FO: Finger Knit Cushy Blanket

This project idea was hatched back in June when I came across 5 skeins of this enormous yarn in a thrift store. I'm not usually one for this huge yarn trend, but my mom had mentioned how she thought the chunky knit blankets were really cool and it lead to a whole discussion about how expensive the yarn is to make those and the idea seemed to dwindle away. So when I found a blanket worth of yarn for $5, I snapped it up and knew I wanted to make my parents this blanket sometime. 

The yarn is called Yarn Bee Eternal Bliss and is originally from Hobby Lobby for $7.99 per skein. This yarn is the Light Gray colorway, which is literally the perfect color for my parent's back room of their house, which is where they would watch tv with a blanket. This yarn is seriously 1 inch in diameter. So thick. I knew i couldn't do anything with needles for this yarn, so I looked into finger knitting. I came across this video on YouTube, which laid out the whole process and made this project so easy.

According to the video, I had the perfect amount of yarn for a 3 x 4 foot blanket, so I followed her directions and chain stitched 28 stitches across (which was 3 feet). I knit up the whole blanket one night on a zoom call for about 2 hours and then excitedly went in my room to lay it out and see how it looked ... only to discover that I had dropped 3 stitches on the edge throughout the project, one of which was in the first quarter of the blanket. Ugh. I had to unwind all the way back and set it aside. This worked out for the best though because now I knew what I was doing and I could involve my kids in making it again. They sat on each side of me and would pull up the loops on their side of the blanket while I worked on the center as we went. Now they can say they made this blanket, which is always a big deal for a 5 year old at Christmas. Also because I had already knotted the yarn together when I made the blanket the first time, I had an absolutely gigantic ball of yarn I was working from - seriously it was bigger than a basket ball. The girls thought it was pretty awesome.

Here is the purl side of the blanket. You can see me joins if you look close, but they really aren't that bad considering how big this yarn is. I secured each join with a needle and thread as well as the start and end knots just to make sure it holds up to washing. Our stitching could certainly be a bit tighter, which might have made it look a bit more even, but for never having done finger knitting before and also considering I was letting 5 year olds help me, I think it turned out pretty great.

So now my parents have their chunky knit blanket. It's so thick and cushy that it works well as a mat for babies in case they plop their heads down too quickly, and the openness of the stitches makes this not a super heavy blanket. It's just enough to snuggle up in without making you too hot, so it should be great for this Florida family. My kids have been using it everytime they go over to my parents house, so I know I have their seal of approval. I'm happy with how this turned out and would definitely try out finger knitting again if I come across this kind of yarn again.

Summary:

Yarn: 5 skeins of Yarn Bee Eternal Bliss in Light Gray - $5.35

Pattern: How To Finger A Knit Blanket by Play Hooky With Me - Free

Time: 4 hours

A Year In Yarn: 2023

Knitting and crochet have always been my go-to crafts over the years, even when sewing went by the wayside. This year felt a bit more productive than the past several, so I think I'm really back in the swing. These are all the pieces I made with yarn in 2023 and each project is linked if you want to find out more about it.

1. Baby's First Toilet
2. Florist Bolero
3. Haruni Shawl
4. Hungry Snake

5. Baby's First Planet
6. Honeybee Cardigan
7. Stonecrop Tote
8. Gus Gus

9. Gingham Baby Blanket
10. Liesl Cardigan
11. Sock Week Socks
12. Playin' My Song Shawl

13. Minion Rattle
14. Pusheen
15. Susan Shaw Cardigan
16. Chuck Sweater

17. Pink Bear Hat
18. Ravenclaw Scarf
19. Ravenclaw Hat
20. Pikachu Scarf

21. Blue Bear Hat
22. Spiderman Scarf
23. Spiderman Hat

24. Pokeball Hat

25. Pan Handle Cover

26. Fuzzy Neon Beanies

27. Finger Knit Blanket

28. Belladonna Cardigan

I managed to squeak in the Belladonna cardigan just under the wire on the 28th. It's currently blocking, but since the knitting was done in 2023, it totally counts! This means I managed to make 6 sweaters this year, 2 of which were fingering weight, one of those was knit almost 2 full times by the time it was done. Seventeen of the 28 items I made with yarn were gifts, which is pretty impressive. Mostly I just knit myself sweaters and a few shawls, but I highly enjoyed all the things I made. The last 12 items were all made for Christmas and I will be posting about those in the coming weeks, so stay tuned for details on those if you're interested.

I do still have some standing UFOs to account for:

1. Irish Crochet Top - this one still upsets me, lol. I 100% plan to make this into a shirt yoke, but I have to either sew or find the right shirt first. This project was a lot of fun and I have now amassed a lot of colors of crochet thread to make lots of things, but this one has to be finished first. Hopefully I can decide on a shirt and it work out unlike the last one.

2. Hockey Socks - I started these the last few days of 2022 at a Solar Bears hockey game and I have hardly touched them since, lol. And what I did knit seems to have been done wrong at the decrease point, so I have to take it out anyway. I will eventually finish these - I just haven't really needed a sock project this year.

3. Cathedral Rose Window Afghan - I have completely lost steam on this project, sadly. I love the idea, but to be honest I didn't like the colors I had on hand to make it up and the whole reason I started this was to try and stash bust. I have the first several rows done, so maybe I can make this into a circular pillow?

4. Raffia Beach Hat - This one is annoying. I got the whole hat part done before the brim and it is just too big. One swift breeze and this baby would be gonzo. The paper yarn tends to not like being pulled back and the more stitches I make with each sections, the more prone to breaking it is. I do still want a beach hat, but I just didn't have the heart to start over this year. Maybe when it warms up again I'll go for it.

I also have several garments that I swatched for but then never got around to making, which now means I will have to swatch again if I pick them up. First up on the list to make is the Rose Street Cardigan from Squid's School of Vintage Knitting. I swatched this back in April when the pattern was released and I just wouldn't let myself cast on until I finished the Susan Shaw Cardigan, so this will be started very soon. I also swatched the Mudblood Cardigan and I've had the yarn purchased for this project since 2015 (oh my gosh, lol), but the idea of knitting all that stockinette ... it just feels so boring. I like the finished sweater and I feel like it would get a good amount of wear, but the idea of making it is less than thrilling. I also don't love the fit I've seen on others who made it with the too wide looking shoulders. Maybe I will just recreate this myself on the knitting machine? I also swatched the Solstice Top when I was majorly jazzed about knitting a linen shirt, but again I wouldn't let myself start until Susan Shaw was done. Now I probably won't start this until after the winter at least, but I still love the idea of this.

So that's 2023 in yarn! I'm excited to see what this round up is for 2024!