Play with Cables and Lace in this Wrap Knitting Pattern

You already know I have cables on the brain from my post the other day about making cables without a cable needle. It’s funny that when you start thinking about a particular genre of knitting you start to see it everywhere, so it makes sense that the little braided cables on the edge of the Twisting Vines wrap caught my eye.

You can tell by the name of the pattern, which was designed by A. Palmatier, that the lace is really the star of the show, but I do love the combination of a sort of intricate lace with a simple cable as a frame. And honestly the lace isn’t difficult, either, but it might take you a couple of repeats to get the logic of it.

The pattern includes written instructions and a chart if you’d rather (which is a great way to practice reading a chart if you’re new to it because you can always check your work if you aren’t sure what a symbol means or your project isn’t looking quite right).

This wrap uses DK weight yarn and is a big rectangle, so it’s easy to adjust the size if you want yours to be bigger or smaller, or if you’re using yarn from your stash and don’t have the same yardage as the pattern calls for.

The Twisting Vines wrap is available as a free download from Ravelry, or if you don’t do Ravelry you can get it on the designer’s website.

Looking for more shawl patterns? I recently collected a bunch of sock yarn shawl knitting patterns, which are great because they each only use about a skein of yarn, so you can pull that special skein out of your collection and actually use it for a lightweight shawl you can wear throughout the year.

[Photo: A. Palmatier]

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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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