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Joining Large Sections: Save the plastic hooks which are used to keep new shirts folded in their package and use them to hold afghan sections together while you join. These hooks work better than pins, which tend to slip out. However, if using pins, use two pins instead of one, crisscrossing them to help keep them in place.

Weaving Ends: Leave at least a 6-inch length when fastening off your crochet work. Using a tapestry needle, weave the length through stitches on the wrong side of the project, then weave it in the opposite direction, splitting the plies of yarn for the last few stitches. This will ensure that no ends poke through to the right side after laundering.

Mix and Match: When trying to use up leftover yarns of different weights for scrap afghans, combine two or more strands of a lighter weight yarn to achieve the weight of thicker yarns. For example, two or more strands of baby or sport weight yarn can be used to equal one strand of worsted weight yarn. Two strands of worsted weight, or one strand of worsted and one strand of sport, can be used for one strand of bulky weight yarn.