When I first saw an example of mosaic crochet, I was wowed by how intricate it looked and assumed that it was a really complicated technique. After completing a small, free tester on the technique I was completely hooked! Here are my top pros and cons for mosaic crochet.
Pros
The most satisfying part of mosaic crochet for me is watching the picture or pattern emerge as you complete each row. As you don’t turn your work in mosaic crochet, you can enjoy this process and it often feels like painting with yarn.
Big props to only working with one colour of yarn at a time! Bobbins are great, but have you ever tried following an in-depth documentary AND juggling multiple colour changes at the same time? Mosaic crochet is a great technique for those of us who like to have our brain occupied by two things at once.
There are only two stitches you need to learn and the chances are you already know them! Yes, all you need are single and double crochet stitches (double and treble if you’re using UK crochet terms). Each stitch is slightly modified but the basics are the same.
Neat image edges. This one was probably what drew me to mosaic crochet in the first place. I’d tried tapestry crochet but didn’t like the jaggedy edges to the images it produced. This is due to you only working on the front side of your piece so every stitch sits neatly on top of those below.
And finally, if you do make a mistake… you only have to frog back each row to the part where you made the mistake! So try to only make mistakes in the last quarter of each row if possible!
Cons
Because everything can’t always be sunshine and rainbows!
The first I would say is a pro and a con. As you drop your double crochet down a row this leaves the single crochets from the previous row ‘unused’. These unused stitches create ridges along the back of your work. Personally, I really like these as they give a lovely squishy texture to the blanket, but some people aren’t fans. There are ways to prevent these ridges including making your pattern reversible.
The main con, I would say, is that it will use more yarn than crocheting a classic blanket that you work back and forth. On average I would estimate about 30% more yarn is needed for an overlay mosaic pattern.
So many ends! In overlay mosaic crochet you cut your yarn at the end of each row thereby creating a tail at the beginning and end of every row. One solution is to weave these in which, props to you if you have the patience, but I just couldn’t cope. The other solution is the envelope border. This is essentially a double border all the way around the project that you then close together to envelop all those ends.
Finally, mosaic crochet will make you question your ability to count! With so many different sequences of stitches through the pattern, you’ll find yourself shouting at your loved ones if they start trying to have a conversation with you mid stitch count.
Work in progress: Mini Magic
