Help!

[Ambersafghans]

I am making placemats. The problem is, THEY AREN"T THE SAME SIZE! I'm using the same hook!
please help.
The eight I have range from 17 to 18 1/2 inches long.
Anyone had anything like thing like this happen before?
please share if you have any ideas. I'm supposed to take them this Thursday to sell!
Amber

[Julie]

Are you adding extra stitches at the beginnings of the rows? I do that sometimes. Have you used the same skein throughout, some yarns may have different gives to them. I don't know... I hate it when that happens though! <img border=0 src="http://www.ezboard.com/images/emoticons/mad.gif" />

[Ambersafghans]

There are the same number of stitches, and I'm using the same yarn. (Caron for white and blue, red heart for red, but not switching on diffrent placemats)
Amber

[MommaChelle]

Do you have a caron placemat and a red heart placemat? Or do you mean that you use both brands in the same placemat? Cause caron I believe will give you a different size than red heart. If you check your gauge (do a swatch of 10 sc and 10 rows for each brand), to see what the difference in size is, if any. Hope you can find the problem!!

[Ambersafghans]

The Red is Red Heart, and the white and blue are Caron. They are on the same placemats. I haven't noticed any diffrence between sizes of red strips and white strips. But even if there were, shouldn't the placemats made with the same materials be the same size?:\
I really appreciate the advice!
Amber

[Donna]

shouldn't the placemats made with the same materials be the same size? Yes, they should be the same size. But it is possible for your gauge to vary from day to day, depending on whether you are tired, in a hurry, etc. Practice, practice, practice, and experience are only things that keep your gauge even.

The best solution is to practice keeping your gauge even. But the quick solution is to not worry about using the same number of stitches on each placemat; just make them the same size. For example maybe you used 50 stitches on one you made the other day, but you might need 52 stitches today because your're crocheting a little tighter. This would only work if you're using a pattern where more/fewer stitches won't be noticeable. Sounds like that will be fine if you are just doing plain strips of different colors.

[Donna]

Amber, you must have figured out your placemat problem. I saw them on your site, the look great! :)

[Ambersafghans]

Yes I think so. Thanks!