Free Nordic Winter Afghan C2C CAL | Crochet Christmas Blanket Crochet Along
A new blanket for the holidays.
As a child, I remember my mom pulling out the Christmas decorations each winter. My eyes would fill with such wonder as ornaments, Santa figurines, the Nativity set, and comfy crocheted holiday blankets were pulled out of boxes that had been hidden away during the year. My siblings and I would fight over who got to set up the Nativity scene and who would get to hide the little elf dolls on the tree— you know, those Elf on a Shelf elves that were around BEFORE the now mainstream Elf came to the scene. Many of these Christmas decorations had belonged to my mother for her whole adult life, and some were even passed down to her from her mother. I get nostalgic thinking about those memories and heirlooms.
Now as an adult, I am realizing that I want my kids to have those same feelings when I pull out my Christmas decoration. I want them to stand in awe at the heirlooms and special pieces year after year. And in order to do that, I need to curate my decorations, collect the heirlooms that have been passed down and even create my OWN heirlooms that they will one day feel nostalgic about each Christmas.
Enter, the Nordic Winter Afghan C2C CAL. I dreamed up the idea for this blanket in the middle of the night when I was nursing my newborn baby. I wanted to collaborate with different crochet designers to create a holiday heirloom. I couldn’t shake the idea, and I am SO excited to be presenting it to my crochet community this winter! Thank you for joining.
What is a Crochet Along?
Perhaps you have never participated in a Crochet Along before and you may be wondering what in the world I am talking about. A Crochet Along (CAL) is essentially an event where you crochet along with other people creating the same project. A each part of the pattern is released bit by bit, and you work at the same pace as other participants.
How it will work.
For this CAL, I have partnered with 10 other crochet designers to create the pattern for the Nordic Winter CAL Afghan. Each part of the CAL will be released each Monday and Thursday throughout the months of October and November, I have thrown some breaks in there so there is time to catch up, because C2C designs can take awhile to complete — and weave in all those nasty ends! Some days will be devoted to assembly and borders, etc.
I will send out an email to the CAL participants to announce the release of each new design, or you can simply come to this page and click on the new design to be directed to that designer’s blog in blog hop fashion and you will have access to the FREE chart for that square.
If you would prefer to have the written instructions you can purchase the full ebook with includes all the charts and written instructions for each blanket square. An added benefit of purchasing the ebook is you have the pattern for the whole blanket all at once and do not have to wait for the new design to be released.
This is a collaborative project that I am creating in real time! Because of this, I do not know yet what my completed blanket will look like. The pictures presented in this post are mockups to give a general idea of the finished product. Join in on the CAL!
After grabbing each new chart, make sure you hop on over to the Juniper & Oakes Crochet Community. You can ask questions, post pictures of your WIPs and finished squares, enter to win the giveaway prize, watch Live videos, and join our virtual Sip & Stitch. It will be a lot of fun! If you don’t have Facebook, you can still participate in the CAL by creating your squares on your own. Definitely post pictures and share about the CAL on any social media you have. Be sure to tag me @juniperandoakes (& tag the designer of that particular square too) and use #NordicWinterC2CCAL so we can see your progress.
Don’t miss an update.
I will be sending out an email each time a new design is released. Even if you receive my normal email newsletter, be sure you sign up below to receive the CAL emails so you don’t miss out on anything new! You will be the first to be notified of the next part of the CAL or any other news. Sign up now!
The Designers
I have teamed up with 10 other designers to bring you 12 different square to complete this blanket. The other designers are Helen from Sunflower Cottage Crochet, Miranda from Hecka Tesdal, Tasha from Stardust Gold Crochet, Joanna from High Desert Yarn, Christina from Creative Snugglies Designs, Claire from E’Claire Makery, Shannon from The Loophole Fox, Raffaella from Raffamusa Designs, Veronica from Blue Star Crochet, and Lisa Fox from Green Fox Farms Designs. I am so excited to be working with these designers. If you aren’t familiar with their work, go ahead get to know them by browsing their website and social media. Be sure to show them some love and follow them on all their platforms.
The Schedule
Each Monday and Thursday during October and November a new part of the design will be released. You’ll notice some breaks are scheduled as well because I know how easy it is to fall behind. This project is a bit time consuming, so there will be time to catch up. Here is the plan for all of you detailed planners out there.
- October 4 – Nordic Star by Juniper & Oakes
- October 7 – Christmas Tree by Sunflower Cottage Crochet
- October 11 – Snowflake by Hecka Tesdal
- October 14 – Joining
- October 18 – Nordic Vines by Stardust Gold Crochet
- October 21 – Skadi Pattern by High Desert Yarn
- October 25 – Nordic House by Juniper & Oakes
- October 28 – BREAK
- November 1 – Angel by Creative Snugglies Designs
- November 4 – Reindeer Silhouette by E’Claire Makery
- November 8 – Reindeer Head by the Loophole Fox
- November 11 – BREAK
- November 15 – Bells by Raffamusa Designs
- November 18 – Bird by Blue Star Crochet
- November 22 – Snowflake Hearts by Green Fox Farms Designs
- November 25 – Thanksgiving Break
- November 29 – Border
- December 9 – Giveaway winner announced
The blanket does not have to be assembled in the order the squares were created. Feel free to mix up the order so the blanket looks how you’d like.
If you don’t want to wait for the next part of the CAL to be released and you want all the parts RIGHT NOW, you can purchase the ebook. Not only will you have instant access to all of the charts for each blanket square, you will also get the written instructions as well. I don’t know about you, but I think it is easier and faster to follow the written instructions.
How big will my blanket be?
Such a good question! The answer will depend on many factors: yarn, hook, tension, etc.
You can get a good estimate at the size of your blanket by using this C2C calculator by Tasha at Stardust Gold Crochet. All you have to do a crochet a swatch of four rows of C2C stitches using your yarn and hook of choice. Then fill out the calculator at the bottom of THIS page and it’ll tell you how big your blanket will be.
FYI, each design is 25×25 boxes, and the final blanket will be 75×100 boxes.
The Yarn: Worsted
WeCrochet Swish Worsted (110y, 50g, 100% wool) or other light worsted yarn in two colors
Main Color: White
Contrast Color: Serrano
Swish is 100% Fine Superwash Merino Wool. It is so soft and squishy and I know it will make such a cozy blanket that I’ll keep grabbing every winter. I am also excited that it is machine washable and dryer-friendly! The main color is White, and the contrast color is Serrano, a bright, festive, holiday red.
The Hook: 5mm
I used a H/5.00 mm Red & Nickel Odyssey hook from Furls Crochet to make my blanket. Furls sent me this hook for me to use for my holiday projects. It helps me feel festive as I work up my squares. This hook feels so good in my hands and the yarn slides easily across the nickel. If you have never tried a Furls hook, I suggest you head on over to their website and order one now.
You don’t have to use an H hook. I usually use a J, but wanted to try something smaller for this blanket so my finished project wouldn’t get too large! Be sure to make a swatch using the yarn and hook of your choice, and use the calculator above so you are not surprised by the size of your blanket.
The Pattern
As mentioned earlier, the free charts for each blanket square will be released slowly over the next couple months, but if you would like the complete blanket pattern today, purchase the ebook now! The ebook includes charts AND written instructions for each square, plus pictures and video tutorials on C2C crochet, instructions on joining the squares, and how to add a border.
What is C2C?
I have written this whole post with the assumption that you all now what C2C means. C2C stands for “Corner to Corner.” It is a crochet technique were you work diagonally creating tiny squares or pixels.
Click here for my youtube playlist on C2C basics.
The traditional C2C stitch consists of a ch 2 + 3 dc to form one C2C pixel, and each increase is ch 6 + 3 dc. To make my blanket a more manageable size, I used ch 2 and 3 hdc for each pixel, where each increase was ch 5 + 3 hdc.
Watch my video on C2C using half-double crochet
Crochet Colorwork with C2C can be a bit complicated, so watch this video for some tips
Ready, Set…
OK! Now that you know the plan and all the details, go get your yarn and your hook ready, because the fun will start on October 4!
Action Items:
Subscribe to the CAL newsletter
Gather your yarn and hook
Get excited for the CAL to begin on Oct 4!
The Fine Print
This pattern and its images are the property of Juniper and Oakes ©2021. The pattern is for your personal use only. Please do not copy/paste, distribute, or alter and claim as your own. You may sell products made by this pattern, but please credit @juniperandoakes and remember to link back to juniperandoakes.com or credit Juniper & Oakes on the craft fair tag.
If you make this pattern, please email a picture to [email protected] and I will include it in a gallery on my website.You may post pictures on social media and tag @juniperandoakes and use the hashtag #juniperandoakes and #jaocozycabledbeanie and #jaocables. You can also post pictures on my Facebook Page, or in the Juniper + Oakes Crochet Community Facebook Group.
Let me know if you run into a problem. I respond quickly and will help any way I can to clarify any confusion or challenging stitches.
