Gingerbread and Candy

GINGERBREAD AND CANDY | FOUR-COLOR CROCHET BLANKET

Smiling gingerbread people, snowy houses, candy canes, peppermint sweets, bows, hearts and golden stars fill a festive sampler, framed by a striped candy border.

PATTERN SPECIFICATIONS
Both charts: 380 stitches x 570 rows, 216,600 color cells.
A red / B brown / C gold / D ivory. All original cell colors and positions are retained in both charts.
Add 2 A edge sc at each side: 384 worked stitches per row. Foundation: ch 385.
English instructions, US terms, right-handed directions.

FOUR-COLOR TAPESTRY
The complete PDF has 235 pages. Work BLO sc with the other three colors carried in every stitch.
CUT: every row right to left, with RS facing; fasten off all four yarns after each row.
NO-CUT: keep all four yarns attached and turn after every row. Odd rows right to left; even rows left to right.

FOUR-COLOR MOSAIC
The complete PDF has 266 pages. This is tapestry overlay mosaic: color changes within each row, with anchored overlay DC in marked cells and sc elsewhere. Read both the color letter and the stitch symbol. It does not use one yarn for an entire row.
All DC marks fall on odd rows, where the current cell and the two cells beneath it share the same non-ivory color. Carry the three inactive strands in every stitch, including the anchoring step of each DC. No extra closing row is needed.
CUT: every row right to left with RS facing; chart sc in BLO; fasten off all four yarns at each row end.
NO-CUT: turn after EVERY row, keeping all four yarns attached. Odd RS rows use BLO sc and the marked anchored DC; even WS rows use FLO sc only. Directions alternate left, right. This method has its own complete written section.

LARGE PRINT CHARTS
Each complete PDF contains 168 A4 chart sections arranged in 12 columns by 14 bands. Each cell is 5.5 mm square when printed at 100% / Actual size. A 10-cell scale bar on every chart page must measure 55 mm. Each section contains 31-32 columns and 40-41 rows. Follow the assembly maps and continue across page joins to complete every row.
Color letters are retained throughout, including the Mosaic AX/BX/CX stitch marks, so a monochrome print can still be decoded. Row and column labels are 9 pt. Written-row sequences are 10.3 pt with visible direction arrows.
Separate large-format vector single-page charts are supplied for screen zoom. Use the A4 sections for printing; fitting the entire chart onto one A4 sheet will shrink its cells.

READING THE PATTERN
Row 1 is at the bottom; column 1 is on the right. Written sequences are already in working order. Select CUT or NO-CUT for the entire piece; each is a complete alternative, not a consecutive part. Complete Row 570, secure the yarn and add an optional outside border.

YARN AND FINISHED DIMENSIONS
Use four smooth yarns of the same weight, a suitable hook, markers, scissors, a blunt needle, a tape measure and a scale. Make the guide's matching 20 x 20 measuring panel for your technique and method, weighing all four colors separately. Measurements include visible stitches and hidden carried strands. The small panel approximates the blanket's stitch mix; compare additional motif samples if needed.
Body yarn for each color = net measured panel grams x 547.2, including an approximate side-stitch allowance. The calculator adds an adjustable A red border allowance (default 12%), CUT row tails where applicable, and 10% reserve, then rounds each color separately to whole balls. CUT with 15 cm at each row end adds 171 m per color. NO-CUT has no repeated-row-tail allowance.
Body width = 384 x washed 20-stitch width / 20.
Body height = 570 x washed 20-row height / 20.
A 10 x 10 cm measuring panel gives 192 x 285 cm (75.6 x 112.2 in), including side stitches but before an outside border. Actual stitch and row gauges must be measured independently. An outside border adds twice its width to each dimension.
The guide includes a clearly labeled arithmetic example. Use personal measurements for yarn shopping; there are no fixed yarn-brand quantities.

FILES INCLUDED
Five PDFs: two complete patterns, two single-page charts, and a 9-page yarn/size/finishing guide.
Original four-color grid PNG and cell CSV, a full-color preview, offline yarn calculator, English and Chinese product descriptions, and English and Chinese start guides.
Digital crochet instructions only; yarn, tools and a finished blanket are not included.