FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions – Crochet Arcade

FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions

How to buy a pattern on crochetarcade.co.uk?

How to download the crochet pattern I purchased from crochetarcade.co.uk?

How to download the crochet pattern I bought from Etsy?

How to download the crochet pattern I bought from your Ravelry Store?

Do you allow makers to sell items made from your patterns?

Do you have a Cuddle and Play Blanket Crochet Pattern for another animal like ………………..?

Your designs look complicated. Will I be able to make them if I’m a beginner in crochet?

I don’t have the yarn you used in your pattern can you suggest an alternative yarn I can use?

Can I use size 4 (Aran) weight yarn instead of size 5 in your Cuddle and Play Blanket Patterns?

I have a problem with watching supporting videos from Cuddle and Play Elephant Blanket pattern. How do I access them?

I can’t open a tutorial link from your pattern.

I can’t open the pattern file. Do I need to buy special software?

I live in the USA and don’t know what size 7mm hook is and where I can buy it.

In your Cow Blanket Pattern graphghan description, some stitches are underlined. What does it mean?

I bought your cow blanket, and the written pattern is in a form that I’m not familiar with. Can you send me a pattern written in a standard way?

Price was shown in $ on your page but then converted to £ on the checkout page. How can I pay in $?

I bought 3/4/5 patterns and the discount you advertise wasn’t applied, and I paid full price. Can you tell me why?

How to download PDF patterns to my iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch?

I live in the UK, and your pattern states the number of SKEINS I need. In the UK, we have BALLS of yarn. How many UK BALLS of wool do I need?

How to wash blankets from your Cuddle and Play Patterns?

I have problems making an elephant’s head from your Cuddle and Play Blanket. Can you help me?

I’m confused about crochet terms in your pattern, in my version it says ‘dc – double crochet’ but it looks different than double crochet in the photos / you refer to it as sc – single crochet in your videos.

Would you recommend making bobbins for graphghan blanket or is using full skeins/balls easier?

How can I make the blanket bigger?

I got reversed bobbles in my sheep blanket, what have I done wrong?

How to buy a pattern on crochetarcade.co.uk?

Step 1. From my website www.crochetarcade.co.uk pick the pattern you want. Click the ‘Select Options’ button under the product photo, which will lead you to a detailed product description.

Step 2. Scroll down to ‘Add to basket’. This will be impossible to click on until you select one of the options of crochet terms: UK crochet terms or US crochet terms, from the dropdown list directly above the button.

Step 3. Select crochet terms and then click on ‘Add to basket’, which will direct you straight to your basket. If you’d like to add more patterns, choose ‘Continue Shopping’ or click on ‘Crochet Patterns’ from the main menu to go back to the shop page and repeat steps 1 to 3 for the next pattern.

Step 4. Once you added all the patterns and are on the Basket page again, enter any discount codes you have in the space on the bottom left corner of the page (just under the list of products you picked). Click on ‘Apply Coupon’. The discount amount should be taken away from the total if the code was applied correctly.
Note: Discounts will not be applied automatically. You always have to enter the discount code unless the product is on sale, then you’ll see the discounted price on the main shop page with the old price being crossed out. 

Step 5. Click on the ‘Proceed to checkout’ button.

Step 6. On the Checkout page, enter your billing details. Note that the full address doesn’t need to be entered as I don’t post anything to you. This option is only for customers who need an invoice for their business purposes. All optional fields have the word ‘optional’ in the bracket, and mandatory fields have got star (*) symbol next to them.

Step 7. Pick the payment method. PayPal will be pre-selected. If you wish to pay by debit or credit card, select ‘Credit card (Stripe)’ instead.

Step 8. If paying by card, enter your card details on the checkout page and click on ‘Place order.’

Step 9. If paying by PayPal, click on the ‘Proceed to PayPal’ button. Log in to PayPal in the new window and click on ‘log in’. Check if the amount of payment is correct. If you are paying in a different currency than British Pounds (£), which is a default currency in my store, you will now be able to see the exact amount you’ll pay converted to your Countries Currency. Select the method of payment (PayPal balance, card, or bank account that you connected to your PayPal account) and click on the ‘Pay Now’ button. 

Step 10. After the payment is processed (in most cases, it’s instantly), you’ll be redirected back to my website, where you will be able to download the pattern straight away from the links on the page. You can also download the pattern later on from the links in the automated email sent to you from my website or from ‘My account’ if you’ve set one up during the purchase. Note: The checkbox to create an account is pre-selected, so unless you unchecked it, you’ve most probably created an account. If you don’t remember the password, you can reset it anytime. For more help downloading the pattern, see this instruction: https://www.crochetarcade.co.uk/help/#question1

How to download the crochet pattern I purchased from crochetarcade.co.uk?

There are 3 ways to download your pattern:

Option 1. Straight after the purchase on my website.

Option 2. From download links sent to you in an automated email.

Option 3. From ‘My Account’ if you set one up during the checkout.

Option 1. DOWNLOADING PATTERN FROM PAYMENT LANDING PAGE

Step 1. After your payment is completed, PayPal or Stripe website will redirect you back to my website so you can download your patterns straight away. Just click on the download link highlighted in red on the photo below.

Step 2. Save the file to your computer. How to save the file will depend on the web browser you are using and its download settings. If you use Internet Explorer, click either on ‘save‘ or ‘save as‘ on the pop-up at the bottom of the screen. If you click on ‘save‘, the file will be automatically saved to your ‘Downloads‘ folder on your computer. If you choose ‘Save as‘, another window will pop up, and you will be able to choose the folder location you want the file saving to yourself (e.g. Desktop or your folder with patterns, etc.).

Step 3. Click ‘open folder‘ to view the file in your saved location. Or minimise the web browser and open the folder that you saved your file to directly on your computer. Double click on the PDF file to open it in your PDF viewer software which you should already have installed on your computer (the most popular is Adobe Acrobat Reader). Use the pattern by reading from the screen or click on ‘File‘-> ‘Print ‘ to print the pattern out.

OPTION 2. DOWNLOADING PATTER FROM LINK IN THE EMAIL

Step 1. Locate the email that was sent automatically from crochetarcade@gmail.com in your inbox. (See photo below)

If you can’t find the email, try those options:

  • Check your Spam/Junk Mail Folder.
  • Check the ‘Promotions’ tab in Gmail (See the right corner of the photo below).
  • Type my email (crochetarcade@gmail.com) or your order number (it starts with CA- and it will be on your payment confirmation email) in the search box, hit enter on the keyboard to search for the email.
  • Check your other mailboxes. If you have more than one you possibly typed another email address during the checkout.

Still can’t find the email?

If nothing from the above worked, it’s possible that you misspelt your email during the checkout or your e-mail provider completely filtered out the e-mail from this website as spam (often happens with Outlook).

If you purchased the pattern over 30 days ago then your spam folder would have been automatically emptied by your email provider.

If that’s the case please email me and I’ll send you the files manually.

Step 2. Open the email and click on the download link under the ‘Download’ column (highlighted in red on the photo).

Step 3. Save the file to the computer (see step 2 from option 1).

Step 4. Open the file to use (see step 3 from option 1).

OPTION 3. DOWNLOADING PATTERN FROM ‘MY ACCOUNT’

Step 1. Log in to your account.

You can access your downloads anytime from ‘My Account’. This is only possible if you have created an account while making a purchase (rather than checking out as a guest). This option is ticked as default so it’s highly possible that you did set one up. Check if you have an account by going to https://www.crochetarcade.co.uk/my-account/ by typing your email address and the password you would likely use. If you get a notification that the email is ‘unknown’ then you didn’t set up an account during the checkout or you used a different email address. It is also possible that you misspelt your email during the checkout. If that’s the case please contact me and I’ll correct the email address on your account. If you don’t remember the password you can reset it by clicking on the ‘Lost your password?’ link as highlighted below.

Step 2. Click on the ‘Downloads’ tab on the left-hand side panel and then click on the download links highlighted in the photo below.

Follow steps 2 and 3 from option 1 to save and open your downloaded file.

How to download the crochet pattern I bought from your Etsy Shop?

You have purchased the PDF pattern which is an Instant Download via my Etsy store.

HOW TO DOWNLOAD PATTERN ON THE COMPUTER:

Here you will find a detailed step-by-step photo tutorial showing you how to find the download link and save the pattern file that you purchased on Etsy to your computer. <<– Click highlighted link.

HOW TO DOWNLOAD THE PATTERN ON THE PHONE OR TABLET:

If you are downloading the pattern to your iPhone or iPad or other mobile devices please note this CANNOT be done via Etsy App. The pattern CAN be downloaded on a mobile/cell phone but only via logging in to Etsy on your phone’s or iPad’s web browser (like Safari, Chrome, Internet Explorer, etc.). Please see this video instruction showing how to download it to your phone or tablet device here: https://youtu.be/e6kse3hvMRA

How to download the crochet pattern I bought from your Ravelry Store?

You have purchased the PDF pattern which is an Instant Download via my Ravelry store. Here you will find a detailed step-by-step photo tutorial showing you how to find the download link and save the crochet pattern purchased on Ravelry to your computer. <<– Click highlighted link.

Do you allow makers to sell items made from your patterns?

Yes of course! There is no law stopping anyone from selling things made out of materials and resources (like patterns) made by someone else. The only exception is if you were to start manufacturing it on a large scale using the exact look of my design. If you just make it yourself on a small scale, that’s not a problem at all, just please follow those rules:

  • Don’t use my own photos to advertise the things you sell from my patterns, they are my copyrighted property.
  • Don’t use the description from my listings to advertise your items as the wording is also copyrighted. It also has a bad influence on my websites google search ranking.
  • If you would be so kind, I’d much appreciate it if you gave me a credit in your product description for a pattern in this form: ‘Crochet Pattern by Crochet Arcade’.

Do you have a Cuddle and Play Blanket Crochet Pattern for another animal like ………………..?

There are only currently 4 animal designs for those blankets: Sheep, Cow, Pig, and Elephant but I’m going to be working hard this year (2020) to expand the blankets range as well as other designs. If you are interested in receiving an email each time I release a new pattern, please sign up for my newsletter here: https://www.crochetarcade.co.uk/subscribe/

Don’t forget to follow me on my Facebook Page and Instagram to see the progress of designing the patterns and more.

Your designs look complicated. Will I be able to make them if I’m a beginner in crochet?

Most of my designs are an Intermediate Level although they are written with beginners in mind. Each pattern contains very long descriptions of the more complicated parts. All of the tricky techniques are shown on the very good quality photos with arrows etc. The pattern is also interactive, it contains clickable links to external tutorials where I felt the beginner might need it. Certain parts also have supporting videos like making a mouth on the Elephant Blanket.

Before attempting those patterns, you should already know all the basic crochet techniques and rules (read more below).

Which pattern is the easiest? I’d stay if you are a beginner, start with Pig Baby Blanket Crochet Pattern or Sheep Baby Blanket Crochet Pattern or my most recent Monkey Baby Blanket Crochet Pattern as it has 14 supporting videos. 

Because the patterns are very well written, don’t contain errors, and are easy to follow, many beginners have managed to make them with success. Here are some reviews from the beginners:

Julia Magyar (VERIFIED OWNER) – 23rd February 2019 – Cuddle and Play Cow Blanket Review

This was my first amigurumi work. I had no clue how to change colours, how to work in a circle, etc. But with this pattern, I learned all I had to learn about crocheting. It’s the best pattern ever. Don’t be afraid to buy it if you are a beginner! This is the best way to learn to crochet!

Kristin Scott (VERIFIED OWNER) – 17th May 2019 – Cuddle and Play Cow Blanket Review

Loved making this blanket. I am a beginner (this is my first pattern purchase!) and this blanket was a little challenging. (Mainly the body parts.) The instructions got me through it thou. Probably going to try another one of the other animals.

You can read more wonderful reviews here: https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/CrochetArcade?ref=seller-platform-mcnav#reviews

If you are a complete beginner and never crocheted before you should first learn all the basics before buying any of my patterns.

TO LEARN HOW TO FOLLOW A WRITTEN CROCHET PATTERN BY CROCHET ARCADE SEE MY VIDEO ON YOUTUBE HERE: https://youtu.be/EOqgLmXdIHM

I’d recommend buying a good book that explains how to crochet professionally. I learned from Needlecraft Book (Note it teaches UK crochet terms).

Needlecraft book

You can also learn from youtube but please be careful as a lot of videos just showing things done the wrong way. 

Here are my personal recommendations:

If you’d like to learn in UK crochet terms I’d recommend the Bella Coco Youtube channel as she uses both UK and US terms.

If you’d like to learn in US crochet terms I’d recommend also Moogly channel and Anne’s Craft Store.

It’s also crucial for you to learn to use a stitch marker when crocheting in a spiral round: https://youtu.be/0p2X0Yvh_GQ

I don’t have the yarn you used in your pattern can you suggest an alternative yarn I can use?

I’ve prepared the list of alternative yarn for my Cuddle and Play blanket series here: https://www.crochetarcade.co.uk/list-of-yarn-suitable-for-cuddle-and-play-baby-blanket-crochet-patterns/

Please note a lot of shades are now out of stock due to Brexit and Coronavirus.

You can use any other yarn brand as long as the yarn is in the same size (stated in the ‘Materials’ section) and you are achieving similar gauge/tension (stated in the ‘Gauge’ section).

Be careful as yarns can vary a lot in size even if they are classed as the same yarn weight. The yarn size is a range of yarn thicknesses and not just 1 exact size. That’s why it’s best to check if this yarn will have the same weight to length ratio (same number of meters in 100g ball).

For example:

King Cole yarn I used in my blanket patterns is size 5 yarn, and it comes in 100 g / 106 m skeins. You have found another yarn that you want to use instead, which is also size 5, and in this example, it’s Red Heart Super Saver Chunky which comes as 141 g/ 156m skeins. Do simple math to calculate how many meters are in 100 g of Red heart yarn by doing this calculation:

141 g = 156 m

100 g = ?

100 g x 156 m /141 g = 110 meters.

So Red Heart Super Saver Chunky has 110 meters in each 100 gram of the yarn. King Cole was 100g / 106 m which is a very close match, and you can use it for this project.

There is a great website that does search the yarn substitutes for you (yarnsub.com) and I always add the link to it in my materials section too. Click the link and see the long list of yarn substitutes there.

Can I use size 4 (Aran) weight yarn instead of size 5, in your Cuddle and Play Blanket Patterns?

Using size 4 yarn will result in a much smaller blanket so this is not advised. If you don’t want to spend money on more yarn because you have a lot in your stash, you could try using 2 strands of Double Knitting (DK) size yarn instead. But please do check if the trial swatch that you did has the same gauge/tension as mine.

Note: I wouldn’t recommend using 2 strands of yarn in the Cuddle and Play Cow Blanket Pattern. This is due to the fact that it’s a graphghan and you work with 5 skeins/bobbins at one time, swapping them over at each round. If you used 2 strands of thinner yarn, it would mean you would have to ‘joggle’ 10 skeins/bobbins at each round, which could be frustrating. Unless you own a ball winder and you will wound the 2 strands into one ball of yarn before starting the project.

I have a problem with watching supporting videos from Cuddle and Play Elephant Blanket pattern. How do I access them?

When you click on the link to the tutorial, you need to enter the password on the Vimeo page it will direct you to. The password to watch the videos is typed in red font, on page 3, in the ‘Links to Video Tutorials‘ section.

I can’t open a tutorial link from your pattern.

Most of the time it’s enough to just click on the link for it to take you to the source but depending on your settings, sometimes Adobe Acrobat Reader or other software you use to open your PDFs may prompt you with a question if you trust the source of this link as it could lead you to a place with viruses. I only add links to reputable sites in my patterns so it’s safe for you to click on them, so all you need to do is choose the ‘Allow’ button on the pop-up window.

I can’t open the pattern file, do I need to buy special software?

My patterns come as PDFs. To open any PDF (Portable Document Format) file you will need PDF reader software. There are free and paid PDF readers out there. The most popular is Adobe Acrobat Reader which you can download here: https://get.adobe.com/uk/reader/ (For free software choose the middle option rather than free trial of the paid version).

I live in the USA and don’t know what size 7mm hook is and where I can buy it.

This is explained in the actual pattern (Cow blanket pattern only) on page 4, bullet point 7.

In your Cow Blanket Pattern graphghan description some stitches are underlined. What does it mean?

This is explained on page 3, bullet point 4.

I bought your cow blanket and the written pattern is in a form that I’m not familiar with. Can you send me a pattern written in a standard way?

This is due to the fact that it is a graphghan blanket and not a standard blanket. Why the graphghan patterns are written like this, is explained in your pattern (point 4 on page 4).

Price was shown in $ on your page but then converted to £ on the checkout page, how can I pay in $?

The price will convert to Pounds (£) when you proceed to Checkout because the US Dollar price is estimated and for your information only. I only accept the payments in my own currency (British Pounds) as this is where I’m based and it makes my bookkeeping more straightforward. This doesn’t stop you from buying my pattern though. PayPal will take the correct amount of Dollars from your PayPal account, convert them and send them to me in Pounds (£). You will be able to see the final price converted to US Dollars using PayPal’s exchange rates on the last screen before you’ll have to click the final ‘pay now’ button. It happens the same way when you pay on Ravelry or Etsy, they may show the price in your currency but the payment gets converted at the checkout to seller’s currency which they will be paid in.

I bought 3/4/5 patterns and the discount you advertise wasn’t applied and I paid full price. Can you tell me why?

Unfortunately, the discount is not applied automatically. On the banner there is a button that says ‘get discount codes’ which leads you to the page with the discount codes that you need to enter at the checkout: https://www.crochetarcade.co.uk/new-offer-on-my-patterns/ 

I’m sorry if this is confusing but my website doesn’t have an option for applying the discounts automatically. I can manually refund you the discount amount if you wish. If you would like a refund of the discount amount please send me an email to crochetarcade@gmail.com with your request.

How to download PDF pattern to my iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch?

You can do that by saving it to your Books app. Here is a written step by step instruction from Apple on how to do this: https://support.apple.com/en-gb/HT205751

You can also save it to your storage apps like Dropbox or iCloud. You can then access the file from any other device with access to your storage account.

I live in the UK and your pattern states the number of SKEINS I need, in the UK we have BALLS of yarn, how many UK BALLS of wool do I need?

Calling a yarn skein or a ball (or a hank, cake, donut, cone) doesn’t have anything to do with the amount of yarn you will need for a project. It simply is a description of the shape that the yarn is sold in.

1 SKEIN = 1 BALL

You ONLY have to look at how many yards or meters you need for a project and not the number of balls/skeins as different brand yarns sell the yarn in different size balls/skeins. 

Example. The pattern states you need 630 meters of colour A. You know from the label that 1 ball/skein of the recommended yarn contains 106 meters of yarn in the 100g skein.

Divide 630 meters by 106 meters to calculate how many balls/skeins you’ll need. In this example it’s 5.94 balls/skeins, meaning you need to buy 6 and you’ll have a small leftover yarn left.

Thinking that the ball is a different ‘amount’ than skein is one of the biggest misconceptions of crocheters and knitters in the UK. For some reason the yarn sold in shops is always referred to as a ‘ball of wool’. Most of the time neither of those are correct for a particular yarn type or shape, for example, yarn that is a cotton fibre (not wool fiber) that is wound into a skein (not a ball shape).

Yarn can be sold in different shapes (see table below). You can buy yarn in a skein shape and wind it into a ball shape yourself if you prefer to use balls but this doesn’t change the amount of yarn you need for the project. 

  

How to wash blankets from your Cuddle and Play Patterns?

How to wash the blanket depends on which yarn type you’ve used. There will be different care instructions for wool and different for acrylic so you need to follow the instruction that you’ll find on the yarn label.

For detailed instruction on how to wash crochet blanket in a washing machine and by hand please read this article: https://www.wikihow.com/Wash-a-Crocheted-Blanket

The above article also tells you how to dry the items including using a Dryer. This can also help remove or minimise yarn shedding issues as explained in this post: https://www.thesprucecrafts.com/how-do-i-stop-yarn-shedding-2117235

If the stuffing in the amigurumi parts (head and legs) will be misplaced after washing, simply remold it to the correct shape with your hands.

I have problems making an elephant’s head from your Cuddle and Play Blanket, can you help me?

Sorry to hear you are struggling with the elephant. It’s not the easiest shape and it requires a lot more focus and concentration not to make any mistakes than other patterns. Even small errors that you made in previous rounds can make the shape and placement of everything incorrect. This article will help you troubleshoot what could have gone wrong.

Check each of those possible causes:

  1. NOT USING STITCH MARKERS (OR NOT USING THEM CORRECTLY) – When crocheting in a spiral round it is necessary to use a stitch marker to mark either the end or the beginning of each round. Because with this technique it is impossible to see where each row starts or ends. If you don’t know where the row starts and ends and you will get distracted when making the row, you will not know which part of the row you’ve done so far if you don’t have a marker on the end of the row. This means you can re-start the row at the wrong point and make the wrong amount of stitches. If you are not familiar with how to use stitch markers when crocheting in a spiral round, you might find this video helpful: https://youtu.be/0p2X0Yvh_GQ
  2. NOT COUNTING STITCHES ON THE END OF THE ROUND – To make this pattern with success, you need to use stitch markers correctly and count stitches on the end of each round and compare them to the amount at the end of the bracket to see if you have done the correct amount stitches. Once you’ve checked that you didn’t make any mistakes and the amount of sts is the same as the one in the bracket, only then you can then move to another round. If you can’t figure out the mistake and your stitches don’t add up to the same amount as stated in the pattern, undo the whole row and double-check if the amount of stitch in the previous round was correct before making the next row again.

Example: After Round 12 check if you have 21 stitches from the start of the row to the end of the row. After Round 13 check if you have 21 stitches. After round 14 check if you have made in total 22 stitches.

 

3.  CROCHETING ON THE WRONG SIDE (WS) OUT / SWITCHING FROM WS TO RS AFTER ATTACHING LIPS AND TUSK – When crocheting in a round you will have a Right Side (RS) and Wrong Side (WS) that look different from each other. A lot of people are unknowingly crocheting on the WS out. This will cause the trunk end to look different as the ridge made by crocheting BPsc in round 3 will be hidden on the inside of the trunk rather than outside. Also, make sure you didn’t switch to crocheting on the WS out instead then the RS (or the other way round) partway down the head. You could have started by crocheting on the WS and then after seeing my video of attaching the tusk and the lip, and the way I crochet on the RS out, you could have continued the rest of the head on the RS. Before you attach the tusks and lip make sure to flip your work to RS so everything works out correctly.

Examine the photo below to see what is the difference between WS and RS:

 

Read those great tips from one of my customers who posted them in our Customer only group: 

“Second elephant completed!
After two of them, a failed head and a practice head this is what I would tell myself at the beginning:
1) write out the instructions stitch by stitch, especially where it says repeat so many times. It is so easy to loose count.
2) tick off each competed stitch, it is so easy to forget where you are!
3) use a stitch marker
4) count the number of stitches you have at the end of each row, EVEN if you think you have done it right.
5) DO NOT move the stitch counter up until you are 200% sure the row below is correct.
6) If you have to stop mid row mark clearly where you have got to on the pattern!
7) don’t let anyone stop you mid row!!!”
 

I hope with applying all those tips, you will be able to finish the elephant’s head successfully. If you still have problems please don’t hesitate to contact me by email at support@crochetarcade.co.uk. Sending the photos of your work with your message would help me better assess what went wrong.

I’m confused about crochet terms in your pattern, in my version it says ‘dc – double crochet’ but it looks different than double crochet in the photos / you refer to it as sc – single crochet in your videos.

I suspect you bought the pattern in the UK crochet terms but you have learned crochet using the US crochet terms.

In UK terms what’s referred to as ‘double crochet’ is the same stitch as ‘single crochet’ in US terms.

It’s basically the same stitch which is made like this: Insert the hook in the stitch, yarn over, pull up a loop, yarn over again and pull through 2 loops on your hook. Here is the video showing the stitch you should be making (video by Bella Coco from the UK): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=80YEYnyw11w

This short stitch is called ‘dc’ in the UK and in the US it’s called ‘sc’. The terms’ sc’ does not exist in UK terms at all. The most confusing thing is that term ‘dc’ exists in both UK and US terms but describes 2 different sts.

The stitch when you make: yarn over, insert the hook in the stitch, yarn over, pull up a loop, yo again, pull through 2 loops on our hook, yo again pull through last 2 loops on your hook, is called Double Crochet in the US terms and Treble Crochet in UK terms. (See the video here: https://youtu.be/rSUqMV_7GdU)

It looks like you are confusing UK’s double crochet with the US’s double crochet which are 2 different sts. On the Internet, you’ll find various charts showing conversions between those terms: https://www.google.com/search?q=uk%20to%20us%20crochet%20terms&sxsrf=ALeKk01hBuXgac28oiXPNcmB7lnV_Pt3DQ%3A1611928991135&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjrlq23p8HuAhXTh1wKHX1PAFgQ_AUoAXoECBUQAw&biw=1707&bih=838&dpr=1.13&fbclid=IwAR2-h98sYmCGd6YKsl6tY6tU_wD0ywo44-p_EomMczvOTuG1NjB-wDs7IOk#imgrc=jmMpDB8e32pmGM

Toys/amigurumi in crochet are only ever made with one stitch, the shortest one of all that you DO NOT do a yarn over first, just insert the hook straight in the stitch without yarn over (UK dc and US sc).

You never make amigurumi with ‘dc’ (US terms) / ‘tr’ (UK terms) as this stitch is just too long and the gaps between the stitches are too big so the stuffing inside could be picked out by a child easily.

If you are only familiar with US crochet terms because you’ve learnt to crochet from YouTube from someone in the USA, you should be buying the US crochet terms version regardless of where you live. If you will find using US crochet terms less confusing I can send you the US version, just please email me with this request to support@crochetarcade.co.uk

Would you recommend making bobbins for graphghan blanket or is using full skeins/balls easier?

I think it’s an individual choice if you want to use the bobbins or not. Personally, I don’t see the point of making bobbins. They take up extra time to prepare, will roll about everywhere, and will create more joints and ends to weave in.

I simply work from full skeins/ball and pull out the yarn from the middle, so it stays in place and doesn’t roll about everywhere. I then work from this skein until it finishes or until the spot ends. The fact is that the yarn can get more tangled than if using bobbins at times. Especially when you get to the end of the skein when it usually falls apart, at that point, you could untangle it and roll it into a small bobbin if you want to.

How can I make the blanket bigger?

I came up with three potential ways to make the blanket bigger. (note that I haven’t tried any of them myself, and I don’t guarantee the result):

  • double the blanket size (it would make more of adult size): to make a double-width, do everything times 2 (double the sides, then double the middle). For longer length, double the number of rows as well. For a bigger head, legs, ears and tail, use 2 or 3 strands of yarn.
  • use the same pattern with very bulky yarn like Bernat Blanket Big, and you don’t need to adjust the pattern at all.
  • use the same pattern and yarn but add 1/3 of the blanket’s length to the total length (for cow blanket, you could improvise the pattern for the cow’s spots or use a repeat from somewhere in the middle). Then just fold the blanket in half and then in half again (rather than in 3 parts as the standard one). All should then be the same, but the body will be thicker when folded, which I think will be beneficial as it will be fuller.

I got reversed bobbles in my sheep blanket, what have I done wrong?

This should definitely not be happening, but if it is, here could be few possible causes:

  • the working loop on the hook was too loose before making the bobble. Always pull on the working yarn to tighten the loop before starting to make a stitch. This way, the bobble will pop out and stay that way
  • the working loop on the hook was also too stretched/loose when making the next dc (in UK terms) or sc (in US term). The role of that dc stitch between bobbles is to bring the bobble down a bit so it will stay popped on one side of the blanket. It might be worth watching my bobble video tutorial: https://www.crochetarcade.co.uk/bobble-stitch-blanket-free-crochet-pattern/
  • making US dc stitch (UK treble) instead of UK dc stitch.