(Ep. 8 – BLANKET)

It’s the second week of December! Today marks 19 days until Christmas, and it’s time to finish up our gifting so we can start to prepare for the other major prepping that needs to be done. From grocery shopping and food prepping to putting out the seasonal decorations. From finishing wrapping, to writing cards, and preparing for ‘Santa’s arrival’. Trust me, I know there’s no shortage of last minute things that will inevitably pop up too! But, there is a way to sprinkle in ideas here and there that make the holiday season a little more easy to manage.

Homemade gifts don’t have to be stressful! They can actually be a lot of fun, and sometimes even easier than spending time online trying to find the gift that’s just right. You can even maximize how far a certain type of gift goes! (One of my favorite things to do during the holiday is make big batches of treats to create goody baskets for my neighbors.) But there’s other ways to maximize one-type gifts! Making multiple projects with leftover building scraps. Creating a special art piece for each loved one with the same medium. You name it!

So, this week I thought I’d share one of my new favorite things to make. And it can be for any loved one no matter their age! A chunky, finger-knit blanket. Simple, adorable, useful, lasting. And easy, believe it or not. I’ve actually received blankets as gifts in the past and they’re all proudly displayed on my blanket ladder year-round! Sure, you can buy blankets, but something handmade can be more meaningful in my opinion.

Where To Begin

This is the easiest (and funnest) part. Simply get your yarn that you’ll be using. It can be chenille, wool, whatever you want! The fun part is picking out your colors. But for simplicity’s sake, I’m going to be using one color in this tutorial. I ended up getting a super soft chenille material in the color ‘Oatmeal’, and bought just one skein because my goal was to make a baby blanket. For bigger blankets, this is where multiple colors can come into play. There’s also multiple designs that can be made, but I’m going to stick to an easy one to show you.

You might be wondering why there’s a pair of drumsticks in the photo. That is the only other supply I use when making a blanket. It’s completely optional! They do make the process easier though in the sense that it’s easier to keep your spot without messing up and having to unravel the yarn. But that’s it! Some yarn and some drumsticks (or knitting needles or chopsticks or anything similar). Easy enough so far, right?

Easy Part

You do need to have an idea of how big of a blanket you’re going to make when buying your yarn. But, this is where you commit to the size you picked. For my project, I decided to go with a 25-chain width, which is about 1-1/2 feet. If you’re making a blanket for an adult, I’d recommend going with a 50-chain width. (You’ll understand what I’m talking about with chain-link soon.) From there, the length is determined by the number of skeins bought. Since I’m only using one on this project, the blanket is finished when the skein is finished. For an adult blanket, when the first skein is finished, instead of binding off the blanket, another skein would be tied on and the process would continue.

Step One

The first thing to do is make a slip-knot at the end of your yarn. *Check out the videos below for a more in-depth explanation (and view) of the steps.* Once you have your slip-knot, you’re going to create ‘chain links’ by putting your fingers through the hole of the slip-knot and pulling more yarn through to make another. Repeat this process until you have 25 ‘links’ all about the same size. (Consistency is very important to make the blanket cohesive in the end!) Once you have your 25 links, you’re going to make an extra loop. This 26th loop will create the sides of the blanket as you move back and forth.

From there, you’re going to slip the 26th loop onto one of your drumsticks (or whatever item you’re using). Keeping your ‘chain’ so it’s facing the same direction and not flipped or twisted, you’re going to weave yarn through each link to make a new loop. *The key here is to weave from underneath the chain so your new loop is coming up. Make sure to follow this key for the entire blanket!* With each new loop that you create, you’re going to slip it onto your drumstick as you did with your extra loop. When finished, you should have 26 loops around your drumstick. Still relatively easy, right?

Step Two

Once you have your first drumstick full of all 26 loops, you’re going to transfer it onto the other drumstick (or whatever you’re using) as you’re weaving new yarn through-Almost as if you’re actually knitting. The process here can seem tricky, but watch the videos for help or guidance if needed! With your first loop, this is now the extra piece on the other side of your blanket. Transfer that over to your other drumstick without weaving any new yarn through. From there, you’re going to take one loop at a time off your first drumstick, weave yarn through the hole to create a new loop, and slide it over your new drumstick. *You’re basically doing the same thing as the last step here.* Go all the way through the end until all 26 of your loops are now on the second drumstick.

After each row, or every other row, count the loops on your stick to make sure there’s still 26-No more, no less. And a key for moving between each stick is that you should be moving from left to right and vice versa. Don’t accidentally (or purposely) place the stick in the same hand each time to move the same direction. This will mess up the pattern in your blanket and you’ll have to find a way to fix the mistake or start over.

Step Three

Once you have all 26 loops on your second stick, it’s time to transfer them back to the first stick while weaving new yarn through. Again, the process can seem tricky, but once you get the hang of it, you’ll be an expert in no time! With your first loop, as with last time, transfer it over to your first stick without weaving new yarn through. Then you’re going to take one loop at a time and weave new yarn through again to slide over your first stick. Go all the way to the end until all 26 loops are back on the stick where they started.

Repeat

At this point, you’re going to repeat steps 2 and 3 until you have about 5-10 feet of yarn leftover at the end. After you get some layers done, you’ll start to see a pattern form on the blanket. *It might start to get tricky to work around the blanket and keep the loops scrunched on the stick.* I promise it all gets easier as you continue and get used to the process!

Almost There

The last thing to do once you’ve reached the end of your skein(s) is to bind or ‘cast off’ the blanket so the top looks the same as the bottom and sides. It’s almost the same process as the last steps but with an added bit. You’ll only be using one stick in this step as we’re not transferring back to the other one this time. With your full stick, you’re going to slide not one, but two loops of the end and push new yarn through to make a new loop. Slide this loop back onto the same drumstick. Pull off two loops again, weave new yarn through to create a new loop, and put back on the stick. *It’s basically like two steps forward, one step back at this point until you’re finished.*

Once you’ve reached the end of all your loops on the stick, you’re going to weave through new yarn to create one final loop. With this loop, you’re going to pull all the remaining yarn completely through this time to create the finished knot. Then just cut off or weave back through the remaining yarn, and voila! You’ve just created your very own blanket! Easier than you thought, huh? Once you get the hang of the entire process, it only takes about a couple hours to knit a whole blanket. And I know that it’s not only an easy DIY home decor for yourself, but a great gift for loved ones too!

Related: Ep. 7

You Make It Look Easy!

So what are you waiting for to create your own masterpiece? Share your ideas in the comments below! And as always, thank you so very much for being a part of ETM’s community! I encourage you to join discussions, interact with Mommas and others alike, and be unapologetically yourself! Until next time, I hope I’m able to help make your life as simple as could be. (:

With all my love, Brandolyn – Earth To Momma