The video at Stitchopedia by Jessie made an interesting point. She says that your chains between your stitches which are used to make the "ladder" should be twice the height of the stitch plus 1. For example, the turning chain for double crochet is 3 so you would figure 3 x 2 + 1 = 7. If you were using a different stitch, you would take the turning chain, multiply by 2 and add 1. I'd never heard this before so I found it interesting.
You can find her written instructions for the sample piece show in the video here as well as other neat stuff. She also has Etsy and Ravelry shops. I don't know Jessie personally, but enjoyed her video and her shops.
I have personally used double crochet for the Jacob's Ladder afghans I've made in the past. I have always made the chains either 8 or 10 chains wide with the last row being a shorter chain. Here are a few of my JL afghans. The second one is the replacement afghan I made for my mom when her first one went missing at the nursing home. I put her name right in the pattern. :-)
You might think your hook would make a difference as the stitches would be taller with a J hook than a G hook. That is true, but your chains would also be larger. In the video I saw, she used a J hook which I think is an excellent size for this type of project if you're using worsted yarn.
Another Jacob's Ladder I ran across is one I've seen before. It is Beth in Texas' video which can be found here. Her written instructions can be found here. I do know Beth and she is a crochet designer extraordinaire. I have long followed her work and have corresponded with her occasionally. You won't be disappointed if you have a look at her designs and instructional videos.
Another video I looked at was at the Crochet Crowd. Mikey was demonstrating a pillow made with single crochet Jacob's Ladder. I don't know him personally but have admired many of his designs and videos. He gives a lot of information and does a great presentation.
I'm adding another video. I just looked at Yolanda's video and for those who speak Spanish, she has Spanish info right on the video. She is demonstrating how to make a shawl. She gives information on how to make the double crochet as well as the Jacob's Ladder technique and also puts fringe on the ends. She uses a chunky yarn in her video as does Mikey above.
[additional note] I just ran across a pattern called Jacob's Square by Jessie Rayot. The method she uses to make this square (in the round) uses the ladder technique so I wanted to include it here.
If you are interested in the Jacob's Ladder, just go to YouTube and do a search. There are many videos on how to make various things using this technique - afghans, pillows, hats and more. Yes, you can work Jacob's Ladder in the round. Have fun with it!
Happy crocheting!
Sandie
