http://poppalina.typepad.com/my_weblog/2007/05/quilt_reprise.html
All very fine - looks great, right?
But when I crochet a few rows (see attached .jpg of section), it looks NOTHING LIKE her version: it’s all open-weave, so to speak.
Can anyone tell me how come hers is tightly woven, please?
WOT am I doing wrong?
Within that URL is a link to the actual pattern, as seen in the screengrab attached.
Interestingly, to my way of thinking, neither example resembles the pattern…
Margie, her photos are taken at a greater distance than yours, so it is possible that accounts for the difference.
It is also possible that she crochets much tighter…
Beautiful pattern stitch, BTW.
Since everyone crochets at different tensions, it’s probably like Charlotte said, the original crocheter works her stitches tighter than you do.
If you don’t like the look of your stitches (which by the way, are very lovely), I suggest using a smaller size crochet hook. Try doing a test swatch with a hook that is one, two, and even three sizes smaller than what you’re currently using.
This will make your crochet stitches much tighter, and you may be happier with the finished product.
Good luck!!
That is a lovely pattern and it looks great in multiple colors. The difference between yours and the example is definitely your tension, as others have mentioned. You can try a smaller hook with the yarn you are using, or if you have other yarn or can purchase other yarn, then try a thicker yarn like worsted or chunky and see if that makes your stitches look more like the example.
I also love the border she put on her piece…very scrappy and pretty!
MGM
Another option for you may be to change the pattern repeat to 10 sts instead of 11. Play around with this repeat: sc, ch 3, sc, ch 1, ch 3, sc, etc. Work the tr2togs into the ch 1 loop. That should make the center of your shells tighter. You might also want to play around with tr2tog, ch1 to tighten the shells themselves up.
Just a couple of thoughts since I slept on it.
Good luck, and if you play around with the stitch counts do let us know if it worked for you! Crossed Fingers
Thank-you all very much, ladies!
To achieve what you see I’m using a 1.75 steel hook and 4-ply cotton (from Bendigo Woollen Mills): I couldn’t use a smaller hook with that yarn.
I’ll experiment with that substitute sizing suggested, and see how I go.
But, to be brutally honest, I simply can’t see how that pattern (see little screengrab to show where the link is to check it) can possibly, under ANY circumstances, turn out to look like the photos.
Margie, try the change to ch 1 that i recommended earlier for the center of the shells in a sample piece, and also the tr2tog,ch 1. I get that you can’t go any smaller on your hook, but the pattern changes may make all the difference in the world.
I never got making gauge swatches until I started knitting, but if you try the pattern change it may well fix this situation.
Best of luck to you! 
I just looked at the pattern PDF. The photos there have the larger centers, like your photo does. She clearly changed something when she made her grand project!
It looks to me like you’ll need to do some detective work to achieve the exact result she did…
DCM
I will get around to doing that, Charlotte - thanks very much. But I’m actually forging ahead with my mat (yes, that’s what I’m making, would you believe?) with its open-weave look. I would’ve preferred for it [B]not[/B] to be like that; but the fact is I need to have it available to cover several places on my bedroom carpet where, when I swapped the bedroom with the office, there are some strips of the original beige carpet showing through the current chocolate…
And DCM, thank-you for confirming my strongly-held suspicion that in the .pdf of the pattern, the stitches shown simply cannot result in the accompanying photos.
I’m sure your mat will work out quite beautifully for what you want it to do! Crochet always works it’s magic one way or the other.
And I’m really looking forward to seeing how this bit of magic turns out…
And DCM, thank-you for confirming my strongly-held suspicion that in the .pdf of the pattern, the stitches shown simply cannot result in the accompanying photos.
The pdf looks like it’s a scanned copy from one of the older stitch pattern books so the designer of the blanket may not be the stitch designer. Be that as it may, the designer of the blanket may have done any number of things differently…
I thought I should let you all know, in case you were wondering vaguely why I hadn’t, that I did send an email to ‘Poppalina’ - who is, totally coincidentally, also an Aussie…
Unhappily, she didn’t see fit to reply to my question about this pattern. Which only serves to make me EXTREMELY suspicious about its being kosher…
http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_yC9ySJTXW3I/SFmvJ9s1A8I/AAAAAAAAAko/ArO62RZrkBw/s1600-h/RoundShell7DC.jpg
I believe I’ve found the correct pattern - far too late for this project, but at least it does satisfy the detective urge (thanks, DCM!).
Congrats!
DCM