Hooking on Hump Day – Fruit Garden CAL Finished

Hi everyone! It’s Cindy here. Sorry we haven’t been posting much. There hasn’t been much going on around here other than doing some yard work when it wasn’t raining.

Since the last time I posted about the Fruit Garden CAL I finished and blocked the afghan.

Fruit Garden Afghan in Love is Enough Colorway

I really enjoyed making this afghan with all the different flower blocks. Each block was more complicated than the last one when done in the order the designer laid out for the patterns. The next block I completed since my last update was the Hollyhock. This block completed all the blocks for the center of the afghan. 

Hollyhock Block – Fruit Garden CAL

Next the center blocks were joined and the inner border was added (I’ll show you details about that later).

The Dianthus was the next block completed in the afghan. This block didn’t have the layers like some of the others but it was more complicated than it looked to create.

Dianthus Block – Fruit Garden CAL

The final square shaped block was the Chrysanthemum block which had the most 3 dimensional work of all the square blocks.

Chrysanthemum Block – Fruit Garden CAL

Each of these blocks required me to make 4 of each of them. The final block that I created for this afghan was the Acanthus. This was a rectangle shaped block and I had to make 8 of them. In my previous post I showed you the progress on that block and here is the completed one.

Acanthus Block – Fruit Garden CAL

The designer spaced out the pattern for this large block which was a good idea however now I’m sure I could tackle it straight through. This block definitely was the most complicated part of this pattern with so many intertwined parts. Once all the blocks were completed the final border was added.

Border Details – Fruit Garden CAL

The inner and outer borders were not very many rounds of crochet but I think they are the perfect compliment to show off all these gorgeous flower blocks. If you are interested in finding more information on this blanket you can find it on the Janie Crow website.

Along the way while creating this afghan I also created crochet charts for each block. The Acanthus was so complicated it took multiple views to show all the details. I always prefer to work from charts especially when I have to do multiples of the same block. It’s so much easier to look at the chart and see what you need to do than read lots of words to represent the same thing. Here is just a little sample of the flower pattern from the Forget Me Not Block.

Forget Me Not Flower Chart

The charts will come in handy if I decide to make another version of this afghan or if I want to make one of the cushions that were also designed to go with this afghan.

I’m joining the The Loop Scoop Yarny Link Party (formerly know as Hookin on Hump Day). You should stop by to see some of the other projects people have posted.

 

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Fruit Garden CAL Update

Hi everyone! It’s Cindy here. I’m thankful that I have crochet to help distract me from scenes like what we saw in our nations capitol yesterday. This was going to be a Hooking on Hump day post but I couldn’t concentrate on writing it yesterday.

I’ve completed three more types of squares since I first showed you this project.

Columbine Square

My previous post showed the beginnings of this flower but not the completed columbine square. Each square has gotten a bit more difficult and requires a lot of work behind the flower part to create leaves and the background.

Clementine Square

The clementine also required you to do some surface crochet to add a little dimension and color to the flower. It doesn’t show very well but it’s there (the burgundy on the outside of the orange circle is one).

Purple Aster Square

I think the purple aster square is my favorite so far and probably because it has plenty of purple in it. Those of you that crochet might notice that almost every round until you get out to the background is a different color. That results in plenty of yarn tails that have to be sewn in! I’ve been doing the sewing after every few rounds because if not they can get tangled in your work.

Hollyhock Flower

I’m currently working on the hollyhock square and have completed the main flower and I’m now working on the outer leaves. I addition to working on the squares the designer has us working on a larger motif in sections. 

Acanthus motif

The acanthus will eventually be a rectangular shape with a few more leaves and some background to it. Except for the clementine we only need to make four of each of the squares but we have to make eight of these acanthus. I’m glad the designer spaced out the work for this one as it’s very a intimidating design. Her instructions are very clear and there are videos included to help you understand the process.

Completed Squares

I’m enjoying working on this project (except maybe for all those ends we have to weave in) and can’t wait to complete it. When I finish the hollyhock squares I can join all the motifs for the inner section and then add the inner border. I expect to show you that next time. If you are interested in finding more information on this blanket you can find it on the Janie Crow website.

Crochet is a wonderful stress relieving hobby and I’m glad I have it to help me on days like yesterday. I also am thankful for the ladies that join me on Zoom meetings weekly to craft together. Since we can’t meet in person like we used to do we now gather on Zoom and I’m thankful to have them join me.

I’m are joining Brian for the Thankful Thursday Blog Hop!

 

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Hooking on Hump Day – Starting the Fruit Garden CAL

Hi everyone! It’s Cindy here. A couple of weeks ago I started a new crochet-a-long (CAL) to make a beautiful afghan designed by Janie Crow called the Fruit Garden Blanket.

Forget Me Not Block

So far I’ve only completed the eight Forget Me Not squares and am on my way with the next four.

Columbine Flower

The next set of blocks are the Columbine. I’ve made the four flowers and will add the background like the previous one next. The petals look a bit curled up right now but eventually they get attached to the background to hold them down so you can see the flower better.

This afghan is made up of 8 different flower motifs that are all so beautiful. It is actually the second time this CAL is being run. The first time it started was during the time I was doing the Kaleidoscope CAL so I didn’t participate then. Also when the Fruit Garden CAL was run the first time some people had difficulties sourcing the yarn due to shortages caused by the pandemic. The designer and her sponsors, Stylecraft Yarn, decided to run it again and also added a third colorway which is the one I’m doing.

I can’t wait to show you my progress as I work through this CAL.

I’m joining the The Loop Scoop Yarny Link Party (formerly know as Hookin on Hump Day). You should stop by to see some of the other projects people have posted.

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