How to Crochet a Border Correctly

Hi,
I have a question: I crocheted a baby blanket using half double crochet stitches. Now I’d like to add a border, but I’m not happy with how it turned out. Could you please give me some advice?

Thanks and best regards

Sigrid

Hi Sigrid,
could you upload a photo of the baby blanket?
You can upload your own photos here at any time.
Then we could give you better advice.

Yes, a picture would be great.

There are so many options for a border.

I’ve already made a pattern like this using multiple colors. 



Here, I just used chain stitches and single crochets



But the crab stitch can also make a pretty border for a blanket. 

Is the issue about finding the right number of stitches so the border doesn’t curl? That’s actually not that easy to answer, since everyone crochets with a different tension—for me, I’d work the side in half double crochet by alternating 1 stitch and then 2 stitches per row. You could also try 2 rows with 2 stitches, followed by just 1 stitch in every 3rd row. Or try using a slightly thinner hook and working 2 stitches in each row. The number of stitches needed for a corner also depends on which stitches you want to use to crochet the border. Usually, the only way to figure it out is to experiment.

Dear Claudia, yes, exactly—the number of stitches is the problem: Right now, the blanket is completely flat. I’ve tried using 1 single crochet and 1 chain stitch. I also tried 5 double crochets in one stitch and then skipped 3. When crocheting the border directly onto the blanket, both methods looked acceptable. The corner wasn’t really the problem either. But along the edge, it pulled or rippled unattractively. I’ll try your tip. Thank you so much. Best regards from Austria, Sigrid

Best regards to you too, and good luck.

Dear Team,

I tried to upload a picture. (Unfortunately, I only have an old camera.) I’m not sure if you can tell that it’s straight on the left and wavy on the right. So that was my version with the 5 double crochets. Maybe you can see what I did wrong?

Thank you so much for everything, and best regards
Sigrid

@Grasi,
the image upload worked. :-)

Hi.
You could simply leave a little more space on the side between the stitches—that will make it smoother. 

Dear Claudia,

I’ll give that a try. Thank you so much for your great help. Best regards, Sigrid

Sure thing.