Knitting

Free Patterns, Tutorials and Project Ideas

Broken Rib Knitting Patterns

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Broken rib is a fun and easy knitting stitch that can be worked on any number of stitches. One row is knit and the second row is worked like ribbing. Repeating those two rows gets you a knit fabric with a more interesting look but still some of the stretchiness of ribbing. It’s great for all kinds of projects, as we shall see.

Why not start learning to use this stitch with a scarf? Jacque McClure’s Broken Rib Reversible Scarf is a free download on Ravelry and uses worsted weight yarn.

Jessie at Home on Etsy has another variation on the broken rib scarf, this time with three strands of yarn held together for a more colorful look and a warmer scarf.

Or you can try a hat, like the Easy Beanie from Nix O Clock on Etsy, which has a folded brim and uses a heavier worsted weight yarn. Or there’s the Cocoon pattern from La Maison Rililie, which has the option of being worked with a rounded crown or a more pointed, slouchier crown, and in a single color or multicolored version.

Ellen M. Silva has a super cute pair of broken rib fingerless gloves available as a free pattern on Ravelry. They use worsted weight yarn and are sized for adult women, and they have an interesting asymmetric thumb gusset that is said to improve the fit. There are also broken rib mittens for the whole family, worked in bulky weight yarn, designed by Knifty Knittings for Yarnspirations.

Once you’ve got the technique down, which takes no time at all, you can move on to other projects, like sweaters. The sammensat 3 sweater by Elsebeth Judith uses an allover broken rib pattern and is worked with fingering and DK weight yarns held together (or use a single strand of worsted weight). This top-down raglan has options for a regular crewneck or a mock turtleneck, and it comes in seven sizes. The pattern is available in English and Danish.

Gabriella Calderin’s broken rib vest, called Timbo, is a free Ravelry download and it looks so cozy stitched up in bulky weight yarn. It’s worked from the top down and comes in five sizes.

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Patchwork Blanket Knitting Patterns

Any time of year is a good time for stash busting, but if you can combine it with knitting a blanket that will keep you warm when it (finally!) gets cooler that’s even better. Let’s take a look at some fun patchwork blanket knitting patterns. 

If you want to keep it super simple, you can just make blocks of garter stitch and sew them together, like the beginner’s patchwork baby blanket from Mini Baa Baa or the color block blanket from Make and Do Crew. Both projects are worked in strips and sew together, with the baby version calling for two strands of DK or light worsted weight yarn held together and the larger one using bulky yarn. 

Add a little more texture with the mixed blocks of the cottage quilt throw from Mama in a Stitch. This one combines garter stitch and seed stitch and uses worsted weight yarn. She used a crochet join to make the chains on top of the blocks, but you can join them however you like. It calls for eight colors but you can use what you have, and there are three size options. 

Get a real sampler style patchwork blanket with this design from Knit Sew Make. It calls for worsted weight yarn and has four size options. All of the patterns just use knit and purl stitches so this one is still pretty easy for beginners. 

If you want a more complex colorwork project that will keep you entertained all season, try the Peace by Piece blanket pattern from Needle and Feather. This one is made up of two color colorwork blocks and calls for worsted weight yarn. You can choose to use just a few of the blocks and repeat them more often, or make multiples of the whole set. 

The knitted patchwork recipe from Martine Ellis (free on Ravelry) uses mitered squares in fingering weight yarn, so it’s perfect for using up all your leftover sock yarn and mini skeins. This one is a tutorial more than a pattern so you can make your blanket as big as you like or keep going until you run out of yarn. 

Susan B. Anderson’s 100 Squares blanket (find it on Ravelry) has a lot of mitered squares, too, but they’re arranged in fun ways and includes some quilt inspired designs as well. This one also is a bit of method more than pattern but it sure looks like a lot of fun for using all the leftovers. 

Of course you can totally improvise a patchwork blanket using the yarn and stitches you like, but I hope these patterns inspire you to look at your leftover yarn in a new way.