Sweet Cables series: A quick overview

Seven years ago, in 2019, I started exploring crochet cables.

In most cases, new crochet stitches and techniques appear suddenly, through experimenting and playing with stitches. But sometimes I have a strong vision of what I would like to achieve and try to find a way to make it possible in crochet.

These cables are one such example.

Over the years, I’ve published four shawl designs using this technique. Each shawl has its own character and with each new one, I explored different ways to work with cables, from playing with color to creating fully cabled fabric.

Main features

• Construction: The shawls are worked from one corner toward the opposite side. This is the simplest way to crochet these cables and get familiar with the technique.

• Stitches: They mostly use the simplest crochet stitches: chains, single crochet, and its variations. Worked in my own way, these simple stitches sometimes result in completely new stitches.

• Cables: Each shawl explores the cable technique differently, playing with colors and various cable twists.

• Textures: The cables are combined with other crochet textures, from eyelets to textured stitches, giving each shawl its own character.

The evolution of Sweet Cables

My first shawl was Chocomania. Its colorway, Choco, gave the shawl its name and set the name and feel for the whole series. ◍⁠•⁠ᴗ⁠•⁠◍ It combines the cables with rows of single crochet ribbing and tiny eyelets. You can try them out using the instructions in this post.

The next one, Biscolata, came from playing with cables and color. Each twist can be worked in a different color, which makes the cables stand out in a completely different way!

It also pairs cables with textured stitches, a kind of front post double crochet worked with a tiny twist to create texture at the right side, while keeping the wrong side flat.

The third one, Caramella, features bolder, wider cables.

At that point, I thought no one, me included, would want to work on a fully cabled shawl. I imagined it would be too slow and difficult, so I added other stitches and reduced the amount of cables themselves. This shawl is truly amazing for enriching your stitch collection: cables, single crochet ribbing, large eyelets, and bold ribbing at the end!

But I was wrong!

I gave this idea a try anyway, and this is how the last shawl, Marmelada, came to life. It is my favorite: fully cabled, but so versatile, as the color can completely change its look and mood.

The first one is worked in two colors, with each color used for two rows. And the second one came from my curiosity about how it would look in a single color.

I hope you'll find your favorite among these four shawls, or enjoy making them all while exploring crochet cables. And now, it's time for me to move on to cable garments!