Just Pootling

 Blanket season 

♥ 

With the clocks now having gone back an hour the nights are definately drawing in and, 

if you're anything like me, that means it's time to get the cosy blankets out !

And as I seem to have a bit of a 'thing' for crochet blankets, 

in our house that poses the very big question of which one :)!

Looking back at the blankets that I have made over the last few winters

 I rather seem to have got hooked on the colour combination of snowy white, 

a bright letter box red and a soft pistachio shade of green.

                                     

I used this colourway when I designed my first Christmas blanket a couple of years ago

 as I wanted to create a vintage feel to the blanket 

and these three colours seemed to create exactly the look that I was after. 

And it seems to have stuck since then !

I think I particularly like the contrast of the bright red against the white

 as it gives such an iconic Christmas look.

This blanket also set the pattern for some of my future designs as I loved the fact 

that the basic blanket was just straightforward rows of dc ( UK terms) 

and then all of the picture features are crocheted seperately

 and stitched on to the completed blanket.

You can find the pattern for this blanket HERE

The following year I was asked to design a festive blanket for Simply Crochet magazine

 and the same colours worked beautifully for the idea that I had in mind.

Again, the blanket is worked in rows of dc and then the mistltoe sprig,

 ivy leaves and robin are all made seperately and stitched on to the finished blanket

 along with the little star snowflakes

                                 

You can find the pattern for this blanket HERE.

This years blanket design has been ticking away in my head

 since I visited the Country Living Christmas Fair last December. 

Whilst browsing all the gorgeous stalls I saw the most perfect wrapping paper 

in excatly my colour scheme ! 

And just like that the seed was sewn.

I started the blanket back in the Summer 

and once the main base was complete 

it was time to add the candy canes.

Out of all my designs I think this has to be the simplest of them all 

as even the candy canes are just small rectangles of dc, 

rolled up to make the cane shape.

You can find the pattern for this blanket HERE.

♥ 

Of course, making a blanket is quite a labour of love so what to do if, 

after all your hard work, you really don't want to have to pack 

it all away for 11 months until next Christmas ?

One solution is to make a blanket in a colourway of your choice that can stay out all year

 but that, when the time comes, will match in with a Christmas cushion cover.

A cushion cover is much less time consuming to make but just as full of impact.

This pistachio green bobbly blanket looks perfect left 

out all year round

 but, when added to this Christmas wreath cushion 

suddenly feels wonderfully Christmassy.

Both the pattern for the bobbly blanket and the wreath cushion can be found

 in my new book Crocheted Home, available HERE

These two Christmas cushions are some I designed a couple of years ago 

and they really do add a lovely festive touch to a sofa or bed.

As with the blanket designs the actual cushion cover couldn't be simpler

 as it is made up of a front panel and two overlapping back panels, 

all worked in rows of dc, 

and then the different picture elements are made seperately

 and stitched on to the completed cover.

You can find the pattern for the cushions HERE

♥ 

Of course, once your blanket and cushion is made what else is there to do

 but to find the perfect spot to cosy up and enjoy them !

♥