Chunky Alpine Crochet Blanket Pattern Recipe

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When I started the journey of making this blanket (and yes, as cheesy as it sounds it's been a JOURNEY) I dramatically underestimated the time and yarn it would take to finish. By more than half. Whoops! But if you're in the market for an easier than it looks crochet project, this is just about the warmest and coziest I can suggest.

I decided I was going to make this blanket when we had a cold snap in October. We had really just moved in, and it hadn't been cold enough yet to turn the heat on. Which would have been wise to do before we bought the house because it didn't work. And it was suddenly 30-ish degrees outside and our summer bodies couldn't handle the house being around 66 inside (which is, incidentally, what we keep the heat at now).

We had our bed loaded up with every blanket we had and we were still cold at night so I made it my winter project to make the warmest blanket possible. After freezing our asses off for a week, waiting to get the furnace guy over, it turned out that there is not one but two gas valves for our furnace, one of which is so small and insignificant looking we just thought it was part of the pipe. About ten minutes later everything was up and running and we had heat.

Regardless, this blanket was still in the works and after finding the perfect stitch, and buying about one-third of the yarn I would need, I wasn't going to stop working on it. To make things much, much easier for you, I've gone back and figured out exactly how much yarn you'll need to make this warm crocheted blanket so you won't need to make frantic 7am trips to the store for more yarn like I did... twice.

But first, let's talk about the stitch. I found the Alpine stitch when I was browsing around for easy crochet stitches. I haven't tried crochet in nearly 10 years and didn't want to do anything that would be too frustrating. The Alpine stitch is just a modified double crochet - every other stitch you go through the post in the previous row, rather than the top stitch. This creates the mountains and the pattern throughout. I filmed a how-to for this stitch, that you can find on YouTube. This stitch is dense (really dense, think thicccc) and uses a ton more yarn than a regular double crochet, but it has a gorgeous drape and texture.

For a 75-inch square blanket you will need:

• Three skeins of Lion Brand Thick and Quick Yarn (106 yards each) for each stripe color (total of 9 skeins)
• Ten skeins of Lion Brand Yarn 122-098 Thick & Quick Bonus Bundle Yarn(223 yards each) Main color. 
• 10 mm Crochet Hook

The colors I used were:

• White: Fisherman
• Yellow: Madison Mustard
• Grey: Chicago Charcoal
• Navy: Navy (note this one I was only able to find in the bonus bundle size - you'll need two skeins of the bonus bundle size for the two stripes and you'll have a ton leftover.

You should know, the price on the bonus bundle yarn varies wildly, and without warning. You can usually find it for around $6, but sometimes it's $12. The world works in mysterious ways. The smaller skeins are usually around $3. Altogether, this blanket will set you back about $87 if you're buying all the yarn new (assuming you have things like a crochet hook and scissors and get the big boy skeins at $6 not $12). But, this is a BIG blanket! It comfortably fits over our double-sized bed. A smaller blanket uses less yarn and will cost less. And take less time to make, which is another huge bonus. 

This blanket is essentially the same three rows on repeat, it goes like this:

To create this blanket:

1. Crochet a chain 75 inches long, turn your work, and single crochet all the way back. This is your foundation. Chain two to turn. 
2. Double crochet row, chain one to turn.
3. Single crochet row, chain two to turn.
4. (This is where the pattern really starts) Double crochet in the stitch directly above the previous row's first double crochet. The next stitch with be a front post double crochet. Continue down the row alternating double crochet and front post double crochet. Chain one to turn.
5. Single crochet row, chain two to turn.
6. Here we will do the same pattern as #4, but alternate the double crochet and front post double crochet. Each open post from the previous row will get the front post double crochet in this row. Complete this row alternating front post double crochet, and double crochet. Chain one to turn.
7. Repeat numbers three through six for the length of your blanket. Finish with an extra row of Single Crochet and weave in your ends. 

A few notes:

• To add stripes, change color at #3 (single crochet row) and continue as usual. I chose to add three stripes of color (blue, gray, and yellow) alternating with the base white. Each stripe is four total rows (SC, DC, SC, DC) before changing color back to the base white. For my 75-inch square blanket, it worked out to be about 33 inches of white in the center before starting the stripes again at the other end. To make the blanket more rectangular, just keep going in the center section. 
• If you are a tight crocheter, make sure to start with a loose chain to avoid curling.
• Make sure when doing your front post double crochet to pull the yarn level to the row you are actively working on, this will also help to prevent curling.

Variations:

• The lovely Kirsten is making this blanket with the following variation: She's making a California king size blanket and started by chaining 150. She's using Loops and Threads Cozy Wool with a size N hook. She estimates that it will take 12 total skeins of stripe color, and 20 for the base color. 

This blanket is just about my favorite thing in our house right now. It's so heavy it's basically a weighted blanket and it's super soft. It took a long time to finish but well worth it in the end.