Gift Knits from the New Knitty

The latest issue of Knitty just dropped the other day, so I thought it might be fun to highlight some patterns you still have time to knit for gifts, if you’re still in the market for some.

The Skew Too fingerless mitts from Eva Landeo use a gorgeous, colorful yarn, a fun technique to make the knitting and the finished mitt more interesting, and they’re mostly worked in a flat piece of bias knitting, with cuffs and thumb added after, so they should be pretty quick to knit.

There’s also a mitten pattern, Instant Mash from Kate Atherley’s newest book (which is all about mittens). They’re worked in bulky yarn for quick progress, and mittens don’t have nearly the fiddly bits that gloves do, and actually keep your hands warmer.

Laura Chau’s Fallingbrook is a hat and mitten set with fun cable patterns that will make it feel like these knit fast because you’ll want to keep going to see how it all turns out. And the Tiina hat pattern from Katrin Kolnes is another one that will be fun to knit because of the great cable pattern, but it’s easy because it’s worked flat with no shaping. Just seam it up the side and cinch the top when you’re done!

Amy Palmer’s Ceibo is a kind of bolero/cropped sweater that’s a cardigan styled so it opens in the back, keeping more of your core warm. It would be great for all sorts of layering occasions this winter, and it comes in a variety of sizes.

Maybe my favorite is the tiny Kate’s Kitten pattern from Anna Hrachovec. It’s an itsy version of Kate by Jess Hutchinson, a sweet, pants-wearing kitty published by Knitty back in 2005. You’ve probably still got time to knit both of them for gifting. So cute!

[Photo: Anna Hrachovec via Knitty.]

Looking for more knitting patterns for knitted Cardigans? Check out these Knitting patterns we found on Etsy.

Specific to knitters, you can join our Knitting Patterns Only group to get, well, knitting patterns, ask questions and gain inspiration for what to knit next.

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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.

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