Tunisian Blanket CAL 2023 – 25 Mosaic Square Patterns

Welcome to the Tunisian Blanket CAL of 2023!! This is my fourth year of hosting a blanket CAL and I am so excited to share what I have in store for you!

I love trying new stitches and techniques and I have been experimenting with Tunisian Mosaic Crochet lately. You probably already know this but I love this technique so I decided to use it for my next blanket CAL!

This year we will make 25 squares, each with a different mosaic pattern. The CAL will start on January 4th, 2023 and end right before Thanksgiving (scroll down for full schedule). I will release 25 squares AND the instructions to join and make a Mosaic border for the blanket.

I named this blanket ‘Zuri’ because it means ‘beautiful’ in Hindi. I love how my blanket turned out.

Disclaimer: this post may contain affiliate links – please see my affiliate disclosure for details.

You can find all the squares made by the participants of the previous years’ CALs and join this year’s CAL here: KnitterKnotter Hangout Group

Why Tunisian Mosaic Crochet?

If you are wondering why I chose Tunisian Mosaic Crochet for my next CAL, there are multiple reasons –

1. It is a beautiful yet simple technique. You only work with two stitches and you can create some very intricate patterns with it!
2. There are no color changes in the middle of a row. All the color-work magic happens through the stitches only.
3. We don’t have a million ends to weave in or create an envelope border! This is because Tunisian crochet is worked on one side only since we don’t have to turn the project after the completion of a row. I had only 4 ends to weave in per square and then 2 ends per row in the border, that’s all! Here are my snipped ends.

Where will I find the patterns?

The pattern for this CAL will come with the following:
1. General Instructions for the CAL – with supplies needed and stitch tutorials
2. Written Instructions for each block
3. A chart for each block
4. Written Instructions for the border
5. A chart for the border
6. Support videos

There will be 3 ways to get the patterns of this CAL:

#1 Free on the blog (English only)

Scroll down for the individual square patterns.

#2 Ebook

The pattern in the Ebook version will be available in 2 languages – English and French and will be available to purchase from two places (Ravelry and a non-Ravelry platform).

Here is why you’d want the Ebook:

• There will be no ads!
• The PDF version is print friendly and contains the following
  • List of supplies and general information about the blanket
  • The written instructions for every square and for the border (in English and French)
  • Charts for every square and for the border with X’s indicating the extended stitches
  • Photo tutorials for all the stitches used in Tunisian Mosaic Crochet
  • Bonus empty chart that you can use to create your own square pattern.
• Lifetime access to work at your own pace

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE THE EBOOK

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE THE PATTERN ON RAVELRY

#3 Ebook and Ad-Free Videos

You will get everything mentioned in #2 along with access to ad-free video tutorials with all the material presented in a course format so you can download the PDFs and view the videos all in one place.

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE THE EBOOK AND AD-FREE VIDEOS

Technique and Difficulty

Squares – Beginner
The squares in this blanket are beginner friendly. There are only two stitches you need to know.

Border – Intermediate
The border in this blanket will be worked in a round. If you are not comfortable with working in a round, you can skip the mosaic border and make any border of your choice.

If you new to Tunisian Mosaic Crochet, you can get a head start by practicing the stitches mentioned here and learning how to change color at the beginning of a Forward Pass before starting this CAL.

That said, this is going to be a very slow paced CAL so you will have plenty of time to learn the stitches and to make your squares. I have a Facebook group where you can find some amazing people who love to learn and support each other! There, you can also see photos of the squares made by the participants of the previous CALs for inspiration 🙂

Size

The size of the squares will depend on the yarn you picked. The measurements here are based on the gauge mentioned in the pattern. Each square measures 10” (25.5 cms). 

There are multiple possibilities of putting these squares together:

• 6 squares x 4 squares – makes a 5’ x 3.5’ afghan or throw
• 5 squares x 5 squares – makes a 4’ x 4’ blanket
• Use them individually as dish cloths
• Add more squares to make a larger blanket – you can pick some from my earlier blanket CALs (you will have 75 squares to choose from!) – 2020, 2021, 2022!

A border is added to the blanket after the squares are joined. You can choose to add a border or skip it, keep in mind that adding a border will increase the size of the blanket.

My mosaic border is 3.25” (8 cms) wide and the size of my blanket is 4.75’ x 4.75’.

Gauge

8 rows of 8 stitches is a 2” square.

Use the following pattern to make the gauge swatch:
Row 1 (FR): Chain 8, make the foundation row stitches in the back loops of the chain. 
Row 2: fs, 6 tss, ls.
Row 3: fs, 2 tss, etss, 3 tss, ls.
Row 4: fs, 3 tss, etss, 2 tss, ls.
Row 5: fs, 4 tss, etss, tss, ls.
Row 6: fs, etss, 4 tss, etss, ls.
Row 7: fs, tss, etss, 4 tss, ls.
Row 8: fs, 2 tss, etss, 3 tss, ls.
BOR: fs, 6 tss, ls.
This will be the bind off row. You will make a slip stitch every time you pick up a loop on your hook. Fasten off and weave in ends.

If your gauge swatch is smaller, go up a hook size. If it is larger, you can try going down a hook size but be sure to use a hook that is at least 2 sizes larger than the one recommended for the yarn you are using – this is to avoid curling.

CLICK HERE TO PURCHASE THE EBOOK

Abbreviations

1. ch – chain 
2. fs – First Stitch – Skip the first vertical bar of the previous row (the one right under the one on the hook). The loop on the hook will count as the first stitch for every row. 
3. ls – Last Stitch – Pick up the two vertical bars of the last stitch of the previous row, yarn over, pull through both the vertical bars into a loop on the hook.
4. tss – Tunisian Simple Stitch– Insert hook in the vertical bar, yarn over, pull up a loop on the hook.
5. etss – Front Post Extended Tunisian Simple Stitch – Locate the stitch that’s two rows below the next stitch. Pick up the two vertical bars (front and back bars) from above the return pass chain, yarn over, pull through, chain 1. 
6. twtks – Twisted Tunisian Knit Stitch – Insert hook in between the 2 vertical bars in the opposite direction, yarn over, pull up a loop on the hook.
7. twtss – Twisted Tunisian Simple Stitch (twisted upwards) – Insert hook in the vertical bar in the opposite direction, yarn over, pull up a loop on the hook.
8. twtss-twtks – Twisted Tunisian Simple Stitch and Twisted Tunisian Knit Stitch in the same stitch
9. tks-tss – Tunisian Knit Stitch and Tunisian Simple Stitch in the same stitch.
10. yo  – yarn over
11. FR – Foundation Row
12. BOR – Bind off Row

What you will need

Yarn

You can use any yarn to make this blanket. I recommend using at least two contrasting colors because that will make the pattern pop.

I used Stylecraft Special DK yarn in colors:

1. Silver – 2250 yards / 2000 m / 24 oz / 700 gm (7 skeins)
2. White – 1600 yds / 1475 m / 17 oz / 500 gm (5 skeins)

The yardage above includes approximately 1000 yards for a 11 row border.

This is a great pattern to use up your scraps too! You could purchase the base color (C1) and use yarn from your stash as the other color (C2) for different squares.

My mosaic border is 3.25” (8 cms) wide and the size of my blanket is 4.75’ x 4.75’.

• Swish DK by WeCrochet
• Gloss DK by WeCrochet
• Lion Brand 24/7 Cotton DK
• Paintbox Yarns Simply DK
• Scheepjes Colour Crafter

Hook

Pick a hook that is compatible with the yarn you chose. I usually make a gauge swatch with a few different hooks before I pick one. The gauge swatch will give you a good idea of how the fabric will work up and if you would like it to be more or less drapey. I used a 6 mm (J-10) Tunisian crochet hook for making my squares and the border. I used a 5.5 mm (I-9) crochet hook to join the squares.

For making the border, I used a double ended hook – 6 mm (J-10) hook for the forward pass and 5.5 mm (I-9) hook for the reverse pass. I built my double ended hook by joining two hooks with a cable from my Denise interchangeable crochet hook set.

I used my Denise2Go 2 hook set to make my blanket.

Other hook options:

1. Knitter’s Pride Ginger Interchangeable Hook Set
2. Clover Takumi Interchangeable Hook Set
3. Chiaogoo Interchangeable Hook Set

Blocking Supplies

A blocking mat and, depending on the material of the yarn you choose, you will need some other blocking supplies. I used my KnitIQ crochet blocking mats to block my squares.

If you are using acrylic yarn, you could steam your squares after pinning them on blocking mats. Here are some other products would be useful for blocking:

1. Knit Blockers and Pin Set by Knitter’s Pride
2. Garment Steamer

Other notions

Here are a few more notions that you will need to make your blanket:

1. Scissors to cut yarn
2. Tapestry needle to weave in tails
3. Measuring tape

How to follow the CAL

You can follow this CAL on my website or on my social media. Here are some helpful links that you can use to keep track of the CAL:

1. Pinterest – Follow this Pinterest board for all the squares in this CAL.
2. Facebook Group – If you would like to connect with other people who are participating in this CAL, join my KnitterKnotter Hangout group on Facebook. This CAL, along with any future CALs, pattern releases, giveaways and anything else I would like to share can be found there. It is a great place to share your progress and to ask questions. The group is very focused on learning and everyone there is amazing at helping each other out! I request that you respect the rules of the group while posting.
3. Instagram – You can follow me to get updates there and if you choose to share photos of your project, please use the tags @knitterknotter and #knitterknotter so that I can find them!
4. Email – If you haven’t already done so, you can subscribe to my newsletter to get all important updates of this CAL.
5. Purchase the Ebook or the Ebook & Course – scroll up to find all the details.

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ALL SQUARES

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Disclosure

This page may contain affiliate links where I earn a small commission. While using these links doesn’t cost you more, it helps me continue to offer patterns for free. Thank you for your continued support!

I strive to offer my patterns for free and that is possible only with your support. Please share this post and your pictures as much as possible. Every share counts 🙂

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