A Knit Blanket for Green Thumbs, Or Black Thumbs

This is one of those projects where I don’t even know what to say about it other than it’s stunning and amazing and I don’t know if I would have the skill for it but if I made it I would definitely show it off to everyone who came to my house ever again.

The houseplant blanket from Sarabeth Hall has a beautiful allover colorwork pattern of monstera and other tropical plant leaves. Which would be cool enough, but it’s also double knit, for double thickness, reversible fabric that looks good no matter how it’s casually tossed around the house, and lots of squishy warmth.

It was designed to be a baby blanket, but I could see it being used as a little lap blanket or throw, too. I mean, if I knit this I would definitely want to keep it for myself and would have to find ways to use it. The finished measurements are 42 by 37.5 inches, or 106.68 by 95.25 cm.

It calls for fingering weight yarn so it would definitely be worth investigating making it with, say, worsted weight yarn instead to get a bigger blanket.

The pattern is charted and assumes you know how to read and follow a colorwork chart for double knitting (and how to double knit, of course!).

Double knitting is a lot of fun but it’s something I haven’t done in a long time. Maybe this winter would be a great time to refresh those skills and stitch up this amazing blanket. I love it in green and white but you could also stitch it up in less realistic colors to bring brightness to any baby room or gray day.

The best part of all is that this is a free pattern on Ravelry, so you have no excuse not to check it out and give it a try. If you do, I’d love to hear how it goes (and I’ll definitely share if I end up making a version, too!)

[Photo: Sarabeth Hall]

As we get into the part of the year with a lot of food-forward holidays, it might be time to start thinking about knitting some new things for your table. While a few of these are more fall/Thanksgiving focused, just changing up the colors would make others work for Christmas, or keep it neutral and use them all year long.

What got me started thinking about this was the lovely and simple Fresh Bread Dishtowel, a free pattern from Purl Soho. Worked in a lovely cotton and linen blend, the towel is mostly stockinette stitch with a bit of texture on the borders.

You could use this same kind of pattern to make anything from placemats to a table runner, but let’s look at some specific patterns for those kinds of projects as well.

The easy moss stitch table runner from Glass Bird Knits is beginner friendly can can easily be modified to fit your table (or, again, to make placemats instead of or in addition to a runner). This version is worked in macrame cord, but you could also use bulky yarn.

Emielle Design has a garter stitch runner pattern that’s made with braided cotton cord for a lot of texture without a lot of work. But be sure to take a lot of breaks when knitting with cord because it can be rough on your hands!

I also love the diamond pattern on the Hamilton Table Runner from Wyndlestraw Designs. It calls for a DK weight cotton and linen blend yarn and comes in three sizes with different widths and lengths. The pattern has both written and charted instructions.

Amy Marie’s Table Pumpkins (on Ravelry) is a fun mosaic knitting pattern that would be great to use as a table runner through the fall and for Thanksgiving. It uses a worsted weight cotton yarn in two colors, and you can make it as long as you like for your table.

The no cable knit placemats from Yarn Culture Studio have a fun faux cable look that would be great for the table through the fall and winter.

Or here’s another pattern from Wyndlestraw Designs, this time for an easy knit and purl stitch placemat pattern that looks different but still good on both sides. It calls for worsted weight cotton and comes in two sizes for placemats, but also has instructions for coasters, a hot pad and a table pad all using the same stitch.

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