Posted on 16 Comments

May Baby Blanket show-and-tell

May Baby Blanket show and tell
As promised, here’s a little show-and-tell of my latest crochet blanket.

This one, while quite small, took me forever! The actual crocheting went fairly quickly, but before I got to that point, there were so many times I made decisions about color and pattern only to change my mind and start over.

This was what it looked like the first time I started it:

Work in Progress

It was to be pastel dots on a brown background. I started it before I knew whether I was making it for a boy or a girl, so I was keeping it relatively neutral. My plan was to make two stroller blankets: this one, and another that would feature bold colors on a gray background.

The thing is, by the time I got this far in the process, I was pretty sure that I didn’t like the way it looked. It didn’t fit my vision at all.

So decided to start over, leaving more space between the dots.

Work in Progress

That was ok, but I wasn’t feeling those colors, and the dots were not staying round.

So I decided to scrap the two-blanket plan and instead make one that used both bold and pastel colors. I switched to using gray for the background, and then I tried pastel dots outlined in bold colors.

07_blanket_01_ul

I didn’t like that, either. It was essentially a traditional Granny Square with a circular center, and while I am a fan of the old-fashioned granny square look, I didn’t think my recipient would be.

It was at this point that I stuffed the whole thing in a bag and didn’t look at it for a few months.

When I finally came back to it, I knew I would be crocheting for a girl. And I knew her parents had picked out pink and gray things for her nursery. That helped me make the decision to ditch every color except for the pastel pink and the bold pink. I added white, and chose gray for the background. Finally, a color scheme that felt right to me!

2015 76/365

When I got to working on the squares, I decided they couldn’t be the traditional granny square style, but instead something a bit more modern. I took some cues from the Mod Floral Blanket in terms of making a square while preserving the center shape, and came up with a square that I really liked.

May Baby Blanket show and tell

May Baby Blanket show and tell

May Baby Blanket show and tell
I’m quite happy with the way it came out. My only regret is that I couldn’t make it a little bit bigger, but I suppose it’s a good size for putting over her legs in a stroller (which is why I’m calling it a “stroller blanket” and not a “crib blanket” or a “floor blanket”). If I’d had another week or two, I’d have added at least one more row to each side.

May Baby Blanket show and tell
I really need a live model. I hope my sister-in-law will let me borrow her baby in a few months 🙂

Oh, and why am I calling it the “May Baby Blanket”? My new niece is due on my birthday at the end of May, so it’s been designed and crocheted for a May baby, by a May baby. It seemed appropriate 🙂

I will be writing up a pattern for this one, although I think I have to do my taxes first (booooooooo!)

If you’re interested in the pattern, keep an eye on the blog, or subscribe to the monthly Download Shop News so you don’t miss the announcement!

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Posted on 16 Comments

16 thoughts on “May Baby Blanket show-and-tell

  1. Such a lovely blanket, and heirloom, too.

    1. Thanks, Linda!

  2. Looks fantastic – sometimes it takes a while before the final design looks like what is envisioned. Can’t wait for the pattern!!

    1. Thanks! I’m glad it did eventually come together 🙂
      I got started on the pattern today!

  3. Lisa! Love it cannot wait tO get the pattern I hope to see more designs in the future I just love your style jersey girl!

    1. Thanks so much! I can’t wait to write the pattern 😉

  4. So pretty and modern looking!!! FABULOUS

    1. Thank you, Charity! I’m glad it hit the mark.

  5. Hello, I love your crochet, it is beauty, I love this colors, I follow your blog, I have a blog about crochet with free patterns and free crochet diagrams, visit me , hugs from Brazil.
    Visite meu blog – Tita Carré – Crochet

    1. Thank you for visiting and for sharing your link. Your hexagon blanket is beautiful!

  6. Love this blanket! Have a friend I can’t wait to make it for!

    1. Thank you! I really have to get to work writing up that pattern 🙂

  7. […] been pretty nerdy this week. I’ve been working on the May Baby Blanket tutorial. I redesigned some stuff on my website that really didn’t need to be redesigned […]

  8. […] can get all of the back story here, but in a nutshell: it took me so long to figure out a suitable design, that I had very little time […]

  9. […] little blanket was crocheted in all of the same colors as her big sister’s May Baby Blanket two years ago, so they have a matched set […]

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