Block 9 of the Block a Week CAL (hosted by Kimberly Slifer) is Aurora Suominen’s gorgeous Never Ending Love Square.  I found this square easy to work up and  I love how mine turned out.  I can see myself making a few more of these!

If this is the first you’ve heard of this CAL, please have a look at THIS POST.  It contains all the information and links for the crochet-along.

Never Ending Love Square

{Pattern © 2010 Aurora Suominen.  Photo tutorial done with kind permission}

Pattern

• You can find the pattern here on Aurora’s bog, DragonFlyMomof2 Designs.
• Add it to your Ravelry Queue.

Suggested Materials

• 5.5 mm Clover Amour Crochet Hook (US I/9  UK 5)
• 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 7.5″ big.

This square, like the Eight Pointed Flower from Week 7 and the Cocoa Puff from Week 8, comes out smaller than the rest so far.  Feel free to add a round or two by repeating the last round.

My Yarn and Colour Choices

I am using the Stylecraft Special DK.

• Saffron (Round 1)
• Shrimp (Round 2)
• Pomegranate (Round 3)
• Magenta (Rounds 4 and Optional Additional Round 11)
• Meadow (Round 5)
• Turquoise (Rounds 6 and 7)
• Sherbet (Rounds 8-10)

Speciality Stitches and Stitch Combinations

BEG CORNER

Sl st into the ch-2 space (Photo 2).  Into the ch-2 space:  ch 3 (counts as the first dc), dc, ch 2, 2 x dc (Photo 3).

Alternative Beginning Corner

If you want to change colours at the beginning of any/all rounds, might I suggest starting with a standing double crochet instead of the initial ch-3?  That way you won’t have to sl st your way to the corner AND you won’t have to worry about changing colours seamlessly.  If you are not familiar with the standing double crochet, see this excellent tutorial by Tamara from Moogly.

CORNER

Into the ch-2 space:  2 x dc, ch 2, 2 x dc.

FRONT POST DOUBLE CROCHET (FPDC)

Yarn over.  Insert your hook from front to back and then from back to front around the post of the next stitch.  Yarn over and pull up a loop.  *Yarn over and pull through 2 loops* 2 times.

As you can see, the front post double crochet is just a regular old double crochet worked around the post of the stitch, instead of into the loops at the top of the stitch.  See this quick video tutorial if you need some help.

POPCORN

Make 4 dc’s in the same stitch (Photo 1).  Pull the stitch on your hook up a bit so that it forms a loop and then drop this loop.  Insert your hook from front to back into the top of the first dc (Photo 2).  Grab the dropped loop (Photo 3) and pull it through the top of the first dc (Photo 4).

Note:  those of you who are familiar with the popcorn stitch will know that the popcorn stitch usually ends with a chain 1 after pulling the dropped loop through.  For this pattern the designer has chosen to omit this chain stitch.

Notes

• The initial ch st’s in each round are counted as a stitch.
• Each round is joined by making a sl st into the top of the initial ch-3.  This is not stipulated in each round.  If you are going to start your rounds with a standing double crochet, you should join to the top of the standing double crochet.
• Stitch counts have not been supplied, so I have added them here.
• US Crochet Terminology used.  (See this comparative chart if you need help transcribing from US to UK)
• Please Note:  The yarn used in most of the tutorial photos is Drops Paris Cotton.

Corrections

Round 2:  The Repeat has been omitted.  It should read:  (Ch 3, dc, ch 2, 2 x dc) in the same stitch as the sl st join.  *Dc in the next 3 st’s, (2 x dc, ch 2, 2 x dc) in the next st.* Repeat around, omitting the last corner.  Join to the top of the initial ch-3 with a sl st.

Never Ending Love Square Photo Tutorial

Like I have already mentioned, you can find the pattern HERE.

Although this photo tutorial covers some rounds in full, 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 for giving us permission to do this photo-tutorial for her Never Ending Love 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-4.

Magic Ring Instructions for Round 1

Into a magic ring:  ch 3 (this counts as your first dc).  Dc x 15 into the ring and pull the ring tight.  Join to the top of the initial ch-3 with a sl st.  If you are not familiar with working into a magic ring, this video tutorial from The Crochet Crowd is very good.  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!

Stitch count:  16 dc’s

Round 2

See the corrections above.

Stitch count:  28 dc’s and 4 ch-2 spaces

Round 3

 Make a beginning corner (Photo 1).  I have used new yarn and a standing double crochet, but if you are going to use the same yarn and a ch-3 start, remember to look at the instructions for making a beg corner above.

*Fpdc around the post of the next st (Photos 2 and 3).  Dc in the next 2 st’s (Phot0 4).  Make sure that you make the first dc in the top of the next dc, which will be slightly hidden behind the Fpdc you just made.  See this tutorial if you need help identifying which loops belong to which stitch.  Make a popcorn stitch in the next st (Photo 5).  Dc in the next 2 st’s (Photo 6).  Fpdc around the post of the next st, which should be the last dc before the ch-2 corner (Photo 7).  Make a corner in the ch-2 space.*  Repeat around, omitting the last corner.  Join to the top of the initial ch-3 (or the standing double crochet) with a sl st.

Stitch count:  44 st’s and 4 ch-2 spaces.  {8 dc’s, 2 fpdc’s and 1 popcorn stitch per side}

Round 4

In this round, and subsequent rounds, it is easy to accidentally skip the first stitch after the corner.  See this tutorial about corners and the elusive hidden stitch if you need a bit of help identifying the first stitch to work into after making a corner.

The fpdc’s in this round (and subsequent rounds) should fall around the post of the fpdc’s in the previous round.

When you have worked your corner (Photo 1), *dc in the next 2 st’s (Photo 2).  Fpdc around the post of the fpdc in the previous round (Photos 3 and 4) .  Dc in the next 5 st’s (Photos 5 – 7).  The third dc should fall in the first dc of the popcorn stitch in the previous round (indicated with an arrow in Photo 6).  Fpdc around the post of the fpdc in the previous round.  Dc in the next 2 st’s.  Make a corner.*  Repeat around, omitting the last corner, and join with a sl st.

Here is a peek of my square at the end of Round 4.  See the glare on the colours?  Someone (me) dropped my camera because someone (Xander) fiddled with the legs on the tripod it was standing on.  And now it sounds like a baby rattle when I shake it and it has a bit of trouble focussing and adjusting brightness.  Ah well… My little Lumix has served me well for 8 years, so I really can’t complain.  But you guys might when my photos start getting progressively worse…

Stitch count:  60 st’s and 4 ch-2 spaces.  {13 dc’s and 2 fpdc’s per side}

Round 5

Round 5 is easy.  Just dc’s and fpdc’s.

Stitch count:  76 st’s and 4 ch-2 spaces.  {17 dc’s and 2 fpdc’s per side}

Round 6

 Round 6 is straightforward as well.  It is pretty much a repeat of Round 3 (obviously with more stitches).  I’ve included some progress photos (just incase).

I do love the Stylecraft Turquoises!

Stitch count:  92 st’s and 4 ch-2 spaces.  {20 dc’s, 1 popcorn stitch and 2 fpdc’s per side}

Round 7

I changed colours for the photos below so that you can see where the stitches go, but I actually did Round 7 in the same colour as Round 6.

Making the “heart humps” isn’t tricky at all, you just have to remember not to accidentally skip those “hidden” stitches.  To help make it easier for you, I will give you some landmarks.

To start Round 7, you will need to slip stitch over to the first dc after the ch-2 space (Photo 1).  *Skip 3 dc’s and make a heart hump in the next dc by working 10 x tr into it (Photo 2).  Skip the next 3 dc’s and sl st into the top of the fpdc from the previous round (Photo 3).  Dc in the next 5 dc’s (so into the stitches between the 2 fpdc’s of the previous round).  Slip stitch into the top of the fpdc from the previous round (Photo 4).  Skip 3 dc’s and make another heart hump into the next dc by working 10 x tr into it (Photo 5).  Skip the next 3 dc’s and sl st into the next dc, which should be the last dc before the ch-2 space.  Skip the ch-2 space and sl st into the first dc after the ch-2 space.*  Repeat around, joining to the beginning sl st.

At the end of Round 7 you should have 4 hearts, 8 popcorn stitches and a cross formed by all the fpdc’s.

I love how the little heart comes out.

And you will notice that I have included a random photo of the square from the back.  Why?  Because it made me think of my mom.  When I was little and used to sew something (and I started sewing almost before I could walk!), my mom would always turn whatever I’d made inside-out and inspect the workmanship.  I used to say:  “It doesn’t matter what it looks like where no-one can see!”, but as I’ve grown older I find myself caring more and more about making everything as neat as possible (even the bits no-one will see).

I wish I could say the same about my house!

Ps.  That fpdc line that looks like it’s going progressively skew…the square wasn’t flat when I took the photo.  That line is actually very straight.  Your fpdc’s shouldn’t go wonky like that.  If you have a look at the photo of the square at the end of Round 9, you will see that the fpdc’s are all symmetrical.

Stitch counts:  100 st’s.  {20 tr’s and 5 dc’s per side}

Round 8

Round 8 is quite easy.  I made my corners into the ch-2 spaces from Round 6 (so working over the sl st’s from Round 7 instead of into the first one).  See Photo 1.  When making the ch-10, keep your tension tight.  If you relax your tension, your ch-10 will be too generous for the space it needs to span.  Photo 2 shows the ch-10.

Photo 3 shows the 7 dc’s between the 2 ch-10 spaces on each side.

Photo 4 is just a corner…how exciting!
This is Round 8 completed…before Xander got his hands on it.

And this is what it looked like after my soon-to-be-two-year-old got hold of it.  Yikes. 

Stitch counts:  124 st’s (including the ch-10’s) and 4 ch-2 spaces.  {4 tr’s, 7 dc’s and 20 ch’s per side}

Round 9

In Round 9 you will be working into the ch-10 spaces and anchoring them to the bottom of each heart hump.

When I made this round I had two “what now?” moments:

Where do I insert my hook when making the anchoring tr?

When making the tr in the middle of the ch-10 space, insert your hook into the back horizontal loop of the stitch you made your 10 x tr’s into (Photos 2 and 3).  If you flick your heart hump forward, you will see that there is a little loop right below the hole formed by making the 10 x tr’s into one stitch.

When making the treble crochet, do I work OVER the ch-10 or IN FRONT of it?

Don’t make the tr in front of the ch-10 (Photo 2).  Rather make it OVER the ch-10 (Photo 3), as this will anchor the ch-10 and give you a neater finish.

A close-up of the (4 x dc, tr, 4 x dc) worked into the ch-10 space behind each heart hump:

Oooo…just one more round left…

Stitch count:  132 st’s and 4 ch-2 spaces.  {31 dc’s and 2 tr’s per side}

Round 10

Round 10 is the easiest of the lot.  Just a whole lot of dc’s with the occasional corner.  Making the last round as instructed will leave the tops of the hearts free so that they can flit backwards and forwards like butterfly wings.

If you would like to “anchor” the tops of your hearts instead, you can do it like this:

Make a beginning corner.  *Dc in the next 8 st’s (Photo 1).  Make the next dc through the back horizontal loop of the central tr of the heart hump AND the next dc from Round 9 (Photo 2).  You will find the back horizontal loop just behind the back loop of the relevant treble crochet.  Working through the back horizontal loop instead of the back loop will make the join invisible from the front (Photo 3).  Photo 4 illustrates the dc made through both layers.  Dc in the next 15 st’s.  Dc into the next dc AND the central treble of the heart hump as before (so both layers).  Dc in the next 8 st’s.  Make a corner (Photo 5).*  Repeat around, omitting the last corner, and join with a sl st.  Bind off and work away your tails of yarn.

Stitch count:  148 st’s and 4 ch-2 spaces.  {37 dc’s per side}

I have added an Optional Additional Round 11 to my square to get it to the same size as the others.  You can find the instructions for that HERE.

Join the Block a Week CAL

You can find the rest of the squares in the CAL HERE.

Remember to subscribe to my Weekly Newsletter if you would like to be kept in the loop. You can also like my Facebook page or follow me on Bloglovin, Google+, Pinterest, Twitter, or Instagram.

More Blogs Following the CAL

• San from Loopsan – using Stylecraft in sophisticated Parchment, Denim, Mocha and Meadow
• Lou Mander from Tea, Crochet and Me – using Stylecraft in White, Mocha and Raspberry

Happy Hooking!