Sweet Baby Blankets to Knit

It seems like there is no end to demand for cute and easy to knit baby blanket knitting patterns (lots of people have been checking out this post about how to knit a baby blanket recently), so let’s take a look at a new batch of designs. (For more collections, see the bottom of the post.)

The Vintage Knit Baby Blanket from Annes Gifts and Crafts is a great opportunity to practice some knit purl stitches while making a pretty patchwork project. It’s worked in one color and this is a vintage pattern from the 1990s (words I am not comfortable using in the same sentence).

Commemorate the year of baby’s birth with this pretty and easy baby blanket from Your Knitting Room. This one uses DK weight yarn and is all knit and purl stitches, so it’s great for new knitters. The designer also has an option for 2025 if you need to make one with that birth year instead.

Another cute blanket that is all knits and purls is the Sadie Baby Blanket from Snufflebean Yarn. This one also uses DK weight yarn and uses stripes of textured stitches to bring interest. This one is a free pattern on the Snufflebean Yarn website.

Jennifer Loy’s Pumpkin Pie is so named because it uses orange yarn, but of course you can make your “pie” of any “flavor” you like. It’s a simple circle worked from the center out in one piece with options to work a cabled border or an I-cord edging. It also has super cute but optional leaves at the center. It calls for worsted weight yarn and is available in four sizes from baby blanket to lap afghan. You can find the pattern on Ravelry.

The Daisy Baby Blanket from Sheri Cameron is sure to put a smile on your face with its bold intarsia flower motif. The project is worked in worsted weight yarn and the colorwork is presented in chart form. This pattern is also on Ravelry.

And if you need a super warm blanket that’s done in a jiffy, try Fisker Knit’s free Icelandic Baby Blanket pattern. This one uses two strands of super bulky yarn held together and brioche stitch for a super squishy, warm and cozy blankie. Grab the pattern on Ravelry.

Still need more inspiration for your baby blankets? Check out my collections of textured baby blanket patterns, easy baby blanket patterns and super easy patterns. Don’t ask me what the difference is!

Knit a colorwork hat inspired by every state in the United States with Knitting the U.S.A. by Nancy Bates. Like her previous book of hats inspired by US national parks, this book includes a colorful hat design for every state.

The book opens with a very brief section on the basics (which is about choosing colors, gauge, picking a cast on method, using duplicate stitch and blocking). A few more techniques are explored at the back of the book, but this is a book that assumes you know how to knit, read a chart and work colorwork knitting.

Patterns are arranged by geographical location with no clear organization within the sections (not alphabetical, geographical, by date admitted to the Union, etc.). That may only annoy me, but it did so now you know.

Each state has an image like a postcard showing what inspired the hat (snow-capped trees for North Dakota, a grassy field of horses for Kentucky, a racoon for New Jersey to name a few) and a few paragraphs about iconic things and experiences in that state (Massachusetts has a lot of bricks, South Carolina lots of food).

A list of the colors used in the pattern is given, as well as needles, notions and gauge. All the designs say they fit an average adult head and are meant to come out around 20.25 inches or 51.5 cm around.

There is a little bit of written instruction for each hat, and the colorwork is given as a chart. Hats are worked from the bottom up and feature ribbing along the bottom.

The patterns are cute and colorful, though as with any big book like this lots of designs could cover lots of states. Arkansas for instance (since I’m from there I always have to bring it up!) has a sort of textured, not quite chevron design worked in three colors to highlight our hills and forests. It’s pretty but you’d never know it was supposed to represent any state, particularly Arkansas.

Still, these hats are fun and if your state is more distinctive (or even if it isn’t) you might want to knit your state or the hat from your favorite place to travel or where you were born or where someone is moving and have fun knitting your way across America in hats.

About the book: 232 pages, hardcover, 50 patterns. Published 2025 by Weldon Owen. Suggested retail price $32.50.

Have you read?