Arcadia Square has become a new addition to my collection of the brioche crochet pattern, following the successful releases of the Archway Square and Blomma Square.
You can find an Arcadia Square pattern HERE on Ravelry and HERE on Etsy.
In contrast to these two previous patterns (which could be joined into an infinity crochet fabric), the Arcadia pattern presents a more traditional square shape with three ornamental sections divided with slim borders.
This graphical construction allows the use the Arcadia Square as a block for a blanket, in combination with other crochet patterns in the same size.
For example, you can only create the small central squares and join them together for Persian tiles look. Or complete full squares and use them as the fundamental base for a blanket, as in Kamala blanket, for example.
And of course, you can always stay with just one square and turn it into a cushion.
I am often asked how I finished my cushions with the crochet squares. The most common way is to crochet two squares and join them together. However, it might not be practical, as such pillows do not have a zipper and it complicates taking care of them.
The solution would be to insert the zipper along one of the joined sides, but of course not everyone is a sewer (including me), and although in theory I know how to do that, still the zipper installed by hand does not sound safe enough.
What I prefer while making the crochet cushions, is to find a ready fabric pillowcase in similar size to the crochet square (or maybe even smaller to give the crochet fabric space for stretching), and simply to stitch the square onto the fabric.
This way, the cushion will have a zipper (already installed into the fabric), and there is no need to crochet another square for the back of the cushion.
Additionally, I have figured out that such pillowcases keep the shape better, especially if the fabric is firm enough.
If you are still not sure how to do it, please check my video tutorial HERE.
For my Acradia Squares I used Scheepjes Softfun yarn in 5 colors, but my test sample was made with just two colors and it looked great, too. And of course, you can work with different weights of yarn, especially if you would like to make a smaller square or grow it in size without adding extra rounds.
You can discover Softfun yarn at your local Scheepjes shop, or via online retailers - Wool Warehouse* (UK, international shipping), Caro's Atelier* (NL, Europe), Taemombo (US&Canada).
Sarah Fabbri helped me with testing, and she picked two colors for her Arcadia pillow.
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| Arcadia Square by Sarah Fabbri |
I would recommend using solid colors for this pattern, or alternatively you can choose variegated yarn with long color changes, preferably with smooth blend of one color into another.
As an example, here are beautiful works of our testers team.
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| Arcadia Square by Loele van den Bergh |
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| Arcadia Square by Ruth Bracey |
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| Arcadia Square by Jenna Bowers |
As a common rule for all brioche crochet patterns, it is always better to pick high contrast shades of yarn. Which will help the stitch pattern to stand out nicely. And puffier soft yarns work the best for brioche crochet helping to fill the gaps between the stitches. While fine and slippery yarns may cause some holes.
Then it is recommended to work tighter or make all chain-spaces smaller.
If you are new to brioche crochet technique and not sure how it works, please check my Brioche Masterclass HERE.
And if you would like to dive into the Arcadia Square pattern right away to create your own masterpiece, grab your copy of the pattern HERE on Ravelry and HERE on Etsy.
Hope you enjoy!
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