Woohoo! It’s Done!

It’s finished! I did it!

The Log Cabin Kureyon Blanket is complete and I am in LOVE! Yesterday was a perfect sunny day to take pictures, and last night was the perfect night to have a nice wool blanket. The temperature dropped to approximately BONE-CHILLINGLY COLD last night, and we had left our windows open while over at our friends’ apartment. The bedroom was freezing when we got in, but I was prepared with my brilliant 100% wool blanket. The strict-vegan husband shivered a good deal longer than I did. There may have been a Schadenfreude-ish cackle in my head as I drifted off to sleep in warm cozy comfort.

The blanket is definitely a one-person blanket, perfectly sized for me at about 68″ long (maybe shorter… I’m about 65″ to 66″ tall) and probably about 45″ wide (?) maybe? I haven’t measured it, I just know it fits.

Pattern: None. I mean, my own. I improvised on the Log Cabin pattern in Mason Dixon Knitting, and came up with this pattern. It’s down at the bottom of this page if you’re interested.

I took the blanket to the park for a photo shoot, and it wanted to play. It played on the swings…

Inspiration: The Lizard Ridge blanket was my first inspiration, and the reason I bought the first 3 skeins. Then I saw the No-Sew Noro blanket by Yarnerinas and became totally enchanted with the idea of squares with a strong border. The squares on Cinamaknits‘ blog pushed me over the edge.

…it climbed up the curvy ladder…

Yarn: 19 skeins of Noro Kureyon in 19 different colors; 2 skeins of Cascade EcoWool (for the insanely good yardage) in dark brown (8095).

…it slid down the slide…

Needles: Many, many circulars in 5.0mm / US 8, because there are lots of stitches on those long edges.

…it steered the ship/playground…

Time Spent: Started Thursday, June 28th 2007 and finished 11:00pm Monday, October 8th 2007. I don’t have a clue how many hours I spent on it, but they were all delightful. Except maybe the brain-eating slog through the long edges on the borders, knitting 18 rows of garter stitch.

…and it beat me in tic-tac-toe, the slyboots…

Money Spent: This is not a topic I want to dwell on, but my husband and a friend were wondering how much it’s worth, with the cost of yarn plus all my time, just to see. Well, if you pay retail for 19 balls of Kureyon (which I didn’t have to, thank gourd), plus the $30 I paid at WEBS for my two skeins of EcoWool… [shudder]. Let us speak no more of it.

…and then it reposed gracefully against a stone couch.

What I Learned:

I learned that garter stitch is not boring, and is extremely cushy,

that colors other than my usual favorites can be beautiful,

that blankets can be knitted (I thought crochet was the only way to go, for the quickness factor),

that I will never get tired of smelling this yarn,

that 2400 grams of wool is damn warm,

that I could actually stick with a huge project and get it completed (I used to be intimidated by bigger projects, including sweaters),

that the kniternet is an awesome place to be when you need some extra balls of Kureyon (THANK YOU to Cathi, Heather, Kimberly, and KillerDaisy!!!),

and I learned that knitting my own blanket is a completely rewarding experience.

I’m including the pattern after the jump (if all goes well and I actually manage to create a jump). If you do decide to make it (or something like it with whatever customizations), drop me a line — I’d love to see what you make! And if you find yourself in need of an extra ball of Kureyon, I’ve got one to give away to the first person to ask for it. Colorway 194.

Again, I improvised a version of the Mason-Dixon Knitting log cabin pattern. And this is my first written-out pattern, so forgive the chatty format.

The Paintbox Kureyon Log Cabin Blanket. Or Quilt. Or Whatever.
For The Blocks:
Using a 5.0mm needle and Kureyon, cast on 15 sts. Work 20 garter ridges (40 rows). * BO on RS, leaving last loop on needle. Turn clockwise (NOT back-to-front) and pick up 1 st in each garter ridge on the side of the original rectangle. Knit 6 garter ridges (12 rows). Repeat from *, picking up a st in each garter ridge of the stripe you just made, plus 15 stitches in the cast-on edge of the original rectangle. Knit 6 garter ridges (12 rows), and repeat BO / pickup process around the rectangle.

One skein of Kureyon will make the central rectangle and 2 rounds of strips, with about 5g left over. The block will be approximately 9 1/4″ wide by 11″ tall. Make 19 blocks from each of 19 colors, and make the 20th block out of the leftovers (trust me, you will have plenty).

Put The Blocks Together Into Strips:
Arrange your blocks into a pleasing color wheel, or alternate between light and dark, or lay them out in chronological fashion in four strips of five blocks each. Just know which block will go on top of the next. This part goes really quickly. Using a 5.0mm needle, attach your Eco Wool at the bottom of the block, picking up a stitch in each garter ridge and in each bound-off stitch. Knit 3 garter ridges (6 rows). Leave these stitches live on a needle or large stitch holder. Break yarn. Take up your next block. Again, use a 5.0mm needle to attach the Eco Wool to the top of this block. Knit 3 garter ridges (6 rows). Join these live stitches with the live stitches of the first block via 3-needle bind off (or Kitchener if you really want to show off). Continue down the column of blocks by picking up stitches in the bottom of the second block, the top of the third, bottom of the third, etc. Repeat process for remaining columns of blocks. Weave in ends. (Don’t worry if the number of stitches you pick up on one side does not equal the stitches on the other side. This happened to me a bunch. Just decrease on one side during the 3-needle bind off.)

Put The Strips Together Into A Blanket:
This takes a little longer. Put on a nice long movie to help with the mindlessness. These directions assume you are working with the strips from the left side of the blanket first, moving to the right. Using the Eco Wool pick up stitches along the right-hand side length of your first strip (you may have to use many circular needles!). Knit 3 garter ridges (6 rows). Keep these stitches live and break yarn. Pick up stitches along the left-hand side length of the second strip. Knit 3 garter riges (6 rows). Join these live stitches with the live stitches of the first strip via 3-needle bind off (again, you Kitchener lovers may do as you please, but it’s beyond my powers to Kitchener that many stitches). Repeat on the other side of the second strip, joining with the 3rd strip, etc. Weave in ends.

Put A Border On Your Blanket:
This is the fun part, because there’s no 3-needle bind off involved and because you’re almost done. Whee! Pick an edge to begin your border. I started with the top of my blanket (the short edge), because I didn’t want to jump right in to another length-wise run of garter stitch. Attach Eco Wool as before, picking up stitches along the length of the side. * Knit 9 garter ridges (18 rows). Bind off, leaving last loop on needle. Turn clockwise (NOT back-to-front) and pick up stitches along the length of the next side. Repeat from * all around, until you reach the end. Bind off. Weave in ends. Bring the closest significant other you can find to the room where your blanket is spread out on the floor, couch or bed, and insist that they admire it. Parades in your honor, joyful hugs, and offering to make your favorite nori rolls are merely three ways for your significant other to show his/her delight.

Make the blanket bigger by adding more blocks, or a deeper border. Customizable!!