First, the pattern. There are many variations on this pattern, some just know how to do it, some use various instructions taken from multiple people, and some, like myself, use an actual pattern on Ravelry. The one I am using is called "Memory Blanket" and is available for free. It has pictures, the instructions are clear, and I highly recommend it.
As I mentioned in the previous blanketing post, I am knitting 4x4 blocks of squares, and will be knitting them together. I have yet to try it, but my plan is to use the "10 Stitch Blanket" pattern (also free!) as the idea on how to knit them together (so each block will then be knit to it's neighbor, with a 10-stitch border as the connecting bits).
I'm planning on doing a column's worth of blocks, then knitting them together horizontally...then once all the columns are done, knitting them together vertically.
Secondly, a tip on actual square making. Err, square starting, anyway.
The pattern instructions are great, as I said, but I'm the kind of person that has to talk myself through putting paper in my printer to make sure I print double-sided in the manner I'm after. This being the case, I found a way to talk myself through picking up stitches for new squares.
And that is to remember that there is a Row 0. You pick up stitches and then you have to knit across them - this is Row 0, which is a right side row, and then row 1 is on the reverse side. The picking up stitches is not a row, but if you wanted to think of it as such, it would be Row -1, which would be a wrong side row, so left to right, not right to left (since knitting is right to left).
If that's confusing, I apologize. But, in simpler terms, pick up stitches left to right, knit across, then start your numbered rows for the pattern.
And, if you're looking to do your blanket of squares with the decrease ridges going different directions, I wish you luck in figuring that out, because I'd be spend more time trying to think of which direction to pick up than actually knitting!
Thirdly, weave in your ends as you go.
Nobody enjoys weaving in ends (at least so far as I'm aware!) but it's worth it to do so, I promise.
For me, I'm using it for hole-prevention. The corners of my squares don't actually line up nicely and there's little gaps between then all. So, to help fix that, I take the ends from the square diagonal from it, then tie them to the square, to help pull it all together, then weave the ends in.
And to be honest, there's going to be a lot of squares, no matter how you're doing your blanket - who wants to get to the end and say "yay I'm done...oh, no, all the ends"?!?!
My fourth suggestion is more or less a choice to make, not an actual suggestion. But if you're going to want to know what each square is (so far as the yarn or the color or where it came from), you should probably start at the beginning. No, I don't have an "oh no, I'm having to guess what they are!" story to share with you, but I wouldn't want anyone to have one to tell! As I mentioned before, I'm using a Field Notes notebook to do so, and it's easy to jot down the information after each square, and it is a small enough notebook to keep close at hand.
I'm not anywhere near being able to say I know a lot about this process, but these are the things that I've learned that could be handy for someone else who is wanting to knit one of these blankets!
Sadly, though, for now this is all the blanket wisdom I have for you. I'm hoping, however, that sooner than later I will actually have a decent amount of progress to share!
~ Havok
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