Keep it Simple with a Knit Sampler Afghan

September 29, 2023 by Sarah White Leave a Comment

Sometimes you want to knit an afghan without being trapped under an afghan the whole time you’re knitting it.

I mean, I guess that might be true for some people. It is not true for me. I think I mostly knit blankets just for the special joy of the part in the knitting where you’re under your knitting as you knit it.

But if you for some reason might not want to have to deal with the whole blanket while you’re knitting it, a patchwork blanket is a great way to go.

They’re great travel projects because you’re only working on piece at a time, and of course they’re fantastic for using up stash because you can make each square a different color if you want, or use a few different colors to make it coordinate with whatever room you plan to use it in. (You do have different blankets for different rooms, right?)

The Caron Knit Sampler Afghan is a free knitting pattern from Yarnspirations that not only gives you the patchwork look in color, but also in pattern. As written the pattern uses three colors, and three different pattern blocks.

The patterns are basketweave, trinity stitch and mock cable. The pattern shows all of each block worked in the same color, which makes it so that the patterns and colors mix in diagonal rows across the blanket. But you could work the stitches in different colors whether you are working with three colors or more than three.

Using more colors will change up the layout pattern, of course, but you could do eight different colors and change colors for each diagonal row shown in the assembly chart. Or use 20 colors and then you can stitch them together however you want because there will be no pattern at all! Totally up to you.

You can get the free pattern from Yarnspirations.

[Photo: Yarnspirations]

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Christmas Stocking Knitting Patterns for Your Pets

I’ve shared a lot of Christmas stocking knitting patterns over the years (see posts 1, 2, 3 for example) but what if you want to knit a stocking for a non-human member of your family. If you’re looking for Christmas stocking knitting patterns for your cats or dogs, this is the post for you.

These large paw print stockings are perfect for either dogs or cats, so they’re great to knit if you have both. They are worked in the round using DK weight yarn, and the stocking measures about 17 inches/43 cm from the top to the heel. You can get the pattern from nicolaluke.

The K4 Project has a super cute Kitty Christmas stocking pattern, which is worked in worsted weight yarn. They also have a dog version, or you can buy both and get a discount if you have both dogs and cats to knit for. Both projects have two patterns, showing how to work the stockings flat or in the round.

Put your dog into a Christmas scene with this stocking pattern from ifanhourChild. It shows a dog in a dog house in the snow, and has room for the dog’s name at the top. It’s worked flat using worsted weight yarn and the pattern includes charts for many small and medium dog breeds (there’s a separate listing for bigger dogs) so you can stitch a dog that looks like yours.

Annie’s Woolens has both dog and cat stocking knitting patterns that are worked in worsted weight yarn in the round. You can change up the colors to suit your pet if you want, and they come with an alphabet chart for personalization. Or you can stick with holiday colors and buy a kit to make the dog or cat stocking.

Waiting for Santa Paws is a pattern from Kate Agner on Ravelry that would be cute for a dog or a cat. It looks like a leg with a paw print on the bottom part of the foot and more paw prints running around the top of the leg. This is a great option if you don’t want to mess with a heel turn because it doesn’t have a heel, because dogs and cats don’t have heels so why would their stockings?

Book Review – 20 to Knit: Tiny Christmas Toys to Knit

Book Review – Knit Christmas Stockings

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