Method: make all the motifs, then join them in strips. Put a sc border around each strip, trying to make each strip uniform with respect to the total number of stitches, noting that each square has a slightly different stitch count per side. This can be evened out while making the border.

At the end of each square, leave a tail that is at least 2 lengths of one side, for joining later.

Joining method of the motif squares within those strips, see pattern notes on my project here (kind of like a mattress stitch… very flat): https://www.ravelry.com/projects/toriellen/crazy-patchwor...

Flower square motifs:
--8.5” wide with 25 dcs per side + the chain space corners.
--Note - rather than using the first chains as “filler” in the squaring rounds as written in the pattern, instead, count them as stitches (otherwise, that one side is too bulky).
--SEE PAPER PATTERN FOR HAND-WRITTEN NOTES IF I MAKE THIS AGAIN.
--After finishing the squares, join them in strips.
For the border around the strip, put 1 sc in each stitch, and put 3 hdcs between each adjacent square (one in each chain-space, and one right in the join seam). Put 3 scs in the corners on either side of the strip. At the end, the long side will have 197 sts, INCLUDING the corner stitch on top and bottom.

Dot square motifs:
--26 dcs per side + the chain space corners.
--At the end of each round round, to alleviate the annoying space where the join is, for the very last stitch in the round, make it a dc2tog (using the very last non-stitch bit for the second leg of the dc2tog). I also closed up the remaining gap when I was weaving in my end after the round section is done.
--For the rounds when things get squared off, start with standing dc in the beginning of each corner. At the end of each round, slip stitch until you get to the corner again, then chain 3 as the first dc for the next round.
--Join into strip.
--Border around the strip: Put 1 hdc at the end of each side (in the corner space), then hdc right in the middle, then carry on to the first stitch of next square (scs in each stitch). Sc, chain 1, sc in the corners at the end of each strip.

Square motif:
--27 dcs on each side + the chain space corners.
--I’m using a 7-round version of the squares used in my Purple Patchwork (see pattern notes: https://www.ravelry.com/projects/toriellen/crazy-patchwor...)
--Chain-4, join to form ring. Round 1 is sets of 3 dcs separated by chain-2 for corners. Chain 3 at the beginning of each round (counts as first dc). I always joined new color in the corner (standing dc, dc, chain 2, 2 dc). Each round is essentially just dc in the dcs, and 2 dc, chain 2, 2 dc in the corners.
--Turns out this square is a little larger than the other squares. To offset that just a bit, my 7th round will be all hdcs (instead of dcs).
--Join into strips.
--Border: Sc in each dc on each side, put a dc2tog across two adjacent corner loops (so, just one stitch between each square). Put sc, ch 2, sc in the corners at either end of the strip. Will have 27 sts on each square side + 1 dctog between each square. The long side will have 197 sts, counting the first and last sc, between the chain-2 in the corners at each end.
—My joined strip was a bit wonky. Not sure why… might adjust the corner on each square next time to see if I can avoid that.

Now that the 3 motif strips are complete, I joined the teal yarn into the square motif strip and proceeded with the wave blanket pattern, starting with 2 sc rows. I planned to use teal for all of the sc rows (to border each color change in this wave). Note - to get things to even out with the waves, you’ll need an even number of dc/sc sections. There were 197 sts on the edge of that strip border (starting with the first st in the corner). To get this into a multiple of 10, I added 3 sts in the first round (put one each in the corner edge, plus one additional in the middle somewhere). I did 2 rows of sc first (teal), then will do the first dc/sc row. In the final row of this section, I decreased 3 sts to get it back to 197 (I put the decreases at every 50th stitch).

Joined the wave panel to the flower strip with a flat braid-like join (see notes under picture). Glad I made sure the number of sts was the same on each edge!!

Ripple section has 91 ripple rows, plus the squaring-off row on either edge (counts as 1.5 dc rows, since the edge is dc on the bottom and sc on top). See pics for how I squared off each ripple end.

For final border edging (after an evening-out round of varying stitch lengths):
-Round 1: sc, chain one, skip st, continue. In corner, sc, ch 1, sc (skipping st before and after corner).
-Round 2: sc into the skipped sts below, pulling loop up long enough to clear the chain below (working around that chain), chain 1, repeat around. Love this border… minimal and rope-like.

In the end, I needed 3 skeins of the white, 1 skein of each other color (though I was VERY close to the end of the turquoise skein - get 2 of that next time if you follow the same color scheme).