Pine Pathways Blanket Strip – A Beautiful Tribute to the Piney Woods
Highways lined with majestic pine trees have been a part of my life for a long time. The Pine Pathways Blanket Strip, one of the blanket strips featured in the Road Trip Crochet Along, uses textured stitches to highlight the natural beauty you see when you travel through the Piney Woods of East Texas. Keep reading to find out more about the event, the blanket strip, and the Piney Woods!
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Road Trip Crochet Along
I love a good road trip. While the destination is always the highlight of the trip, I also enjoy the playlists we listen to, the car conversations, and the places we see along the way. I was so excited for the opportunity to participate in the Road Trip Crochet Along because it combined two of my favorite things – crochet and road trip adventures!
The Road Trip Crochet Along is a collaborative crochet adventure hosted by Debbie of Madame Stitch and Christine of Spotted Horse Design Co. This virtual road trip includes blanket strips from 12 designers, each featuring a different location, all from the comfort of your home. My favorite part of the Road Trip Crochet Along is that I get to experience other locations through the eyes of other crochet designers.
Ways to Join the Road Trip Fun
The Road Trip CAL is full of options! Each participating designer has their their blanket strip free on their blog, and all of the links will be organized in blog posts hosted by Debbie of Madame Stitch and Christine of Spotted Horse Design Co. You can get more info about the blanket and find links to all of the free content by clicking on the “Head to the Event Post” button.
Want to print out the pattern, or work at your own pace? Then you’ll love the Road Trip CAL eBook! This eBook includes the full pattern and gives you all of the flexibility to complete the blanket on your own timeline without having to navigate through all of the links. You can grab your copy by clicking on the “Purchase the eBook” button
Pine Pathways Blanket Strip
My contribution, the Pine Pathways blanket strip, features the Piney Woods (also called the Pineywoods) of East Texas. Traveling through the Piney Woods is a beautiful adventure. This forest full of pine trees extends to several states, and is how the area received its nickname. Nearly every path from highways to backroads is lined on both sides with walls of beautiful pine trees. The brown trunks stand in stark contrast to the pine-needle covered branches, and their simple grace is magnificent to behold.
The Pine Pathways Blanket Strip depicts this majestic view using front post and back post double crochet stitches to represent the strong tree trunks, and the Feather Stitch to represent the textured pine needles.
I grew up on the Gulf Coast, but went to college on the edge of the Piney Woods and still live just outside of the area. These beautiful trees were the background of my trips to-and-from home, my memories of my young adult life, and now are a part of nearly any road trip I go on with my husband.
I took a short road trip to take pictures to use as inspiration for my design, and I ended up on the edge of the Sam Houston National Forest, which is considered part of the Piney Woods region. It was so nostalgic to be out in the woods and see these beautiful pine trees that have been a part of so many phases of my life. I’m always amazed at how unassuming the tree trunks look as I’m driving by, but how the tall, sturdy giants tower over me when I stand amongst them.
Pattern Details
The instructions for the Pine Pathways Blanket strip will help you make one blanket strip that is approximately 5” (12.7 cm) tall and 50” (127 cm) wide. You can combine it together with other strips in the Road Trip CAL to make the full blanket, or repeat the blanket strip instructions until you reach the desired length.
Skill Level
Intermediate
Materials
315 yds / 288 m size 4 medium worsted weight yarn, broken down as follows:
Color A (Mammoth Cave) – 110 yds / 101 m
Color B (Kings Canyon) – 205 yds / 187 m
I used 1 skein of Mammoth Cave and 1 skein of Kings Canyon of Lion Brand Heartland yarn <5 oz/142 g> <251 yds/230 m>
US size H-8 crochet hook (5.00 mm)
Scissors, yarn needle
Stitch markers
Gauge
14.5 sts x 8 rows = rows of dc
Finished Size
Approx. 5” (12.7 cm) tall and 50” (127 cm) wide
Stitch Abbreviations – US Crochet Terminology
BPtr – back post treble crochet
ch – chain
dc – double crochet
FPtr – front post treble crochet
hdc – half double crochet
sc – single crochet
sp – space
st – stitch
stsc – stacked single crochet
yo – yarn over
Pattern Notes
The first step of each Feather Stitch will be worked in the same ch-1 sp as the last step of the previous Feather Stitch.
The stsc at the beginning of a row counts as 1 dc.
The ch 1 at the beginning of a row does not count as a st.
Special Stitches
Back Post Treble Crochet (BPtr) – yo 2 times, insert hook from back to front to back around the post of the indicated st, yo and pull up a loop that is even with the top of the working row, [yo and pull through 2 loops] 3 times.
Front Post Treble Crochet (FPtr) – yo 2 times, insert hook from front to back to front around the post of the indicated st, yo and pull up a loop that is even with the top of the working row, [yo and pull through 2 loops] 3 times.
Feather Stitch – yo, insert hook into ch-1 sp, yo and pull up a loop, yo, insert hook into st or sp below the ch-1 sp, yo and pull up a loop, yo, insert hook into next ch-1 sp, yo and pull through all 7 loops on hook.
How to Make the Pine Pathways Blanket Strip
Row 1 (RS): with Color A, stsc in 1st st (counts as 1 dc here and throughout the strip), dc in next st and in each st across, turn <180 dc>
Row 2 (WS): stsc in 1st st, dc in next st, [BPtr around each of next 2 sts, dc in each of next 4 sts] 29 times, BPtr around each of next 2 sts, dc in each of next 2 sts, turn <60 BPtr, 120 dc>
Row 3: stsc in 1st st, dc in next st, [FPtr around each of next 2 sts, dc in each of next 4 sts] 29 times, FPtr around each of next 2 sts, dc in each of next 2 sts, turn <60 FPtr, 120 dc>
Row 4: stsc in 1st st, dc in next st, [BPtr around each of next 2 sts, dc in each of next 4 sts] 29 times, BPtr around each of next 2 sts, dc in each of next 2 sts, turn <60 BPtr, 120 dc>
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Row 5: with Color B, ch 1, hdc in 1st st, [ch 1, sk next st, hdc in next st] 89 times, hdc in last st, turn <91 hdc, 89 ch-1 sp>
Row 6: ch 1, hdc in 1st st, hdc in next st, ch 1, [Feather Stitch, ch 1] 88 times, hdc in last st, turn <88 Feather Stitches, 3 hdc>
Row 7: ch 1, hdc in 1st st, ch 1, [Feather Stitch, ch 1] 88 times, hdc in next 2 sts, turn <88 Feather Stitches, 3 hdc>
Rows 8 – 11: repeat Rows 6 – 7 2 times
Row 12: ch 1, hdc in 1st st, hdc in next st, ch 1, [Feather Stitch, ch 1] 88 times, hdc in last st, turn <88 Feather Stitches, 3 hdc>
Row 13: ch 1, sc in 1st st and in each st and ch-1 sp across, turn <180 sc>
Row 14: ch 1, sc in the same st and in each st across. <180sc>
Get the Road Trip CAL eBook
Are you ready to start on the crochet road trip adventure? Grab your copy of the full pattern eBook and get started today! The Road Trip CAL eBook includes all 12 patterns PLUS a crochet passport to document your journey. While you can participate in the event free on the blog, the eBook is a great option for crocheters who want to work at their own pace, or work off of a printed copy.
More Textured Throw Blanket Patterns
If you love working with textured stitches, then you’ll love these throw blanket patterns.
Mountainside Blooms Throw Blanket
Warm Wishes Christmas Throw Blanket
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