Basic Triangle Shawl Knitting Pattern

A basic triangle shawl is a great project to have in your arsenal. If you’ve never done shaping before, you’ll get a lot of practice with increases (in this case, yarn overs). And once you understand how knitting a triangle works, it’s a basic shape and project that you can make over and over again in different ways.

This basic triangle shawl pattern from Mirella Moments is worked from the bottom up in DK or light worsted yarn. It has garter stitch borders and the body is worked in stockinette. Though it’s knit flat, you’ll want a circular knitting needle for ease of holding all those stitches.

Because it’s a blank canvas, there are a lot of potential options for customization, such as:

use heavier or lighter-weight yarn
add stripes
make the borders a different stitch pattern like moss or seed stitch
use a different increase method
work the body in a different stitch pattern or add garter ridges

In addition to using different weights of yarn you could also make different sizes of shawls depending on how much of a particular yarn you have on hand. Shawls like this are great for using those random balls of yarn you aren’t sure what to do with, or leftovers from other projects.

They’re a little more fun to knit than scarves but you can still find places to donate them to charity, or they make great gifts.

You can get this free pattern from Mirella Moments.

And of course there are lots of variations on the basic triangle that make great, easy shawl knitting projects as well, like an asymmetrical triangle (this one is from Yarnspirations). And speaking of using scraps for your shawl, I recently shared a scrappy shawl pattern designed to do just that, if you want more guidance than just “use all your scraps on this project.”

[Photo: Mirella Moments]

Next Pattern:

Blankets are a great blank slate project that you can change up in a million different ways. From color to stitch pattern to size, the possibilities are almost endless.

Jared Flood, the designer behind Brooklyn Tweed, was inspired by a log cabin quilt his mother made in 1995 to re-create that design in knitting, which led to more blankets and ultimate Brooklyn Tweed’s Knit and Crochet Blankets, which includes 25 patterns from an array of designers using different skills and techniques to make cozy, pretty blankets.

The patterns are divided into three aesthetic themes: traditions, minimalism and colorplay. The patterns are rated on a scale of one to five, with one being the easiest, and there aren’t any pieces rated five. Two blankets are rated one, 14 are two, eight are three and one is four.

In addition, three of the 25 patterns are crocheted, but they either use single crochet or granny stitch, so they are pretty easy even if you don’t do a lot of crochet. You can see all the patterns on Ravelry.

Some of my favorites include Rattan by Rastus Hsu, a chunky blanket worked in knits and purls with simple crossing stitches to make a raised woven look; Homewood by Seth Richardson, covers in dramatic, loopy cables; Ainur Berkimbayeva’s Tessellate, one of the beginner projects that doesn’t really look beginner but is totally worked in knit and purl stitches; Warp + Weft by Aist? Butkevi?ien?, which is mostly knits and purls but makes a fun woven look fabric that blew my mind a little bit; and the same designer’s Canyonland, a multicolored blanket with wavy stripes.

The patterns tell you how to resize them for different dimensions and include information on pattern repeats where it is possible to make a totally custom size.

Many different techniques are included here such as cables, lace, shadow knitting, intarsia and other colorwork techniques, as well as modular knitting and lots of sewing pieces together. The patterns are all presented with charts, but there are line by line written instructions available on the Brooklyn Tweed website if you need them.

The book ends with a deep dive into log cabin knitting, telling the story of the quilt Jared’s mom made and how he made it in knitting, as well as the multitude of variations you can make if you want your own log cabin style design.

The back of the book includes a little written information about some of the special techniques needed, but there are no photos.

This is a lovely book full of inspiration for knitting and crochet blankets for any skill level. If you like to make blankets as gifts or aspire to have a handmade blanket in every room of the house, these designs would be a great place to start.

About the book: 192 pages, paperback, 25 patterns. Published 2024 by Abrams Books, suggested retail price $24.99.

Next Pattern:

Have you read?

Leave a Reply