Seaside Winter Blanket: Square 11 Uvongo

Hello Seaside CAL-ers!    We are nearing the end of our travels down the South Coast of Kwa Zulu Natal.   This is the second last stop on our Seaside trip, and I hope you are still enjoying the journey with me!

The photos of your growing blankets continue to inspire and delight!   Please keep sharing your beautiful photos in the SEASIDE WINTER BLANKET CAL GROUP.

I will be consolidating the CAL posts into a single  SEASIDE WINTER BLANKET PATTERN pdf document, which will be available for purchase on Ravelry.   The single patterns will remain FREE on my blog.

If you are new to the CAL, please take a moment to read the following posts (links can be found in the pinned post on the Group Page), if you have not already done so, as they contain important information regarding yarn requirements,hook size, blanket sizes and layouts, joining method and other useful CAL information:  Introduction;  You Might Like to Know;  and In Love with Colour.

(Please remember that the two Bonus Squares, "Amanzimtoti"and "Southbroom" are not included in my original layout and have therefore not been included in the count)

This week we will be making the "Uvongo" Square - the 11th CAL Square and the 10th and final small square, measuring 19cm x 19cm including the two border rounds. 

Uvongo is situated to the south of Port Shepstone at the mouth of the Vungu River, and is the largest residential area on the lower KwaZulu Natal South Coast.

We will be crocheting 1 more large square (38cm x 38cm)  before moving on to the border and edging of the blanket.

My "coastal" post will be a bit different this week.   As a lot of you will know I lost my beloved mom to Motor Neuron Disease in July 2015.  Some days it feels as if my heart will never be whole again.   Last week one of my fellow South African readers let me know that she wanted to finish this blanket for her mom's 78th Birthday this Sunday.     I still had so much work to do on the CAL - and had not even started writing the patterns for the 1 small square, 1 large square, border and edging.    Because mom's are one of the most precious gifts, I wanted to help Leanda Currie-Black Anthony make this special gift happen for her mom.   She sat up with me until almost three this morning testing line, after line of pattern, and we have been on the go again since seven this morning.   We really have to keep our wits about us as I am alternating between pattern lines for the small square and the large square!

UVONGO SQUARE PATTERN:

Make 2 x Uvongo Square for the Baby Blanket Make 2 x Uvongo Squares for the Lapghan.

PATTERN TERMS:  US

SPECIAL STITCHES:

3 Triple Crochet Cluster:  (3trc cl) =  yoh x2, insert hook in specified stitch, pull a loop through, (yoh, draw through two loops) x2;  do not complete the stitch, leaving the last loop of the trc on your hook (2 loops on hook);  working in the same st, make 2x more trc in the same way, leaving the last loop of each trc on your hook;  yoh and pull loop through 4 remaining loops on the hook all at once.

Foundation:  4ch, ss to form ring or make a magic ring.

Round 1:   3ch (counts as 1dc), 15dc into ring (16dc).  Sl st into 3rd of start ch to close.  Break off yarn.

Round 2:  Join yarn in top of any dc.   2ch (counts as 1hdc), 2hdc into same dc as join, 6ch, skip 1dc;
(3trc cl into top of next dc, 6ch, skip 1dc, 3hdc into next dc, 6ch, skip 1dc) x3;  3trc cl into top of next dc, 6ch.   Sl st into 2nd of start ch to close.  Break off yarn

Round 3:  Join yarn in 6ch sp to the left of any 3hdc.  [2ch (counts as 1hdc), 2hdc, 2ch, 3dc into same 6ch sp], 6ch;
[(3dc, 2ch, 3hdc into next 6ch sp);  (3hdc, 2ch, 3dc into next 6ch sp);  6ch] x3; (3dc, 2ch, 3hdc into next 6ch sp).   Sl St into 2nd of start ch to close.  Break off yarn.

Round 4:  Join yarn in any 6ch sp.  [2ch, 1dc (counts as 2dc tog); (2ch, 2dc tog, 4ch, 2dc tog, 2ch, 2dc tog into same 6ch sp as join]; (3dc into next 2ch sp,  3ch,  3dc into next 2ch sp);
[(2dc tog, 2ch, 2dc tog, 4ch, 2dc tog, 2ch, 2dc tog into next 6ch sp);  (3dc into next 2ch sp,  3ch, 3dc into next 2ch sp)] x3.   Sl st into start 2dc tog to close.   Break off yarn.

Round 5:   Join yarn in any 4ch (corner) sp. 3ch (counts as 1dc), 5dc into same sp as join. 3dc into next 2ch sp; 1dc into sp between 2dc tog and next dc; (1dc into sp between next 2dc) x2; (2dtrc into sp between 3hdc groups in Round 3; (1dc into sp between next 2dc) x2; 1dc into sp between next dc and 2dc tog; 3dc into next 2ch sp;
[6dc into next 4ch sp. 3dc into next 2ch sp; 1dc into sp between 2dc tog and next dc; (1dc into sp between next 2dc) x2; 2dtrc into sp between 3hdc groups in Round 3; (1dc into sp between next 2dc) x2; 1dc into sp between next dc and 2dc tog; 3dc into next 2ch sp] x 3. Sl st into 3rd of start ch to close. Break off yarn.

Round 6: Join yarn with a standing sc in 3rd dc of any corner 6dc, 1sc in same dc; 2ch, 2sc in next dc; 1sc into each of next 18dc; [2sc into next dc, 2ch, 2sc into next dc; 1sc into each of next 18dc] x3. Sl st into standing sc at start to close. Break off yarn.

Round 7:  Join yarn in any 2ch (corner) sp.  3ch (counts as 1dc), 1dc, 3ch, 2dc into same 2ch sp as join; 1dc into each of next 22dc;
(2dc, 3ch, 2dc into next 2ch; 1dc into each of next 22dc) x3.   Sl st into 3rd of start ch to close.  Break off yarn.

Crochet Border Rounds 1 and 2 around Square.

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A huge thank you to Ritha Vishwanath of HOOKS, NEEDLES AND MORE for her time and effort in efficiently testing the Uvongo.

PS:   The official CAL has ended but you can still join in at your leisure.  The links to all the patterns for the CAL can be found in the pinned post of our Seaside Winter Blanket Group