Rowan Paws For Thought Blanket Knitting Pattern

Rowan Paws For Thought Blanket by Martin Storey

What Is Being Made

The Rowan Paws For Thought Blanket is a knitted throw blanket designed by Martin Storey. This finished blanket measures approximately 88 cm (34½ inches) wide and 113 cm (44½ inches) long, making it a generous size suitable for draping over furniture or providing warmth. The blanket features a decorative paw print design worked using the intarsia technique, creating a charming and whimsical finished piece.

Craft and Techniques

This project is created using the knitting craft. The blanket is worked using several key techniques that contribute to its construction and visual appeal:

• Bottom-up construction: The blanket is knitted from the bottom edge upward, allowing you to see the design develop as you progress through the rows.
• Seamless construction: The blanket is worked as a single piece without seams, creating a smooth and professional finish.
• Worked flat: Despite using circular needles, the blanket is worked back and forth in flat rows rather than in the round, which is ideal for rectangular blanket shapes.
• Intarsia technique: The paw print design is created using the intarsia method, which involves working with multiple yarn colors in specific sections of the pattern. This technique is used to place the charted design across the blanket while maintaining even tension and fabric consistency.

Stitches Used

The Rowan Paws For Thought Blanket employs fundamental knitting stitches to create its structure and texture:

• Moss stitch (also called seed stitch): This textured stitch is used for the border sections at the beginning and end of the blanket. Moss stitch is created by alternating knit and purl stitches in a checkerboard pattern, producing a bumpy, reversible fabric with excellent drape. The blanket begins with 8 rows of moss stitch worked on the smaller needles, and concludes with 8 rows of moss stitch before casting off.
• Stockinette stitch: The main body of the blanket, including the intarsia paw print design, is worked in stockinette stitch. This classic stitch creates a smooth, flat fabric with a distinctive V-pattern on the right side and horizontal bumps on the wrong side.

Materials: Yarn and Needles

Yarn: The blanket is knitted using Rowan yarn in two colors. Yarn A is Granite (color 136), requiring 11 balls of 50g each. Yarn B is Almond (color 141), requiring 3 balls of 50g each. The yarn is described as Hemp Tweed, indicating a yarn blend that provides texture and durability suitable for a blanket project.

Needles: Two sizes of circular needles are required for this project. A 4mm (US size 6) circular needle at least 80cm long is used for the moss stitch borders and casting on. A 4½mm (US size 7) circular needle at least 80cm long is used for the main stockinette stitch sections where the intarsia pattern is worked. The longer length accommodates the 185 cast-on stitches comfortably.

Tension and Finished Dimensions

The pattern specifies a tension of 21 stitches and 25 rows to 10 centimeters, measured over patterned stockinette stitch using the 4½mm needles. Achieving the correct tension is important for obtaining the finished blanket dimensions of 88 cm wide by 113 cm long.

Pattern Structure

The blanket begins with casting on 185 stitches using the 4mm needle and yarn A. After establishing the moss stitch border, the work transitions to the 4½mm needle for the main body. The intarsia chart is then placed and worked according to the pattern instructions, with yarn colors joined and broken off as required by the design. The pattern is repeated across the width of the blanket, with the chart repeated 3 times plus an additional partial repeat of rows 1 to 15. The blanket concludes with a final 8-row moss stitch border worked on the 4mm needle before casting off in moss stitch for a neat, finished edge.