I often get emails with the subject line reading, help or question, or desperate to find . . .

I am always happy to help if I can! Most often or not an enquiry comes in about a crocheted blanket seen on a TV show, and usually I can point the person in the direction of the stitch pattern or if I have time I’ll quickly write up a pattern.

This weeks afghan in question is the one pictured below. It’s from the TV series, Breaking Bad. Now I’ve never seen this show but apparently it features quite a few afghans, so great to hear that crochet is showing up more and more on our TV screens!
Now, at first glance, to me, it seems it’s worked in rows, I think we can all agree on that one.  As for the colours, I’m seeing, black, lemon, biscuit, rust, black, tangerine, tomato, off-white, olive, repeat. Now for the stitch pattern, it goes by many names, in certain circles it’s known as the Harlequin stitch, the Star Shell, the Wheel stitch and also the Catherine Wheel. Whew!

I think it’s a pretty groovy stitch and if you’ve made the Wool Eater then you’ll find it’s kind of similar.

So, if you fancy giving it a whirl I’ve drafted the pattern so you can make your own Breaking Bad afghan, let’s get started!

Hooks at the ready!

Note, the ch 50 below is purely to make a sample piece, to hook a blanket then naturally work an amount of chain required for the width you’d like your blanket to be. Also use your preferred method of changing colours when required at the end of the rows.

* * * Pattern is written in Australian terminology. * * *

With black ch 50.

Row 1: Work 1 dc into second ch from hook, * skip 3 ch, work 9 tr into next ch, skip 3 ch, work 1 dc into next ch, rep from * across.

Ch 2, turn.

Row 2: (Lemon) Work 1 tr into each of the next 4 stitches (ensuring to leave the last remaining loop of each stitch on the hook) yarn over and draw the yarn through all 5 loops on the hook, * ch 1, ch 3, work 1 dc into next tr, ch 3, work 1 tr into each of the next 9 stitches (ensuring to leave the last remaining loop of each stitch on the hook) yarn over and draw the yarn through all 10 loops on the hook, rep from * ending with ch 1, ch 3, work 1 dc into next tr, ch 3, work 1 tr into each of the next 5 stitches (ensuring to leave the last remaining loop of each stitch on the hook) yarn over and draw the yarn through all 6 loops on the hook, ch 1.

Ch 3, turn.

Row 3: Work 4 tr into ch-1 sp, * work 1 dc into next dc, work 9 tr into next ch-1 sp, rep from * across ending with work 1 dc into next dc, work 5 tr into next ch-1 sp.

Ch 1, turn.

Row 4: (Biscuit) Work 1 dc in first tr, * ch 3, work 1 tr into each of the next 9 stitches (ensuring to leave the last remaining loop of each stitch on the hook) yarn over and draw the yarn through all 10 loops on the hook, ch 1, ch 3, work 1 dc into next tr, rep from * across ending with work 1 dc into top of turning ch-3.

Ch 1, turn.

Row 5: * Work 1 dc into next dc, work 9 tr into next ch-1 sp, rep from * across ending with work 1 dc into next dc.

Continue in pattern formation working Rows 2 – 5 and working two consecutive rows of each colour.

Once you’ve worked the length desired then finish with 1 row of black.

Here’s my sample that I worked! I didn’t have a nice biscuit colour in my stash so I threw in a neutral instead.