Crochet – Gingham Blanket

This week Gloria is joined by Carina Visser also known as Ouma Ralie from Kismet Yarns. She shows us how to make a stylish double –sided gingham blanket by crocheting. She will teach us various techniques such as making front post and back post stitches to create texture, slip stitches, how to use different coloured wool, crochet designs and so much more!

Gingham Blanket

By Carina Visser

Kismet Yarns

Requirements

  • 5 x 100g balls Raeesah Cotton Soft in grey (colour A)
  • 5 x 100g balls Raeesah Cotton Soft in white (colour B)
  • 5 x 100g balls Raeesah Cotton Soft in beige (colour C)
  • 5mm crochet hook
  • 7mm crochet hook

Tension

  • Tension is not important for this project.

Stitches

  • Chain stitch (ch)
  • Slip stitch (sl st)
  • Back post treble (BPtr)
  • Front post treble (FPtr)
  • Half treble crochet (htr)

Special stitches and techniques

  • Surface crochet: Slip stitches are worked on the surface of the finished blanket to form the gingham pattern
  • Front Post and Back Post treble: These stitches are not made in the top of the previous row’s stitches, but around the post of the indicated stitch. When the stitch is made around the front of the post, it is called a front post stitch and when it is made around the back of the post, it is called a back post stitch.

Instructions

  • Step 1:
    • Ch 202 with colour A and 5mm H
    • Row 1: htr in fourth ch from H, ch 1, skip 1 st, *htr in next st, ch 1, skip 1 st, rep from * to end of row, end with a htr in last ch, turn
    • Row 2: (RS) ch 3, skip first st, *FPtr around next st, ch 1, rep from * to end of row, htr around ch3-tc, turn
    • Row 3: (WS) ch 3, skip first st, *BPtr around next st, ch 1, rep from * to end of row, htr around ch3-tc, turn
    • Row 4: (RS) ch 3, skip first st, *FPtr around next st, ch 1, rep from * to end of row, htr around ch3-tc, turn
    • Rows 5-10: rep rows 3-4 another 3 times
    • Change to colour B
    • Rows 11-20: rep rows 3-4 five times
    • Change to colour C
    • Rows 21-30: rep rows 3-4 five times
    • Rows 31-120: Make another 10 rows of each colour in the same sequence. Fasten off.
  • Step 2:
    • Surface crochet
    • Turn the blanket so that the RS is facing you. The BPtr and FPtr form vertical rows on the right side (front), while the wrong side has horizontal rows. When the RS is facing you, these horizontal rows almost look like the rungs of a ladder behind the BPtr and FPtr vertical rows. The surface slip stitches are worked around these “rungs” of the ladder.
  • Step 3:
    • Make a slipknot with colour A and place it around the 7mm crochet hook. Join colour A with a slip stitch on the right side of the first “vertical row” formed by the BPtr and FPtr, around the first bottom horizontal row. Make sure that your working yarn is BEHIND the blanket. Make a slip stitch around the next horizontal row right above the bottom row. Keep making slip stitches around the horizontal rows until you reach the top and fasten off.
  • Step 4:
    • Begin the second vertical row by making slip stitches vertically between the next two rows of BPtr and FPtr (remember to keep your working yarn BEHIND the blanket). Fasten off. Make 10 such slip stitch-rows in colour A, 10 in colour B, 10 in colour C, 10 in colour A, 10 in colour B, 10 in colour C, 10 in colour A, 10 in colour B, 10 in colour C and 10 in colour A.
  • Step 5:
    • Finishing
    • Weave in ends. Make 20 tassels of each colour and tie five at the bottom and five at the top of each of the vertical slip stitch columns in the same colour as the vertical slip stitches (one tassel every second row).

Please note: This pattern was written using UK/SA terminology

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For an instruction video on the basics of crocheting- click here