I have turned my Enigma Blanket pattern into a set of mandalas, I really love making mandalas! In this post you find all the information you need to make your own Enigma mandalas. We will make these three mandalas as part of a short crochet along in collaboration with CCC Facebook Group. Voor Nederlands, zie aub DEZE post.

Resources

• Enigma Mandalas PDF Pattern on Ravelry
• Enigma Mandalas PDF Pattern on It’s all in a Nutshell SHOP
• Enigma Mandalas Video tutorials in one YouTube playlist – RIGHT HANDED
• Enigma Mandalas Video tutorials in one YouTube playlist – LEFT HANDED
• **Enigma Mandalas Yarn Kits**
• 3.0mm hook
• Official CCC Social Facebook Group
• Social Media #itsallinanutshell

Origin of Enigma Mandalas

I designed my Enigma Blanket for CrochetNow Magazine a few years ago. The center of the blanket is a mandala, which then changes shape several times before it’s the final blanket, but the mandala is really pretty on its own too. This center mandala is the base for Enigma Mandalas.

Materials

You will need 6 colors of Scheepjes Catona (50g/125m) yarn and 3 mandala rings to make your Enigma Mandalas. I have designed 3 colorways, here are the colors per colorway. You can buy your supplies from any yarn shop close to you, and the rings are often available from craft shops.

Scheepjes Catona is available from Wool Warehouse (UK), Jimmy Beans Wool (USA), The Knitting Network (UK), Love Crafts (USA / UK), Caro’s Atelier (NL / EU), and many other Scheepjes stockists.

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You will also need 3 rings to finish the mandalas. You will need rings with diameter 40cm (16″), 25cm (10″) and 15cm (6″). We make the mandalas using a 3mm crochet hook.

Scheepjes Catona is available from Wool Warehouse (UK), Jimmy Beans Wool (USA), The Knitting Network (UK), Love Crafts (USA / UK), Caro’s Atelier (NL / EU), and many other Scheepjes stockists.

I also have yarn kits available for all 3 colorways of Enigma Mandalas in my shop. The mandala kits include everything you need to make these mandalas including the pattern, yarn and the mandala rings.

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Tips for choosing your own colors

I have made these mandalas in 3 color combinations, but there are more than 100 colors in the Scheepjes Catona range. This means there are many colorways that you can make these mandalas in. I have a few tips for you when choosing which colors to use.

First, choose 3 colors from the same color scheme; this will be the colors for the flower petals. For example choose 3 shades of green. Arrange them from lightest to darkest, the lightest colors is Color A, the second color is Color B, and the darkest color is Color C.

Next choose a neutral shade that matches your first color, this is Color D in the pattern and is used to attach the mandalas to the rings. Good colors to use here are shades of whites, creams and light greys.

Now choose the main color you want your mandala to be, this is Color E in the pattern. In the colorways in the examples, this is Ginger, Rose or Petrol. This color will be used for all the outer edges of the mandala, hence it’s the color that is most visible.

Lastly, choose a color to match all the colors what you already have, which is used as an accent color. This can be either a matching color or a contrasting color. This last color is Color F in the pattern.

If you want to make all three mandalas in only one color, you will need 4 balls of Scheepjes Catona 50g.

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Enigma Mandalas Pattern

The pattern for Enigma Mandalas is divided into 3 parts; in part 1 you make the small mandala, in part 2 you grow the small mandala to become the medium mandala, and in part 3 you grow the medium mandala to become the large mandala.

The free, written patterns are available in English US Terms and Dutch. The patterns are available through the following links. These links will be updated as the pattern becomes available.

• Part 1 – Small Mandala
• Part 2 – Medium Mandala
• Part 3 – Large Mandala

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Full pattern in one document

The pattern for Enigma Mandalas is available for free in 3 parts on my blog. If you prefer to have the pattern as one document, you can purchase the pattern on Ravelry or in my SHOP for a small fee.

Video tutorials

There will be free video tutorials available to help you every step of the way. I will release these videos on my YouTube channel when I release the free patterns; you can find the videos with each of the pattern parts though the links above. The video’s are only available in English US Terms. I hope the videos make it possible for everyone to make these mandalas.

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Gauge

The mandalas are designed to be approximately 10% smaller than the rings they go into. This means the small mandala is 13cm before it goes into the 15cm ring, the medium mandala is 22cm before it goes into the 25cm ring, and the large mandala is 36cm before it goes into the 40cm ring. The 10% difference is important, because the mandalas need to be stretched when placed in the ring to ensure that they can support their own weight. If they are too large, they will be floppy and droopy when placed in the rings.

If you find that your mandalas are too big, you are most likely lifting your stitches higher than I am. I suggest you look at THIS VIDEO about the golden loop. If you are a so-called lifter, your stitches will be higher than average, and going down a hook size will not make any difference. I suggest that you try to pull your yarn back to make your stitches shorter.

In the pattern parts I also make suggestions for changes that you can make in the pattern to help you get your mandalas to the right size, both if they are larger than they should be and if they are smaller than they should be.

Support

We will make these 3 mandalas during a short 3-week make along. The project will be hosted by the Official CCC Social Group on Facebook. You can join this group if you need any help, or want to share your work. I will be in the groups as much as possible to help you with any questions you might have, and to admire your beautiful mandalas.

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FAQ

What yarn should I use?

I recommend that you use sport weight cotton yarn for the mandalas. Cotton yarn has good stitch definition and will give the crisp and tight stiches the mandalas need. My go-to yarn for my mandala’s is Scheepjes Catona, it simply ticks all the boxes for me.

Do I need to use the rings?

No, you do not need to use the rings if you don’t want to. The rings help to keep the mandalas secure if you want to hang them on a wall or in front of a window.

What do I do with a mandala?

In my opinion mandalas are beautiful to look at, and hence I’m a fan of hanging mandalas on a wall, a door or in front of a window. If you connect them they hang below each other, or side by side from for example a branch. Other people turn mandalas into cushions, coasters or table decorations. Loads of options!

How do Enigma Mandalas differ from the Enigma blanket?

The Enigma mandalas are made from the first two parts of the Enigma blanket pattern, plus a few minor changes in the first few rows. The patterns partially overlap. The finishing of the mandalas is with the rings and the yarn for the mandala compared to the blanket is different.

Will the Enigma blanket pattern also be available?

Yes, the full pattern for Enigma blanket will be available in the future, but I don’t know when. I’m expecting February 2024, but that depends on how much time I have to work on the pattern, make videos, and all that stuff.

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With love,
Esther

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