Granny Patchwork Blanket

Isn't a whole heap of colourful yarn a heart warming sight? I love it soooo much. It still sometimes amazes me that I have become this Yarn Person, when for so long my passion was fabric and thread. Even when I discovered crochet and had a need for yarn, I wasn't all that bothered about the actual yarn itself. I didn't care if it was soft or smooth or warm, natural or man-made, I only cared about the colour. Colour all the way. Actually, now I come to think about it, it was the same when I worked in fabric. When all my textile friends were doing remarkable layered textural things, I only wanted to use plain cotton cos of the huuuuuuge number of colours it came in.

The above dreamy pile of yarn is the remains of my Stylecraft Special DK stash (previously used for the Granny Stripe and the Sweet Flower Granny) with some of my friends oddments added in. Hence the few very dark colours which are not part of my usual colour palette.

I collected all the yarn up and hand wound some of the more raggedy balls so that my bag would be full of neat little yarn balls to work with.

I began to make and join some simple one-colour granny squares. It was all done on a bit of a whim as I was searching for a suitable hooky project to take on holiday with me. I was inspired by the patchwork blankets that Heather and Jacquie made earlier in the year, and these squares promised to be a relaxing, easy going kind of a way to produce a top-notch blanket.

Since starting my patchwork blanket, I found out that there are already many lovely hooky people all working on the same sort of thing, inspired by Sandra's really beautiful creation. My Ravelry group has a thread dedicated to a "Patchwork Granny CAL" where you can catch up with everyones progress, I think it's utterly wonderful that there are so many of us all working on similar blankets all over the World.

I'm working my squares in five rounds, and joining-as-I-go.

This joining method works incredibly well for this sort of project, especially if you tackle it in a methodical sort of a way. I'm working my blanket up in rows which are 12 squares wide, joining as I go from left to right.

It was an absolute dream to work on whilst I was on holiday, the perfect relaxation project. I would come downstairs in the early morning and sit on the sofa as the sun streamed in through the window, hooking myself into a state of pure bliss.

The rows grew (Driftwood Cottage garden bench, 30th August)....

....and grew (Driftwood Cottage carpeted floor, 1st September).

As with most of my blanket projects, I am working my colours at random. I really love the random process, but I confess I do put a weeny bit of planning into place with it.

I want to share my method with you, in case it might be of help. As you can see with the above pictures, I plan my rows. I lay my blanket out and arrange my yarn balls for the next row. It helps me space out the colours/tones, especially the highly contrasting ones (eg the yellow and the couple of very dark ones). It helps the blanket to gain a certain colour balance.

When I've got my 12 colours selected for the next row, I take little snips of the yarn and stick them to a piece of paper. This is my colour map.

This colour map enables me to select just 12 balls to put into my flowery zippered project bag (posted about here) so I am always already for hooky-on-the-go. It means I don't have to take a whole big bulky bag of yarn out with me, I can just grab my zippered pouch and run. It also means I don't have to faff about trying to select colours when I'm in a slightly tricky hooky spot (ie in the car)

With this dash and grab method, I also figured something else out. I figured out that I don't actually need to cart the growing blanket out and about with me if I don't want to. I can just take yarn and hook, and crochet up the first four rounds+one side of each square so that I stop exactly at the point where I need to slip-stitch-to-join. Do you get what I mean? The idea is that when I've got time at home, I can pick up where I left off and complete the 5th/joining round when I can easily sit with the blanket draped over me (ie not in sweltering heat beside the pool as the Little People swim).

By employing these methods, my blanket has grown surprisingly quickly as I've been hooking in all sorts of places and at all sorts of in-between times. At the swimming pool, on the heather clad hills, in the pub, in the car, at my friends kitchen table. It's become the perfect fitty-in thing to make, and that's one of the things I most adore about crochet. It just so neatly and perfectly Fits In with family life.



This is where I'm currently at, seven rows of twelve. I have to say I am completely smitten with the deep dark colours sitting amongst my usual mid-tones. They worried me for a bit, but now I've got used to their dark presence, I love the way they jolt the whole thing up and give it depth and movement. Oooo, I sound a little bit arty there, don't I? Depth and Movement indeed, get me!!! Maybe I should just say it's jolly and happy and patchworky and a tad quirky, which are more my kind of words. Yeah, well, you know what I mean.

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Comments

[Angélique]

Tu nous offre un véritable feu d'artifice de couleur. Merci a toi pour ces petits bouts de bonheur. Et merci d'être revenue sur la blogosphère ;-) bonne semaine ;-)
Angélique

[Clare]

So glad you are blogging again. Is there or is there not a book?????

I would love you to come up with a pattern for a peg bag and curtain tie backs in your "style" Any chance???

I love all your designs and me a knitter!!

[vicky]

How do you make things so quickly? I'm so glad you're back I missed looking into your colourful world :-) x

[KateB]

It's stunning Lucy, love that it's traditional and a bit funky at the same time. I really must master the join as you go thing! Lovely to have you back in attic-land xxx

[lucy]

Lovely, I am doing a copy of the Cherry Heart blanket. Isn't it funny how differently we do our planning. I have a completely alternative method!

[kiki]

Lucy I am already filled with other projects already . I look at this one your making and guess what I want to make one too LOL. Yours is looking so lovely. Welcome back:)

[Bonnie]

I love the way this is turning out! It's gorgeous.

[Helen]

This is so lovely, a fun project to use up leftovers has become a thing of beauty! I'm in the middle of several large crochet blanket projects but I end up leaving them for a while because I can only really do them at home because I'm crocheting the whole width in stripes, something like this might be better
http://ahandfulofhope.blogspot.co.uk/

[Janet Friel]

Your lovely blanket reminds me of Elmer the colourful elephant!

[Delena Johnston]

I love your colorful blog. From your granny square blankets to your house decor everything is so full of color and pleasant to the eye!

[Louise]

It is fabulous and I just love it. A beautiful colour explosion in granny goodness.

[One-oh-four]

It looks lovely! I am loving the very dark purple colour.

[Bernice]

Hi Lucy,
Welcome back - I have missed your colourful stories. So pleased things are back to normal. Happy hooking!
B x

[maypole]

I am just so entertained by your posts and the colours just cheer me.

[Bethany]

Welcome back! I, for one, am having a fantastic time with the granny square CAL and am loving your progress!

[Wendy House]

It looks beautiful. I think the dark colours work really well and add depth to the overall look.

Thanks to your join as you go method I'm happily hooking up a summer garden granny square cushion cover. It is absolute genius, it makes life so much easier!

I'm so glad you are back.

[Sarahendipity]

I am sooooooooo happy to see you posting again. I have missed them terribly, but so thankful you were able to take some time for you and your sweet little family. Time outs are good. ☺ I LOVE your yarn map. What a fabulous idea. Thank you for sharing your hooky goodness and tips with us. I can't wait to see more progress! Yay! ☺

[Catherine]

While looking for handmade holly leaves, by beautiful serendipitous chance I stumbled across your fabulous blog and have spent the evening immersing myself in all those gorgeous pictures. Absolutely love what you are doing and it has spurred me on to get a shift on with my projects too. Three kids also has meant a lot of things have been on hold, but the oldest has now moved on and so I have been able to recolonise our attic space that was formerly hers. Being able to leave work out is bliss. Such pleasure to have found you!

[Nessa]

I did a big one of these a couple of years back. I was told by my kids that it looked nicer sewn together. Took yonks but they were right. It's really tidy and worth the extra bit of time. Not sure about dark colours prefer without. I like a bit of grey though.

[susana]

Beautiful Lucy!!!!What is random method?How I find it? Thanks so much from Argentina!!!!!

[Ariadne]

Lovely!It looks like pixels of a huge picture! AriadnefromGreece!

[Little Blue Elephant]

Lovely blog post. I love the colour map idea - fantastic. Thanks for sharing Sandra's beautiful creation link.

[MsZeb]

As someone who considers herself organised I stand (well, lounge on the sofa) in awe of your little system! I lay colours out and take a photo on my phone but I like the idea of the little snips of yarn. Oh, but the little bag with just those colours and hooking 4 rows plus 1 side ready to join later at home is ingenious!! Today, blanket planning; tomorrow, the world....

[Susan Greenhow]

i love what you're doing and I have some squares started aaaages ago (yep the 'elmer' blanket) but had to stop for other commitments ie 'The Blanket of Doom'- not my colour choice and with several false starts but being made with love for a special teenage girl. Now have promised winter stuff and xmas stuff to concentrate on - LOTS of them, but in January (or even on xmas day itself) I will start something for ME yaaay.
You were my very first blog read and opened up a new and wonderful world of like minded people, isn't it fab.
So glad you are back.
Susan x

[Fiona (KnitKnatKnotUK)]

It's wonderful, all your creations are. I am working on a 6 round solid granny granny (with a giant granny centre that sort of happened) started on holiday at the end of August and I carry the 8 colours I am using around, hook up a square in each, then JAYG several at a time, hook up a few more so I am sort of planned random. My family think planning random is just so funny! Then I start rabbiting on about the ends.. mine wasn't supposed to be that big but it is quite significant size. I am getting badgered to finish, by the 16yo whose blanket it is. Thank you for your continuing inspiration!

Fiona x