MaryM's Goofy Basket 'Ghan©2001
reversible, crochet, cro-knit, afghan, cro-hook
Copyrighted. Please copy, reproduce, collect or redistribute with permission only.
MaryM's What we have here is
basic Afghan/Tunisian/Cro-knit. For those of you who do that
already, here's the short version:
Foundation - Ch
8, PU loops through back loop of last 6 stitches = 7 loops, WO
loops back to 1 loop. Foundation made.
Row 1 - Knit-stitch
across = 7 loops, complete the row back to 1 loop, 1 pass made.
Repeat 6 more times. One "weave" square made.
Row 2 - Turn
piece to work across the back side of the edge near the hook.
Repeat Row 1, working knit-stitch over the purl-stitches, working
7 loops to the "weave" square. Two "weave"
squares made.
Row 3 - Turn
to work across the back side of the edge near the hook, doing
knit-stitch over the purl-stitches, and purl-stitches over the
knit-stitches, working 7 loops to each "weave" square.
Four "weave" squares made.
Row 4 - Repeat
Row 3. Six "weave" squares made.
Repeat to size. Edge as
desired. Or not. Tassels on the corners maybe.
"Well!
~ That's clear as mud!!"
-
Remember I said this is a Googy Ghan! - Here's the tutorial
version.
~ Construction Area! ~ Hard Hat Zone! ~
Notes: Tunisian/Cro-knit
is a rich and varied technique, but I use here only the
Knit-stitch and the Purl-stitch, working back and forth in rows
out from one corner to build the afghan.
You need some kind of long
crochet hook, or afghan hook, or double-ended hook but you don't
want the work to slip off the back end of your hook! You don't
turn the hook itself in this work.
The size of the piece you can
make here is determined by the number of loops you can manage to
get onto your hook. For shorter hooks, make squares as big as you
can get them, and assemble into larger item.
I happened to pick a long
cro-hook, size 10 (why cro-hooks are sized like knitting needles
I don't know) which is a J or I crochet hook. I used aran-colored
worsted for my yarn. This pattern would be stupendous done up in
patches of color!
This style of hook-work
requires picking up loops, and then working off those loops back
to the start of the line.
Work with a light, even
tension throughout. This pattern tends to curl, and an eaiser
tension creates a flatter work.
Foundation - I
don't much fancy that knot at the beginning of crochet work, so I
don't do it. I just start with about a 6-8" tail, make a
turn in the thread and keep going. You can weave it in and snug
it up later.
A row in this work is seven
Pick-up/Work-off "passes.".
First Row,
1st "weave" square - Neither the work nor the
hook is turned in making a given row.
Chain 8 (a goodly number,
large enough to see pattern, and not so large as to get boring).
Turn the little chain over to
see the "knobs" or back loops of the stitches. For this
foundation, to make a nice edge to the piece, you will work into
these loops. Note the loop in that first, un-knotted stitch.
The loop now on you hook is
the first loop of the next pass you will make.
A pass: PU, WO
a.) - Pick
up loops (PU): Skip the knob next to your hook, and pick
up loops in the last 6 stitches, 7 loops on hook. Keep in mind
not to tighten the last loop or the piece will pucker on that
side.
b.) - Work
off loops (WO): Yo, pull through first loop taking care
not to pull too tight, (yo, pull through 2 loops) to end, 1 loop
remaining on hook.
One pass made.
Notice each stitch you made creates 2 upright "bars," one toward you and one toward the back of the stitch.
QwikLesson: Knit-stitch creates a classic "knit" look on the front of the work facing you, and a knot or "purl" look on the back away from you. If you peek at the back of knit-stitch, you see purls.
Vicey-versy, Purl-stitch creates a knot or "purl" look on the front of the work facing you, and a classic "knit" look on the back away from you. If you peek at the back of purl-stitch, you see knits.
Knit tends to curl forward, purl tends to curl backward.
Picking up loops (PU) knit-wise: Yarn is behind the work as with normal crochet. Counting the single loop on the hook as the first, and skipping the first set of vertical bars under the hook, insert hook from front to back between the next pair of vertical bars, yo and pull up loop, 2 loops on hook.
Continue to PU knit-wise
across, 7 loops on hook.
Working off loops (WO): Yo,
pull through 1 loop, (yo, pull through 2 loops) across, l loop
remaining on hook, 2nd pass made. Notice that knit-stitch appears
to run vertical.
(Peek at the back of the work -> purls! Note the purl-stitch appears to run horizontal)
Make another pass. Note that
on the 7th stitch, insertting hook between veritcal bars makes 2
threads on the side border, this is for strength of the piece.
As you progress, even out the
tension of the loops to help maintain uniform size. I like to tug
the work backwards over my fingers now and then to prevent severe
curling. Hook should always slide smoothly through the loops.
Continue making passes until
your "weave" is 7 rows high.
Row 2, 2nd
"weave" square - Rotate the piece forward to
you and toward the back end of your hook, so that the back of the
work faces you and the side is now the top. Pull the yarn over
and to the rear of the work, and behind the hook as with normal
crochet.
Right here, we are going to
create the dimensional look to the basket-weave. Note there is an
extra loop in the top line. We skip not only the first one as
before, but now the next as well, to maintain our 7-loop count,
and create a "ditch" between the "weave"
squares.
PU knit-wise across, noting
the 7th loop which tends to get lost.
WO in the normal manner, 1
loop on hook, 1 pass made on this row.
Make knit-wise passes until
this second "weave" square is 7 rows high,
Row 3, 3rd and 4th
"weave" squares - Again, rotate the piece
forward to you and toward the back end of your hook, so that the
back is facing you and the side is now the top. Pull the yarn
over and to the rear of the work, and behind the hook as for
normal crochet.
Again, notice extra loops
which we will skip, thus forming the deep ditches of the basket
weave.
As before, PU 7 loops knit-wise over the purl weave section
below.
To Purl-stitch over
the Knit-stitch section (PU purl-wise):
Now, move the yarn to the front of the work, and insert hook from
back to front between the upright bars of the indicated 1st
stitch in the knit-look section below the hook, catch the thread
and pull through toward the back. This form a "knit" on
the reverse, and a "purl" on this facing side. Mind
your tension and ease the loops with your fingers frequently, as
purl tends to tighten.
Continue to PU purl-wise to
end, now have 2 sets of 7 loops on hook - 1 set knit-wise over
the purl section below, and 1 set purl-wise over the knit section
below = 14 loops.
Repeat in this pattern until
this row is 7 loops high, with yarn to rear for knits and to the
front for purls.
Row 4, 5th and 6th
"weave" squares - Again, Rotate the piece
forward to you and toward the back end of your hook, so that the
back is facing you and the side is now the top. Pull the yarn
over and to the rear of the work, and behind the hook as for
normal crochet.
PU knit-wise over the purl
section below and then purl-wise over the knit section below with
the yarn to the front, continuing across as before, until this
row is 7 stitches high. Notice no extra stitches in the center
when going from the knits to the purls in this row.
Row 5, 7th-9th
"weave" squares - Again, Rotate the piece
forward to you and toward the back end of your hook, so that the
back is facing you and the side is now the top. Pull the yarn
over and to the rear of the work, and behind the hook as for
normal crochet. Knit-stitch over the purl section. Pull yarn to
front and purl-stitch over the knit section. Pull the yarn to
back again and knit-stitch over the purl section.
Continue in pattern,
knit-stitching over the purl sections purl-stitching over the
knit sections. maintaining the appropriate 7 loops per
"weave" square, moving the yarn to back for knits and
to front for purls. To avoid most problems, keep a steady 7-loop
count. Every row will be 7 stitches high.
When desired size or capacity
of hook is reached, end a row as usual when there is 1 loop left
on the hook, cut yarn 6" long and finish off. Weave in the
beginning and ending tails. Edge with row(s) of sc or shells or
fringe, or other preferred design.
"Oh, Is that all it is!"
Harder to explain
than it is to do! As you can see now, but which is not obvious
just looking at the work, this is done in a "log cabin"
fashion, working back and forth adding rows across two sides
only.