Anu’s floral pony blanket wows after a decade away from crocheting

That blanket is absolutely stunning, Anu! Where did you get the idea to crochet it?

We really needed a new blanket. My pony Ylläri already has a wool blanket, but it has such a wide neck opening that it hangs down over her front legs. For a Shetland pony, Ylläri is quite sporty and slender, and Shetland pony blankets are often made for sturdier builds. It’s hard to find a blanket that fits this type of pony, with a long enough back section. So I wondered if I could make one myself that would fit just right.

Ylläri the pony seemed visibly pleased with her new blanket.

What kind of crafter are you?

I’m an avid knitter. I usually make colorwork socks and sweaters. I’ve done relatively little crochet before, so this was a bit of a side adventure away from knitting. It had been nearly ten years since I last crocheted. Back then, I made a stuffed toy from african flowers [in Finnish]. Naturally, that was a horse too.

“Ylläri is just a lovely pony who enjoys being around people and doing all sorts of activities.” Anu and Ylläri practice long-lining, in which the handler walks behind the pony and directs it. The new floral blanket will be used in long-lining competitions and for drying off after training. Besides Ylläri, Anu’s home stable has three full-size horses.

How did you plan and execute the blanket?

I’ve had horses for years, so I know what I like in a blanket and what I don’t. The blanket had to fit properly in all the right places.

From the stuffed horse I crocheted earlier, I got the idea to make Ylläri’s blanket from african flowers. Ylläri is such a lively and spirited pony that the floral pattern seemed perfect for her. Back when I made the stuffed toy, someone joked, “Make a floral blanket for my horse.” At the time, I thought it would be such a huge project that I wouldn’t jump right into it. But Ylläri is small enough that I figured I could make her a floral blanket. Her withers height is less than one meter (about 3′3″).

Because I love knitting colorwork and use lots of colors, my home is full of all kinds of leftover yarn. That gave me the idea to make a really colorful blanket for Ylläri the “flower girl.”

Even though it had been nearly ten years since I last crocheted, the african flowers made the process feel more manageable: “Because the project was made up of little pieces, the blanket practically came together before I realized it.”

I’ve designed a lot of my own patterns when knitting, so the planning stage felt pretty natural. I modeled the blanket after one Ylläri already had that fits well. Since she lives right in our yard, I was able to do fittings as I went and adjust the shape.

The blanket is still a work in progress. I’m going to sew binding along the edges so they won’t fray. I also need to attach the straps and buckles. A friend gave me an old blanket that has straps and buckles in great shape, so I’m going to reuse those. Blankets can wear out while the straps and fastenings might still be in perfect condition.

Anu still intends to finish the blanket by adding binding, plus straps and buckles to keep it firmly in place.

What kind of yarn did you use?

I used leftover yarn I had lying around. I made sure all the yarns were roughly the same weight and machine washable. The only yarn I purchased was the blue one that joins the flowers together. Since the blanket was already so colorful, I wanted the base color to be uniform.

Have you made anything else for your ponies or horses before? And do you plan on making anything in the future?

No, but I’ve knitted things for cats and dogs. I’ve made post-surgery socks for a veterinary clinic, and a custom-fitted beanie for my daughter’s friend’s whippet. Her neck is often sore, so I had to modify the pattern to make it suitable with a long neck.

There are new patterns now for felting things like pads and blankets for horses. I might try that someday.

Anu tied the colorful blanket together by joining all the flowers with a dark blue yarn. The color is meaningful to both her and Ylläri—navy is Anu’s favorite color, and Ylläri already had blue accessories.

How long did it take you to crochet the blanket?

It came together surprisingly quickly. I started in January and finished by the end of March. Horses obviously take up a lot of time as a hobby, so I didn't have a huge amount of time left for crocheting. Luckily, flowers are nice in that you can make them just about anywhere, as long as you bring small balls of yarn with you.

By making the blanket herself, Anu ensured it fits Ylläri perfectly.

What was the best part of the project? And what was the most challenging?

Probably the end result—or actually the entire journey! It was fun to figure out how to make the blanket look exactly the way I had envisioned, and it really did turn out that way. Colors always bring a lot of joy.

Crocheting put an unexpected strain on my hands and shoulders. Since I haven’t done much crochet, my hands weren’t used to those movements. Occasionally I had to take some pain relievers so I could keep going.

How has Ylläri herself reacted to her new blanket?

Ylläri was quite pleased with our little photo shoot while wearing it. You could clearly see she was proud of herself in the pictures.