The response to my first announcement for Nuts About Squares has been overwhelming! Today I want to give you more information about the type of yarn in each kit and the amount of yarn that you will need per yarn weight.
What are we making again?
During 15 weeks, starting March 31st, we are making a blanket with 35 textured squares and a border. Depending on which kit you have and your personal tension your blanket will be about 130cm x 180cm for the Colour Crafter blanket, 115cm x 160cm for the Stone Washed blanket, and 100cm x 140cm for the Sunkissed blanket. Each week there will be English video tutorials as well as links to the original written patterns in English and Dutch.
Colorways and yarn packs
There are three colorways available as kits for this CAL, one in Scheepjes Color Crafter, one in Scheepjes Sunkissed and one in Scheepjes Stone Washed. Each kit contains 6 colors and has its own look around the theme “Earth, Sea and Sky”.
I have kits available for all three original Nuts About Squares Colorways in my SHOP HERE.
Choose between
Nuts About Squares – EARTH in Scheepjes stone Washed
Nuts About Squares – SEA in Scheepjes Colour Crafter
Nuts About Squares – SKY in Scheepjes Sunkissed
Each kit contains 6 colors which I have labeled colors A to F. I will be referring to these color labels during the entire CAL when specifying colorways for each square.
| Color | Earth (kit) Stone Washed | Sea (kit) Color Crafter | Sky (kit) Sunkissed |
| A | Brown Agate (822) | Den Helder (1068) | Ocean Side (06) |
| B | Boulder Opal (804) | Texel (1019) | Sand Dunes (02) |
| C | Green Agate (815) | Zwolle (1082) | Summer Rain (17) |
| D | Amazonite (813) | Alkmaar (1708) | Soft Cloud (16) |
| E | New Jade (819) | Almelo (1316) | Rock Pool (01) |
| F | Moon Stone (801) | Zandvoort (1218) | Strawberry Ice (09) |
Nuts about the Earth – Sport weight mixed fiber kit
The six colors that make up the Nuts about the Earth kit are inspired by earth tones and include brown, green and blue shades. Scheepjes Stone Washed is an acrylic/cotton sport weight yarn blend and comes in 50g balls with 130 meters per ball. The kit contains 38 balls (4940 meters) of yarn in the following distribution:
- 9 x Brown Agate (822) – Color A
- 7 x Boulder Opal (804) – Color B
- 5 x Green Agate (815) – Color C
- 6 x Amazonite (813) – Color D
- 6 x New Jade (819) – Color E
- 5 x Moon Stone (801) – Color F
You will need a 3.5mm (US E/4) and 4.0mm (US G/6) hook to make the Nuts about the Earth blanket.
Alternative yarns and colors for “Nuts about the Earth”
If you love the colors of Nuts about the Earth, but you are looking for a different yarn I would like to make two suggestions. These suggestions will not be available as a kit, so you will have to select the individual balls from your retailer.
| Color | Earth (kit) Stone Washed | Earth Color Crafter | Earth Cotton 8 |
| A | 9 x Brown Agate 822 | 4 x Haarlem 1054 | 6 x Dark Brown 657 |
| B | 7 x Boulder Opal 804 | 3 x Veenendaal 1064 | 5 x Light Brown 659 |
| C | 5 x Green Agate 815 | 2 x Bastogne 2051 | 3 x Sea Green 723 |
| D | 6 x Amazonite 813 | 3 x Urk 1034 | 4 x Light Pastel Green 663 |
| E | 6 x New Jade 819 | 3 x Goes 1820 | 4 x Pastel Green 664 |
| F | 5 x Moon Stone 801 | 2 x Veviers 2017 | 3 x Natural 501 |
Scheepjes Cotton 8 and Sunkissed is available from Wool Warehouse (UK/International), Love Crafts (US/UK) and Caro’s Atelier (NL/EU) to name but a few Scheepjes stockists.
Scheepjes Colour Crafter is available in over 90 colors from Wool Warehouse (UK/Int), Jimmy Beans Wools (USA), The Knitting Network, Caro’s Atelier (NL/EU) or your local Scheepjes stockist.
Color Crafter is a DK yarn meaning you will need a 4.0mm (US G/6) and 4.5mm (US 7) hook to make your blanket. Cotton 8 is a Fingering weight yarn and you will need a 3.0mm (US D/3) and 3.5mm (US E/4) hook. Please note the sizes of these blankets will be different to the original Nuts about the Earth blanket.
Nuts about the Sea – Double Knit acrylic yarn kit
The six colors that make up the Nuts about the Sea kit are inspired by the ocean and include blue, green and purple shades. Scheepjes Color Crafter is a premium acrylic, double knit weight yarn and comes in 100g balls with 300 meters per ball. The kit contains 17 balls (5100 meters) of yarn in the following distribution:
- 4 x Den Helder (1068) – Color A
- 3 x Texel (1019) – Color B
- 2 x Zwolle (1082) – Color C
- 3 x Alkmaar (1708) – Color D
- 3 x Almelo (1316) – Color E
- 2 x Zandvoort (1218) – Color F
You will need a 4.0mm (US G/6) and 4.5mm (US 7) hook to make the Nuts about the Sea blanket.
Alternative yarn and colors for “Nuts about the Sea”
If you are looking for a cotton alternative to Nuts about the Sea I would like to make a suggestion for yarn colors using Cotton 8. This suggestion will not be available as a kit.
| Color | Sea (kit) Color Crafter | Sea Cotton 8 |
| A | 4 x Den Helder (1068) | 6 x Turquoise (712) |
| B | 3 x Texel (1019) | 5 x Light Turquoise (622) |
| C | 2 x Zwolle (1082) | 3 x Blue-Grey (506) |
| D | 3 x Alkmaar (1708) | 4 x Navy (527) |
| E | 3 x Almelo (1316) | 4 x Pastel Green (664) |
| F | 2 x Zandvoort (1218) / Barneveld (1005) | 3 x Natural (501) |
Scheepjes Cotton 8 and Sunkissed is available from Wool Warehouse (UK/International), Love Crafts (US/UK) and Caro’s Atelier (NL/EU) to name but a few Scheepjes stockists.
Nuts about the Sky – Fingering weight cotton yarn kit
The six colors that make up the Nuts about the Sky kit are inspired by a sunset on a warm summer day and includes blue, grey and pink shades. Scheepjes Sunkissed is a pure cotton, fingering weight yarn. Sunkissed is slightly color changing, if you prefer solid shades, Scheepjes Cotton 8 is the exact same weight and a perfect alternative. Scheepjes Sunkissed and Cotton 8 come in 50g balls with 170 meters per ball. The kit contains 25 balls (4250 meters) of yarn in the following distribution:
- 6 x Ocean Side (06) – Color A
- 5 x Sand Dunes (02) – Color B
- 3 x Summer Rain (17) – Color C
- 4 x Soft Cloud (16) – Color D
- 4 x Rock Pool (01) – Color E
- 3 x Strawberry Ice (09) – Color F
You will need a 3.0mm (US D/3) and 3.5mm (US E/4) hook to make the Nuts about the Sky blanket.
Alternative yarn and colors for “Nuts about the Sky”
If you are looking for an acrylic or double knit alternative to Nuts about the Sky I would like to make a suggestion for yarn colors using Colour Crafter. This suggestion will not be available as a kit.
| Color | Sky Color Crafter | Sky (kit) Sunkissed |
| A | 4 x Dordrecht (1062) | 6 x Ocean Side (06) |
| B | 3 x Veenendaal (1064) | 5 x Sand Dunes (02) |
| C | 2 x Sint Niklaas (2019) | 3 x Summer Rain (17) |
| D | 3 x Hasselt (2010) | 4 x Soft Cloud (16) |
| E | 3 x Rotterdam (1063) | 4 x Rock Pool (01) |
| F | 2 x Sittard (1130) | 3 x Strawberry Ice (09) |
Scheepjes Colour Crafter is available in over 90 colors from Wool Warehouse (UK/Int), Jimmy Beans Wools (USA), The Knitting Network, Caro’s Atelier (NL/EU) or your local Scheepjes stockist.
It is a Double Knit yarn and you will need a 4.0mm (US G/6) and 4.5mm (US 7) hook to make your blanket. Please note the size of this blankets will be different to the original Nuts about the Sky blanket.
Make your own “Nuts about …” colorway
If you have one of the three kits for this CAL you can follow the colorway that I will specify each week. However, you are more than welcome to follow your own colorway. To make your own colorway, choose 6 colors you like and that work well together. Then determine which color you want to be color A, which color B, etc. Color A is used the most in the blanket and will be the main color. Colors E and F are accent colors and it works best if colors E and F are lighter or contrasting to color A. Colors B, C, and D are used about equally. Determine the yarn weight of the yarn that you are using to determine how much yarn you will need. The three kits give you yarn amounts for three different yarn weights.
If you make your own colorway I would love it if you give it a name. I have named my colorways “Nuts about the Earth“, “Nuts about the Sea” and “Nuts about the Sky” because these are things that inspired the colorway. What inspires your colorway?
#itsallinanutshell
If you are making something with one of my patterns or one of my videos, I would love to see your work. Use the hashtag #itsallinanutshell on Instagram to help me find it, share your work in my It’s all in a Nutshell Crochet Nuts group on Facebook or tag me in one of your posts.
With love,
Esther
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Just hanging in for the Sun kissed kitfrom your link! Patience isn’t my greatest strength! But I’m waiting waiting waiting… ???
😀
This blanket looks amazing!!! Will the pattern be available on this blog too? I don’t have Facebook…
Yes, each week I will publish the next square with links to the patterns and other resources 🙂
Thank you Esther – this looks so gorgeous. I have a stash of Cotton 8 in Autumn colours. Im fiddling with colours and I might mix and match by buying some Sunkissed as I love the look of that. But I also love the colours of your Sea colourway – its SO hard!
choices, choices! I know 😀
I have combined the Cotton 8 and Sunkissed for my Mandala Madness, they work extremely well together
Thank you! This is just what I was wanting to see.
But now to make a decision … I love the colors in the Earth kit. So very beautiful. My husband, however, loves the colors of the Sea kit. I do, too, but I worked a Sea Last Dance blanket last year, which hubby has since stolen. I was thinking I might strike out for new territory and use some new colors. I’d also like to try working with Color Crafter Velvet.
What to do, what to do. Order lots of yarn, I suppose. 🙂
The Velvet is very soft and fluffy, I really like it, but it will give a totally different look to the blanket. I think Velvet in the Earth colors might just give you a similar look to the Stone Washed.
That’s what I’m hoping. I’ve just placed my order!!
Esther, thank you so much for this information. I want to make the Nuts about the Earth colorway, but the cost of the yarn is a bit much for me, so I will get Colour Crafter yarn in comparable colors. That way it will still be Nuts about the Earth, but really the blanket should be called “Nuts about Esther and Her Friends” because this blanket is going to be beautiful no matter what yarns I choose because of you and your co-designers. I can’t wait for this CAL to start and to join you on your first CAL!
Thank you Judy. Somewhere next week I will post info about similar colors in others yarns for the kits also.
Hear hear! The Sea colourway doesn’t call to me the way the other two do but with the exchange rates and shipping to Australia the Sky or Earth kits aren’t in my budget so this information is just what I was hoping to find!
I love the sea colors, but have used the Color Crafter before and don’t really like the yarn. If I choose another yarn or my own Nuts About how to do order it so you get support on your site?
Absolutely choose and use yarn you like. If you click on the WW or Deramores link in the post and then buy something else I will still get the affiliate income. You can buy anything, it doesn’t matter what, the affiliate system keeps track of it. Thank you for wanting to support me, I really appreciate it 🙂
what’s a good site do you recommend for organic cotton yarn?
I have little to no experience with organic yarns. I’m sorry, I can’t really help you 🙁 I suggest asking in CCC group, there are 55k people in that group, I’m sure someone must know.
good idea! I am in a few facebook groups i don’t know why i didn’t think of that before
Esther, I love this blanket! I already ordered the CC colours. Will the patterns also be available in dutch? And in the dutch Facebook Group of Scheepjes?
Renee
The pattern will be available in dutch. The cal is hosted by CCC Social group on Facebook. There the patterns will also be shared each week
Esther, do you think it could work in “delft blauw” palette
Yes, I think that will look lovely
Thank you, I thought it might be a bit dull, but you have a talent for colors and your opinion is of great value
Just make sure you have enough variation in your blue shades, a dark blue, light blue, a white, to get the contrast you need.
Hi. Need some colour advice. I have my 5 colours for sky colour way in colour crafter as you suggest here but want a pink/purple shade instead of ‘Dordrecht’ Should I go for Tiel or Hoorn?
I would go with Tiel because it will make the blanket brighter than the purple Hoorn with is a bit of a subdued shade.
Thank you.
I have just ordered my own colours from Wool Warehouse to do this CAL. I have chosen pinks and kept the green and base colours. Because my granddaughters love pink I am calling it Nuts about my granddaughters. Can’t wait to start
If worsted weight (Aran) yarn is used, how large are the squares .. 30cm? What size are the squares with DK yarn .. 25cm ? Thank you
yes, correct 🙂
oh , I love this blanket it’s look like amazing but I have aquistion what is the mean of the numbers on the table colors and I mean the big number is it the length of the yarn ? if this was true please tell me how much yarn I’ll need in gram ex 25 g or 100 g
and thanks for this lovely cal
The number in () is the color number for that yarn\color combination. all info about how much yarn you need is in here, Just read it carefully. You can also buy a kit if you want which will have everything you need.
thakes for your help … but the last quistion is that the names of the colors ? i mean (Den Helder – Texel – Zwolle ….. )
Yes, those are the color names. The colors are namen after places in the netherlands
thanke you so much for your help …. can’t wait to start
Can I use Merino Soft, or is that too heavy? Thank you.
It is an options, but it will make your blanket bigger and thus more heavy. I would suggest making less squares if you use Merino Soft
Hi Esther. Thank you for all your lovely videos and patterns! 🙂 I want to make the Earth scheme, but in either Color Crafter or Cotton 8 – would you be able to tell me what the difference would be in weight/texture between the two? Thanks….
color crafter is DK acrylic yarn and cotton 8 is sport weight cotton yarn. the color crafter blanket will be larger. the stitch definition on the cotton 8 will be better because of the cotton yarn.
Thanks. Will the cotton 8 also be softer or lighter than the color crafter?
Softer or lighter is not a fair question, it’s comparing appels and pears. Cotton is a natural fiber, acrylic is synthetic. Cotton is length for length heavier, but has a better drape. The cotton thread is thinner, hence the look is different. Cotton is hypoalergenic and washes well. Acrylic tends to be cheaper. All a matter of personal preforance really.
Hi! Lovely project! I am a little bit confused about the different sizes of the blankets. The Stone washed have the length 130 m per 50 g (earth), the Color Crafter (sea) have the length 150 m per 50g and the Sunkissed (Sky) have the length 170 m per 50g. This tell me that the Sunkissed yarn is the thinnest yarn, while the Stone washed is the thickest yarn. From my experience the thickest yarn will give the largest blanket, but in the top of this blog, the Sea blanket has the largest dimensions. The reason for me to ask is because I am planning to use a yarn with length 110 m per 50 gram and want to see how large the blanket will be. Is the blanket sizes in the top correct?
I use a 4mm hook with the Color Crafter and a 3.5mm hook with the Stone Washed. The color crafter is DK weight, the Stone Washed sport weight. The Stone Washed also tends to work up a bit denser than the color crafter because it contains cotton. The cotton also makes the yarn heavier than the acrylic color crafter.
So yes, the sizes are correct. You are assuming that they are all from the same fiber, but that is not the case. Acrylic is much lighter weight for length than cotton.
Thank you very much! That make sense.
One more question: I am ordering a yarn with length 110 m per 50 g and with gauge 21 stiches by use of 4 mm hook. I am now looking at how much yarn I should order. Should I follow the amount of Color crafter since the gauge is similar or should I follow the amount of Stone washed since the length by gram is the closest to mine?
I would go with the Color Crafter because gauge will determine yarn usage
Hello… just a quick couple of questions… I feel most comfortable using a worsted weight acryillic (Caron Simply Soft)… will this work for this CAL?… I already have the yarn and excited to start… Also, using a worsted weight yarn… What hook sizes would you recommend?… I know the size of the squares and the weight of the overall piece will be greater, but that doesn’t bother me… Thank you very much ?
You can use any yarn you like, so also a worsted weight yarn. I suggest using a 5mm and 5.5mm hook
Thank you ?
Hi Esther,
Is the sky blanket so much smaller because of the thickness of the coton? And do you think I can enlarge it with more squares?
Thanks!
yes, the sunkissed is considerably thinner than the other two yarns.
You can easily add squares if you want. We are now making a blanket of 5×7 squares, you could consider making 6×8 squares
Thank you so much! Any idea of how much yarn I would need? alot more A maybe en some more of the others? Is there yarn left after finishing the blanket?
Yes, there is yarn left after finishing the blanket. About half a ball of each color. I can’t make any estimate of how much extra yarn you would need. I suggest waiting till the end before buying more. To my experience lot numbers are not that critical for squares because we change colors a lot anyway, so you don’t notice a change in lot colors.
Cannot wait for tomorrow 🙂 just got my Sea kit this morning. Thank you Esther- I admire your videos- and I’m sure will enjoy doing this project.
I hope so ?
Hi, i am getting a bit confused. You say color a is main color, then b, c and d are equally used, e and f are used for contrasts only.
Yet you say I need only 2 skeins of c, and 3 skeins of b and d . Not very equal…..;-)
The amount of yarn left over per color will be different. For the stonewashed kit you see that there is less yarn per ball and hence the amount of balls per color varies more.
Thanks! I think I just will get enough of everything then. Never mind if I have a lot of leftovers:-)
I am enjoying this CAL immensely! This is my first such project but it won’t be the last. Thank you for all the work you have put into it. You have created a great sense of community that is inspiring me in more than this wonderful hobby.
I am doing mine in #10 thread – living in the tropics makes yarn work a challenge for much of the year. My color scheme would have been more logical had I read these instructions thoroughly before starting but some of us are wild like that!
Thanks again for a lovely share.
Hallo Esther, I want to begin your wonderful cal, even when I am very very late – can I still order the yarn kit or is it finished? I am living in France how could I get the yarn.
Thank you very much for your answer and by the way for your videos which helped me already very much when I did Dedri’s cal.
The yarn is available through most retailers that well scheepjes yarns. Many still have kits available, but you can also but the yarn as individual balls. Wool Warehouse is a reliable shop for international shipment.
I was very late starting this Cal but now on last two squares in week 11 ( have completed week 12) My problem is that I do not have enough yarn for the second last row of second square. ( colour C in Sea colours. ) I know I can just use one of the other colours but wondering which to choose so that I still have enough of each one to finish rug. Have really enjoyed doing this rug( good brain training for me ) but would never have managed it without the helpful videos. Purchased yarn from Woolwarehouse but don’t have the patience to wait for just another ball to travel here to Australia.
I still have full balls left of colour ADand E and. Nearly full ball of B
Thank you forthis CAL
You can best use color B because this color is not used in the border. Use Color B as a back-up color, also when making the border and you happen to run out of a particular color. I have given yarn amounts for the border, so when you get to that part you can check that you have enough of a particular colour before making the round. For the border, feel free to change the order of colors to work best for you 🙂
I really want to make your Nuts about Squares but need to use yarn from my huge stash with colors that work in my house. Thank you for covering all the types of yarn and yardage. How do I just buy the pattern from you. And work with you and your tutorials
You dont have to but anything, the CAL and videos are free. Here is the main post that links to each part of the project. Each week you will find the pattern by a different designer. Add an extra round to get the stitch count correct and then you are on your way.
https://itsallinanutshell.com2017/02/25/nuts-about-squares-cal-2017/
Hi what a wonderful project . I’m just about to start and would like to use statecraft special so in fire colours ,if I tell you the colours in which order of A,B,C etc would you put them in please ….
Cream, citron, sunshine, jaffa, matador, and burgundy .thank you so much for your help.
Sorry about the spelling it should say statecraft special dk
Hello Esther
Ladies in my craft group have completed this project! It is simply beautiful. I have followed your tutorial on joining squares for another project.
I particularly love the colour choices you have used for your squares in this video. Are these colours available in a kit or have you just used your own materials? Would it be possible to know the colours you have used?
Warm regards, Lorna
The colors i used was stash yarn, all scheepjes Stone washed. Random colors, so no planning there. Only the Eart, Sea and say colors are available as a kit.
How many long this blanket and how many wool consume to make it I want to make in double bed blanket 6/6 size what can I do plz give me rply
Everything you are asking is in this post you are commenting on. Please read all the information. At the top I talk about size for 3 different yarns, and then I discuss yarn amounts for these 3 yarns.
I have done The Nuts About the Earth blanket (35 squares) but i would like to do another one with 48 squares (6 squares by 8 squares).
Can i get some advice about the yarn amount i will need?
Thanks in advance!!!
Going from 35 to 48 squares means you are making 40% more squares. This implies that you will need 40% more yarn. Exactly how much of each color depends on your colorplacement off course. I would simply add 40% more of each color, and then you should be in the right order of magnitude for how much yarn you need.