Meadow Blanket CAL :: Part 1

Hello, and welcome to the first instalment of the Meadow Blanket CAL. If you're anything like me, you may well be finding that these drab, grey, cold winter weeks feel especially long and bleak at the moment, stretching ahead without anything good to look forward to just yet. Here in the UK we're just at the start of our third national lockdown which looks like it'll be in place for at least six weeks, maybe more. It feels more important than ever to nurture our souls and practice self care in whatever way feels right, and I strongly believe that indulging in gentle creativity and happy colours can provide a lot of feel good.

As you probably know, my Crochet-a-Long blanket projects have been taking place every January and February for quite a few years now (this is the fifth year) and Meadow is following on from Dahlia, Sweet Pea, Woodland and Moorland. This year it just so happens that the CAL coincides with us all needing to spend long hours at home, so I hope that having a colourful project to work on right now will bring you lots of joy. 

Back in the summer last year (which feels sooooo long ago now), I walked in my local meadow almost every day. It became a place I felt drawn to when I needed a little solitude and some time to quiet my thoughts and emotions. I began to think of it as a sanctuary of sorts, a place that felt very healing and calming to me when our lives were feeling a little out of control. I spent many hours wandering around the grassy pathways of this special meadow, taking in the beautiful colours and amazing details of the grasses and wild flowers which grow in abundance every summer. I loved being there so much, and it seemed like the most natural thing to create a colour palette which captures something of that therapeutic place.

I chose colours which tell the gentle story of the summer meadow - the shades of wild flowers aren't showy like cultivated blooms, but when you look closely and observe what is growing amidst the tangle of tall grasses, well the colours really are there. And they are beeeeeeautiful! A stunning mix of yellows, pinks and purples - shades of buttercup, meadowsweet, vetch, thistle, clover, hogweed and shepherds purse. The colours of the summer grasses were also a joy - a mixture of beautiful greens and pale neutrals as well as the smoky purple of the Yorkshire fog grass which captivated my attention. And to round the palette off, I couldn't resist including the summer skies - those soft shades of blue are among my absolute favourites and remind me so much of my early morning meadow walks. 

I wrote lots more about the inspiration behind the Meadow blanket in my Introduction blog post which you can find ((here)).

You can find the Meadow yarn pack in my shop at Wool Warehouse, click on the following link...

MEADOW YARN PACK

These fifteen summery shades really do make my heart so so happy! While we're looking at these delicious balls of yarn, please can I give you a little reminder to make a note of the shades if you are joining in with the CAL? Some of the colours can look very similar especially in artificial light (Wisteria and Lavender, also Mushroom and Parchment) so it helps to have a note of the colour names alongside a snippet of yarn for reference. The colour names of Stylecraft Special DK are printed on the ball band.

Starting out on a new blanket journey is one of my most favourite things in life, and if you could see me in action, you would know this without a doubt. I am buzzing with happy vibes right down to my toes when I am immersed in colour play!

Once I've settled on my colour palette, I put in a huge amount of work to create the final blanket design. I sample endlessly until I have worked out a suitable stitch pattern, and then there is the business of ordering the colours so that they take you on a very special journey. I knew as soon as I'd created my final Meadow colour palette that it would be perfect for a "Colour Story" blanket. If you know my previous blankets (Moorland and Woodland) then you will know how a colour story works - this is where the whole of the blanket works to evoke the feeling of walking in the place that inspired the colours. 

It's a really fun way to create a blanket and I adore the whole process of working it out, although it does present a pretty major design challenge. I can't wait for you to watch your blanket grow over these coming weeks and for you to walk through the meadow in your mind as you see the colours begin to play out. From the tangle of grasses and wild flowers around your feet, out to the distant hills beyond, and finally up into the wide blue summer skies above. Beaaaaautiful, all of it!!

The stitch pattern I settled on is very simple, but felt like a perfect fit for the Meadow blanket. The stripes are constructed using pairs of crossed-over trebles which create a beautiful, subtle surface texture. I love that the criss-cross effect echoes the tangle of flower stems among the tall grasses, and yet there is a rhythmic calmness to this stitch which makes me think about the calming effect of slowly walking around the meadow.

The pattern repeat is very simple and there is next to no counting, so I'd say this stitch is perfect for relaxation. As it uses just one stitch (a UK treble) it's also a great pattern for beginners. Working the cross-over stitch takes a little practice in the beginning but it very quickly becomes rhythmic and natural. I absolutely love it I have to say.

I created my usual photo-heavy tutorial to help you crochet your tension sample and learn how to work the crossed treble stitch. You can find it by clicking on the following link >>

MEADOW STRIPE TUTORIAL

And due to popular request, I also made a simple written pattern that you can download/print if you don't need the step by step help and prefer to have a traditional printed pattern to pop in your bag. You can find it by clicking on the following link >>

DOWNLOAD MEADOW BLANKET PATTERN.

Even if you are an experienced crocheter, I would strongly advise you to crochet a small tension sample before beginning your blanket. This is just 34 chains, then 6 rows of the pattern which is enough for you to familiarise yourself with the way the rows work, as well as giving you reassurance that your hook size/tension is correct. It doesn't take long, and is worth the extra bit of effort I think.

In the tutorial, I also included some help with darning in ends for this particular blanket which I hope you find useful. As always, I would strongly advise you to darn in your ends as you go along - trust me, it really is the best way!

Once you're happy with your tension sample, you can get started with those first few rows. The pattern gives you starting chains for different sizes of blanket, so although I make my blankets a standard 120 x 175 (single bed size), you could easily make smaller or bigger versions if you prefer.

The first row of a blanket can be tricky for beginners - working into that long wiggly chain can be a real challenge. My advise would be to make sure you can fully concentrate (you need to count accurately) and take your time. I placed stitch markers every 50 stitches along (you can place them more often if you need) so that if I lost count along the way, then I only had to go back as far as the last marker. You must make sure you end up with an even number of stitches (multiple of 2).

When you work the first stripes of your blanket, it's a good opportunity to check your gauge again and make sure you're on track. The best way to do this is to use digital kitchen scales. There will 6 stripes of each colour in the Meadow blanket and as a  rough guide, I'm using approx 12g of yarn per stripe. This means 72g of yarn in total from a 100g ball, leaving enough left over to work a border.

I love love love the very first few rows of a blanket - so much promise of the journey ahead! Once you have the first few stripes done and dusted, the pattern is very, very easy to follow I promise you. It's pure hooky pleasure all the way.

Each week throughout the crochet-a-long I'll be giving you fifteen stripes to crochet (90 in total, spread across 6 weeks)

Remember that as this is a "Colour Story", you won't be using all the colours to start with. 

As the blanket grows, you'll begin to see the colours slowly changing as we walk further through the Meadow - I really hope you love it as much as I do. I find it magical to allow my mind to be transported by these stripes!

You can see how pleasing the stitch pattern looks too - the cross-over stitches give a beautiful soft texture and there is a wonderful calmness somehow, in the way the little crosses stack so precisely on top of each other. I absolutely love it.

J helped me create a graphic which shows you how the Meadow Colour story plays out - I hope this gives you a clear idea of the finished design without giving too much away?!

Oh, I need to mention one important thing - this blanket is designed to have 90 stripes which will give a finished length of approx 175cm. It's therefore not suitable for making smaller length blankets (you will need to follow the "Mixed Stripe" for smaller blankets). Each week I'll add in some additional rows which are optional - this will allow you to add on an extra 30cm if you are making a double/king blanket. You will need two yarn packs for the larger sizes. Starting chains for all sizes are given within the pattern/tutorial,  I hope this makes sense!

So here is the colour info for Part 1 of the "COLOUR STORY" Meadow Blanket.

Click (( HERE )) for the printable worksheet.

1. Meadow (Foundation chain & rows 1 & 2)

2. Pistachio  (rows 3 & 4)

3. Pale Rose (rows 5 & 6)

4. Grape (rows 7 & 8)

5. Dandelion (rows 9 & 10)

6. Raspberry (rows 11 & 12)

7. Mushroom (rows 13 & 14)

8. Buttermilk (rows 15 & 16)

INSERT OPTIONAL STRIPE HERE - Pale Rose (for double bed size blankets)

9. Pistachio (rows 17 & 18)

10. Meadow (rows 19 & 20)

11. Dandelion (rows 21 & 22)

12. Grape (rows 23 & 24)

13. Pale Rose (rows 25 & 26)

14. Sage (rows 27 & 28)

INSERT OPTIONAL STRIPE HERE - Pistachio (for double bed size blankets)

15. Meadow (rows 29 & 30)

As an alternative to the Colour Story, I'm also giving out a colour order for a "Mixed Stripe" version of the Meadow blanket. Because of my hands not being so good these days thanks to osteoarthritis, it hasn't been possible for me to crochet a mixed stripe blanket alongside the Colour Story, so I hope the above graphic will give you an idea of what it'll look like.

You will need to follow this order each week if you are making shorter length blankets.

So here is the colour info for Part 1 of the "MIXED STRIPE" Meadow Blanket.

Click (( HERE )) for the printable worksheet (the mixed stripe is listed on page 2).

1. Grape (Foundation chain & rows 1 & 2)

2. Pale Rose  (rows 3 & 4)

3. Parchment (rows 5 & 6)

4. Cloud Blue (rows 7 & 8)

5. Pistachio (rows 9 & 10)

6. Dandelion (rows 11 & 12)

7. Sage (rows 13 & 14)

8. Duck Egg (rows 15 & 16)

9. Wisteria (rows 17 & 18)

10. Raspberry (rows 19 & 20)

11. Lavender (rows 21 & 22)

12. Meadow (rows 23 & 24)

13. Lincoln (rows 25 & 26)

14. Mushroom (rows 27 & 28)

15. Buttermilk (rows 29 & 30)

I wonder which version you will choose???? In my mind I always saw these colours working as a story, but I know that many of you prefer to have the all over mixture.

In typical Attic24 style, more is always more, right?? In previous years I know many of you have enjoyed working up a repeating colour wash blanket using the colour order in my sampler (shown above). If you choose this option, then you don't need to wait for my weekly instalments as the fifteen colours will be repeated in the same order each week.

And.......there is also one more option.

Are you ready for this?????????

I am thrilled to share with you this beautiful Meadow Harmony blanket created by Kaz Hall who is one of the amazing admins in the "Hooked on Attic24" Facebook group. Kaz took my meadow colours and added two additional balls (Cypress and Lime) to create this stunning version of my Summer Harmony blanket. 

The Meadow Harmony blanket is being run as a mini CAL within the Hooked on Attic24 Facebook group. Kaz is organising this herself with my blessing, so if you would like to use your yarn pack to create your own Meadow Harmony, head on over to the Facebook group to join in. Remember you will need two additional balls of yarn (Cypress and Lime) to follow along.

Well, I think that's about all for this week - remember you can share photos or questions on my Facebook page, in the "Hooked on Attic24" Facebook group, or an Instagram (please use the hashtag #meadowcal so I can find your posts).

I really hope you get your blankets off to a great start, have a fabulous, happy hooky week my lovelies!!!!!!!!!

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🌸 MEADOW YARN PACK

🌸MEADOW STRIPE TUTORIAL

🌸MEADOW PRINTABLE PATTERN

🌸 MEADOW BLANKET INTRODUCTION

🌸 PART 1 COLOUR WORK SHEETS

 

 

 

 

Comments

[Lois Robertson]

I was wondering what hook size to use ?? I can't seem to find it in the pattern anywhere ??

[dawn]

Thank you Lucy for your wonderful designs. Looking forward to joining in when 2 commissions from the grandchildren are finished!
Stylecraft Special DK is my ‘go to’ yarn, and my stash became so large it was always in a tangle. I have recently bought each colour an organza bag 11” x 7” (online). Each bag will hold a 100g ball, plus a few oddments. I then pull the wool from the centre of the ball, so can leave the ball band on. No tangles, and each colour identified. Hope this helps your readers.
Enjoy the CAL everyone - we’ve earned it!!
Dawn x

[Angela Hardy]

Thank you so much for the beautiful blankets. You have helped me get through lockdowns. And I made many for Xmas presents. I thank you from the bottom of my heart ❤️

[Janet]

What a stunner!!! You never disappoint with your beautiful colour choices and the way you weave them together to tell a story. Thank you for sharing your gifts with us❤️

[Mandy]

Hi lucy

You use three phrases colour wash mixed stripe and colour story which has confused me when looking at yhe pics

[Geeha]

Thanks again for all you give us. I have osteoarthritis so sympathise, I find that your gorgeous patterns encourage me to crochet little and often which helps keep my hands flexible. I also knit as it has been part of my life for over 60 years and my mind and hands enjoy the change. One thing I have learnt is not to have deadlines varying my days to suit my joints, that's not so good for you who has to design to time limits. Hope that you are able to get out for walks, the snow is still lingering in North Worcestershire. Wishing you and all the family well for 2021

[Alison]

Hi Lucy - I found Attic 24 when looking for a pattern for a Granny Stripe blanket for my little girl (which I adapted into a rainbow pattern, as requested...) and so I found the rest of your wonderful patterns: so looking forward to getting going on this beautiful pattern, and thank you so much for all your hard work on making and sharing this!

[Nicky]

Morning. so excited! I'm loving the flow of the colour sampler - has anyone created a graphic of how this would look if repeated for the blanket size, either normal repeat or mirrored? Can't decide!

[Dawn]

Ooh, decisions, decisions :)
I was going to do the mixed stripe but I think I'm going to do the story stripe.
Thank you so much for all the time and effort you put in to your designs, very much appreciated! Looking forward to the next few weeks :)

[Josephine Firth]

Sorry, got it!!!

[Nancy Indiana, USA]

Looks wonderful, Lucy! I’m sidelined at the moment with a sore elbow, but I will enjoy watching this beautiful blanket grow. Thank you for sharing your creativity and joy!

[Kristine]

LUCY❣‼️ All versions are STUNNING‼️💖🌟🎊💞 Thank you xxxxx
Hope you can have a relax now❣

[Charlotte Jukes]

I'd love to do the Harmony CAL but was blocked from the Hooked group for being disabled.