Sunny Baby Blanket Pattern

In my family, we have a long tradition of knitting or crocheting a gift when someone is having a baby. This Sunny Baby Blanket is my go-to pattern for when I want to knit a blanket. It’s easy enough for beginning knitters yet doesn’t look like a simple pattern. My best tip for success is to place stitch markers at every section so you can keep track of when to be switching between knits and purls. Also, be diligent about using a row counter so your sections will all be the same height. Check out the following video to learn more about using stitch markers and row counters in patterns such as this one:

Weekend Scarf Pattern and Video

This Weekend Scarf pattern is very fast and easy to knit, and was indeed able to be finished in a weekend (that I didn’t do anything except binge watch Harry Potter movies.) It’s a great pattern for beginning knitters. The loops are created through a combination of yarn overs and dropped stitches. I knit mine as an infinity scarf by starting with a provisional cast on and ending with a three-needle bind off.

Watch the following video for an overview of how to knit this scarf, or check out this Lesson to learn everything you need to know to make this easy beginner project:

Vancouver Fog Fingerless Gloves Pattern

I love, love, love this Vancouver Fog Fingerless Gloves pattern! One Christmas I made a pair of these for all the women in my family. It’s a great pattern for practicing cables as well as the circular tubular cast on for 2×2 rib and Jenny’s stretchy bind off. The pattern includes both short and long versions of the gloves. I like using either the Cascade Yarn (shown in cream and purple below) or Malibrigo (shown in the multi-color gloves below.) The textures are very different but both are beautiful.

Cables with a Twist Ear Warmers Pattern

The pattern for Cables with a Twist Ear Warmers is a great one for learning to do cable knitting. It’s a small project that knits up quickly using chunky yarn, and the finished ear warmers are beautiful. They also make a great present – perhaps a stocking stuffer. I like to use the provisional cast on and three needle bind off with this pattern. You’ll need heavy worsted weight or light chunky weight yarn; I’ve used the both the Cascade Yarns Baby Llama Chunky and Vanna’s Choice Yarn by Lion Brand. I knit mine with size 9 needles.

Note: If you do the provisional cast on, it will be easier to take out the scrap yarn if you first knit a row of knit stitches before beginning the pattern.

You might also be interested in the post on how to knit cables.

Stone Point Poncho Pattern

I had this Stone Point Poncho pinned for two years before I got around to making it, and love it as much as I thought I would. It’s a really fun pattern to knit with just enough interest to not be boring and just enough repeat to the pattern to be able to knit while talking to friends or watching a movie. It’s not really a beginner program but was a very straightforward intermediate knit.

Snowdrift Infinity Cowl Pattern

This Snowdrift Infinity Cowl is such a beautiful pattern. It’s a little complicated for a beginner, and very helpful to use a lifeline because it’s hard to pick up the stitches correctly if you need to go back and fix a mistake. But once you get the hang of it, it’s fun to knit and makes an amazing gift. These videos on the provisional cast on and three needle bind off may also be helpful.

Loose Knit Infinity Scarf Pattern

This Loose Knit Infinity Scarf is great for beginning knitters, and is one of two scarves I wear the most often. Yarn overs and dropped stitches create the open loops in the scarf. Using a provisional cast on and three-needle bind off help create a beautiful seam where the ends come together.

Fisherman’s Rib Scarf Pattern

Fisherman’s rib is a very interesting stitch that makes a very nicely squishy fabric, perfect for a scarf. The Seafaring Scarf pattern I used also includes a very helpful video on how to knit fisherman’s rib. It’s likely considered an advanced beginner’s project. In this narrower version to wear as an outdoor scarf with my coat, I cast on 19 stitches in a chunky wool.

Sheep Hat Pattern

I love this Baable Hat pattern! I’m also planning to knit the matching mittens. This was my first stranded colorwork project, and was a great one for learning. First I taught myself to knit English (holding the yarn in the right hand), in addition to my usual Continental style (holding the yarn in the left hand), so I could hold one color of yarn in each hand. I also used the Circular Tubular Cast On for 2×2 rib, which is a beautiful and stretchy cast on that works great for this project.

My favorite yarn store, Yarnatopia in Oklahoma City, sold the materials for the hat as a kit. While this was my first color work project, it definitely won’t be my last!

Shows holding one color of yarn in each hand
This is a good example of 2×2 rib and stranded colorwork