This beach-inspired ripple stitch blanket works up fast in cool blues and greens for a modern take on a timeless crochet stitch! The Beach Cottage Throw will be a perfect addition to your home to evoke that beachy vibe no matter how far you are from the ocean.
Scroll down for the free crochet pattern for the Beach Cottage Throw and click here to PIN this for later!
Never-ending summer!
I love summer just as much as the next native North Carolinian, but by the end of August, I am ready for pumpkins and cool nights and campfires! In reality, it will feel like summer for several more weeks and while I am starting to look forward to working on cardigans and sweaters and chunky scarves, I have a few more warm-weather projects on my hook. And so, here is the Beach Cottage Throw, a classic and easy-to-crochet ripple stitch blanket that is perfect for beginners!
The Beach Cottage Throw Design
I adore ripple stitches and chevrons! Of all the vintage and classic crochet designs, ripples and chevrons remind me the most of my granny. She taught me to crochet when I was little, and even though it never really stuck with me as a child and it would be decades later when I picked it back up seriously, the sight of a classic ripple afghan never fails to make me think of her. I wanted a modern take on that classic ripple and I found the perfect combination of closed and open stitches to really give the finished blanket movement. This ripple stitch blanket works up fast with an easy-to-memorize two-row repeat and finishes with a simple one-round border.
Yarn Inspiration
The inspiration for this ripple stitch blanket started with the yarn. I spotted a few cakes of Lion Brand Mandala Ombre in the Mantra colorway while shopping at Joann’s (for a completely different project, by the way) and it just screamed at me for a coastal-inspired blanket. Mandala Ombre is a self-striping yarn with gorgeous colors that gradually fade into the next color in each cake. This saturated colorway calls for a cool and quiet neutral, and Lion Brand Pound of Love in Elephant Grey was exactly what was needed to compliment the rows of beachy blues and greens. Both yarns are worsted-weight acrylic yarns that are very similar in construction and work well together.
Separating those colors . . .
I love a good variegated or self-striping yarn; there is something so satisfying about watching the colors come off the skein and onto your project. For this ripple stitch blanket, I wanted a bit more control over how the colors progressed so I separated the colors from each skein so that there was more of each individual color in each block. The overall effect of the ombre is still very much present in the finished Beach Cottage Throw, as the colors move from cool blue to light sea glass and then into turquoise and deep navy.
You can separate these colors by hand, but the easiest way is with a ball winder! This is one of those yarn supplies that I never knew I needed until I used one for the first time. I also have a yarn swift, which is how those hand-dyed hanks are transformed into easy-to-work balls of yarn; the Beach Cottage Throw did not call for the swift but the ball winder made it really quick to separate out the colors of my skeins into individual small balls of yarn. I highly recommend having one in your crochet supplies!
This was such a meditative and fun project to create, and is a great beginner blanket! The repeating rows work up fast for this classic ripple stitch blanket, creating an heirloom piece that you can be proud to pass down. Enjoy!
Scroll down for the free crochet pattern for the Beach Cottage Throw and click here to PIN this for later!
The Beach Cottage Throw – Ripple Stitch Blanket
SKILL LEVEL: Easy +
MATERIALS:
Lion Brand Pound of Love (Weight: #4/Worsted 100% Premium Acrylic – 1,020 yards/932m, 16oz/454g)
- Color A: Elephant Gray -2 skeins (approximately 2,040 yards)
Lion Brand Mandla Ombre (Weight: #4/Worsted 100% Acrylic – 344 yards/315m, 5.3z/150g)
- Color B: Mantra – 4 skeins (approximately 1,376 yards)
GAUGE:
14 double crochet X 10 rows = 4 inches
(row gauge is determined in pattern repeat of 5 double crochet rows and 5 single crochet rows)
Finished Blanket: approximately 50in x 60in
ABBREVIATIONS:
ch(s) – chain(s)
st(s) – stitch(es)
sc – single crochet
dc – double crochet
hdc – half double crochet
sk – skip
tch – turning chain
RS – right side
WS – wrong side
PATTERN NOTES:
- A gauge swatch may be worked to practice the stitch combination; you will chain 34 and follow the pattern instructions for Rows 1-4 and your total stitch count at the end of the rows will be 31.
- The starting chain is worked with the same hook size, make sure to chain loosely so the next row does not pucker. You can also go up a hook size if that works better for you.
- The Ch 3 turning chain DOES count as a stitch.
- The colors pictured in the finished throw have been separated out of the four Mandala Ombre cakes so that each color block is the next color from the cake, as opposed to letting the color changes gradually occur without breaking yarn. This is purely optional, as the finished throw would still be gorgeous with the gradual color changes.
- The pattern is worked with a two-row repeat in ten-row color blocks. Colors changes are made at the end of the indicated block after a Row 4 repeat before turning.
- It is recommended to place a stitch marker in the first single crochet worked in the Row 4 repeat to better determine where to place the last double crochet stitch in the next row.
- After completing the last Row 4 repeat in Color A, yarn is not fastened off and a simple half double crochet border is worked by continuing along the long side of the throw and working stitches into the ends of the rows.
THE PATTERN:
Beginning with Color A, loosely ch 174.
Row 1: Dc in 5th ch from hook. Sk next ch, dc in next ch, sk next ch. Dc in next two chs, 2 dc in next ch, 3 dc in next ch, 2 dc in next ch, dc in next two chs. *(Sk next ch, dc in next ch) three times, sk next ch. Dc in next two chs, 2 dc in next ch, 3 dc in next ch, 2 dc in next ch, dc in next two chs.* Repeat from * to * across the chain until five chains remain. Sk next ch, dc in next ch, sk next ch, dc in last two chs. Turn. (171)
Row 2 (RS): Ch 1 (does not count as st). Sc in same st as tch (the stitch at the base of tch). Sc in each st across until end, ending with last sc in top of tch. Turn. (171)
Row 3 (WS): Ch 3, dc in 1st st from tch (NOT stitch at base of tch). Sk next st, dc in next st, sk next st. Dc in next two sts, 2 dc in next st, 3 dc in next st, 2 dc in next st, dc in next two sts. *(Sk next st, dc in next st) three times, sk next st. Dc in next two sts, 2 dc in next st, 3 dc in next st, 2 dc in next st, dc in next two st)* Repeat from * to * across the row until five stitches remain. Sk next st, dc in next st, sk next st, dc in last two sts. Turn. (171)
Row 4 (RS): Ch 1 (does not count as st). Sc in same st as tch (the stitch at the base of tch). Sc in each st across until end, ending with last sc in top of tch. Turn. (171)
Rows 5 – 130: Repeat Rows 3 and 4, switching colors after a Row 4 repeat as indicated in the below chart. Do not fasten off after completing row 130, you will continue with Color A for the border round.
| ROW NUMBERS | YARN COLOR | TOTAL NUMBER OF ROWS WORKED |
|---|---|---|
| Rows 1-10 | Color A | 10 |
| Rows 11-20 | Color B | 10 |
| Rows 21-30 | Color A | 10 |
| Rows 31-40 | Color B | 10 |
| Rows 41-50 | Color A | 10 |
| Rows 51-60 | Color B | 10 |
| Rows 61-70 | Color A | 10 |
| Rows 71-80 | Color B | 10 |
| Rows 81-90 | Color A | 10 |
| Rows 91-100 | Color B | 10 |
| Rows 101-110 | Color A | 10 |
| Rows 111-120 | Color B | 10 |
| Rows 121-130 | Color A | 10 |
Border Round (RS):
- Continuing with Color A, ch 1. Work half double crochet stitches evenly down long side of the throw (approximately 2 hdc in double crochet rows and 1 hdc in single crochet rows). Work (hdc, ch 1, hdc) in corner and continue along bottom edge of the throw.
- Hdc in each st along the bottom (beginning foundation row) of the throw, working hdc in the skipped chains. Work (hdc, ch 1, hdc) in the corner.
- Work half double crochet stitches evenly down the other long side of the throw (approximately 2 hdc in double crochet rows and 1 hdc in single crochet rows). Work (hdc, ch 1, hdc) in the corner.
- Hdc in each st along the top of the throw and back to the beginning of the round. Work final hdc in first chain 1 from the beginning of the round; fasten off and weave in your ends.
