Jellytoast, no name that I know of ... it was called 'Peach Twist' from an old Workbasket Magazine...peach because that's the color yarn they used.

Does it require a specific number of chains at the beginning to make the pattern come out correctly?

AnnieD thank you SO much!! I can do that! I ran across a pretty basketweave pattern, but I did a test piece, and it didn’t do anything for me in the dark yarn. It’s very pretty in a light yarn, though. That will be really nice in this color, with a nice weight for winter.

It's hard to see stitch definition in a dark yarn and almost impossible in a variegated.

Love the pattern and color, it's lovely!

Wow, you’re so talented, Annie! It’s so lovely.

jellytoast, the only constraint is the crossed DC which has to be worked over 2 stitches, so I think an even number of stitches is required. And of course you have to add the right number of turning chains...1-2 for the sc rows and 2-3 for the dc rows depending on how tightly you work.

Many thanks, Annie!

Very pretty!

Thank you for sharing the instructions, Annie. We're having kind of a 'cold snap' this week, so I may have chance to try to learn this stitch. Love the looks of it!

Rusty

What a beautiful, warm, comfy-looking blanket. You make certain people very happy. What a lovely thing to do for strangers!

Annie, would you mind clarifying a couple of things for me? First, regarding the beginning chain, when I'm ready to start my stitching after completing the chain, I would normally skip a stitch and then do my first single crochet. That would then leave me with an odd number of stitches if I made my chain an even number. I made a little sample that way and I was left with not enough space for the last Cross DC of the row. So is it correct that my starting chain should be an odd number? Second, after completing my three rows of SC, my work would then be turned so that my loops are now on the back of the work when I'm beginning my row of Cross DC. I'm working into those two loops on the back for the Cross DC, yes? When I watch the videos for Cross DC, their loops are on the front of their work.

jellytoast, I guess it would be an uneven # of chains for the starting chain. IIRC, each row of the sc starts with a sc in both loops, the rest are just the back loop.

The sc in the back loop should still leave the top of the sc with both loops available to you on top to do the DCs in. So go through both loops of the 'v' at the top of the stitch just like a normal stitch. Only thing that's different is to sk 1, DC in the next st and then DC in the skipped stitch making the DCs cross.

For this pattern, start the crossed DC in the 3rd stitch, and the crossed one goes in the 2nd.

Annie you do beautiful work. I just love seeing what you have made.

Thank you, Annie. I'll give it another go. :-) Yes, I still have both loops available to do the DC's in, but they are on the back of the work rather than the front.

Such a pretty delicate stitch. Great job!

So pretty Annie. Looks soft as butter!

LOL....I am trying a test pattern...and making a circle!! The pattern looks very pretty in the yarn, but I have to go back and figure out where I added all these stitches! I’ve only done one SC row in the chain, one SC row in the back loops, one DC crossed, and one SC row. Yikes!

Yeah, I'm following the instructions, but my edges are all messed up, lol. For some reason my rows are not ending correctly.

Ok, I'll have to dig out the pattern again and get the details for you. But give me some time. I'm sick and not moving too fast.

Oh, please do wait until you are feeling better!!!

OK, pattern was nearby, not put away as I thought. It's by Robert Zybach Yarbrough.

It's not that complicated...it's only laid out that way to get the right end chains on the ends of each row given how the pattern is worked: 3 rows sc, 3 rows crossed dc, 3 rows sc, 1 row crossed dc.

The original is 60x45 worked along the long way 60" side so I'll give you the stitches based on that to help you with the count, but the baby blanket was obviously much smaller. 4 ply worsted weight and J hook. 13-3 1/2 oz skeins.

All DCs are both loops, all SCs are back loop only (except that first one.)

Gauge 7sc=2" and 3 sc rows = 1" (back loop only)

Chain 202 and work pattern on 201 stitches.

Row 1: sk last ch sc in each ch across for 201 sts. Ch 1, turn

Row 2: *SC last sc. Sc in back lp of each across-- 201 sts.* Ch3 turn.

Row 3: **sk last 2 sc. Dc in 3rd sc picking up both loops. DC in 2nd sc crossing in front of DC in 3rd st. *sk next st, DC in next st and then DC in skipped st crossing in front of st just made*. Continue across from * to *. ** Ch 1 turn.

Row 4 & 5: repeat * to * row 2. Ch 1 turn.

Row 6: repeat row 2

Row 7&8: repeat row 3 from ** to **. Ch 3 turn.

Row 9: repeat row 3

Hopefully, I've not messed up any counts...

The original was fringed on the narrow edges, but I did shell stitch instead.

That one is so pretty too! Do you donate them one by one? Or wait until you have a few? Your blankets are so beautifully done!

I wait until I have a bundle...was supposed to deliver 7 this week...a few from my neighbor who's been making them too...but I got sick so I've had to postpone.

Annie, hope you feel better soon. Another beautiful blanket! You might want to try putting something white in your lap as you work on your dark sweater. It does help make it easier to see the stitches.

Thanks tami...great suggestion!

If anyone makes the blanket I posted, please share pictures...I want to see them!

Ugh. I'm going to have to put this down for a minute and come back to it! For some reason this is not working out for me.

Thank you! I hope you feel better quickly! I pulled mine out, and will try the “new” pattern! Take care of yourself.

Thanks springroz!

Not sure where people are having difficulty so I made a swatch and took pics to point out a few things that may help.

I made 12 chains and am working over 11 sts.

For SC row...the first st, I do in both loops...arrow shows where:

For DC row, start with ch 3 and then DC in 3rd sc from hook. Arrows mark sc1 and sc2 that are skipped.

Thank you, Annie. You've gone above and beyond! I have problems when I get to the end of my rows for some reason. I'm going to give it another whirl this morning.

Here is crossed DC across the row, ending with the DC in the furthest SC and then, in this pic, I haven't yet completed the DC in the skipped SC. As the next row will be SC, I will then ch 1.

Last photos. This is the end of the SC row on top of the DCs. Note that the final SC is in the ch3 space from the row below, where arrows are. Also notice that while the piece doesn't get larger or smaller...keep working over the same number of stitches...the edges are not nice and neat and clean. That's why I did the shell stitch which lends nicely to finishing the row edges.

Success! I think where I was messing up was on counting the stitches for each row. The rows of single crochets will count 11 stitches, but the rows of double crochets will count 10 (5 crossed stitches). Is that right?

I always have problems when I try to do a finishing stitch on uneven
sides like that ... I can't tell where I'm supposed to insert my
stitches! The last time I made a baby afghan, I tried to finish the
edges and I ended up ripping them all out. :-(

The ch3 counts as a stitch so it’s still 11.

The pattern calls for attaching fringe but when I cuddle with a blanket I don’t want strings in my face

You finished your blanket around the entire perimeter, yes? Is there a trick to getting an equal number of stitches on each of the long (uneven) edges?

13 skeins for the big blanket, is that right?

The 13 skeins is for the 60x45. I have no idea how much I used in the baby blanket...

On the baby blanket, it was a little smaller than I wanted so I went all the way around. On the big blanket, I added the shells just to the two narrow ends...the other sides were fine looking. When I add them, I just go by feel, trying not to make them too frequent where they will lump up, or too sparse where they will bunch up the blanket.

The way I think about stitches and chains is, you need to work to the right height to start the next row.

So if the row is a DC, normally you pull through twice on a DC, so the height of a ch 2 is the same as a DC. In this case, we're ch 3 as the extra ch "bends over" and counts as the top of the stitch. That's why we work that last sc into the top of that ch3.

With a SC we are pulling once, so a 1 ch is the same height as the stitch, and we start working immediately next to the ch so we don't need to add another ch to "bend over" to count as the top of that stitch.

I don't know if that makes sense, but that's how I think about it.

Thank you, Annie. I think I have the rows worked out now. Your additional diagrams helped so much so I really appreciate your taking the time to do that. I'm thinking the Twist afghan will make a good project for me this winter (winters are pretty short here in Cali!) so now I just need to find 13 skeins of the same dye lot!

I put my baby afghan away in frustration after failing to get the
edging to come out correctly. Maybe I will drag it back out and give it
another go, trying to go by "feel" as you suggest. Bunching up was the issue, as if I didn't have enough stitches.

Oh Annie! Thank you, thank you, THANK YOU! ! ! ! You've definitely gone above and beyond the call of duty! I, too, want to learn this stitch, but haven't tried it yet. The instructions and pictures here will help so much! ! I have no idea what I want to make with it yet, but I'll come up with something! My crochet 'skills' aren't good at all anymore, it's been probably 20, maybe more, years since I've done much of it. With the exception of a toddler blanket I made for my newest great granddaughter 2 years ago. I found out real quick on that project just how 'rusty' I am! ! !

Anyhow, there was no Internet available back when I was doing so much crochet, one had to rely on books and magazines to learn new techniques. So I'm finding so many new (to me) stitches, patterns, yarns, etc, it's very exciting. I want to try them all! Unfortunately, I now rely a lot on closed captioning when watching TV, so my crochet time is cut quite short.

Thanks again!

Rusty

Jellytoast, the bunching up was probably because you were trying to fit too many stitches together on the edging for the baby blanket. Do a few stitches, then stop and look at it, laying it on a flat surface. If it looks good, keep going. Do that every few stitches. If you are making a shell stitch edging, do a few shell stitches, then check it.

Annie, thank you so much for sharing, and for the extra effort of the photos. I'm going to try it making it into a dishcloth. I find dishcloths to make excellent trial pieces. The drape won't be the same, but it's good practice, and useful afterwards.

The thing about crochet is it's quick to rip out. So if you start making a border and it starts bunching then just rip it out and do it again adding more stitches. When I do add a border, I pretty much always do a row of SC first as it just smooths out the edge and makes the edging easier to do.

Think about what I said earlier about SCs and DCs and heights. If you're coming down the side, then a DC is worth 2 stitches (as it has 2 pulls) and an SC is worth 1 stitch (as it has 1 pull). But I do find that that rule of thumb tends to make the edge a little too full, so I try to do that but skip something here or there and that tends to work better.

Thank you both. I'm taking another stab at the border. It always helps to look at things with fresh eyes. I agree, I always like to work out any issues with a row of single crochet before starting a border.

Annie, do you have a preferred yarn for this afghan? I would love to find a nice worsted weight cotton blend yarn.

I used Lion Brand Pound of Love...it was a #4 yarn which is worsted weight. The Lion Brand yarns seem nice and easy to work with. It's 100% acrylic so it's washable and dryable.

With cotton you'd have to check for washability. Also cotton won't give you the stretch that an acrylic does. But the yarns are so unique these days that you have to go by feel too as well as what the label says.

I bought a washable wool for my sweater and the yarn is so soft and non-scratchy, it's wonderful. Other wool yarns, I couldn't stand to have them touch my skin as I find it irritating. But this yarn is so slippery (the lanolin maybe?) that I have to give it an extra finger wrap to keep the tension right.

I love working with wool yarns. Do you remember the brand/name of this non-scratchy one? (I think I will use acrylic for the blanket, though).

Also for the border corner stitches, I like to make 3 stitches into the corner stitch so that it won't curl. For a border of shelsl corner, you can crochet 1/2 a shell, chain 2 or 3, and then crochet another half of shell all in the corner stitch.

Beautiful blanket, Annie. It looks so soft and cozy.

The wool is Liberty Wool, but I don't think that will help you as the gal at the yarn store said it was discontinued, and that's why I got it at a sale price.