A Simple Knit Blanket to Keep You Cozy

As the temperatures start getting cooler as they are doing now where I live, all I want to do is knit blankets or be under knit blankets or be under a blanket while knitting it.

If you’re new to knitting or just looking for an easy and cozy knit blanket project, check out the Knit Squares Blanket from Mama in a Stitch.

The blanket is worked in bulky yarn all in one piece on a long circular knitting needle (though it is knit flat) and using alternating blocks of stockinette, reverse stockinette and seed stitch with a garter stitch border.

Though the original pattern has you working all in one piece across the blanket, and in a single color, this design got me thinking about lots of different ways you could work it.

Of course you could still work it in one piece and either add horizontal stripes of color. Just change colors at the end of a section of pattern blocks (and work a knit row all the way across on the first row of the new color to keep the color changes crisp) and you’ll have a different look. Or use two colors and change colors in the middle.

You could also make vertical stripes of color using intarisa. In that case I’d probably knit the border in a single color and then start the stripes after.

If intarsia isn’t your thing, you could also work the project in individual panels of 16 or 32 stitches and then sew them together by hand. In that case you’d want to work the border after the project is knit and seamed. And then you can easily make it bigger, too, by working more columns and making them longer.

And while you’re changing colors with abandon, if you’re working in panels you could also change colors every block to give it a patchwork look and use up all your leftover yarn. (If you don’t have lots of chunky leftovers try holding two strands of worsted weight together.)

Whatever way you knit it, this blanket looks to be a cozy addition to your home for fall and winter. Grab the free pattern from Mama in a Stitch.

[Photo: Mama in a Stitch]

If you’re new to knitting and you know other knitters, you’ll probably hear about the magical nature of sock knitting. It’s a genre of knitting that intimidates a lot of beginners, but more seasoned sock knitters will tell you there’s nothing like knitting and wearing socks.

The trouble with sock knitting, though, is that there are a lot of places you can go awry, and a lot of things you might not know until you learn them the hard way. Lisa K. Ross seeks to dispel some of the trouble spots of sock stitchers of all skill levels with her book Sock Knitting Success.

The book attempts to lay out all the options that are before you as a person who wants to knit socks, including different materials and dye styles of yarn, types of needles, toe up or top down and different kinds of heels and toes.

She emphasizes the importance of getting gauge, but also notes that once you know what needles you can get correct gauge with, you might not ever have to swatch again because sock patterns tend to be built on the same gauge (8 stitches per inch/2.5 cm, which is what she uses for the 11 patterns in the book). The book also goes into a lot of detail about how to measure a foot and determine the right size sock to knit for the person who will be wearing it.

While she has preferred methods for making her socks (using a 9 inch circular, afterthought heel, round toe, using Tillybuddy’s very stretchy cast on, a tutorial for which is included) she provides a lot of options and of course the patterns use a variety of methods so new sock knitters can try different techniques and learn their favorites. There’s also a quick overview of using cables, lace and colorwork on socks and blocking.

A chapter on modifying patterns gives knitters guidance if they aren’t getting gauge, have a high instep or a wider leg than foot. There’s also a troubleshooting section to help deal with fit issues, tight cuffs and other problems.

Patterns are arranged by skill level on a scale of one to three. Four patterns are for newbie sock knitters, three for inquisitive knitters looking to build skills and four for experienced sock knitters who might want to try something new.

The beginner pattern, Thick and Quick, is a vanilla sock worked with DK weight yarn for quick progression. Anywhere Anytime is the basic sock in sock yarn, and Easygoing is a simple sock worked from the toe up.

There’s a ribbed sock, one with an afterthought heel, one with an easy textured stitch pattern and columns of mini cables, an easy diamond lace pattern, a textured sock with twisted stitches and a diamond motif, a more complex lace design in a toe up sock, a toe up sock with cables and lace and an allover colorwork design.

The cables, lace and colorwork are all charted, so having familiarity with reading charts is helpful for those projects. The book offers solid basics and some more interesting socks so that knitters of all sock skill levels should see something they like and maybe learn something new, too.

About the book: 144 pages, Flexibound, published 2026 by Quarry Books. Suggested retail price $26.99.

Have you read?