When I saw a YT video entitled Crochet Interlocking Stitch for beginners (Sirin's Crochet) come across my feed, I immediately opened it as I thought that it was linked to double/filet crochet, interlocking crochet, locked filet mesh, locked filet crochet/LFC (some of the various terms for the same thing!). What a pleasant surprise to find something completely different and, of course, I just had to give it a go. To find out that it created a double-sided or reversible piece was just awesome! Now I could create a scarf/blanket - in fact, anything - that is totally reversible, and, to top it, has a different look on both sides.
Well, you might say, interlocking crochet/locked filet crochet (LFC) can do the same thing; it can even have the same look on both sides just with colours reversed. Indeed it can, but this is a totally different technique and, I love to learn new techniques. Furthermore, it has a very simple stitch pattern repeat and is not as "complicated" as interlocking or double filet crochet.
In the description box of the video, I found a link to the pattern and adapted the way it is written so that it is more user-friendly. Having tried it out, I wondered whether I could translate the pattern into the round so that I could create a reversible cowl. I grabbed some spare yarn floating around (or, should I say "stashed" (hee, hee) and gave it a try. I had realised straight away that I needed to reduce the stitch multiple of 7+4 by one as there would be no turning chain. Off I set, only to find that I would then land up with 2 groups of 3dc right next to each other instead of being separated by 7ch. Of, course, silly me. So I changed the stitch multiple to 7, and it worked! Hooray! However - oh boy, there is always a "however" - one could still see the carried colour interfering with the pattern. That would imply I had to break off the yarn with the start of each new colour meaning, of course, the dreaded working in of tails! Would I be able to work them in on the reverse side without them being visible? Attempt number 3.
The next step was to change the pattern slightly. I would not work with groups of 3sc, but rather 4, always starting and ending a row with 2 sc to then come together when joining as 4sc, the join being in the middle. The multiple would then be 4+1 and 8ch instead of 7ch in row 1 of the repeat and 4ch instead of 3ch in the 4th row of the repeat.
With a few other changes I came up with a pattern, but it is still quite tedious when sewing up the seam to get the sides to match well, so I deserted my idea and will give it a go at another point in time.