In addition to baking, cooking, and learning about herbs, I have another hobby that I do quite often. But it isn’t really one that I talk about too much. I love to crochet! I typically enjoy making blankets and scarfs over hats and other clothing items, but I’ve been crocheting for years.

I learned when I was in elementary school after my grandmother taught me. I’ve been “hooked” ever since. In fact, I’m even able to combine my enjoyment of crochet with my day job. I host an adult crochet/knitting circle at the library I work at. We are a small but mighty group and the attendees always love to come to chat and work on their projects.

Lately in my crochet-life, I’ve been working with Bernat’s Blanket Yarn. This is a thick yarn that works up pretty quickly and is perfect for blankets! This yarn line has been on the market for a little while now, but when it first came out, it took the crochet world by storm! In addition to the solid colored line, there’s also variegated and self-striping varieties. Other yarn companies have also developed their own line. Some yarn makers even have a Baby line which is even softer. I’ve been making a handful of blankets with this yarn for the better part of a year with very little time for other projects. So I needed a change and with the baby blanket almost done, this was the perfect time to start planning the next and different project.

Over the weekend I went to my local Joann Fabrics to purchase an extra skein of yarn for a baby blanket I’m working on. On my way to the registers, I saw it! And I immediately fell in love. I HAD to have it. I had seen these extremely intricate crochet patterns before but I loved the idea of having it all in one book. I quickly flipped through the pages and knew that I wanted to do this pattern. Sophie’s Universe is a Crochet-A-Long from a UK Crochet blogger. She created and released the pattern in installments in 2015. Apparently, this pattern was a huge hit and sparked many other patterns in a similar vain. The pattern also received many different colorways from both the original author and fans alike.

I decided that I wanted to make this blanket as soon as I left the store. But, after looking through the book, I realized that I would need to do a “practice” blanket to see how everything would come out. My ultimate goal is the enter the final, finished piece in the Yarn Arts competition at the Big E whenever it is finished (probably next year).

So for now, I brought some inexpensive yarn and have gotten to work. Here are some pictures of the progress so far. This blanket is made in over a dozen different “parts.” I think my last photo is at the end of Part Two.

Sophie’s Universe will make regular appearances here on the blog, at least for the time being. Here are some of the progress pics so far.

If you would like to see the pattern online for free, you can find it here.