Difficulty: Intermediate ✦✦✧✧✧
My sister recently got married and I knew that I wanted to create a blanket for her bed. She is very into 1970s colors and patterns so I scoured Pinterest until I found the perfect inspiration. This blanket is based on a Dekoplus fabric pattern.
Next, I had to find the perfect combination of colors to pull off the 70s pattern and I found them from Knit Picks in Wool of the Andes bulky yarn (in Chocolate, Delft Heather, Garnet Heather, Persimmon Heather, and Semolina). When I received the yarn, I was a little disappointed that the yarn wasn't truly bulky, more of a thick worsted weight yarn. So I settled on a 6.5mm hook to create a nice fabric that wasn't too dense but still solid.
This pattern can be done with 5 colors of any yarn with a hook 1-2 sizes larger than recommended on the packaging. If using worsted weight yarn and a 6.5mm hook, you should have a 10 inch square.
To make my sister's queen sized blanket, I stitched 42 squares (6x7) and added a 6 inch border (6 rows) to frame it. The final blanket measures 62"x82".
Scroll to the bottom of this page for a diagram of this square.
Gauge: 7 dc in 3 rows makes a 2 inch square.
Pattern:
In Blue:
Round 1: In a magic ring: ch 3 (counts as the first dc), dc 13, sl st to join. (14 sts)
Round2: Ch 3 (counts as the first dc), dc in the same st, 2 dc in each st around, sl st to join. (28sts) Round 3: Ch 3 (counts as the first dc), dc in the same st (mark this stitch), (2 dc in the next st) twice, dc 4, [(2 dc in the next st) 3 times, dc 4] 3 times, sl st to join. (40 sts) Tie off.
In Maroon:
Join in the marked stitch.
Round 4: Ch 3 (counts as the first dc), dc in the same st, (2 dc in the next st) twice, [dc 6, (2 dc in the next st) 4 times] 3 times, dc 6, 2 dc in the next st, sl st to join (do NOT pull the slip stitch tight, counts as a stitch (but not the stitch underneath)). (56 sts)
Round 5: Sc in the next st, (hdc, 2 dc) in the next st (mark the first dc), dc 12, (3 dc in the next st) twice, dc 12, (2 dc, hdc) in the next st, sc, sl st. (39 sts (including the last slip stitch), 64 sts around)
Tie off.
In Burnt Orange:
Join in the marked st.
Round 6: Ch 3 (counts as the first dc), dc in the same st, (2 dc in the next st) twice, [dc 12, (2 dc in the next st) 4 times] twice, dc 12, 2 dc in the next st, (2 tc in the next st) twice, 2 dc in the next st, dc 12, 2 dc in the next st, sl st to join (do NOT pull the slip stitch tight, counts as a stitch (but not the stitch underneath)). (80 sts)
Round 7: Sc in the next st, (hdc, 2 dc) in the next st (mark the first dc), dc 18, (3 dc in the next st) twice, dc 18, (2 dc, hdc) in the next st, sc, sl st. (51 sts (including the last slip stitch), 88 sts around)
Tie off.
In Yellow:
Join in the marked st.
Round 8: Ch 3 (counts as the first dc), dc in the same st, (2 dc in the next st) twice, [dc 18, (2 dc in the next st) 4 times] twice, dc 18, 2 dc in the next st, (2 tc in the next st) twice, 2 dc in the next st, dc 18, 2 dc in the next st, sl st to join (do NOT pull the slip stitch tight, counts as a stitch (but not the stitch underneath)). (104 sts)
Round 9: Sc in the next st, (hdc, 2 dc) in the next st (mark the first dc), dc 24, (3 dc in the next st) twice, dc 24, (2 dc, hdc) in the next st, sc, sl st. (63 sts (including the last slip stitch), 116 sts around)
Tie off.
In Brown (Border):
Join in the marked stitch. Round 10: Ch, (hdc, dc) in the first (marked) stitch, (dc, hdc) in the next st, [sc 26, (hdc, dc) in the next st, (dc, hdc) in the next st] 3 times, sc 26. (120 sts)
Tie off.
Make an equal number of squares in 2 color progressions: dark in the center to light on the outside, and light in the center to dark on the outside (not including the final darkest border color).
Block the squares to 10 inches on a side.
Arrange the squares with alternating colors next to each other so that all squares of one color progression point in the same direction with the skinny corner down to the left, and all squares of the other color progression with the skinny corner pointed up to the left. See the image to the right.
Join squares with the mattress or whip stitch using the brown yarn.
Border:
Finish the blanket with a border of dc around the newly joint squares: [(dc in each st along the side of the square, tc in the each of the next 2 stitches that were used in the join between 2 squares) across for each square, then (dc 2, tc) in the last stitch of the side of the last square, (tc, dc 2) in the first st of the next side (turning the corner)] repeat across for each side and corner.
For each additional round of border, stitch 1 dc in each stitch on a side, with (dc 2, tc) in the last st of the side and (tc, dc 2) in the first st of the next side.
Finish with a round of crab stitch, with 2 sts in each of the 2 sts that make up the corner, around.
