Interlocking Crochet Squares

 

It’s January and the gloomy, blustery British weather is doing its very best to induce hibernation. It is definitely a time of year for sitting by the fire with a new challenge to stimulate the mind. As part of my blogging journey I am really hoping to challenge myself to learn some new skills. A page in the back of my one of my crochet books gave some basic instructions for interlocking crochet and I just had to give it a try.

I am a fan of wintery colours. I love the subtlety of silvery greys and soft, murky greens. I may well surprise you with some warm, bright colours one day but for now I will stick with the winter palette.

 

A quick google search informed me that Tanis Galik is the authority on the subject and has developed a formidable range of interlocking crochet stitches. A combination of the written instructions in The Complete Photo Guide to Crochet by Margaret Hubert (my first crochet book and one I go back to again and again) and the YouTube tutorial on Tanis’s website Interlocking Crochet , and with only a small amount of frogging and an occasional sprinkling of bad language, I managed a sample square.

This is the basic stitch pattern and my first attempt shown here in Sublime Tweed Wild at Heart (limey green) and Down to Earth (dark purplish grey).

It is a bit tricky to get your head around but essentially you are crocheting two independent squares of filet that are woven together as you go along. It does become clear as the pattern emerges and it is hugely satisfying when the penny drops. There is fine line, however, with this stitch between pleasingly retro and something your grandma would have worn as a waistcoat or made into a tea cosy. I really like the lime green/grey colours but I also tried it in green and pink cashmerino and it looked really quite horrible. I am not even going to show you a picture!

The fabric created is quite dense making it suitable for things like bags and afghans (and tea cosies). I have been meaning to make a bag for myself for some time so this may well be the excuse I have been looking for. It is also reversible which makes it great for blankets. Clever isn’t it?

Tanis Galik’s book arrived just as I was getting comfortable with the basic squares pattern. It is a comprehensive book with very many interesting patterns but I just found it impossible to follow the instructions. I am famously rubbish at following written patterns, I much prefer using diagrams and/or making it up from looking at the pictures, so it may just be me. The projects in the book are also not really my cup of tea although they appear to be very well executed and technically challenging. I will be using it as a reference, however, and I might even figure out how to do read of the patterns.

My next challenge…the starry sky interlocking crochet stitch pattern.