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# Filet Baby Blanket — "Callie Rayne" (Wish Bear on a Crescent Moon)

A delicate single-colour filet crochet baby blanket. The design shows a Wish Bear sitting on a crescent moon, shooting stars sweeping across the background, and the baby's name **Callie Rayne** worked in filet lettering beneath the moon. Worked flat in rows of open mesh and solid blocks, then finished with a soft shell border.

**Skill level:** Intermediate
**Technique:** Filet crochet (mesh and block construction)

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## Finished Measurements

- Width: approx. **100 cm** (50 filet squares wide)
- Length: approx. **112 cm** (66 filet squares tall)
- *Before border. Blocking will even out and slightly relax the mesh.*

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## Materials

- **Yarn:** Worsted weight (Aran) cotton or cotton-blend, in a single soft colour (cream, soft lemon, or pale grey recommended).
  - **Total required:** approx. **1,500–1,700 m** (allow extra for the border).
- **Hook:** 5.0 mm (H/8) — or 5.5 mm (I/9) if your tension runs tight.
- **Notions:**
  - Stitch markers (to mark every 10th square)
  - Yarn needle (for weaving in ends)
  - Rust-proof pins + blocking mats (essential for filet)

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## Tension (Gauge)

- **15 tr = 10 cm** and **7 rows = 10 cm** in filet pattern.
- One **filet square = 3 sts** wide.
- Make a **15 × 15 cm** swatch of alternating mesh and blocks before starting.

*Maths check: 1.5 sts/cm. Width 50 squares = (50 × 3) + 1 = 151 sts ÷ 1.5 ≈ 100.6 cm ✓. Height 66 rows ≈ 112 cm ✓.*

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## UK Abbreviations Used

- **ch** = chain
- **tr** = treble crochet (= US double crochet)
- **dc** = double crochet (= US single crochet)
- **sl st** = slip stitch
- **sp** = space
- **st(s)** = stitch(es)
- **RS / WS** = right side / wrong side
- **rep** = repeat

**Filet building blocks:**
- **Open square (mesh):** 1 tr, ch 2, skip 2 sts/ch, 1 tr → uses 1 shared edge tr each side.
- **Filled square (block):** 1 tr, 2 tr, 1 tr (i.e. 4 tr spanning the square, sharing edge tr with neighbour).

> In filet, adjacent squares **share** their edge treble. A row of 50 squares therefore needs **(50 × 3) + 1 = 151 stitches** across.

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## Attached Stitch Chart

**Use the separate attached chart panel for the visual grid.** Do not look for a printed grid inside this text — the full **50-square-wide × 66-square-tall** filet chart of Wish Bear, the crescent moon, the shooting stars, and the name **Callie Rayne** is supplied as the **attached chart asset**, placed immediately **after this pattern document** (page 2 of the pattern packet).

**How to read the attached chart for filet crochet:**
1. Each **square** on the chart = one filet square (3 sts wide × 1 row tall).
2. A **filled (dark) square** = a **block** (solid trebles).
3. An **empty (white) square** = an **open mesh** square.
4. **Read right-to-left on Right-Side rows** and **left-to-right on Wrong-Side rows** — that is, follow the chart in a boustrophedon (back-and-forth) path, the same direction you crochet each row.
5. Work the chart **from the bottom row upward**. The bottom rows contain the name *Callie Rayne*; the moon and bear occupy the centre; the shooting stars fill the upper background.

**Colour / yarn management:**
- This is a **single-colour** filet design — there are **no colour changes**, so simply carry your one working strand throughout. The image is created purely by the contrast between solid blocks and open mesh.
- If you wish to add a subtle accent (optional), you may work the **name row blocks** in a second colour by carrying the contrast yarn loosely along the back of the block sections; weave the tail behind solid blocks only.

**Stitch-count integration around the chart:**
- Every chart row = **(squares × 3) + 1 = 151 sts**, regardless of how many are blocks vs mesh.
- A block butting against a mesh square still shares its edge treble — never add an extra treble at a block/mesh junction.
- Mark every **10th square** with a stitch marker on Row 1 and slide them up as you go; this lets you cross-check the chart's grid lines (typically printed every 10 squares).

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## Pattern Instructions

### Foundation

**Ch 155.** *(= (50 squares × 3) + 5; the extra 5 = 3 for the first turning chain + 2 for the first mesh space.)*

*Maths check: 155 ch − 5 = 150; 150 ÷ 3 = 50 squares ✓.*

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### Row 1 (RS) — establish 50 squares from the chart's bottom row

> Read chart Row 1 right-to-left.

- **For each open (mesh) square:** work as established (ch and skip).
- **For each filled (block) square:** work solid trebles.

**Generic Row 1 working:**
1 tr in the 8th ch from hook (this forms the first square). Then across the row, build each square according to the chart:
- **Mesh square:** ch 2, skip 2 ch, 1 tr in next ch.
- **Block square:** 2 tr in next 2 ch, 1 tr in next ch.

Continue to end. You should finish with **50 squares** and **151 sts** total. Turn.

*Maths check: first tr + 49 following edge-tr + the fills = 151 sts across ✓.*

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### Row 2 onward (follow attached chart, Rows 2–66)

Turn at the start of every row.

**Turning chain rules:**
- If the **first square of the new row is a mesh**, **ch 5** (counts as 1 tr + ch 2), then 1 tr in next tr to begin.
- If the **first square is a block**, **ch 3** (counts as 1 tr), then 2 tr in the mesh sp / next 2 sts, 1 tr in next tr.

**Across the row, for each square:**

| Chart symbol | What to work | Over a mesh below | Over a block below |
|---|---|---|---|
| Empty = **mesh** | ch 2, 1 tr in next tr | ch 2, skip 2-ch sp, 1 tr in next tr | ch 2, skip 2 tr, 1 tr in next tr |
| Filled = **block** | 2 tr + 1 tr | 2 tr in 2-ch sp, 1 tr in next tr | 1 tr in each of next 2 tr, 1 tr in next tr |

**End of every row:** the final tr is worked into the top of the previous row's turning chain (the 3rd ch of a ch-5, or top of a ch-3). This keeps every row at **151 sts / 50 squares**.

Continue working **Rows 2 through 66** exactly as shown on the attached chart.

**Layout guide (what the chart contains, bottom to top):**
- **Rows 1–8:** plain mesh border band + start of name.
- **Rows 6–14 area:** the lettering **CALLIE RAYNE** in filet blocks.
- **Rows 15–48:** the **crescent moon** (large curved arc of blocks) with **Wish Bear** seated in the curve.
- **Rows 40–66:** **shooting stars** with trailing tails sweeping the upper background, on open mesh.
- **Top rows:** plain mesh border band to match the bottom.

After completing Row 66, **do not fasten off** — continue to the border.

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## Border (Shell Edging)

Worked around all four sides. Keep the blanket flat and don't pull tightly at corners.

**Round 1 (foundation/even-up):**
Ch 1, dc evenly around the entire blanket, working **3 dc into each corner**. Aim for a multiple of 6 sts + 0 along each side for the shell round (adjust by 1–2 dc per side if needed). Join with sl st to first dc.

*Tip: along the top and bottom edges, work approx. 3 dc per square; along the sides, work 2 dc per row.*

**Round 2 (shells):**
Ch 1. *Skip 2 dc, 5 tr in next dc (shell made), skip 2 dc, 1 dc in next dc; rep from * around, placing a shell at each corner. Join with sl st.

**Round 3 (picot finish):**
Ch 1, 1 dc in same st, *ch 3, sl st in first ch (picot), 1 dc in next 2 sts; rep from * around. Join with sl st, fasten off.

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## Finishing & Blocking

1. **Weave in all ends** securely on the wrong side, running tails behind solid blocks where possible.
2. **Wet block (essential for filet):**
   - Soak the blanket in cool water with a little wool/cotton wash.
   - Gently squeeze out water (do not wring); roll in a towel to remove excess.
   - Pin out to the finished measurements (**100 × 112 cm**) on blocking mats, squaring all corners and opening up each mesh space so the picture reads clearly.
   - Leave to **dry completely** before unpinning.
3. *(Optional)* Light steam block afterwards to crisp the mesh — hover the iron, never press, so the blocks stay defined.

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## Quality / Troubleshooting Notes

- **Leaning edges?** Check your turning chains — ch-5 for a mesh start, ch-3 for a block start, and always work the final tr into the top of the previous turning chain.
- **Image looks "muddy"?** Your blocks may be too dense or mesh too tight — go up a hook size and block firmly; open mesh is what makes the picture appear.
- **Count drifting?** Re-verify every 10th square against the markers: each row must always equal **50 squares = 151 sts**.

Enjoy making this heirloom blanket for **Callie Rayne**. 💛