Royal Baby KAL/CAL- Putting it all Together

Hi everyone!

We hope by now you've finished your squares and are ready to put everything together. Putting this little knit and crocheted quilt together is so quick! It just took a few hours in one evening (and Kristen crochet's slow, really slow.)

We went with the crocheted method of putting this blanket together for a couple of reasons:

The stack of squares, ready to go!

1) It looks nice and neat across the back of the blanket with your single crochet holding it all together.

2) It goes REALLY fast! Much faster than mattress or whip stitching (in our opinion).

That said, if you have a preferred method, you are more than welcome to use it. There is no right or wrong way to do this.


Here are the steps we recommend for putting your blanket together:


Step 1: Block all of your squares. If you have a steam iron, this is totally the way to go. You are bound to have some squares that are slightly larger than the rest. Block these first really lightly on your ironing board or a towel, and then use pins to block the rest of them to the same size. Kristen steamed the larger ones first, then lay the next one on top and pin it over the one on bottom to use as a template. Steam block this one, then add another layer. Kristen layered 4-5 blocks and then take the top ones off (once they've cooled), leaving one on bottom as the template, then do a few more until they are all done.

Pin all of the squares to the same size.

Step 2: Lay all of the squares out on the floor or a bed. I am not going to specify how to order these. I think you should do what looks good to you. Especially since so many of you used different colors or just knit or crocheted your squares, I think you should be the one to design your blanket. In order to achieve the baby blanket size, you'll need to lay out your blanket 3 squares across by 4 rows of squares down.

Lay all of the squares out so you can see what
the finished quilt will look like.

Step 3: Working in rows of 3, crochet together your squares along the sides being careful to match. If you  would prefer to work a visible contrasting color in between the squares, this would be the time to do that.

Crocheted together, close-up.

Step 4: Once your rows are crocheted together, crochet the long sides of the rows together in the order you prefer. You will have strings on each corner that you can use to match up the corners evenly. This is the bonus to crocheting the quilt together. Again, if you prefer a contrasting border, add it in here.

Finished, back.

Step 5: Once you have all of your rows crocheted together, steam iron the seams so that everything lays flat. Weave in your ends and if desired, crochet or knit a border around the outside.

Finished, front.

For the version pictured, it only took Kristen three hours to put the whole thing together. If you are pressed for time, this is a really great option. The back will still look really neat and tidy. However, if you have a little more time and want to add your own details, that is great too!

We really love the unique and fun look of this blanket. It would make such a fun project for a group of knitters to make for a friend who is expecting or pick your favorite squares and customize it even more. All in all, we hope you are happy with the end result too!

Of course, if you have any questions about these or any directions in the quilt, as always, please let us know!

Also, be sure to check out the Ravelry Group Threads on each of the squares. There are tons of great questions on there as well.

We will post the "official" pattern for this blanket on the Free Patterns page of the JBW website in about a month. In the meantime, enjoy, and happy knitting!

Best,
Kristen & Heather