If you’re very comfortable with crocheting traditional motifs, it may take you a bit of time (and patience) to wrap your head around this way of working, because it’s slightly different than working one motif after another. However, once you get comfortable with JAYGO, you’ll appreciate the time that it saves you on the project. You can use it to join any type of motif including granny squares and crochet pentagons. For example, if you want to join as you go with a two-round crochet granny square, you will crochet your first granny square in full. Then you will begin the second granny square, and when you reach the first corner of the second round, you will join that granny square to the first one that you created, connecting them in the corner. You will connect them again in the next corner so that they are joined side by side, and then you will complete the round of the second granny square. The third one will be added to the second one in the same manner and so forth. Don’t worry if it sounds a little bit confusing at first. With help from the tutorials, join-as-you-go crochet patterns and recommended resources below, you’ll be able to JAYGO in no time.
Join-as-you-go crochet hexagons. This tutorial by Thistle Bear Home shows you how to create large six-round crochet hexagons and describes exactly how to join as you go. Hello Speckless has a join as you go crochet hexagon tutorial featuring much smaller two round hexagons. It has an excellent description of joining small motifs in the corners. Join-as-you-go crochet granny squares. Since these are one of the most popular motifs, you might want to learn to join them as you go. This detailed tutorial from Petals to Picots will teach you what you need to know. Single crochet join as you go is a thicker alternative to a more classic slip stitch join. Sakura Crochet Designs has tutorials for both. Bella Coco has a JAYGO crochet video tutorial for people who learn best by watching videos.
There are many variations on join-as-you-go crochet, and the way that it’s done depends a lot on the design of the motifs in the project, but these basic tutorials will get you well on your way to understanding the technique. Kristin Omdahl is a crochet designer who pioneered a style of JAYGO crochet. You can learn about it in-depth from her book Seamless Crochet. It is a collection of crochet motif patterns with detailed instructions about how to join as you go, giving you the foundation that you need to turn any motif into a JAYGO project. The book has an accompanying DVD for those who are interested in learning by video. The crochet patterns from this book can be viewed on Ravelry. Kristin Omdahl also has a more recent book of JAYGO crochet patterns called Motif Magic. Two additional books to consider are Join-as-You-Go Crochet Afghans by Kathy Wesley and another on JAYGO afghans by Annie’s Attic. People who prefer to learn through video courses can check out the Craftsy class Join-as-You-Go Crochet by Lily Chin who also has a DVD version of the technique.
