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Will this blanket work, I wonder?

(12 Posts)
Witzend Sun 04-Jul-21 10:13:19

I have a few relatively small projects on the go, but will still have a huge stash of umpteen different colours to use up.

I’ve previously made a couple of scarves for Knit For Peace, a very simple pattern of 280 sts, one garter st row in each colour, knitted on a circular needle for about 7 inches, but not in the round, ends trimmed and made into tassels. Relatively quick and certainly very easy - mindless TV knitting!

Now wondering whether it’d work for the kind of blanket K for P want, at least 50 x 70 inches. The 280 st count would work for the width.
On similar lines, last year I made a much smaller ‘rainbow’ blanket for Gdcs but in 4 sections, with knitted strips over each join, to save the right side joins looking messy.

So a big blanket would need several sections, otherwise obviously incredibly heavy and unwieldy to work with.

I’ve ordered a longer circular needle, so might just get going on it soon, in order to have it ready for winter.

I did start a multi-coloured ‘squares’ blanket a while ago, but the prospect of trying to make so many non-messy-looking joins put me off before I’d done much - I won’t be trying one of those again.

aggie Sun 04-Jul-21 10:25:11

The thought of all that knitting makes me tired , I do crochet throws , mind you they are more single bed size , or wrap round your knees size , great for using up yarn and keeping hands busy and out of the biscuit tin ! I can’t sew well so don’t do the squares

Callistemon Sun 04-Jul-21 10:31:51

I make crochet blankets and they are easier on the wrists than knitting.
However, I think I posted a link to a mitred squares blanket a while ago, I'll try to find it. There wouldn't be any of that tedious sewing up afterwards.

www.deramores.com/products/autumnal-merino-blanket-knitting-kit-and-pattern-in-deramores?variant=32662383624274

There are lots of similar patterns online.

Lovely blanket and lovely garden, aggie!

Callistemon Sun 04-Jul-21 10:33:42

www.theknittingsquirrel.com/how-to-knit-a-mitred-square-blanket/

Flexagon Sun 04-Jul-21 10:40:43

I've made a few of those scarves, Witzend, and think the pattern could be upscaled into a blanket.

I start my scarves with a crochet cast on, hooking the stitches directly onto the circular knitting needle so that you get a chained cast on edge that looks identical to the bind off edge. This would make it easier to sew or crochet the sections together evenly.

Witzend Sun 04-Jul-21 11:30:43

Many thanks for replies.
Alas I can’t do crochet and I’m afraid I can’t be bothered to learn now.

Callistemon, I remember that mitred pattern, thank you, but it looked a bit too complicated for me - for anything so big, anyway.
The great thing about the above scarf method was that (apart from the fact that they can look very nice) you can do it mindlessly, plus at just one row of each colour it can use up small quantities - of which I have a whole bagful, besides the main stash.
?anyway, I think I’ll start it soon.

Callistemon Sun 04-Jul-21 12:55:48

Callistemon, I remember that mitred pattern, thank you, but it looked a bit too complicated for me - for anything so big, anyway.

I started it just to experiment, Witzend and it was easier than I thought it would be. However, it was abandoned in favour of crochet although I still have the bag of random colours if I decide to continue with it one day.

You're a much more proficient knitter than me - if I can do it, you'd find it easy!

bridie54 Sun 04-Jul-21 13:14:17

Just a thought as I’m not a knitter but I do crochet. I suggested this to my sister as she knits blankets for Project Linus. She does this all the time now. Instead of casting off once you have knitted a square just change colour and knit enough rows for another square and so on until you have a strip the required length. Obviously then you have strips to join but it’s a lot less work.
I suppose if you can juggle knitting with different balls like intarsia you could do 2 or more squares per row. Hope that makes sense.

Witzend Mon 05-Jul-21 09:39:32

Callistemon, I’m only at all ‘proficient’ with relatively simple patterns, with crystal clear instructions. (If only they were all like Jean Greenhowe’s!)

Anything that strays outside the fairly basics almost inevitably has me going wrong, cursing and undoing, and very likely eventually scrapping whatever it was.

Callistemon Mon 05-Jul-21 15:20:53

I do that too Witzend and DH gets quite upset! 'All that work and you're undoing it!'

Witzend Mon 05-Jul-21 15:52:12

I doubt my dh would even notice! Though amazingly enough, when I said more or less to myself the other night, Oh, bugger, I’ve made a bum (a row of P when it was supposed to be all G st) he actually asked whether I’d done a row too many! I’m still not quite over the shock. ?

Nannina Thu 08-Jul-21 10:47:57

I’m using all my odds and ends making a knitted double bed sized mitred square blanket. It’s easy to do if a bit boring and avoids all the sewing up