I made this blanket over the last few weeks whilst being safe at home in the lockdown. I wanted to use up yarn in my stash to make a pretty and cosy blanket; it’s basically a huge mix of my favourite Stylecraft and Paintbox shades – mainly pastels, but with some neutrals added in. They are all beautiful, calm shades and I really enjoyed selecting each one, seeing which ones worked well together and planning out the colour sequences.
The stitch is called ‘Lemon Peel’ stitch which is really simple. I have written out the pattern below. Because it’s such an easy stitch to crochet it’s perfect for doing while watching TV. I found it very relaxing, but also addictive. I didn’t get bored as I was always looking forward to changing to my next colour and seeing how it would look!
As I’ve said, I found crocheting this blanket to be really soothing – a real comfort to me in these worrying times. I worked on it whilst tuning in to the daily Coronavirus updates from Number 10 on TV, watching good films in the evenings, and listening to podcasts from my favourite comedians. There’s a whole lot of memories, thoughts and experiences stitched into this blanket, which all come to mind when I look at it.
I written up some useful info about how I made it in case anyone would be interested in having a go at a similar blanket 🙂
Blanket info:
Size: 148cm long x 126cm wide
Yarn: Double knit weight – I mainly used Stylecraft Special DK, plus some Paintbox Simply DK, and odds and ends of other DK yarn.
Hook: 4mm
Pattern:
Written in UK terms
Abbreviations
dc = double crochet (this is a sc / single crochet in US terms)
tr = treble crochet (this is a dc / double crochet in US terms)
st= stitch
ch = chain
Tension:
Tension is not critical for this blanket, but mine is 18 rows and 19 stitches = 10cm measured over Lemon Peel stitch.
Start crocheting:
Chain 221
Note: you can adjust the starting chain to make a smaller or larger blanket – you just need to chain an even number , + 1 for turning.
Row 1: Starting in 2nd chain from hook, dc across. Turn. 220 sts
Row 2: ch 1, (does not count as a stitch here or throughout) *dc, tr, repeat from * to end. Turn. 220 sts
Next row and onward = as row 2.
Note: in this row, and from now on, you will make double crochets into the treble crochet stitches from the previous row, and treble crochets into the double crochet stitches from the previous row i.e. the opposite stitch to what was made in the row below.
After crocheting x 6 repeats of Row 2 in the first colour, ( = 7 rows in total including the Row 1 of dc stitches) change to the next colour. After x 3 colour stripes of 6 rows each, crochet a thinner stripe of 4 rows in the next colour. Then make 3 more coloured stripes of 6 rows each. Continue in this way for the rest of the blanket, ending on a third 6-row stripe. So, the sequence of number or rows for the colour stripes = 6,6,6,4,6,6,6,4,6,6,6 and so on. I hope this makes sense! You can probably see what I mean in the photos 🙂
I have a total of 43 colour stripes in my blanket.
After completing the 6th row of your last colour stripe:
Final row: Ch 1, dc in every stitch across.
Fasten off and weave in any remaining ends. (I would recommend doing your ends as you go so it’s not such a huge task when you’ve finished crocheting)
I hope this post is useful? I’d love to see your blanket if you choose to make one – please mention me @poppyseedandpom on Instagram if you post a pic on there 🙂
Happy crocheting!
Poppyseed and Pom 