BRITISH COUNTRY GARDEN BLANKET - MOSAIC CAL

Being a participating designer in last year's Mosaic CAL hosted by Nichola of Elimee Designs, I couldn't resist joining again this year. The British Country Garden Mosaic CAL, is a year long project, which gives new a pattern each month to reflect a different flower of a British country garden. Being May, I chose the Lily of the Valley. All these patterns are in Overlay Mosaic Crochet, where you work one row and one colour at a time. Nichola started on this process almost a year ago- getting us designers to create the charts, make the samples and then she made the entire blanket to show us what it would look like all together. You have to agree her choice of colours and final piece are impeccable.

If Overlay Mosaic sounds strange and foreign to you, don't worry! Nichola breaks it all down and makes it really simple to work. In case you haven’t tried mosaic crochet before, this is the perfect time to dive in. Mosaic crochet looks intricate and impressive, but it is easier than you think. The technique is quite amazing and uses the most basic crochet stitches – single crochet and double crochet – to create bold and colourful patterns.

Let me give you a brief idea how this all works. The CAL runs for the entire year of 2026. New sections of the blanket are released on the 1st of every month. Go to Elimee Designs' page to find the details for the featured section. The link to each designer's page can be found on the host page. The designers host the pattern chart on their blog, which will be viewable for free. No coupon codes or downloads are required to access the pattern chart. The button on the host page will take you to the designer’s blog.

If working from a webpage and switching from page to page, is not your thing, you can buy the eBook. The eBook contains all the patterns charts, and written pattern instructions. You can purchase it at any time.

I chose the Lily of the Valley- for me this flower is synonymous with the month of May. Many moons ago I was an au-pair with a family in a small village near the city of Nantes in France. I lived with them during the months of April and May. The family owned a farm that grew the Lily of the Valley known as Muguet in French. I learnt of the traditions and stories surrounding this flower and the importance it played in their life. The growers had to make sure the flowers bloomed on the 1st of May. They would keep a close watch on the plants, adjusting the heat and light to ensure the flowers bloomed on the appointed day- no earlier, no later! This was one day that anyone and everyone was allowed to sell these flowers- no license needed, no age bar, no specific locations. People would gift these to each other. Below is a small extract about the origins of this tradition.

La Fête du Muguet: France's Celebration of Spring

The annual celebration of La Fête du Muguet, honours the lily of the valley as a harbinger of spring. It is said to have originated with King Charles IX. In 1561 after receiving the flower as an emblem of prosperity the king is said to have established a custom of gifting these flowers. This tradition has transformed into a national event where people gift these blooms. It symbolises love and spring’s cleansing virtues. Streets come alive with vendors, and the air is perfumed with their scent.

So how could I resist designing this pretty flower for the month of May? This pattern actually uses three colours in all but only one colour per row as mosaic crochet normally does. The challenge with designing this pattern was to make sure the flowers looked like the Muguet- the delicate small white flowers that resemble bells. Many times what is drawn on paper needs to rejigged when working the piece, to make sure the picture looks good. Thanks to Nichola's help, the final pattern makes the grade.

The interesting part with the this CAL is that although it is designed for a blanket, you are not restricted to that. You could make a runner with the pattern by adjusting the number of repeats of each design or you could just make each individual design as a set of place mats. The options are plenty. Don't miss the opportunity to make something gorgeous with minimal effort.

Because of the way Mosaic Crochet is worked, there are yarn tails at the beginning and end of every row. If you are not inclined to weave in these multiple ends, there are two other ways to finish. Either they can be worked into the design and left as tassels or work the envelope border, giving it a professional and neat finish.

Three ways to get the pattern -

1. The graph for my pattern is available below and will be free to access.

2. If however you want an ad-free pdf to download, you can access it through my Ravelry Store.

3. Or buy the eBook.

Bonne fête du muguet!