Friday, September 12, 2014

My Version of the Mile-A-Minute Baby Afghan

I finished my first Mile-A-Minute baby blanket and I love the concept.  Not only is it a great way to use up yarn, it's a beautifully polished finished project.  Because of the way its put together, you can combine yarns of different colours, brands and makes still present a very unified project.

I posted an "I'm finished" picture on the Facebook group, Crochet Addict.  Less than 24 hours later, it had 1000 likes and repeated requests for the pattern, so I decided to blog my version of the pattern here below, rather than try to respond to so many people individually.

Apologies for the pictures.  This is what you get when you take pictures on a cloudy/rainy late afternoon with your iphone.

The pattern is below.  Scroll down to find it!  On your way, check out some of the crochet eye candy in the photos.









This is how much white yarn I had left over.  Nothing makes a yarncrafter happier than using leftovers all up!


One of my favourite things about this pattern are the ridges created by joining the strips together.  I placed my strips backsides-together and used single crochets in the back loops only to get this look.  The ridges also keep the blanket nice and square and make it very easy to fold neatly.


A few of the edges look curled up in this photo.  This is a hasty and slightly deceptive shot.  I really should try to take some better pictures.  One of the best things about this blanket was how evenly the ends turned out.  Check out the symmetrical ends in some of the photos above.

Pattern Instructions - My Version:
The inspiration for this pattern is available through Ravelry.  Search for "Mile A Minute Baby Afghan (archived)" if you would like to see that version.  The Ravelry version links to this pattern.  My version is slightly different, so I'm writing it out below.

Materials:
This blanket was made with sport-weight (#3) yarn.  I used leftovers from my yarn bin so the amounts are a best guess, but here's what I used:
- For the colourful strips: Bernat Satin Sport - 3 colours, less than one skein each (this yarn is discontinued; a good substitute would be Caron Simply Soft Light; it's skeins are much bigger, so you would require significantly less)
- For the white edging: I used a combination of Bernat Satin Sport in "Aran" (discontinued) and Bernat Softee Baby in "Antique White."  I used approximately 1.5 skeins of the Bernat Satin Sport and 1 full skein of Softee Baby, so 2 full skeins of Softee Baby should be enough to do the trick!
- Because it was sport-weight yarn, I chose a G hook
- Keep your yarn needle and scissors handy; this blanket works out best when you work in the ends as you go (i.e., as you finish each strip)

Timeline:
I consider myself to be a medium-speed crocheter.  At my humble pace, each strip took one hour to complete, including working in the ends.  Time to join the strips and add the border was a bit extra.


To Crochet A Strip:

You'll use one of your colour choices make the inside of the strip first.  Then you'll add a white border around it.

Foundation: Ch 7. Join with sl in 1st ch to make a loop.  (Note: A magic ring will not work for this pattern.  Stick with the ch 7 option!)
Row 1: Ch 3, 2 dc in foundation loop.  Ch 3.  3 dc in foundation loop.
Rows 2-49*: Ch 3, turn.  3 dc in ch 3 space from previous row.  Ch 3.  3 more dc in space from previous row.  1 dc in top of ch 3 chain from the row below.
* = make the strip however long you'd like.  I found 50 worked well for sport-weight yarn and a baby blanket.  Different blanket and yarn sizes might work better with more or less rows.  Just make sure all your strips are the same.
Row 50: Ch 3, turn.  3 dc in ch 3 space from previous row.  Ch 5.  3 more dc in space from previous row.  1 dc in top of ch 3 chain from the row below.  Fasten off your yarn.

Now for the strip border:
Note: There is not really a "right side" or "wrong side" to the colour strip, since you've been crocheting back and forth, back and forth.

Join the border yarn with a slip stitch in any of the spaces along the side of the strip created by either the ch 3 or the lone dc.  Ch 3.  2 additional dc in this space.  Work 3 dc in each of the spaces created by the ch 3 or lone dc's along the side of the strip.  

When you get to the loop at either end,  work 12 tc into the loop, then continue up the other side with 3 dc in each space.  Join your last dc to the top of the starting ch3 and fasten off.

Now is the time to work in your ends.  Trust me, it's easier to do it now than when the blanket is all joined together!

Voila!  One strip complete!


It's your choice as to whether you'd like to stockpile all of your strips and join them together at the end, or join them as you go. It makes no difference either way.

Hold two finished strips with the backsides together.  (Look at the white border to determine which is the front and which is the back.)  At this point the strips also have a top and a bottom, thanks to the v-shape created by the colourful middle of each strip.  Make sure the Vs are pointing the same way before you start joining!

(Here is where I may need to add pictures.)

Using your border colour, and starting in the back loops of the 10th tc on the arched ends of the strip, join the 2 strips together with a sl.  Crocheting in the back loops only, work your way down the strip, beginning with the 11th tc, then the 12th tc, then each of the dcs, using sc to join the strips together.  Fasten off once you reach the 3rd tc of the arch at the other end of the strip.  Work in your ends.

Finishing:
To firm up the edges of the blanket, complete a round of sc around the entire blanket.  I used one sc in each dc around.  In order to keep the arched/scalloped edges curvy, I stitched 2sc into most of the tc stitches on the ends of the blanket.  (I'll post a diagram later to show what I mean.)

If you have any questions about the instructions, please leave a comment below and I'll do my best to clear it up for you!  Enjoy!

23 comments:

  1. Hi, this is the best pattern ive seen for this blanket, and I love the joining. When you say put back sides together and sc through back loops is that the outer loops or inner loops as you look down on them? Thanks for your help

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  2. Hi Rose Red,
    It's the inner loops as you look down. Good question!!!

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  3. Replies
    1. Thanks Lyndsay, and your very welcome, I'm enjoying exploring your site.
      thanks again

      Rose New Zealand

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  4. Replies
    1. That means Triple Crochet: Written Instructions
      Make foundation chain 3 chains more than the number of triple crochet stitches called for. Skip first 4 chain stitches (will count as the turning chain). Yarn over hook (twice), insert hook from front to back in the center of the fifth chain from the hook.

      Yarn over, draw the yarn through the chain (4 loops on hook).

      Yarn over, draw yarn through 2 loops on hook (3 loops remain on hook).


      Yarn over, draw yarn through 2 loops on hook (2 loops remain on hook).

      Yarn over, draw through 2 loops on hook (one triple crochet complete).

      Yarn over (twice), insert hook in the center of next chain, yarn over, draw yarn through stitch, [yarn over, draw yarn through 2 loops on hook] 3 times. Repeat across to end of foundation chain.

      To begin the second row, turn your work. Chain four for the turning chain.

      Skip the first triple crochet below the turning chain. Yarn over (twice), insert hook from front to back under the top 2 loops of the next triple crochet in the row below, [yarn over, draw yarn through 2 loops on] 3 times (first triple crochet complete). Repeat this step in each triple crochet across and in the top of the turning chain at the end of the row.

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  5. Lovely afghan, thanks for sharing the pattern.

    Janice, tc is the abbreviation for the treble/triple crochet stitch - one more yarn over than in a double crochet.

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  6. thanks for the pattern,I will be making it soon for my grandbaby who will be born in August

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  7. This is a beautiful blanket Lyndsay; thank you for sharing the pattern.

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  8. Beautiful pattern, but I don't understand what you mean by "3 dc in ch 3 space from previous row. Ch 3. 3 more dc in space from previous row. 1 dc in top of ch 3 chain from the row below.
    What space are you talking about? The space between the 3 dc?

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  9. Hola, està hermosa esta manta, pero la verdad no entendì las instrucciones, de pronto la traducciòn no es muy buena, ojalà pudieramos verlo en un tutorial, serìa estupendo.

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  10. Where can I get the pattern that is in the picture to join that way instead of a ridge?

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  11. Love this blanket.
    I used the Join as you go method to attach the stripes. Learned from Heidi Bears youtube video.

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  12. This is a lovely blanket, and the pictures are such that you can really zoom in close. The stitch is a really, really new one on me,so I'll have to have a few practice runs with it before I attempt functional pieces, but I intend to succeed, coz once you get the hang of it, it looks like you could fly threw it and have something made in no time.
    Thanks for taking the time to write and publish your work.

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  14. Your work is so nice and neat. Well done! Thanks for sharing the pattern.

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  15. I wish you would do a video. This afghan is so pretty and the stitches are so neat. It look like a machine made it. Very pretty

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  16. Thanks for sharing. Just wanted to know hoW long each strip was. I am working a baby blanket for a new born baby. Is 24" sufficient?

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  17. Just want to say, I have been crocheting for about 65 years and this is beautiful work and I have seen and done a lot of afghans. You are very good!!!

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  18. I love the looks of this afghan - it is beautiful and I love the way it is joined together and was wondering if you ever did post pics where is says "Here is where I may need to add pictures" or if there is a link to the diagram you mentioned at the end of the instructions? Thank You

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  19. I love this pattern and I'm getting ready to make it in a larger throw size as gift to a brand new 1st time grandma. I made a similar stripe one for the new baby and grandma went nuts over it. Thanks for sharing. It's beautiful.

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