Diamant Baby Blanket

[debbie135]

I downloaded the free pattern Diamant Baby Blanket from the I Love Crochet App.  I am having trouble understanding the joining technique,  I am not sure how to send the link to the pattern so I took a screenshot of the instructions.  When I am doing the first side do I just crochet one side of each diamond or am I actually joining the two diamonds together.  The photos for the first side and the corner look like you are not crocheting the two together at this point but in the photo for the second side you can see there is no white border along the one diamond. Any help would be greatly appreciative.  

[Granny Square]

I agree with you that the third photo on the second page is confusing, because it seems to show you on a second row of the first side, not working along the second side.  HOWEVER, it's trying to show you the act of reaching over into the opposing square to make a slst into the first square's existing slst.  It's an odd way to do show this; the join technique is a very common on, but the contiguous pattern is pretty ingenious.  Really, this photo is upside down from the way I work it.  When I do this, the first square's upside down above the first square on my lap, the second square I'm working on is right side up, and I chain, reach 'up' to the first square to join to the corresponding chain of the first square, then continue back down to continue the square being worked.  This photo shows you twisting around to join, which really isn't necessary; you just have to move the hook a little differently to 'reach up'.

I hope I haven't confused you...

[Granny Square]

OK, now I'm confused.  I flipped the pic upside down, and flipped 'over' it so it was being worked in the 'right' direction, and it's not matching the words of the pattern; unless the designer is left handed and I shouldn't have flipped it.  This is showing what I described if the instructions were ' chain 1, join to other square, DC in square being worked, skip 1' not 'DC in square being worked, chain 1, join to other square, skip 1'.  

Let me know if my description in the first post was clear; if not I can do a quick little swatch to show what I meant...

[debbie135]

I am still so confused. Lol.  If you could do a quick swatch that would be amazing! I am probably over thinking it and making it harder then what it is.  Thank you so much for your help.

[Granny Square]

Hi, I was playing with my Paint program as you replied - does this diagram help?  I can swatch if it doesn't, no worries, I just thought this might be clearer.  The US SC goes into every other stitch of the square, the chains bridge the skipped stitch.

Edited to add another pic before edging start on second square, thought it might make more sense that way

 

 

[debbie135]

Thank you for all your help I was finally able to sit down this weekend and work on it.  What is confusing me is the corners in the first joining round.  The first photo is along the side edge.  Do I join the green and yellow squares where the blue arrow is or do I chain 3 and then continue around the green square.  

Same with the second photo, this is along the bottom edge, do I join the green square to the yellow ones or does that get done during the second joining round.  Thanks again for all your help 😄

[Granny Square]

You should not be facing a situation like either of your pics (where you have 2 finished sides facing, but unjoined).  To take advantage of the contiguous scheme, make all the squares first and then attach them all at once.  (It's also more portable that way, until the very end).  You don't even want to completely edge 1 square, before moving on.  There are connection schemes where you can finish some of the squares with the 'first side' edge, but it takes a lot of planning ahead to do this unless all the squares are identical.  The beauty of this pattern, besides the nice diamond motif, is how they're connected in one line and they've laid out a map >-->--> to follow.

If you want to make 1 square at a time, then start the edging: (red numbers are first and second side edging schemes, blue letters are the first 4 squares you start with)

Make the quarter size square (A) that will be at the corner where the diagram says to start the contiguous edging,

Edge 2 sides of that square in the 'first side' way (not connecting to anything, starting at the starting point of your diagram), then STOP edging.

Make a tall half-sized square (B), then where you left off edging the quarter sized square chain 3 (this is the X in my annotating your diagram below) work along 1 side of that half-sized square, STOP edging

Make a full sized square (C), then continue the edging along 2 sides of the full sized square in 'second side' edgings connecting to squares A and B (follow the directions to join multiple squares in a corner), then along the third side of the same square in a first side type edging....

I've just very wordily explained the path in the below diagram, by following the arrow lines. The next square will be the short wide side square D, which you'll connect to square C and then make the edging along the side of the blanket...and so on.