When I first learnt to crochet, all I was really interested in was making a simple classic granny square blankets, just like the one my mum had made for me as a child.
I loved it, not only it’s softness and comfort but the bright rainbow colours that lifted spirits.
I wanted to recreate those feelings, by making my own. I’ll admit I still haven’t made one, mainly because no other granny square blanket will give me those feeling I had when I was snuggled up in my childhood blanket.
Somewhere along the road of life, that blanket was lost, but never forgotten.

Every since I started crochet, granny squares have held a special place in my heart not only, are they fun to make, they are all beautifully unique.
They can be quick to make with the added bonus of a sense of achievement when you weave in the last yarn tail and the square is finished.
You can then spend hours going through patterns picking your next square, deciding colours and playing with placement.
You can let your creativity run wild, making the design your own. And when that square is finished you get to do it all again.
To me they are the perfect project.

So when my mum gave me, my all time favourite yarn, Scheepjes Stonewashed Xl, for my birthday, it was time to treat myself to a blanket.
It’s very rare for me to make something for myself, especially as one of the joys of crochet is to be able to gift what I make to the people I love.

There are so many beautiful blankets out there, so many it’s nearly impossible to pick just one to use, trust me the struggle is real.🤯
I finally decided that I would make a Lapghan, made up of 12 different squares by different designers.
I spent a while picking the square designs I wanted to use, this was much harder than I thought, due to the hundreds of possibilities on Ravelry.
I needed to pick squares full of texture because I would be working them in only one colour, which gives the added risk of loosing details.
Finally I had my lapghan all planned out.
She would be a 3 square x 4 square lapghan.
The squares would all have an extra round added to them, to get each square to a stitch count of 44 stitches.
The extra round would be, half Double Crochet in the back loop, to give it just a little more texture and define where the original squares had finished. I also added the extra round because I planned to use Tatsiana Kupryianchyk, from “Lilla Bjorn’s Crochet World”, Zig-Zag Blanket Border. It’s my favourite border, it’s truly beautiful and so full of texture, as are all of Tatsiana patterns.

The Zig-Zag border was designed for Esther Dijkstra from “It’s All In A Nutshell”, Nuts About Squares Cal, which is probably my favourite make so far. (More info here.)

I decided on the, Flat surface slip stitch join. Even though it’s a little tricky and time consuming, it’s perfect for a nice flat, almost invisible join, letting the squares flow into one another.

With a plan in place, I just needed a name.
As I was using, Scheepjes Stonewashed Xl in Moon Stone, the name “Moonstone” was perfect, especially as my hubby is fascinated by the night sky and pretty damn good at capturing it. You can see more of his photography here or in his monthly, The Beauty Of Life, Captured, series.

There is nothing more calming than sitting outside watching the night sky, as the sun sets, the moon rises and the sky alights in a blanket of twinkling stars.

So with my trusty, Clover Soft Touch, 5mm hook at the ready, my “Moonstone Lapghan” began its journey.

The 12 squares I made were –

Square 1 – Gretchen Afghan Square, by Julie Yeager.

Square 2 – Clown Car, by Polly Plum.

Square 3 – Lotus Moon, by Polly Plum.

Square 4 – Duckbill Dalliance, by Margaret Macinnis.

Square 5 – Saffron, by Polly Plum.

Square 6 – Flower Patch Cushion, by Emily Littlefair.

Square 7 – Spiro Star, by Helen Shrimpton.

Square 8 – Tropical Delight, by Susan A Stevens.

Square 9 – Maybellene, by Polly Plum.

Square 10 – River, by Polly Plum.

Square 11 – Kaylee, by Polly Plum.

Square 12 – Rebirth, by Magdalene Lee.

I was pretty chuffed with how they all turned out.
With all squares made, the joining commenced and my Moonstone lapghan came alive.

I made the hard decision to not use the zig-zag border because I knew the beautiful details in the pattern would be lost in just one colour. I decided on using the same edging as I used on my Lotus Moon Lapghan, with a few extra round thrown in.
I think it just give it a little more detail, depth and definition, without going over the top.

The border consists of 5 rounds –

Round 1 – 2 Double Crochet’s, chain 2, 2 Double Crochet’s in corner. Double Crochet across , with 1 Double Crochets in the chain spaces of each individual square corner space, 1 Front-Post Triple Crochet around the join, 1 Double Crochets in the chain space, continue across until the corner.

Round 2 – 2 Single Crochet’s, chain 2, 2 Single Crochet’s in corner. Back Post Half Double Crochet, across.

Round 3 – 2 Double Crochets, chain 2, 2 Double Crochets in corner. Skip the hidden stitch, Double Crochet across.

Round 4 – 2 Double Crochets, chain 2, 2 Double Crochets in corner. Skip the hidden stitch, Double Crochet across.

Round 5 – Half Double Crochet, Double Crochet, Triple Crochet, picot-3, Triple Crochet, Double Crochet, Half Double Crochet in corner space.
Skip the hidden stitch, slip stitch in next stitch, skip 1 stitch, 5 Double Crochets in next stitch, skip 2 stitches, continue with Single crochets in every stitch across, stopping 6 stitches before every corner, skip 2 stitches , 5 Double Crochets in next stitch, skip 1 stitch , slip stitch in next stitch , skip 1 stitch and repeat until you have crocheted all the way around. Join with an invisible join to finish.

I ended up using 27, skeins of yarn, costing £82.73.
22, 50g skeins were used for the squares and 5 for the joining and border.

As I stitched the last stitch, weaved in the ends, I remembered the journey, and what had pasted from start to finish. The feelings I felt as I made each square. The trails and tribulations, that life had thrown at our family over the last few months while I stitched those memories into the squares.
Moonstone, will forever now remind me of those moments of happiness, the moments pride, the feelings of achievement and even the sadness and fear.
To me that’s what makes a blanket, more than something you throw over your lap to keep warm, it makes it personal and in some cases a heirloom.
Hopefully one day when I’m grey and old, crocheting in my rocking chair, my future grandchildren, can snuggle up in my Moonstone Lapghan, forming their own memories, of the granny square blanket, that their nanny made.

🙈🙉🙊