Bank Holiday Crochet: Beach Blanket

You will need:

1. A 5mm crochet hook
2. Lovely vibrant yarn.  I used Drops Paris Yarn which I purchased from the Wool Warehouse.  It's a lovely cotton yarn which you can wash easily which is perfect for a beach blanket.  I decided to use 7 different colours and so needed 250 grams of each colour.   I am going to do a border around the edge so I have an extra 50g ball of denim blue which is going to be my border colour
3. Scissors
4. Tapestry needle for sewing in all the ends. 

Pattern:

1. Make a slip knot then chain 145 stitches in your starting colour.
2. 1st Row: Work two double crochet stitches in the fifth chain stitch from the hook.  Miss out three chain stitches then work three double crochet stitches in the next chain stitch.  Miss out three chain stitches and work three double crochet stitches in the next chain stitch.  Repeat to the end of the row.
3. 2nd Row: Turn the piece.  Work four chain stitches.  Now make three double crochet stitches into the gap between the first two groups of double crochet stitches you made in Row 1.  Repeat, making three double crochet stitches in each gap to the end of the row.
4. Turn the work.  Change colour (leaving a tail of around 7cm yarn so you can sew it in easily at the end).  Repeat the instructions for the 2nd row twice. 
5. Change colour again and repeat the instructions for the second row twice again.  Continue until you have used up your wool! 
6. Using the tapestry needle sew in loose ends
7. Border: Starting at the short end of the blanket (where you first began), *work 1 double crochet in every chain stitch.  When you reach the corner work three double crochet, chain two and then three double crochet.  Along the long side work one double crochet group in every 4th chain**.  At the corner work three double crochet, chain two and then three double crochet. Repeat from * to **. Join with a sling stitch to the first double crochet.  Repeat all of this, going round the blanket again.  Fasten off.