Let’s have fun knitting this gentle ripple blanket for your home. The Seaside Sunset Knit Blanket by Caron I found in the Herrschners catalog for $59.99, which is $10.00 off the original price of $69.99 for the kit. I rarely buy kits but, in this case, I decided to go for it since it was more cost effective at the time to do so. Sometimes you can find yarn for the pattern at less cost if the yarn by itself is on sale. I later found that it was the same cost if you were to buy the yarn at Yarnspirations web site. You choose where to get the yarn and the pattern for this blanket. There are two buttons below to click on for the yarn. The pattern for the blanket is at Yarnspirations site. The kit I got from Herrschners site came in a zippered bag as you can see from the image below. I always reuse the bag for storage.
Five big balls of one pound Caron yarn make this seaside blanket with colors from ocean blue to off white for the foam on the waves. I have never used the one-pound Caron yarn and was surprised that the yarn was soft to the touch. I always wash any garment I make before using or giving as a gift. I have recently read that using hair conditioner as a wash will soften the yarn even more, although I have not tried this myself. Using downy fabric softener should give you the same result. I have crochet ripples but have not attempted it in knitting. The skill level on the pattern stated it is easy, so I was excited to get started in knitting this blanket. The one thing that I find a little frustrating is casting on so many stitches. I have the same feeling when chaining on stitches as well when crocheting. This is because I always seem to lose count. Get out your stitch markers [rings or safety pins] and place them after you have counted by whatever number you desire. I usually start by 10 then by 50, place a marker and continue on. That way I do not have to start at the beginning again after losing count by being interrupted. The beginning of the pattern begins on the sixth row where you do the knit two together and the knit front and back and the slip slip knit stitches. The pattern notes state to watch and “take care to close gap between the ssk and K2tog by pulling snugly on each stitch as it is made.” If you do not close the gap between the ssk and K2tog you will have small, tiny holes. You do not want to rip out that many stitches if you find that you are not happy about the gap in your knitting. Just slow down when you get to this part of the knitting and lightly snug the stitch on the needle but not too tight, for you still have to knit those stitches on the next round. I hope you consider the above note, so you do not get frustrated. I would highlight in yellow where this is in the pattern. Remember the color yellow means caution. Do you see the hole in the picture below? Oops! I like to point out if a pattern is new to you with new stitches, it will help you to do the swatch and practice the stitches made in the pattern before starting on the project.
When it comes to circular knitting needle size, go for the US size 8 circular knitting circular needle in size 40 inch instead of the 36 inch. I purchased the Weabetfu Bamboo Circular Knitting Needle 8 [5mm], 40-inch length at Amazon. Look at the picture above and below to see how it is more relaxed on the 40 inches. This is better than having it bunched up on the smaller size circular knitting needles. I find that this is more relaxing when you begin to get your rhythm in your knitting as you gain speed when making this blanket. Remember we are stitching our stress away when making this blanket. Note that the pattern has also a chart you can follow although I find that most people like to follow the written pattern instead of the chart. However, it is good to learn how to read the chart and learn the symbols. Don’t forget the [Stripe Pattern] of the blanket where you follow when to change the colors of the yarn. The first color change is after row 55. Instructional videos are included at the end of the post. Watch the video on how to carry your yarn up the side when doing colorwork in the garment you are making. You will find it helpful when making this blanket. This project is not a quick project unless you are an experience knitter. So, relax while making this blanket. I will add pictures as I progress along.
The pictures below reveal the pattern after 15 rows of knitting.
I realized that the SSK was originally always slip the stitch off the needle as if to knit, but the above video shows a little different take on slipping the stitches. Watch the video to see how it is done. This makes a clean neater stitch for this decrease stitch, and I really like how it looks when making the Seaside Sunset Blanket.
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