Crochet Blanket Guide for Beginners

Design guide: This article explains construction and styling choices. It is not a complete stitch-by-stitch pattern; use a numbered pattern suited to your measurements when making the project.

A plain single-crochet rectangle is a useful first blanket because you can change its width and length without recalculating a complicated repeat. This version uses US terms: ch means chain and sc means single crochet. Choose colors before starting so you can obtain enough yarn for the entire piece.

Use a Sample to Set the Width

With your chosen worsted yarn and an appropriate hook, make a single-crochet sample larger than 10 cm across. Let it relax and count the stitches across a measured 10 cm section. Divide that count by 10 to get stitches per centimeter.

Multiply your target width by that number and round to a whole stitch. For example, 15 stitches per 10 cm gives 1.5 stitches per centimeter; a 90 cm width would need about 135 stitches. That is an example calculation, not a universal blanket count.

Crochet the Main Rectangle

1. Chain the calculated number of stitches plus one.
2. Sc into the second chain from the hook and every remaining chain.
3. Ch one and turn. The turning chain does not count as a stitch.
4. Sc in every stitch across.
5. Repeat rows three and four until the desired length is reached.

Place a marker in the first and last stitch if the edges are hard to identify. Keep the stitch count constant. Measure on a flat surface without stretching the fabric.

Add Stripes Without Losing Track

Change color on the final pull-through of the last stitch before the next row. Record the number of rows in each stripe. Leave tails long enough to weave through several stitches, and avoid pulling those tails tight along the edge.

Finish the Edges

You can leave a neat rectangle without a border. For a single-crochet border, work evenly around the edges, placing three stitches in each corner and distributing stitches down the row ends so the border lies flat. Check each side before fastening off. Treat the finished blanket according to the yarn label. For shaped repeating waves, see the ripple baby blanket.