Block 34 of the Block a Week CAL (hosted by Kimberly Slifer) is the Embracing Variety Square by Aurora Suominen and Ivory Herman.  Each row is simple enough, but the use of + instead of * when dealing with some of the repeats messed with my mind a bit, so the best tip I can give you is to pretend you don’t see the plusses until you are actually told to repeat the bit that falls in between plusses.  Make sense?

If you are using the same hook and yarn for all your squares, they will not all come out the same size. I have now added a post outlining the extra rounds I added to each square to get them to the size of Block 1, which was the biggest. You can find that here.

Embracing Variety Crochet Square

{Pattern © 2012 Aurora Suominen and Ivory Herman. Photo tutorial done with kind permission}

Pattern

Currently only vailable HERE on a web archive.  Add to Your Ravelry Queue.

Suggested Materials

• 5 mm Clover Amour Crochet Hook (US H/8 UK 6)
• Worsted weight yarn

Size

• Using the hook and yarn specified, your square should be a nice even 12″ when you are done.
• Using a 4 mm crochet hook (US G/6 UK 8) and double knit yarn, as I have done, your finished square will be about 8.5″ big and will not require additional rounds.

 

My Yarn and Colour Choices

I am using Stylecraft Special DK.

• Saffron (Rounds 1 and 2)
• Fondant (Round 3)
• Pomegranate (Round 4)
• Meadow (Rounds 5 and 6)
• Magenta (Rounds 7 and 8)
• Sherbet (Rounds 9 – 11)
• Turquoise (Round 12)

Notes

• St refers to any dc, sc, or ch space in this pattern.
• US Crochet Terminology used. (See this comparative chart if you need help transcribing from US to UK)

Special Stitches

• Popcorn stitch – this pattern uses a 4-dc popcorn.  See this tutorial if you need help making the popcorn stitch.
• Shell – make 5 dc’s in stitch/space indicated.

Embracing Variety Square Photo Tutorial

This photo-walkthrough is NOT the actual pattern and should not be used instead of the pattern, but rather in conjunction with it.

Thank you very much to Aurora Suominen and Ivory Herman for giving us permission to do this photo-tutorial for their Embracing Variety Square.  And a special thank you to Kimberly Slifer for letting me do these tutorials and for obtaining the necessary permission. 

Round 1

You can start this round with a magic ring instead of the initial ch-5 ring.

Magic Ring Instructions for Round 1

Into a magic ring: (ch 6, sl st into the ring) 4 times. Pull the ring tight. If you are not familiar with working into a magic ring, this video tutorial from Moogly is clear and easy to follow. Please remember, when working into a magic ring you HAVE to work away your initial tail very well. If you just cut it, your whole square might unravel!

IMPORTANT:  if you are going to use the magic ring to start this week’s square, make sure that you work it away into the stitches of the next round, otherwise it will unravel no matter how many times you go back and forth.

Stitch count: 4 ch-6 loops

Round 2

Sl st into the next ch-6 loop.  Ch 1 and make 6 sc’s in the same ch-6 loop.  Make 6 sc’s in each of the next 3 ch-6 loops.  Join to the first sc with a sl st.

Stitch count: 24 sc’s

Round 3

• If you are using the same colour, ch 3 (counts as your first dc).
• If you are using a new colour, join your yarn by making a standing double crochet in the same st as the sl st join (Photo 1).

Dc in the next st.  *(2 dc, ch 2, 2dc) in the next dc.  This is your first corner made (Photo 2).  Dc in the next 5 st’s (Photo 3).*  Repeat from * to * 3 more times, omitting the last 2 dc’s on the last repeat.  Join to the top of the beginning ch-3 (or the standing double crochet) with a sl st.

Stitch count: 36 dc’s and 4 ch-2 corner spaces  {9 dc’s per side}

Round 4

• If you are using the same colour, sl st into the next st.
• If you are using a new colour, join your yarn by making a sl st in the stitch after the sl st join (Photo 1).

*Skip the next 2 dc’s.  (2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc) in the ch-2 corner space (Photo 2).  Skip the next 2 dc’s.  The top of the first dc will be hidden by the corner stitches.  Make sure that you don’t accidentally skip 3 st’s – see this post if you are unsure which st to work into.  Sl st in the next dc (Photo 3).

Skip the next dc and make 5 dc’s in the next dc (Photo 4).  Skip the next dc and sl st in the next dc.*  Repeat from * to * 3 more times.

The last sl st should fall in the st that already contains the first sl st.

Stitch count: 36 dc’s and 4 ch-2 corner spaces

Round 5

• If you are using the same colour, sl st into the next 2 dc’s and into the ch-2 corner space.  Ch 3 (this counts as your first dc).  (Dc, ch 2, 2 dc) into the same ch-2 space.  This is your beginning corner made.
• If you are using a new colour, join your yarn by making a standing double crochet in any ch-2 corner space around.  (Dc, ch 2, 2 dc) into the same ch-2 space.  This is your beginning corner made.

*Ch 1, dc in the next sl st (Photo 1).  Ch 1, sc in the third dc of the 5-dc shell (Photo 2).  Ch 1, dc in the next sl st (Photo 3).  Ch 1 and then make (2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc) in the next ch-2 corner space (Photo 4).*  Repeat from * to * 3 more times, omitting the last corner on the last repeat.  Join to the beginning ch-3 (or the standing double crochet) with a sl st.

• If you are going to use the same colour for the next round, sl st into the next st and into the ch-2 corner space.
• If you are going to use a new colour for the next round, fasten off instead and start the next round in any ch-2 corner space around, with the same beginning corner as this round.

Your square might start pulling up into a bowl at this point (Photo 5).  Don’t worry about it too much.  In both versions I did, this corrected itself with blocking.

Stitch count:  4 sc’s, 24 dc’s, 16 ch-1 spaces, and 4 ch-2 corner spaces

NOTE about Beginning Corners and Corners

When instructed to make a Beginning corner from this point forward, do it as instructed at the beginning of Round 5 above. When instructed to make a Corner, work (2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc) into the same ch-2 corner space.

Round 6

As written. Remember that a stitch, in this pattern, refers to stitches and ch-1 spaces, so when you are told to dc in 5 st’s at the beginning of the round, that means:  dc in the first 2 st’s, dc in the next ch-1 space, dc in the next dc, dc in the next ch-1 space (Photo 1).

Your popcorn stitches should fall in the central sc of every side (Photo 2).  See this tutorial if you need help making popcorn stitches.

Stitch count:  56 dc’s, 4 popcorns, and 4 ch-2 corner spaces  {14 dc’s and 1 popcorn per side}

Round 7

As written.

Remember that first hidden stitch.  Don’t accidentally skip 2 st’s after the corner.

Hint:  the fourth dc of each side (not including corner dc’s) should fall in the top of the popcorn stitch, which you will find just to the right of the popcorn (to the left if you are left-handed).

Stitch count: 44 dc’s, 32 ch-1 spaces, and 4 ch-2 corner spaces  {11 dc’s and 8 ch-1 spaces per side}

Round 8

• If you are using the same colour, remember that you should have sl st’d to the ch-2 corner space at the end of the previous round.  In that ch-2 corner space:  (ch 3, dc, ch 2, 2 dc).  This is your beginning corner made.
• If you are using a different colour, join your yarn by making a standing double crochet in any corner ch-2 space around.  (Dc, ch 2, 2 dc) in the same ch-2 space.  This is your beginning corner made.

*Ch 1 and skip the first dc.  (Sl st in the next dc – Photo 1.  Skip the ch-1 space and make a 5-dc shell in the next dc – Photo 2.  Skip the next ch-1 space) four times.  Sl st in the next dc and skip the last dc.  (2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc) in the ch-2 corner space.  This is your corner made (Photo 4).*

Repeat from * to * 3 more times, omitting the last corner on the last repeat.  Join to the top of the beginning ch-3 (or the standing double crochet) with a sl st.  You should now have 4 shells on each side, and 4 corners.

If you are going to use the same colour for the next round, remember to sl st to the ch-2 corner space.

Stitch count: 96 dc’s, 20 sl st’s, and 4 ch-2 corner spaces

Round 9

As written.

Remember to make those ch-1 spaces between the 2dc’s and the sc’s.  These ch-1 spaces will count as stitches in the next round.

Stitch count: 56 dc’s, 16 sc’s, 40 ch-1 spaces, and 4 ch-2 corner spaces {14 dc’s, 4 sc’s, and 10 ch-1 spaces per side}

Round 10

As written.

Remember:

• Don’t accidentally skip that first hidden stitch
• The ch-1 spaces count as stitches, so when the pattern tells you to dc in the first 12 st’s, it will look like this:  (dc in the next 2 st’s, dc in the next ch-1 space) twice.  Dc in the next sc, dc in the next ch-1 space, dc in the next 2 dc’s, dc in the next ch-1 space.  Dc in the next sc (Photos 1 and 2).

When you make the first popcorn in the next ch-1 space, it will hide the top of the next dc to be worked into.  Pull the popcorn out of the way to find the top of the next dc (Photo 3).

When making the second popcorn, it will hide the top of the next sc to work into.  Again, pulling the popcorn out of the way will reveal the top of the sc (Photo 5).

Stitch count: 120 dc’s, 8 popcorns, and 4 ch-2 corner spaces  {30 dc’s and 2 popcorns per side}

Round 11

As written.

When making the first 16 dc’s, don’t accidentally skip the first hidden stitch.

The 15th dc should fall in the top of the popcorn stitch, which you will find just to the right of the popcorn stitch (to the left if you are left-handed).  Photo 1 shows the top of the popcorn.  Photo 2 shows the dc made into the top of the popcorn.

The 16th dc should fall in the dc right after the popcorn (Photo 3).

To make the popcorn between the next 2 dc’s, insert your hook between the posts of the stitches, instead of through the loops of the next dc, and complete your popcorn (Photo 4).  This popcorn will hide the top of the next dc to be worked into, so pull it out of the way to reveal the loops of the next dc.  Photo 5 shows the first dc after the popcorn completed.

The second dc after the popcorn should fall in the top of the second popcorn in the previous round.

Stitch count: 144 dc’s, 4 popcorns, and 4 ch-2 corner spaces  {36 dc’s and 1 popcorn per side}

 

And here is Round 11 all completed.

Round 12

As written.

Stitch count: 160 hdc’s  {39 hdc’s per side, not including central corner hdc}

I have tweaked Round 12 by 1 stitch on each side to give me a final stitch count of 164.  You can find the instructions here.

 

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Happy Hooking!