The Yarndale Mandala challenge has had me hooking up all kinds of colourful wheels!  These things really are addictive.  Clockwise L-R, Attic24 Mandala, Mexican Sunset version1, Sunny flower mandala, and – TahDah! – the Mexican Sunset Mandala!  This is a mash-up of my Mexican Sunset granny square, all the above, and some bits and bobs from other mandala patterns out there.  I’m not claiming it’s totally original, but if I have inadvertently come up with an exact copy of someone else’s pattern, I promise it’s entirely by accident.

To make the Mexican Sunset mandala, I used a US size F hook (UK equivalent is 3.75mm) and Rico Creative Cotton Aran in the same colours as the cushion: Tangerine, Fuchsia, Cherry, Orange, Turquoise and Cardinal.

(NB: This tutorial uses US crochet terms as this is what I’m used to using!  For conversion see http://www.yarnfwd.com/main/crochet.html)

The first two rounds are worked in the same way as the Mexican Sunset granny square.  To begin, ch6 and join to make a loop, or use a magic ring.

Rnd 1: ch3 (counts as first dc);

Then work 15 dc into loop,  join with a sl-st into top of initial ch3 and fasten off.  Try to remember to work your stitches over the ‘tail’,

so that you can pull this in at the end of the round to cinch up the centre.

Rnd 2: Insert hook between two dcs from previous round and pull up a loop to join new colour

ch4 (counts as 1 dc, ch1).  Insert hook into next sp between dcs; *1dc, ch1*: 

rpt from * to * around into each sp.  Join with sl-st into 3rd ch of original ch4 and fasten off

Rnd 3: Join a new colour in any ch1 space from previous round.

Ch3 (counts as 1 dc), 1dc into same sp, ch1.  

*2dc into next sp, ch1* , rpt from *to* around into each sp.  Join with sl-st into top of initial ch3.

Rnd 4: This round is worked into the stitches of the previous round, so join a new colour by pulling up a loop through any stitch.

Ch2 (counts as 1sc), then 1sc into every stitch and ch1 sp of previous round  

Join with sl-st into top of initial ch2 and fasten off

Rnd 5: OK here’s where we start to get seriously sunset-y now!  Again this is worked into the stitches of the previous round, so pull up a loop through any stitch to join a new colour.  Ch5 (counts as 1dc, ch2)

*skip next st, 1dc, ch2 into next st* 

rpt from *to* to final st; join with sl-st into 3rd ch of initial ch5

Rnd 6: This time you’re working into the ch2 spaces of the previous round, so join a new colour into any ch2 space.  Ch3 (counts as 1dc), 2dc into same sp.

Work 3dc into each ch2 sp all around; join with sl-st into top of initial ch3

Round 7: Back to working into the stitches, join a new colour into the middle st of any 3dc cluster from the previous round

Ch3 (counts as 1sc, ch1) *sk next st, 1sc into nxt st, ch1*.  (I know it does look a bit like I’ve done a ch2 between these first stitches, that’s just my initial chain gone a bit wonky – It is ch1, honest!)rpt from *to* to final st, join with sl-st into 2nd ch of initial ch3

Rnd 8: Join a new colour into any ch1 sp from the previous round. 

Ch2 (counts as 1sc), 2sc; then work 3sc into each ch1 sp all around

join with sl-st into top of initial ch2

Rnd 9: Join a new colour into the middle st of any 3sc cluster from the previous round; ch4 (counts as 1sc, ch2)

*sk nxt st, 1sc, ch2*

rpt from *to* to last st; join with sl-st into 2nd chain of initial ch4

Rnd 10: Join a new colour by pulling up a loop into any ch2 sp from previous round: ch2 (counts as 1sc)

2sc into same ch2 sp;

then work 3sc into each ch2 sp all around.   When you come to the final stitch, you can either finish in the usual way by joining with a sl-st into the top of the initial chain, or you can use the invisible join method.  Lucy’s Attic24 mandala tutorial explains this far better than I can, so I won’t bother trying to describe what’s going on here :-0

except that when you’re done, you should have a nice neat join, like this!

And now allow yourself to leap around the room yelling ‘WhooHoo’, or whatever expression of delight appeals to you!

 

Did I mention, these mandalas seriously are addictive?  You have been warned!

Happy hooking 🙂