80 Blankets: Paired Half Doubles

Welcome back to my #80Blankets for my wedding journey! If you missed the intro you can catch up HERE.

This blanket came out looking like it took more effort than it actually did. The color combination has a touch of elegance. At least I think so. I was hesitant about pairing the cream (Alabaster) with the white (Birch), but I ended up loving it. And the stitch pattern looks far more complicated than it actually is. The description of it might also be a little daunting, but it’s really not. Grab a hook and try it. You might be surprised!

There’s two somewhat interchangeable terms happening here that mean the same thing: paired half double crochet and half double crochet two together. I opted to go with the term “paired half double crochet” in this instance because we’re not actually decreasing the number of stitches for shaping purposes. Rather, the pairs are worked (as a decreases), but then the decreased stitch is made up (put back into play) by adding a chain after the “decreased” stitch.

Between each section of paired half double crochets is two rows of linen stitch. Look beyond the technical names of these stitch patterns. In reality, the entire blanket is made up of chains and half double crochets.

Materials

• Color Made Easy (3 Alabaster, 2 Birch, 1 Shade)
• 8mm Crochet Hook
• Gauge: 10 sts = 4″ in hdc2tog (paired half double) – see Stitch Guide below for how to work this stitch.
• Finished Size: Approx. 40″ x 45″

I’m not counting my turning chains as the first stitch of each row. Therefore I am working the first stitch of the row (half double crochet) into the first available stitch. If you find your edges are becoming lumpy or uneven because of this, you can count the beginning chain 2 of each row as your first stitch. Just remember to stay consistent throughout.

With Birch, chain (ch) 105

Foundation: half double crochet 2 together (hdc2tog) in the 3rd & 4th chains from hook, *ch 1, hdc2tog through the next 2 ch; rep from * to the last ch, ch 1, hdc

Paired Half Doubles: ch 2, hdc in same st, ch1, hdc2tog through the next 2 ch-1 spaces, *ch 1, hdc2tog by working through the same ch space as the last st and the next ch space; rep from * ch 1, hdc in last st

• Work Paired Half Doubles row another 4 times (6 rows total have been worked at this point)

Change color (Shade)

Linen Stitch Row 1: ch 2, hdc in same stitch, *hdc in ch space, ch 1; rep from * to last st ch space, skip last ch space, hdc in last st

Linen Stitch Row 2: ch 2, hdc in same stitch, *ch 1, hdc in ch space; rep from * to last 2 sts, ch 1, skip next st, hdc in last st

Change color (Alabaster)

Work 6 rows of Paired Half Doubles

Change color (Shade)

Work 2 rows of Linen Stitch

Change color (Birch)

See below for continuing….

Color and Stitch Progression:

• Birch – Paired Half Doubles (6 rows)
• Shade – Linen Stitch (2 rows)
• Alabaster – Paired Half Doubles (6 rows)
• Shade – Linen Stitch (2 rows)

Continue working until you have worked through this progression a total of 4 times. End with 6 rows of Paired Half Doubles in Birch.

Stitch Guide

Half Double Crochet 2 Together (hdc2tog – “Paired Half Double”) – This stitch is worked over a multiple of 2 + 1 stitches. [yarn over, insert hook through the next stitch and pull up a loop] twice, yarn over and pull through all loops on hook.

Photos above show working a hdc2tog (paired half double) through a row of linen stitch.

Abbreviations

• 2tog = two together (decrease)
• ch = chain
• hdc = half double crochet
• hdc2tog = half double crochet two together
• rep = repeat
• st(s) = stitch(es)