Knit a Blanket with a Ton of Texture

This blanket knitting pattern is listed as being an easy pattern for beginners, but I’m not sure it’s something I would have taken on as a beginner.

True, all of the patterns in this blanket from Lily Lake Knits are knit and purl patterns, but the great combination of them across the work probably would have given me pause.

If you’re a beginner and this looks like something you want to try, you definitely can handle it with a little time and stitch markers. And you’ll learn a lot of fun stitch patterns and designs along the way.

For those who feel comfortable knitting lots of different stitch patterns, if not lots of different stitches, in the same project, this one would definitely be fun to do. And the pattern includes both written instructions and charts, so you could use it as a way to practice reading charts when there are mostly just knits and purls involved.

The pattern uses medium/worsted weight yarn (specifically Lion Brand Pound of Love, but you can use whatever you like) and it offers and range of six sizes, so with this pattern you can knit anything from a little security blanket to a stroller blanket, a crib blanket, or a small, medium or large throw. You can also just make one of the chosen widths longer if you like.

It’s worked in one piece so you’ll need a long cable needle even though it’s worked flat, which should help make the weight of the project more manageable, too. This is also why I mention stitch markers, because you’re working what looks like about seven different panels of pattern across the width of the project, so it will help you to remember to change patterns if you have markers there to slow you down.

This does look like a fun project that’s sure to keep you or your favorite little one cozy through the cold months.

You can grab a copy of the pattern from Lily Lake Knits on Etsy.

[Photo: Lily Lake Knits]

Over the years I have shared a lot of pumpkin knitting patterns, and I’ve knit and crocheted a lot of pumpkins myself. But it feels like there are always more fun things to try with knit pumpkins, so this year I wanted to look a little more beyond basic stockinette or ribbed pumpkins and share some pumpkin patterns with cables, bobbles and colorwork.

In the cable collection we’ve got these cute little basic cable and ribbed pumpkins from Elly Bear Knits. There are two sizes that make a wide, flat pumpkin and a taller round pumpkin. Both are worked in the round as a tube that’s cinched top and bottom when you’re done, and they use bulky weight yarn.

Another cute cable pumpkin knitting pattern comes from Gray Bear Akswokrat. This one is knit flat and it looks like a chunky yarn but you could use other weights to make pumpkins of different sizes. This one also has an I-cord stem and uses yarn to cinch up the sections of the pumpkin, giving it a more natural look.

Add some bobbles to your pumpkins with this design from Autumn Shelter Makes. Also worked in the round in a tube, it features a repeating pattern of bobbles and uses yarn wrapped around the outside to make segments. This one looks like worsted weight yarn to me.

Of course there’s nothing that says your pumpkin has to be a single color, so let’s throw in some colorwork. I love the look of the Cozy Fall Pumpkin knitting pattern from South Stitch Girls. The little leather loop adds a rustic touch but you could also just add a stick. These pumpkins have five colorwork options and are worked in worsted weight yarn in the round.

There’s also the Autumn Fair Isle Trio pumpkins pattern from Equestriann Style, which has three different sizes of pumpkins with four colorwork designs. They are worked in super bulky yarn in the round and look good with high contrast or more muted color combinations.

Have you read?