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.

As we get into the part of the year with a lot of food-forward holidays, it might be time to start thinking about knitting some new things for your table. While a few of these are more fall/Thanksgiving focused, just changing up the colors would make others work for Christmas, or keep it neutral and use them all year long.

What got me started thinking about this was the lovely and simple Fresh Bread Dishtowel, a free pattern from Purl Soho. Worked in a lovely cotton and linen blend, the towel is mostly stockinette stitch with a bit of texture on the borders.

You could use this same kind of pattern to make anything from placemats to a table runner, but let’s look at some specific patterns for those kinds of projects as well.

The easy moss stitch table runner from Glass Bird Knits is beginner friendly can can easily be modified to fit your table (or, again, to make placemats instead of or in addition to a runner). This version is worked in macrame cord, but you could also use bulky yarn.

Emielle Design has a garter stitch runner pattern that’s made with braided cotton cord for a lot of texture without a lot of work. But be sure to take a lot of breaks when knitting with cord because it can be rough on your hands!

I also love the diamond pattern on the Hamilton Table Runner from Wyndlestraw Designs. It calls for a DK weight cotton and linen blend yarn and comes in three sizes with different widths and lengths. The pattern has both written and charted instructions.

Amy Marie’s Table Pumpkins (on Ravelry) is a fun mosaic knitting pattern that would be great to use as a table runner through the fall and for Thanksgiving. It uses a worsted weight cotton yarn in two colors, and you can make it as long as you like for your table.

The no cable knit placemats from Yarn Culture Studio have a fun faux cable look that would be great for the table through the fall and winter.

Or here’s another pattern from Wyndlestraw Designs, this time for an easy knit and purl stitch placemat pattern that looks different but still good on both sides. It calls for worsted weight cotton and comes in two sizes for placemats, but also has instructions for coasters, a hot pad and a table pad all using the same stitch.

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