My first setback came just minutes in to organizing my yarn leftovers. I came across a really cute group of colors that I thought would be great for another boy baby blanket. I was putting away the light blue and mint green I used in the last baby blanket when they just happened to settle in next to a gray and pale yellow. It was too perfect not to pull them out and start perusing Pinterest for inspiration. My favorite was one with a bobble stitch raised alphabet. I saw several different patterns but none that were exactly what I wanted, so I took a little from here and a little from there and started working up some squares. I now have most of my letters done but still haven't decided how to finish it up - what shape and size to make the blanket. Since I'm in no real hurry to get this one done, I am just in a wing it sort of mood.
The second thing that distracted me actually started at the optometrist's office! When I walked in, there was an older woman who was showing the front desk girls some baby blankets she'd made. I was instantly in love! They were so light and fluffy but looked warm and snuggly at the same time. We got to talking about crochet and she asked if I made things. Before I had a chance to get a full sentence out, baby girl reached across me (nearly falling out of my arms) and grabbed her dragon from my diaper bag and held it up proudly exclaiming, "Na-nai!" as if to say "Momma made this for me! I know what you're talking about!" We laughed and she admitted she was impressed with my work. I asked her about the pattern she used and told her I'd never seen one exactly like it before. She said she's never seen the actual pattern, but that it had been passed down to her from her grandmother. I was in awe. She showed me step by step how it is worked and it sounded simple, but you know what they say about things being too good to be true... We exchanged phone numbers in case I ran into trouble with it, and I was on my way home to try it out! It was just as easy as she said!!! And so pretty too.
If you want to try it too, just use whatever yarn is your favorite and the corresponding hook. I use Hobby Lobby's I Love This Yarn for just about everything I do (except my scrap stuff that I pick up here and there from garage sales) and an I hook. I think she had said for the baby blanket you start with 119 chains, but when I did my sample sized square, it seemed to work out in multiples of 6 which would put it at 120.
Row 1: Start by doing 2 double crochet in the 4th chain from hook (the ch 3 then counts as your first double crochet stitch throughout). Skip the next two chains and single crochet in the third. Skip two again and do 5 double crochet into the next chain. Continue repeating between 5 double crochet and a single crochet every third stitch until you have three chains after the last single crochet. Make 3 double crochet in the last chain and turn.
Row 2: ch 1 and single crochet into the same stitch. Repeat *5 double crochet in back loop only of single crochet from previous row, single in both loops of 3rd double crochet of each cluster of 5* until you end with a single crochet in the top of the ch 3 at the end of the row.
Continue alternating rows 1 and 2 for desired length. When you are finished, you can add a row of single crochet around the edge with three in each corner for a nice professional look, or go for a more elaborate border. Try out different color combinations for a completely different look! She had one that was done using a pastel ombre with yellow, pink, blue, green and purple that was a perfect baby blanket, and one with magenta, teal, black and royal blue that would have been perfect for an older child. I love the light and airy way the bumps work up. It ends up looking like a thermal blanket of sorts. I am excited to try out a full sized one soon, but I have so many partially finished projects already, I feel bad abandoning them to start yet another!
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