are holding hands.

The connection of flower #2 is slightly different than the rest, because you will only be connecting to the bottom flower.  Flowers 3-6 will connect to the center flower, and to 2 picots of the adjacent flower.  Flower #7 will connect to the center flower and to flower #6 on one side and #1 on the other to complete the circle.

Here's a crude sketch, I hope this helps?

 

[Katie S]

Granny, I do like that swirl doily! It's awesome! I did finally find where to send an email to Annie's. I hope they can help, if not I will do my own thing as to hooking them together. It won't be the first time I've had to improvise, lol. I did a pretty doily with angels all around it. I couldn't get it to come out right in the center doily, so I did what worked for me. It came out beautifully. 

[Granny Square]

Oh, derp.  I looked at Magiccroochetfan's first link and then at the picture below the description of the (blue) pineapple one, and the pic was the swirly motif one. Probably because the blue pineapple one didn't have motifs, and then when I saw the swirly motif pattern I forgot it was supposed to involve pineapples (Yeah, that's my story and I'm sticking to it  ) . Totally overlooked her second link which showed the right doily/ghan with all the flowers among the pineapples, including starting with flowers. Very sorry for the confusion!!

Agree that it would make more sense to make the first flower, then join all the rest around it as you go.

[redrosesdz]

Is it the swirly afghan? I thought we were talking about the orange & white one (orange circle motif, surrounded by white circle motifs in the middle.) No wonder I'm confused! Smh

[Granny Square]

The thing is, that sort of hexagonal swirly pattern doesn't work as easily with JAYG, because  the seam is smack in the middle of the swirl pattern, joining solid stitches, not lacy chain spaces.  I'm not really visualizing how you'd not join 1 and 2, but join later ones, so I may be off base...but here's my  

Here is a doily I made ages ago that has a very similar hex swirl pattern.  I've drawn red lines where the seams are, leaving one white and one green seam unmarked so you can see the actual seam better.  Don't be thrown off by the colors in mine, one segment in each of the outer hexagons was white. I think I used a mattress stitch to seam it as invisibly as possible.  

There is a way to join 2 solid stitch edges which involves dropping the yarn and make sort of a standing stitch thru the top of a stitch on the finished side and into stitch of the side you are completing, but it forms a bit of a ridge which wouldn't look as nice.  Although, it might be possible to finagle that ridge to be on the 'wrong' side, I haven't tried this in a while.

Hi Magic!

[Katie S]

Yes, I did that already but didn't get anywhere. There are no revisions so it takes me back to customer services. I can't find anywhere to ask a question and nothing in FAQ that applies to me. It's not a named stitch.

[redrosesdz]

Have you tried contacting Annie's Attic? They have a procedure for pattern help...

https://www.anniescatalog.com/pages/customer_care/pattern_services.html

[Katie S]

Magic Crochet fan, yes that is the book & pattern. I have done join as you go before but this one has me stumped. I really liked the Doily one also, it's the same as the afghan. It would be nice to get the pattern book for that one too. I love doing Pineapple patterns! 

[Katie S]

Yes, I usually join as I go. That is the thing that confuses me.  The second motif has two tc then picot, 9 times in ring. Finish off  So you have  a total of 10. The third-sixth  has two tc & picot in ring 7 times then join to next 2 free picotsof First motif & next 2 free picots of previous motif as follows: (2 tr in ring, ch 1, sc in picot, ch 1, sl st in last tr made) 4 times, join in 4 to check of beg ch-4. Fasten off. Did I I do 2  tr in ring etc. 4 tines in same ring? That's too many in ring. What am I missing? 

[redrosesdz]

Welcome to Crochetville from me, too!

That is odd that 1 & 2 weren't joined.

When I do jaygo (join as you go) motifs, I lay them down next to each other. Then I put stitch markers where they join. Using different colors of markers helps. Color A, first join, color B, second join, etc.

Usually the joins are at chain spaces and the chains are an odd number, normally 3 or 5. To join, chain to the middle (1 ch for a 3-ch or 2 ch for a 5-ch). Take the loop off of your hook, without losing it. Insert your hook in the previously made motif's chain space. Put the loop back on your hook. Pull the loop through the chain space so that the chain is between the loop and the working yarn.  Finish chaining. 

[magiccrochetfan]

i googled the book title + the pattern name and found a review of it http://www.crochetconcupiscence.com/2017/05/doily-afghans-crochet-book-review/  with good photos.  the review says they were originally doily patterns, so i guess it is the same as this http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/pineapple-celebration  (you may have to sign in on Ravelry to see that, but it's just a photo)  if anybody has the book Pineapple Treasures.  

So are you starting with the center motif?  

[magiccrochetfan]

hi Katie, welcome to the ville!  Somebody may have the same book and be able to look it up there.  a clear photo of the finished item can help too.   and it's OK to type out several lines of a pattern here.  

have you done a join-as-you-go piece before?  

it does seem a little odd to not go ahead and join the 2d one to the 1st one, most are made that way.