One of my first blog articles for our Felting and Fiber Studio Color Touches My Soul was about my love of color. I showed my crocheted hexagons, and discussed how I went about choosing colors. Your acceptance of me, and my post, meant a lot to me, and I have felt rather embarrassed since. Many of you asked how I planned to join the hexagons together? Seemed like a reasonable question…how hard could it be? More difficult than I expected is my response!
I knew exactly, how I wanted my blanket to look. I wanted them joined together, with a nice size (maybe 1 inch) border between each, and a braided look would be perfect. In my mind, I was thinking of a Fisherman’s Knit cable. I started my search on Pinterest, and discovered the most of their recommendations were for sewing or crocheting hexagons together. If there was any discussion of a border, it quickly morphed into a post about joining Granny Squares. Not the same at all! I persisted again, and again…, AND am I the only one that gets sucked into their web of madness? What starts as a few minutes, ends up being 3-4 hours, and still no information about joining my hexagons together. I also have an account with Ravelry. I searched there for “crochet join hexagon,” in fact I checked again just now, and still nothing that looks like my join. If there is a border, it is actually the final row of the hexagons…and then they crochet or slip-stitch them together. I actually paid for a couple of those worthless patterns. Then, I would end up giving up for a while. I had a black IKEA zippered bin under the bed style bin, where my hexagons waited, for me to get my (you know what) together. Every time I uncovered that bin, in a fit of organization, I would start my search again.
I am a knitter first and foremost: I crochet on the side.
I may have mentioned, in my original article, I am self taught in crochet; one of many things I’ve figured out over the years. I can read basic, well written patterns, but once they start going “into the weeds” as I call it, I am in trouble. (For a long time, it was end of the end of row turns, that got me. I couldn’t keep the edges neat, to save my life.). But, after a few videos I understood the concept – it’s like us trying to verbally explain left or right leaning, add on stitches, to a beginning knitter. A video is so much better!
Fast forward to about 4 months ago. I occasionally watch a podcast with Norwegian knitwear designers Arne & Carlos. Arne was showing how to repair a granny square blanket…and I spotted the border.
It was closer to what I wanted, than all my other failed attempts. So again, I purchased their $7.00 pattern. Maybe I could use it, to figure out how to make it work for my hexagons. It was close…but not going to work as their pattern stood. However, I studied the general idea they used to make their “braid” between the squares. They started by crocheting a picot edging, around each square, in their border color. Then in that same border color, they crocheted 2 sides of 2 different squares, together. It was the crocheting together that added the braid look. Hmmm (my wheels were starting to spin…) I wonder if I could do something similar? So I grabbed 2 hexagons, and decided the only place a picot was possible, was in the blank spaces, between my double crochet clusters.
If you are not a crocheter, this may be a difficult concept to grasp. But in the simplest terms; I crocheted a picot into the empty space, and chained one above each cluster. The corner is the starting place, and it’s basically just a loop. I took a picture, and tried to insert words, to tell you what I did. If you are a crocheter it should make sense. I joined my yarn with a slip stitch, chained 3 stitches, then made a slip stitch in the same corner space. That made a loop [you will make a loop at every corner of the hexagon]. Next you chain 1 (Ch 1). I zoomed in real close, so you could see my exact stitches.
After the chain 1, slip stitch into the space, chain 2, slip stitch into the space. In crochet terms that would be shown as sl st, ch 2, sl st. That grouping of words, makes the picot, then you follow with a chain 1.
Join with a sl st in corner, ch 3, sl st, * ch1, [sl st, ch2, sl st, in the empty space] to the next corner. Into the corner, [sl st, ch 3, sl st] and repeat.
As I said, I am not a pattern writer, but I’m thinking that should be pretty close if someone wants to try it. If anyone reads this post, that is an actual crocheter, please let me know if I am close. I am really thinking about creating my own “paid for” pattern…even if I only sell a couple, it would cover my expenses getting here. lol!
So, after you’ve crocheted this pattern around each hexagon, the assembly is quite simple. Now, if you are thinking “easy for her to say…that’s a lot of hexagons!” I get your point. But, watching TV, I was able to get about 10 done each evening. And they are very small, so I threw them in my purse; did them in the car, at doctor appointments, and visiting my mom. I got really quick at edging them.
So in the above photo, you will notice the yarn I chose to edge them is very neutral. That’s because I wanted all my colors “that give me such joy, and healing” to emerge prominently. And…I am a yarn dyer, for goodness sake…I have enough yarn to fill a small shop: I should be able to find something! I am so excited to tell you, this is my bare Donegal DK weight yarn. It is perfect, and I have no worries about running out, matching dye lots or anything else. I have enough crocheted hexagons for another blanket, so I’m all set for that one too.
I know assembly is your next question – it’s a piece of cake! If you’ll notice my clips are holding matched up sides…like quilt pieces. Think of the picots as notches, that fit together. I lined the edges back to back (picot to picot) and chain crocheted them together. That’s what makes my Fisherman Knit looking ridge. OMG, It’s a Miracle!!
It makes me want to cry, it’s so beautiful! Many of the yarns are my own hand-dyeds, but several are from friends I met at Fiber Shows. I can look at my -FRIENDSHIP BLANKET- and tell you who dyed the different yarns, and stories of our times together.
If you want to make a blanket of your own, using all your beautiful scrap yarns, or…if you want to purchase my already curated packages of 5 or 6 gorgeous DK mini 20g skeins…in colors that will make you feel so very happy, please reach out to me or check out our Etsy shop at https://www.etsy.com/shop/theyarnandus.
Please note: if you are from anywhere, in the world, I can ship to you. If you purchase from me directly, without Etsy surcharges, I can offer an immediate 25% off of your purchase, and that could cover a good bit of shipping. If you want enough yarn to make an entire blanket, I would be ever so grateful, and do my best to cover your shipping.
Thank you for being so patient. Some things take time, to get them done right. This is the best thing I’ve accomplished for Felting and Fiber Studios, and it’s the highlight of my creative life…because, like my article said, it Touches My Soul.
With much love and gratitude, Capi