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Block a Week CAL 2014

Block a Week CAL 2014

Although the Block a Week CAL 2014 has now ended, the patterns and tutorials are still available and will remain so.  You can find all the information and links below.  Four of the squares have now become paid-for patterns (indicated in the list below), but the rest remain free.

Feel free to join and share at any time.  We have now created a Ravelry Thread for this CAL, should you wish to join.

xxx Dedri

Block a Week CAL 2014 September

This year I am going to be joining in a mystery afghan crochet-along (Block a Week CAL 2014) and I will be sharing the process here on Lookatwhatimade.

I’ve always wanted to make an afghan…not a baby blanket or a chunky blanket, but a proper honest-to-goodness afghan.  Unfortunately, I am one of those people who find the task too daunting.  So when the lovely Kimberly Slifer announced that the Official CCC Social Group on Facebook were going to have a CAL, I was over the moon.

This will be the year that I tackle my first afghan…one lovely block at a time.  And I would love it if you would join me!  So let me tell you a little bit more about the Block a Week CAL and the people who are making it happen.

Update 2020

Paid Patterns

  • Julie Yeager has kindly put together a Block a Week 2014 e-book that contains all three of her paid patterns used in the CAL.  You can find that HERE on Ravelry.
  • Joyce Lewis – You can buy the Crocodile Flower Square pattern HERE on Ravelry.

Photo Tutorials

I have removed the photo tutorial for Block 6:  Blooming Lace.  Significant revisions to the pattern have rendered the original photo tutorial obsolete.  The pattern is straight-forward, though, so you’ll be fine x

Block a Week CAL 2014

Index

Clicking on these links will take you to the relevant section, although I suggest reading everything before you start.

Information

Like I have already mentioned, this Block a Week CAL is for those of us (present company included) that feel like we will never be able to make an afghan.

By breaking it up into individual squares and doing only one square a week, the project becomes infinitely less frightening.  Add to that the fact that you have a whole community of people behind you, doing the same thing and happy to help you out should you need it, and VOILA!  “I could never” turns into “I can’t wait for the next one!”

And the cherry on the cake?  Each block is a surprise!

This Crochet-along is hosted by the Official CCC Social Group on Facebook (you will have to be logged in to your Facebook account to access the link).  The woman in charge is called Kimberly Slifer and she is amazingly helpful and friendly.  Please feel free to join the Official CCC Social Group so that you can access and utilize the support and encouragement of all the lovely ladies on there.  You can also join the Block a Week CAL Flickr Group so that you can see what other people have done (be inspired) and share what you have done (give inspiration).

I hope that you will take up the challenge and join along with the Block a Week CAL.

Designers

The squares in this CAL have been NOT been designed by me.  They have been designed by a host of wonderful designers, a list of which you can find below.  These have kindly given me permission to do photo tutorials for (most of) the squares.  These photo tutorials should NOT replace the written patterns.  They are only meant to be helpful aides in your journey to make this afghan.  You can find the links to each pattern at the start of each tutorial, under the heading ‘Pattern‘.

  • Letitia Sherriff
  • Melinda Miller
  • Donna Mason-Svara
  • Julie Yeager
  • Melissa Green
  • Aurora Suominen
  • Ivory Herman
  • Chris Simon
  • Julee Reeves
  • Penny Davidson
  • April Moreland
  • Margaret MacInnis
  • Carola Wijma
  • Joyce Lewis
  • Shan Sevcik
  • Virginia Burrow
  • Carolyn Christmas
  • Betty Byers

Size

Using the hook and yarn specified in each pattern, the blocks/squares will measure 12″ x 12″.  Obviously this is dependant on your particular gauge.  I crochet quite tightly, but my sister-in-law, for example, crochets VERY loosely.

Using a 4 mm crochet hook (US G/6  UK 8) for all the squares, and double knit yarn (light worsted weight/#3), my finished squares have come out between 7.5″ to 8.5″.

If you are using the same hook and yarn for each square (as I have done), your squares won’t all come out the same size.  I have supplied a list of Optional Additional Rounds to help you get all the squares to the same size and final-round stitch count (more or less).

Materials

For the purposes of these tutorials, I am using:

I started out using the Original Attic24 Colour Pack, which you can find HERE in her Wool Warehouse Shop.  Midway through I decided that I didn’t want to use all the colours, so I had to buy a few more skeins.  You can find a list of the colours and yardages HERE.

List of Squares

If you would like to include Sophie’s Garden in your afghan (as Betty has done with her blanket), you can find the instructions for that HERE.  Sophie’s Garden is the size of 4 afghan squares, so if you choose to use it, it will replace 4 of your squares.

You can find the details for each block by clicking on the relevant image below.

Bonus Blocks

You can find the details for each block by clicking on the relevant image below.

Additional Rounds

You can find a list of the Optional Additional Rounds HERE (as discussed under ‘Size’ above).

Blocking Your Squares

Once you have made your squares, you will need to block them so that they are nice and neat (and the same size).  You can read about my DIY Blocking Station HERE.  The post includes links to other blocking methods.

Joining Your Squares

When are your squares are made and blocked, you will need to join them.  You can find all the information for joining crochet squares in the 5-part series below.

Adding a Border

When you have made, blocked, and joined your squares, you will need to add a border to finish your blanket off.  My friend Betty Byers has designed a beautiful border especially for this CAL.  You can find that HERE.

You do not HAVE to use this border, though.  I have gone for a very simple border myself.  Edie Eckman’s book ‘Around the Corner Crochet Borders‘ is an excellent resource.

The Blue And White Version

Over the years, I have gotten MANY questions about ‘The Blue and White Version’, so I thought I would dedicate a little space to it.

This gorgeous version was made by Sharon Blignaut and features the Enchanted Garden Square (paid), which is a marriage of Joyce Lewis’ Crocodile Flower Square (paid pattern) and Sophie’s Garden (free).  You can find more information on Sharon’s Ravelry Project Page HERE.

Related Posts

You can find me on Facebook, Bloglovin, Pinterest, Twitter, or Instagram.

Happy Hooking!

Dedri

This blog post contains affiliate links. I only link to products I personally use or would use.  All opinions are my own.

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Comments

  1. I am a little late but I just found your website and LOVE the squares! Just ordered my yarn and I am going to attempt to make this before the end of the year :)
    Wish me luck!

    Reply

  4. I’ve just found these lovely squares and I’m considering jumping in But I have a question about colors and amounts of yarn. Do you have any suggestions on what to start with to make sure I’ll have enough to get through them all?
    Thanks so much! I’m excited to try this as something new!

    Reply

    • Jaymie, I cannot tell you exactly, but each square takes about 25 – 30g of double knit (Stylecraft), so between 75 and 90m per square. There are 45 squares, so you will need between 12 and 16 100g balls, depending on how you intend to attach your squares and border your blanket.

  7. Hi Dedri: I am working on “See How They Run” 12″ Afghan Block. I am following the instructions and also your tutorial, which I thank you week after week for doing this! I am having trouble with round 7. I am not understanding the corners. Do I crochet a special shell, then chain 3 and crochet another special shell all in the same corner? Or, do I chain 3 in between each 2 double crochet and still in the middle of the two? I hope you can understand what I am asking you. I’ll just wait until I hear from you before I move on as I have done a lot of ripping out with this row. Thanks Dedri.

    Reply

    • Hi Joanne. In the corners for Round 7: (2 dc, ch 1, 2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc, ch 1, 2 dc) all in the same corner space. This will be one Special shell (2 dc, ch 1, 2 dc), followed by a ch-2 space, followed by another special shell. I hope that makes sense.

  9. I am so delighted to have found this blog, love the granny squares and all the inspiration. Thanks for the lovely pictures with each tutorial. It helps so much. :)

    Reply

    • Thank you, Rene :) I am always pleased to hear that someone is finding the tutorials beneficial/pretty. I pour my heart and soul into each and every one of them x

  10. The squares are very pretty so I think I am going to sign up. I will probably be silent as well. I don’t know if will ever get them done, but I love looking at what every one else is doing.

    Reply

  11. I have started Block 1 of the Block a week – but am stuck already on Round 4 – cannot understand the (tc) instruction – can you help please – cannot believe I am stuck already.

    Reply

    • Hi Lynda.

      You don’t have to sign up for anything. You can just follow along every week.

  13. Hello in week 6. I am not able to get the pattern. When I click on the photo of the square Blooming Lace it just brings up the photo of the square with nothing too click on. Could you help me too please get this square? Thanks

    Reply

    • Hi Laura…did you manage to get it in the end? If you are still unable to open it, you can use the search option on the blog. You will be able to find Block 6 by typing in “Block 6”.

    • Hi Sylvia. I cannot say with 100 % accuracy, but so far I have used 75 meters of double knit yarn per square, so I am aiming to use 15 balls of 100 g double knit yarn (not including the edging and joining).

  16. Thank you Dedri for sharing this. I am happy for you that you have found this to enjoy the whole year round. I also find this too daunting but would love to see for fun :) Will keep following you and glad to be on your mailing list. Nicky :)

    Reply

    • Hi Ade, did you click on one of the links in the above post? I’ve just checked them and they worked for me…if you can point out which link didn’t work, then I can fix it…

      If you go onto Facebook and type in: Official CCC Social Group in the search bar at the top of your Facebook feed, they will show up x

    • Hi Dedri…, thank you for ur reply, yes i am now the member of the group, it was my mistake, i didn’t realized i wasn’t signing in my self on fb, because i was trying to open it by my iPhone, then i just give a try by laptop, and yes it works. thanks anyway, hehe because i was so excited about joining the group <3 and one more i love ur blog too, thanks for sharing :)

    • Hi Ria. I saw Tamara’s block and it’s awesome! If you make the squares into 12″ squares, you’re looking at 5 x 9 squares x 12″…My inches maths isn’t so hot, but that’s 60″ x 108″. My squares will most likely be 8″, so the finished afghan will be 3/4 that size. Come to think of it, I might need extra blocks…

  19. Oh I have never done a CAL before! I always wanted to make an afghan out of blocks (or just make an afghan at all!) but could just never bring myself to do it. Thanks for providing the encouragement I needed, this should prove to be fun!

    Reply

    • Thank you, Daina. And thank you very much for letting me blog about it. I’m very excited to make my first proper afghan. I don’t think I ever would have tried it if it weren’t for this CAL, which is the whole point of the CAL, I suppose :)

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