Thursday, June 25, 2009
Formula for Making Cable Baby Blanket


I used the instructions this link to learn how to make crocheted cables. Since I’m not fond of joining squares, I decided to make a cabled baby blanket that wouldn’t require any joining.


The linked pattern for cabled afghan squares is a copyrighted pattern. If you’ve never worked cables before, practice using this pattern for afghan squares (I was very confused with the first one that I made, but by the time I completed my second cabled square, I had figured out how to make the cables). Once you’re comfortable with cables, it will be easy to work them into many patterns.


I added a FPDC immediately before and after each cable to help define the cable pattern and make it more pronounced.


Below is the “formula” that I used to make a baby blanket with 5 cables.


Using Worsted Weight Yarn and an H hook:

Chain 61


Row 1: sc in second chain from hook, and all the way across (60 sc)


Row 2: chain 2 (counts as first hdc), hdc in next 4 stitches, * FPDC in next stitch, follow cable instructions over next 4 stitches, FPDC in next stitch, hdc in next 5 stitches*. Repeat pattern between ** 4 times.


Row 3: Chain 2 (counts as first hdc), hdc in next 4 stitches, *BPDC in next stitch, follow cable instructions over next 4 stitches, BPDC in next stitch, hdc in next 5 stitches. Repeat pattern between ** 4 times.


Row 4: chain 2 (counts as first hdc), hdc in next 4 stitches, * FPDC in next stitch, follow cable instructions over next 4 stitches (this is the “twisted” row, FPDC in next stitch, hdc in next 5 stitches*. Repeat pattern between ** 4 times.


Row 5: Chain 2 (counts as first hdc), hdc in next 4 stitches, *BPDC in next stitch, follow cable instructions over next 4 stitches, BPDC in next stitch, hdc in next 5 stitches. Repeat pattern between ** 4 times.

Continue this basic formula for a total of 52 rows.


Row 53: chain 1, sc across. Finish off.


The basic formula for this blanket is:

5 hdc – 1 fpdc – cable – 1 fbdc – 5hdc


I made 5 cables across on this blanket. It is small – approx 18” x 24”.


You can easily adapt this pattern to any size you like. Your starting chain should be a multiple of 11 plus 6 stitches. (I wanted 5 cables, so my starting chain was 55+6=61 stitches). Continue working until you achieve the length you want.



56 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said...

thanks for sharing this. It is beautiful. I tried cables once in a dish cloth but it came out wrong (had a slant to the whole piece) so maybe I'll try this and see how it goes.

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Wow crocheted cables. That's great! I knit a little but I am a much better and faster crocheter. I'll have to try this. Thanks for sharing.
Welshknitter

Blogger Laura said...

This is a very nice blanket. Is it made with a regular worsted weight yarn? Or is it made with a thicker yarn? Cause it looks so plush in the pictures. I would love to do it in a Aran yarn. Thank you again for a most marvelous pattern.

Laura in Virginia

Blogger Wormie said...

Thanks, Laura!
I'm so glad that you like the pattern. I used an inexpensive afghan yarn for this. You should be able to use any weight yarn that you choose as long as you use the hook size that the yarn calls for. If you make one, send me a photo! I'd love to see.

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hello,

Your blanket came out exquisitely.

Congratulations!

Blogger Christine said...

I am one of the Editors for the crafting and DIY website FaveCrafts.com and our blog FaveCraftsBlog.com. We offer hundreds of free craft projects, tutorials, home décor ideas and more in every area of crafting.

I came across your blog and I thought this crochet cable would fit nicely with our site. I would like to invite you to contribute this craft. All the details of your authorship are preserved and you can include a link back to your blog or Etsy shop as a traffic bonus for you. We love to feature fresh voices on our website constantly and nurture such a vibrant, creative community of crafters.

In addition to publishing Guest Features at our website (with over 1 million page views every day) and blog, we promote these items in our bi-weekly newsletter, which currently has over 250,000 email subscribers.


If you are not interested in contributing to our website or blog, we hope you will consider a reciprocal link with FaveCrafts.com. We wish to develop a quality network of crafters and crafting writers for all our readers.

Thank you for your consideration,
Christine
Editor
www.FaveCrafts.com
www.FaveCraftsBlog.com

Blogger Wormie said...

Hi Christine,
Thanks for your message. Please e-mail me at wormswords at gmail dot com.

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hello, I found your pattern and I absolutely love it; however I am having a lot of trouble reading the pattern. When you say follow cable instructions are we to refer to the link. That is where I get confused. I am somewhat of a beginner to crocheting. Hoping you can help me.
Confused in New Jersey...

Blogger Wormie said...

Hi New Jersey!
Yes, where it says to follow the cable instructions, you want to follow the instructions in the link. That will tell you how to make a basic cable.

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hello and thanks for sharing such a beautiful technique/pattern for cables!

Your blanket came out beautiful.

Did anyone else test the cable pattern in the link you suggested? The reason I'm asking is I recently tried a cable technique online(if interested let me know and I'll search for the link).

Well, it came out pretty good, but, not 'exactly' like the cable on the pattern.

So I was just wondering is all, if anyone else tried this pattern and found it a feasible and understandable pattern to follow? I don't mind frogging a few times, but, one can only frog so many times before you just call it quits, for me anyway.

Thanks for reading this.

Crocheting Mom

Blogger Wormie said...

Hi Crocheting Mom. Thanks for your comment!
The basic instructions for making the cables weren't mine - I got them from the link provided, and I was able to make the cables. What I provided here was my formula for using that technique to make the blanket shown. So, I guess I tested it and it works, but it's a bit tricky at first. Good luck with it!

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hello Wormie,

Your welcome, and thanks for your reply.

I guess I will just be a little more patient with these cable patterns and just do swatches every now and then, it should come to me like that, usually does anyway, has with other patterns.

Thanks again for your reply and here is the link for the "Crochet Cable Cover" for a hot water bottle holder if you are interested. The cable is really beautiful.

http://web.me.com/wpetercroft/LucyLus_Ravelry_Shop/Crochet_Cable_Cover.html

Crocheting Mom

Anonymous anne said...

please email me what the abbriations mean.beginner,
thanks anne
annestride@embarqmail.com

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hello Wormie,

Just an update. I have finally Thank God, aced the cables pattern. Yay!!!!

It took a few tries and by the third or maybe fourth try I was about to give up. I am SO HAPPY I persevered! Thank you again for your help before.

Kind regards,

Crocheting Mom

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi, I am new to this and the blanket looks great but I am not sure of all the abbreviations that are used, is there somewhere I can go to see the different stitches to match the abbreviations? Thanks

Blogger Wormie said...

There is a stitch guide on line that will give you the abbreviations and show you the instructions for the stitches. I hope this helps. You can find it here:
http://www.dmc-usa.com/majic/pageServer/1t010000iv/en_US/Crochet-Stitch-Guide.html

Blogger Unknown said...

I love the looks of this blanket and would like to try it but as I look over the pattern I am totally drawing a blank. What is "FPDC" and "BPDC"? Thank you for your help and the beautiful blanket pattern. Dian in Akron, Oh

Blogger Wormie said...

Hi Dian,

FPDC is a front-post double crochet
BPDC is a back-post double crochet
If you aren't familiar with these stitches, do a search for them on You Tube. There are several video instructions there that will help you. Good luck!!

Wormie

Anonymous Erma said...

Hi, I'm not sure about your pattern, when it says follow cable instructions where are the instructions?

Blogger Wormie said...

Erma, the cable instructions are listed in the first line of the post under "this link".
Let me know if you have trouble finding it.

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Thank you for your help, now I will try making the baby blanket
Erma

Anonymous janet said...

want to know what the letters mean and what they stand for when you are doing a pattern thanks

Blogger Wormie said...

Hi Janet, The stitches used in this pattern are:
hdc = half double croceht
fpdc = front post double crochet
bpdc = back post double crochet

You can look at the link below for a full list of stitch abbreviations and for instructions on how to do many crochet stitches.

http://www.anniesattic.com/crochet/content.html?type_id=S

Hope that helps!

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi there!

Do you turn after the chain 2 on row 2 and following rows?

Thanks!

Blogger Wormie said...

Yes, this pattern is worked in rows, so do turn your work at the end of each row.

Thanks for your question!

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Help! Is it possible to tell me how to "follow cable instructions over next 4 stitches?" I really need to know exactly how many and what stitches do I use. I know how to crochet FPDC and BPDC. I just recently picked up crocheting after so many years of not crocheting.

My six year old great-nephew saw this pattern and asked if I could make him a blanket. He is a type 1 diabetic and I would like to make this pattern for him.

Thanks!

Blogger Wormie said...

The cable instructions themselves are not my own pattern. They can be found here:
http://crochet.about.com/library/weekly/aa042603.htm

Read these instructions and practice before trying the full blanket. If you still have trouble, e-mail me at wormswords at gmail dot com and I'll try and help you get it figured out.

Good luck!

Blogger sharon said...

This looks wonderful, but you didn't say how many skeins to buy to make this blanket. I am just a beginner and have no idea how many to get if I was to make this blanket in baby soft yarn.

Blogger Wormie said...

Hi Sharon. The size of the blanket dictate how much yarn that you need. I've made these in several sizes. I used A Pound of Love yarn for this, and that was way more than you'll need for one blanket. If you were using baby yarn you would probably need 2 skeins, but I would probably buy 3 to be sure.

Anonymous Anonymous said...

sorry i cant seem to find the actual cable pattern for those 4 stitches.linda

Blogger Wormie said...

Hi Linda,
The cable pattern is here:
http://crochet.about.com/library/weekly/aa042603.htm

Anonymous Anonymous said...

i ama bit confused too...how can 5 rows turn into 4 stitches?

thanks sam

Blogger Wormie said...

Hi Sam,
I'm sorry, but I don't understand your questions. If you tell me exactly which part of the pattern is confusing you, I can try to answer.

Anonymous Anonymous said...

I would love to make this blanket, but I am also confused when I go to the link. What are the instructions for the four stitch cable? The instrucions have many rows for the pattern..

Blogger Wormie said...

I'm sorry you're having trouble with the cable pattern. I did too at first. That's why I suggest that you practice with the linked square pattern first. To make the cable, you do a series of 4front or back post stitches, but you have to do them for 4 rows to create the cable. Try making the square and comment again if you still have problems. I'm on my way out, but I'll try and explain more later.

Blogger moonbeam said...

I cannot wait to try this! Thank you for the lovely pattern. Never mastered knitting and was jealous of the cables and other things knitters coutld do. It's going to be a challenge, and I am looking forward to the reward! Thank you again

Blogger Wormie said...

good luck, Moonbeam. When I first tried cables, it took a little practice to see where to make the stitches on the backside, but once you get it, it's so easy.

Blogger Sheri said...

I am still confused by the link for making the cables. I have a very hard time understanding patterns. So will i do a total of six FPDC when making the cable? Could you please explain a little easier for me.

Blogger Sheri said...

I don't understand the lilnk, when you say 5hdc, fpdc, cable, fpdc, 5hdc. Do you mean that there will be a total of 6 fpdc that make up the cable?

Blogger Wormie said...

Hi Sheri,
I'm sorry you're still having trouble. It's difficult at first to figure this out, and then eventually it just clicks. Again - I learned by practicing the cable at this link:
http://crochet.about.com/library/weekly/aa042603.htm

The cable itself is made up of 4 stitches, but the pattern is created over 4 rows. In my pattern I do hdc up and then a hpdc up to the pattern, but then the basic 4-stitch cable is in the middle.

for the first row of a cable you do 4 fpdc.

on the return row (when you work the back side) you do 4 bpdc. This creates 4 raised stitches on the front side of the pattern.

For the third row you are back on the front side. When you get to those 4 stitches you skip the first two working your stitches in the 3rd, 4th then 1st and 2nd stitches in the previous row. This creates the twisted look in the cable.

Then for the 4th row you are on the back side. You work the 4 stitches in order, but since you twisted them on the previous row, it looks a little wonky and takes some practice.

My best suggestion for you it to hold off on my pattern and to simply practice with the square pattern provided by Sandi Marshall in the link provided. Stick with it and you'll get it.

Good luck!

Blogger kathy said...

Hi, How much yarn does it take to make the size given in this pattern? I looked all over and can not find the amount needed. Kathy

Blogger Wormie said...

Hi Kathy! That's a good question and one that I should have the answer to, but I don't! All I can say is that I used a Pound of Yarn to make this, and it used probably less than half the skein. I'll have to make it again and pay closer attention. Since I make these in different sizes, I didn't note how much I used, but it is an important piece of info that I should include in a pattern. Sorry.

Blogger Chris said...

The pattern size says 18 x 24. Can I assume you mean 18 wide & 24 long?

Blogger Wormie said...

Yes, Chris, that is correct. Though it is very easy to add more cables or more stitches in between the cables to make the blanket wider, and make it as long as you choose.

Anonymous Renee said...

Love this Pattern,thinking about giving it a try. Simple Beautiful.

Anonymous Bre said...

Looks like this post was from a couple of years ago, but since I just saw it, maybe this will be of help to come of us that haven't learned the cable stitch yet. Here's a link to a yourube video that show the same cable this pattern seems to call for. I love watching on youtube & instructions are clearer than just in writing. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x0XaqTQaYyM

Anonymous Crochet Nana said...

I am starting this blanket and was wondering why your 1st row is sc, but when I went to u-tube to get the cable instructions, she talks about her 1st row being dc. I find it easier to do the fpdc and the bpdc around a dc vs a sc.

Blogger Wormie said...

Thank you, Crochet Nana. There is no reason why you couldn't start with a row of hdc, and do the front and back post stitches around those. For this pattern, hdc is better than dc bcs all the other stitches that aren't post stitched are hdc instead of dc.

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hi Wormie
Your blanket looks like so much fun. For the mathematically challenged would the repeat be 11 stitches from the start of the 5 hddc to the start of the next 5 hddc? Is that clear as mud? I would like to make the blanket wider.

Thanks for a great pattern.

Blogger Wormie said...

Lol. It is hard to figure out sometimes. The blanket I made is small, and I really should make another pattern for a larger one. I have a new grand-niece on the way, so I think I will!

In the meantime - to make this wider don't worry about the first 6. Do a multiple of 11 and when you have close to the width you want, add the last 6.

If you want 9 cables:
9*11=99
99+6=105
Your starting chain would be 105

Sorry it took so pong to answer! Hope that helped. :-)

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Hey Wormie,
Could you just tell me what are the stitches in between on row 2 the FP and the FP. I'm not able to follow the link. But I thought you could just tell me what the 4 stitches are.
Thank you,
Patti

Blogger Unknown said...

Love them all thank you for sharing....but if I had to pick just one it would be the Cable Baby Blanket..

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Wormie, I printed the pattern last year for the cable baby blanket. I have just now started to learn about cables. In your formula for cables, it says what is in front and back of the cable, but it doesn't say how to make the cable.
Formula
5hdc-l fpdc -cable- 1 fpdc - 5 hdc
Please help me get it straight in my mind. Thanks Barbara W.

Anonymous Ann said...

Hi Wormie, thank you so much for your beautiful pattern. I started it yesterday and couldn't put it down, I've already went through a 7oz skein of yarn and now on my second skein. It is coming out so beautiful. I've never tried cables before and have to admit that your pattern is so easy and very addictive, I plan on getting a lot of it done today. Thank you so much again.

Blogger Wormie said...

Thank you, Ann! I'm so glad that you are enjoying it!!!

Anonymous Anonymous said...

Great pattern. I made this in pink and rainbow. Came out great .

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