Knitting

Free Patterns, Tutorials and Project Ideas

Strawberry Socks Knitting Pattern

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There are few food items that, when they are in season, I will buy with reckless abandon, regardless of the quantity of said item we already have in the house. Local tomatoes are one, but earlier in the season it’s strawberries. The local ones are best, and I have been known to go to the farmer’s market a couple of times a week to stock up on them while I can.

The Itty Bitty Berry Socks from Stone Knits celebrate the smaller wild strawberries that grow everywhere in the summer where she lives (in Switzerland).

They’re worked from the top down, starting with a little picot hem and covered with an allover pattern of little wild strawberries and colored dots. They have a short row heel and a grafted toe, and instructions are included for working the socks short or a standard longer length if you prefer. (Learn more about grafting knitting if you don’t know how to do it.)

 

The pattern calls for using the magic loop method to knit the socks but you can convert it to work with DPNs or two circulars if that’s the way you like to do it. (But if you’ve never done magic loop for socks before, it is a nice way to do it!)

The socks are available in three sizes, from a foot circumference of 8 to 10.5 inches (or 22.5-27 cm) and like most socks should be worked with an inch or so of negative ease to achieve a good fit. You’ll need a main color and two contrasting colors (red and green) for the socks. You might already have something in your stash that would work if you’ve ever knit holiday socks before!

You can grab the pattern from Stone Knits on Etsy. While you’re there check out all their other super colorful and fun sock knitting patterns!

[Photo: Stone Knits]

Master Grafting with this Great Blog Series

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Learn to Knit Socks with this Easy Ribbed Sock Pattern

 

Waves Socks– Free Knitting Pattern
These cozy Waves Socks are a lovely choice if you want a handknit sock pattern with a little texture but nothing too fussy. The gentle scallop stitch creates a soft wave effect, making them pretty enough for gifting but still practical for everyday wearing. They’re worked in light worsted weight yarn, so they knit up a little faster than fine sock yarn socks too.

Ladies Lace Top Socks – Free Knitting Pattern
These Ladies Lace Top Socks are a sweet step up from a basic handknit sock, with a delicate lace cuff that adds just the right amount of pretty. The rest of the sock is worked mainly in stocking stitch, so it’s a nice project for knitters who are ready to try sock shaping without making the whole thing overly complicated. A lovely handmade gift idea, especially if you use a soft 4-ply sock yarn.

Have you read?

Patchwork Blanket Knitting Patterns

Any time of year is a good time for stash busting, but if you can combine it with knitting a blanket that will keep you warm when it (finally!) gets cooler that’s even better. Let’s take a look at some fun patchwork blanket knitting patterns. 

If you want to keep it super simple, you can just make blocks of garter stitch and sew them together, like the beginner’s patchwork baby blanket from Mini Baa Baa or the color block blanket from Make and Do Crew. Both projects are worked in strips and sew together, with the baby version calling for two strands of DK or light worsted weight yarn held together and the larger one using bulky yarn. 

Add a little more texture with the mixed blocks of the cottage quilt throw from Mama in a Stitch. This one combines garter stitch and seed stitch and uses worsted weight yarn. She used a crochet join to make the chains on top of the blocks, but you can join them however you like. It calls for eight colors but you can use what you have, and there are three size options. 

Get a real sampler style patchwork blanket with this design from Knit Sew Make. It calls for worsted weight yarn and has four size options. All of the patterns just use knit and purl stitches so this one is still pretty easy for beginners. 

If you want a more complex colorwork project that will keep you entertained all season, try the Peace by Piece blanket pattern from Needle and Feather. This one is made up of two color colorwork blocks and calls for worsted weight yarn. You can choose to use just a few of the blocks and repeat them more often, or make multiples of the whole set. 

The knitted patchwork recipe from Martine Ellis (free on Ravelry) uses mitered squares in fingering weight yarn, so it’s perfect for using up all your leftover sock yarn and mini skeins. This one is a tutorial more than a pattern so you can make your blanket as big as you like or keep going until you run out of yarn. 

Susan B. Anderson’s 100 Squares blanket (find it on Ravelry) has a lot of mitered squares, too, but they’re arranged in fun ways and includes some quilt inspired designs as well. This one also is a bit of method more than pattern but it sure looks like a lot of fun for using all the leftovers. 

Of course you can totally improvise a patchwork blanket using the yarn and stitches you like, but I hope these patterns inspire you to look at your leftover yarn in a new way.