Crochet African Flowers Tutorial (part 1)

I promised that I would post a tutorial showing how to crochet an African Flowers Blanket and I thought this Handmade Monday would be the ideal opportunity.  The blanket pictured below is very special to me as I made it last month for an 80th birthday present for my Nana who lives on the other side of the world.  Connections like that can mean a lot I find. Also this is one of my favourite patterns to crochet.

I would also like to emphasise that the flower itself is not my design, it is based on one published many years ago but the where and by whom seems to have been lost to time and arguments.  There are minor changes from other versions I've seen on the net, but that's because I played with them to see what looked best to me with the yarn I was using and the look I was going for.

I like pictures when I'm trying to unravel (pun accidental but left in deliberately) a new pattern so there are more than most people will need, mainly because you never know which bit you'll need to see rather than just read about.

For anyone who read my last post, the stitches are written in American see this post for an explanation.  Also I used a 3 mm hook with an 8 ply yarn, 50% micro acrylic, 50% micro nylon (chosen purely for how soft it felt against my cheek).   The recommended hook size for the yarn is 4 mm but I wanted a denser flower for a nice warm blanket.  Use 4 mm or bigger for a lacier flower.

Step 1 - Assemble the necessary materials.  Hook, yarn, cup of tea.... and not shown in this picture it's useful to have a pair of scissors and a yarn needle handy.

Step 2 - Chain 6 stitchs.  Join with a slip stitch into the first stitch to form a ring.

Step 3 - Chain 3 stitchs.  Double crochet into the circle.  Chain stitch.  *2 double crochets into the ring followed by a chain stitch.  Repeat from * 4 times.  This should give you a total of 12 double crochets into the ring, each pair separated by a chain stitch.

Step 4 - Slip stitch into the third of the chain 3.  Fasten off.

Step 5 - Select a new colour.  Join into any of the chain spaces with a slip stitch (pics are same just near and far).



Step 6 - Chain 3 (the reason for the chain threes is to get the round of stitches to the right height otherwise it would pull down)

Step 7 - Double crochet into the same chain space, 2 chain stitches and 2 more double crochets into the same chain space.  (That's a total of four double crochets into the same chain space.)

Step 8 - *1 chain stitch.  2 double crochets into the next chain space.  2 chain stitchs, 2 double crochets into the same chain space.

Step 9 - Repeat from * four times, until you have four double crochets, seperated by two chain stitchs in each chain space.  Join with a slip stitch into to the third of the 3 chain stitchs.

Step 10 - 2 slip stitchs into next chain space. 3 chain stitchs. 

Step 11 - 6 double crochets into same chain space. 1 chain stitch.

Step 12 - *7 double crochets into the next chain space. 1 chain Stitch. 

Step 13 - Join to third of 3 chain stitchs with a slip stitch.

Step 14 - Select a new colour yarn.  Join to any of the double crochets with a slip stitich.

Step 15 - Single crochet into the next double crochet.

Step 16 - Single crochet in all double crochets to the next chain space.

Step 17 - Single crochet into the chain space but pull the yarn through the row below.  Don't worry it's quite intuitve when you're there.

Step 18 - Continue round the flower in single crochet.  Slip stitch to join to the first single crochet.

Step 19 - Sew in all the loose ends to make it nice and neat.  Do this now or you'll have a lot of loose ends at the end!

This really is a lovely granny square (hexagon) to crochet.  Part 2 of the tutorial will show how to flat join them together into a blanket with no back or front so that it resembles the pictures at the top of the post.

Any questions just leave a comment!

Hope you enjoy as much as I do.

ClairLou