Log Cabin Knitting Patterns

When it comes to meditative knitting, I’m not sure there’s much better than log cabin knitting. You start with a garter stitch square, then add a few stitches and knit another strip, pick up stitches along the sides and knit some more and so on. You can make small squares or go on forever to cover a bed, a couch, the world with log cabin knitting.

I learned how to knit log cabin blocks from Ann Shayne and Kay Gardiner, who I feel like really popularized log cabin knitting back in the mid-oughts. (Their log cabin baby blanket pattern is available for free and you can find the link on Ravelry.)

But there’s a lot more to log cabin knitting than blankets. I mean, I love a good log cabin blanket and it was one, specifically Meet Me at the Cabin by While They Dream, which uses my favorite colorway of Lion Brand Ferris Wheel yarn, that got me thinking about log cabin knitting just now. But let’s take a look at some other options.

I’m sure I’ve shared them before, but no log cabin knitting post would be complete without talking about Karen Templer’s log cabin mitts, which are free on her website. These pretty modular mitts are shown worked in three colors, but you could make each square a different color if you like, too.

A log cabin style scarf would also be fun, and this one would go quite well with the mitts if you worked them in the same colors or not. This design from Hey Jude Knits uses a multicolored yarn to make it easier, and uses other shapes like mitered squares to make the modular design.

I’m also delighted by the Walled Garden Vest by Sonja Bargielowska, available on Ravelry. This cropped, worsted weight vest has a split hem and a folded rib collar. It’s available in 10 sizes and I definitely want one now that I know it exists.

From there it’s a quick jump to a sweater, like this one knit up in tons of texture from Knit Collage. Here the front is worked from the center out, while the back has stripes and is joined to the front as you knit it. The sleeves are striped and worked in the round once the body pieces are done. The pattern has nine sizes.

OK, and one more blanket because this one makes me smile, too. Add stripes to your log cabin pieces to bring even more color to the party, as in this log cabin baby blanket from The Knitting Niche. It uses chunky yarn though you could do the same thing with different weights and just knit to the size you like, to cover baby or anything else.

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As I’m writing this the United States is about to celebrate a pretty big birthday, and while some of us have complicated feelings about that country right now, I think most of us would agree both that it’s a place worth fighting for and that it’s a good time to remember what got us into this nation in the first place. With that in mind, let’s take a look at some patriotic knitting patterns.

I thought there might be more knitting patterns produced specific to America’s big celebration this year, but I only found one (so far, there are probably more as you read this). The Semiquincentennial Scarf by Kristen Rettig is a bias knit scarf using DK weight yarn. It has one solid blue side and one red and white striped side. The pattern is available for free on Ravelry.

Sara’s Patriotic Shawl by Mitsziko is another great project for the Fourth of July or whenever else you want to show some patriotic pride. This one has a wide lace border, stripes and a blue section that includes white bobbles to imply stars. It’s worked in DK weight yarn. You can find this one on Ravelry.

If there were prizes for the punniest pattern names, Stars & Socks Forever from Katie Franceschi would definitely win something. These socks feature stripes on the body and stars at the top of the leg and the toe, as well as on the heel. The pattern comes in three widths and you can knit to your desired length. This pattern uses a chart for the stars and you can find it on Ravelry.

This little patriotic doll from Nadia Perepelitsa is styled like a boy, but you could give it longer hair if you like. It uses fingering weight yarn and is worked on two straight needles in such a way that you’ll only have to sew side seams when it’s done. So cute! You can find it on Ravelry.

This American flag sweater knitting pattern from SC Pattern is giving big Ralph Lauren vibes. It’s a drop shoulder crewneck with unisex styling that comes in five sizes. The flag is worked in intarsia, so the pieces are worked flat and seamed.

The Patriotic Tam from Judy Lamb is a little more subtle, though it does have red, white and blue colorwork, and a bunch of golden eagles around the base of the tam. It’s worked in worsted weight yarn from the bottom up and the colorwork is charted. This pattern is available on Ravelry.

If you’re looking for a big project to work for the fourth that you can use all summer every summer and you’ll want to, because it’s a big project) check out the American flag blanket pattern from Dr. Josie’s Joys. This is a vintage pattern, so the yarn doesn’t exist anymore, but it would still be lots of sun to make. It is worked with the stripes and block of blue, and the stars are added with duplicate stitch.

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