The join-as-you-go technique allows you attach individually made motifs to each other through the stitches of the final round, eliminating the need for sewing at the end as every motif is joined while crocheting.
Depending on the pattern, joining can be achieved by crocheting through the center of the arch or using the single crochet and slip stitch techniques. You can also use this alternative joining method in patterns with picot edging (such as my Josefina and Jeffery Blanket) by simply joining motifs through the corresponding picots of the final round.
Picot JOIN is very similar to a regular picot stitch, but instead of making a tiny ch-3 circle, we are slip-stitching to the next motif in the middle of the picot stitch as follows - Ch 1, sl st in the corresponding picot of previously made motif, ch 1, then complete your stitch as a regular picot.
Here is a left and right-handed videos of joining motifs with picot edges, featuring Josefina and Jeffery Elephant Blanket pattern.
Right-Handed Crochet
Left-Handed Crochet
Using this method, you can also join any other shapes. For example, I used Picot Joins for connecting spikes in my dinosaur hat patterns. This video shows my work in progress, while the detailed instructions for making spikes are listed in the patterns.
To create these hats, you can locate the patterns here:
Spiky the Stegosaurus Dinosaur Hat
Tops the Triceratops Dinosaur Hat
Tops the Triceratops Dinosaur Baby Set
