Welcome to my blog about yard sales, crochet, my family and my life. A yard sale map in one hand and a crochet hook in the other.

Sunday, August 23, 2015

How I make a graphghan

This post is to answer any question about how I work my graphghans. I always shied away from any crochet project that required changing colors in the middle of a row. But a couple of years ago, I finally tried Tunisian crochet and fell in love. So I thought if I could do that then I should be able to follow a graph! The first color change project I tried was this Indian Blanket.
Okay, that was easy. This one carried the colors across and there were no bobbins. So then I got braver and made this Spirit Bear for my sister's cabin.
Okay I'm getting braver. I found lots of Facebook groups where there were so many people making graphghans. I'm the type of person that is not going to sit back and let someone else do something without trying also. So I bought this pattern from a Facebook friend. This was a written pattern and not a graph and was easier to follow. I would rather follow a written pattern for any crochet project I do.
This lovely lady also made this pattern for me after I sent her a picture of my high school mascot.
I was hooked, no pun intended!
One of the Facebook groups had a 'class' in how to make your own written graphghan pattern. Teach me graphghan  is the Facebook group. So I followed the instructions and the rest is history. The first thing you have to do is find a picture. Then you download it into GIMP. This is a free download. You also need KPG to convert your picture into a written pattern. I then copy and paste into a text document so that I can "find and replace" any text needed. Such as "colour 1" would be replaced with "red" , for example.
I hope this helps. If you need any assistance making your own written graph, feel free to contact me.



Photobucket

4 comments:

byhooks4u said...

Ok..I don't understand all the techno stuff...I can do tunisian crochet..used to be called afghan stitching..with the long hook...changing colors don't bother me..so I should be able to do this right? I like the looks of the blankets and to be able to make something really personal for someone ...I like the first one you pictured..maybe I ought to try that? Something fairly easy is it?

Pammy Sue said...

I shy away from these kinds of color change afghans and things too, but I love the way they look. Maybe I'll be brave like you. You seem to have caught on really quick and can do them well. I love your Indian blanket! Thanks for all the info links. P.S. Your pics on your ride on the 4-wheeler cracked me up! Woo-hoo!

Gramma Rita said...

All of your afghans are gorgeous! I have never tried one, but I think they'd make my head spin with all the color changes mid row. lol

Kate said...

Thanks for the info, Charlotte. One day I'll get brave and try crocheting one of these!