Knit Four Points Baby Blanket
We love receiving your questions and comments, and for this project, took special notice of your requests for a knit version of our Crochet Four Points Baby Blanket.
The conversion was as smooth as can be. Borrowing a neat trick from Joelle’s book, More Last Minute Knitted Gifts (specifically the smart no-sewing way she connects the triangles in her Entrelac Baby Blanket), our Knit Four Points Baby Blanket is even more straightforward than the original!
Still in Linen Quill, our soft, lightweight blend of fine highland wool, alpaca, and linen, we’ve added Wild Radish to the choice of palettes. It’s crisp and fresh, soothing and happy, just right for babies and adults.
Whether you’re a knitter, crocheter, or both, our Four Points Baby Blankets are a fun and interesting way to get off the x and y axis, plus they’re really satisfying and beautiful!– Kristy
Update: New Gauge
February 2018
We’ve updated the gauge for this pattern to suit our thick and squishy Super Soft Merino! It’s an ideal weight to bundle up baby for a bracing stroller ride or to plop her down for some play time on the floor… Not that those over the age of two are prohibited from cuddling up in this wonderfully cozy blanket! In nine intriguing color combinations, the Four Points Baby Blanket in Super Soft Merino is a fun math game and a very clever knit!
Update: New Colors
October 2018
Our Four Points Baby Blanket has lived through several incarnations: the original crocheted version, then the original knit version, a knit Super Soft Merino adaptation (pictured above), and now another knit one in Linen Quill, this one dipping into our latest palette of rich and evocative colors. There are ten color stories to choose from, four oldies-but-goodies and six newcomers. All include just four skeins of our wonderfully interesting and beautiful Linen Quill and all will inspire a mood!
Update: New Design
July 2019
Our Easy Puzzle Blanket is a simple variation on the classic Four Points Baby Blanket: A square of garter stitch triangles with a few colorful stripes thrown in… A puzzle that’s anything but puzzling! Choose from three Easy Puzzle Blanket Bundles and find the free pattern here!
Update: New Yarn
August 11, 2021
Our Four Points Blanket is a classic whose time has come for a very practical update. Four Points Blanket, may we introduce you to the modern convenience of the washing machine? In our gorgeous Campo, you can, indeed! A blend of 50% wool and 50% organically grown cotton, Campo is amenable to the shakes, spins, and swirls of a cold, gentle machine wash. Read all about the new update in Campo here!
Designed by Purl Soho designer, Kristina McGowan. Click here to see even more of Kristina’s designs!
Share your progress and connect with the community by tagging your pics with #PurlSoho, #PurlSohoBusyHands, #PurlSohoFourPointsBabyBlanket, and #PurlSohoLinenQuill. We can’t wait to see what you make!
Materials
Our Four Points Baby Blanket in Linen Quill Bundle comes in lots of gorgeous palettes (NOTE: some palettes are no longer available, including the one we used, Wild Radish)! Each bundle includes…
- 4 skeins of Purl Soho’s Linen Quill, 50% fine highland wool, 35% alpaca, and 15% linen. Each skein is 439 yards/ 100 grams; approximately 396 yards required per color. We used the palette Wild Radish, which includes one skein of each of the following…
- Color A: Pale Oats
- Color B: Lavender Opal
- Color C: Heirloom White
- Color D: Oatmeal Gray
NOTE: To make the Throw Size you will need an additional skein each of Colors A–D; approximately 811 yards required total per color.
You’ll also need…
- US 3 (3.25 mm), 32-inch circular needles
Our Four Points Baby Blanket in Linen Quill Bundle is also available in these pretty combos. Pick your favorite!
- Top Row: Hearth and Thistle
- Bottom Row: Desert Marigold and Speckled Feather
Gauge
26 stitches and 52 rows = 4 inches in garter stitch
Size
Crib Size (Throw Size)
Finished Dimensions: Approximately 36 x 36 inches (52 x 52 inches)
Notes
For instructions and a video tutorial on how to pick up stitches along a vertical edge in garter stitch, please visit our Picking Up Stitches Tutorial.
Pattern
Triangle 1
With Color A, cast on 156 (238) stitches. We used a basic Long Tail Cast On.
Row 1 (wrong side): Knit to end of row.
Row 2 (right side): Knit to last 2 stitches, knit 2 together (k2tog). [1 stitch decreased]
Repeat Rows 1 and 2 until 1 stitch remains. Cut yarn and pull through remaining stitch.
Triangle 2
With the right side of Triangle 1 facing you and its cast-on edge oriented vertically, use Color B to pick up and knit 156 (238) stitches (see Notes, above) along the top edge of Triangle 1.
Row 1 (wrong side): Knit to end of row.
Row 2 (right side): Knit to last 2 stitches, k2tog. [1 stitch decreased]
Repeat Rows 1 and 2 until 1 stitch remains. Cut yarn and pull through remaining stitch.
Triangle 3
With the right side of Triangle 2 facing you and its picked-up edge oriented vertically, use Color C to pick up and knit 156 (238) stitches along the top edge of Triangle 2.
Row 1 (wrong side): Knit to end of row.
Row 2 (right side): Knit to last 2 stitches, k2tog. [1 stitch decreased]
Repeat Rows 1 and 2 until 1 stitch remains. Cut yarn and pull through remaining stitch.
Triangle 4
With the right side of Triangle 3 facing you and its picked-up edge oriented vertically, use Color D to pick up and knit 156 (238) stitches along the top edge of Triangle 3.
Row 1 (wrong side): Knit to last stitch, slip last stitch knitwise to right needle, pick up and knit 1 stitch from the adjacent cast-on edge of Triangle 1, pass slipped stitch over.
Here’s a wrong-side row broken down into steps…
Knit to last stitch (above left), slip last stitch knitwise to right needle (above right)…
… pick up and knit 1 stitch from the adjacent cast-on edge of Triangle 1…
…and pass slipped stitch over.
Row 2 (right side): Knit to last 2 stitches, k2tog. [1 stitch decreased.]
Repeat Rows 1 and 2 until 1 stitch remains. Cut yarn and pull through remaining stitch.
Finish
Weave in ends and block as desired.
Thanks for this lovely pattern. I’m ready to add the fourth color/triangle. Do I pick up and knit starting in the center of the blanket and moving outward, or do I pick up and knit starting at the end point and moving inward? Thanks for your advice.
Hi Angela,
Thanks for writing in! You will want to pick up the stitches, working on the right side, from the center working out to the edge, then for row 1, you will knit on the wrong side from the edge towards the center. Once you reach the last stitch (at the center) you will slip the last stitch knitwise to the right needle, pick up and knit 1 stitch from the adjacent cast-on edge of Triangle 1, and then pass the slipped stitch over.
I hope this clears things up!
Gianna
can this pattern be made larger than 36×36? if so how could i be able to make it a little bigger? And is this 36x36cm and 56×56 in?
Hi Jacquelynn,
Thanks for writing in! We actually offer this pattern in two sizes, a Crib size that comes out to 36 x 36 inches and a Throw size that comes out to 52 x 52 inches. If you want to make a throw size, you will want to follow the pattern for the instructions listed within the parenthesis. For example, you begin by: With Color A, cast on 156 (238) stitches, for the crib size you will cast on 156 and for the throw size you will cast on 238.
I hope this helps clear things up!
Gianna
I love this blanket! I’ve looked over this patterns and see you have instructions for using both fingering weight and worsted weight yarns. Could I make the blanket with DK weight yarn? If yes, what adjustments would I need to make? I’d like to make a baby blanket. Thank you for the amazing patterns and any suggestions.
Hi Jodi,
Thanks for reaching out. You can absolutely make this blanket in a DK weight yarn! All you’ll need to do is change the number of stitches you cast on. To figure out your cast-on number, you will want to first knit a gauge swatch in pattern. Once you know how many stitches you are getting per inch, you can multiply that number by the length of the cast-on edge (25.5 inches) and cast on the nearest whole number. Then you can follow the pattern as written!
All the best,
Lili
Just trying to get my head around joining the 4th triangle to the first. When I get to the 4th triangle (ending row 1), should I be picking up/ knitting every other cast-on stitch from the edge of triangle 1? I am concerned that If I pick up every cast-on stitch that something will be off.
Hi Lisa!
Thank you for commenting! You will be picking up and knitting every cast-on stitch from Triangle 1 for this section, so that there are no holes in this seam between Triangle 1 and Triangle 4. Assuming your gauge is correct, you will have the right amount of cast-on stitches to pick up throughout Triangle 4. If you would like more help with this, please feel free to reach out to us at customerservice@purlsoho.com!
All the best,
Margaret
I made the Four Points blanket in Campo and love it. Now I have Linen Quill to make another one for a gift. This yarn is finer than I realized. Clearly, I did not pay attention to how light-weight the blanket it makes would be. Having 2 skeins of each color, I made a swatch holding two strands together and got 18 stitches = 4 inches. At that gauge, I think the blanket size will be more what I want. If I cast on the 156 sts called for in the pattern, will there be enough yarn to complete each triangle? Thank you,
Dana
Hi Dana,
Thanks for reaching out. Unfortunately, you won’t have enough yarn to make a blanket with a cast-on of 156 stitches though! You will need to cast on no more than 114 stitches to ensure that you have enough yarn for each triangle while holding the yarn double at that gauge. This is because 114 stitches (at 18 stitches in 4 inches) will create a blanket with the same dimensions as our design, and therefore, one that takes the same amount of yarn. I hope this helps you plan your project!
All the best,
Lili
Thank you, Lili. I will make the blanket as you suggest and hope someone worhty of the beautiful result will have a boy baby for which these colors will work.
I just ordered the linen quill bundle for this blanket and after reading the above from Dana and your reply I am sorry I ordered it. I did not realize that the linen quill was going to be so light weight. Since it is so fine and can be done holding two strands will I have enough yarn with only 1 skien of each color and if so should I use a larger size needle? Thank you in advance for answering.
Hi Camille,
I’m sorry to hear that you’re disappointed in Linen Quill! I wanted to let you know that we also designed this blanket in a much thicker yarn, Campo, and you can take a look at that project right here. If you’d like to exchange the yarn you have for Campo instead, you can absolutely do so! It sounds like Campo is much more what you’re looking for in a yarn for this project. If this option interests you, you can view our full return and exchange policy at this link.
If you’d like to try working with the Linen Quill you have though, I’d be happy to give you suggestions for modifying the blanket for 2 strands! In order to have enough yarn to complete the blanket, with only one skein of each color, I’d recommend a cast-on distance of about 19 inches (for a blanket that’s 26.9 inches square). If you achieve the same gauge as Dana (18 stitches in 4 inches), then you can cast on either 85 stitches.
However, you may want to make your own gauge swatch to double check! I would recommend using a larger needle size (we’ve used a size US 7 needle with 2 strands of Linen Quill before, but this choice is largely up to you, depending on how dense you want the knit fabric to be!) Once you’ve knit the swatch and you know how many stitches you are getting per inch, you can multiply that number by the length of the cast-on edge (19 inches) and cast on the nearest whole number. Then you can follow the pattern as written!
All the best,
Lili
Thanks Lili for your quick response. Making it 26.9 inches square will make it a good baby blanket instead of crib. Luckily I like pulling two strands. I’ve done before with both thin and thick yarn.
Just one more question. I made my swatch holding 2 strands of the linen quill using a size 7 needle. I get 5 stitches to an inch. If the cast on edge is 19 inches will I be casting on 95 stitches (5×19=95) or do I go up to an even number of 96? PS I love the look and feel of the 2 strands on linen quill. I think this baby blanket will be beautiful. Thank you for all of your help.
You’re very welcome, Camille! For this pattern, you do not need to cast on an even number. 95 stitches will work great!
All the best,
Lili
Hello. In order to make the throw size, how many skeins of Linen Quill do I need? I see on the bundle purchase page, that it makes a 36″x36″ baby blanket. But the pattern on this page has throw size in parentheses. Sorry, but I can’t figure out on the purchase page how to buy enough for a throw.
Is it by any chance the same amount, i.e. if I make the baby blanket with the bundle I’ll have leftover yarn, but if I make the throw it will be enough to buy just the four skeins listed? Thank you!
Hello!
Thanks for reaching out! To make the throw size you will need an additional skein for each of Colors A–D, or approximately 811 yards required total per color. Our bundles for the Four Points Baby Blanket are only big enough for the crib size, but if you’d like, ordering 2 kits is enough yarn to knit the larger size!
I hope this helps!
All the best,
Carly
Got it. Thanks so much for the info!
Hi,
Is there a video somewhere showing how to pick up the edges and which edge to pick up? I’m just finishing the triangle shawl, is it anything like that? By the way I found those instructions on Youtube on a non- english speaking site. It would really help if you could put up a video
thanks
Hello!
Thank you for your question. We have a video tutorial for how to pick up stitches along the edge of a knit fabric that you can find right here! This tutorial demonstrates how to pick up stitches along a horizontal and a vertical edge, which should be helpful for this blanket.
I hope this helps, and please feel free to let us know if you have any other questions!
All the best,
Margaret
Hello- I would like to know what the colors are used in the photo of the grey and yellow baby blanket? I have many colors of linen quill left over from my four triangle wraps. Do all the triangles take a full skeins? Thank you! Cindy
Hi Cindy,
Thanks for reaching out with your question! The Gray and Yellow baby blanket featured above is the Four Points Baby Blanket made in Super Soft Merino found here! We used the colors Yellow Yellow, Heirloom White, Oyster Gray, and Oatmeal Gray Helix, which can be found here.
A similar color palette in Linen Quill is Dandelion Yellow, Pale Oats, Stonewall Gray, and Salt + Pepper! This pattern uses up one skein per triangle for the crib size, or if you’d like to knit a throw size, you will need 2 skeins of each color.
I hope this helps, and please let me know if you have any other questions!
All the best,
Carly
Hoping for some clarification on pattern’s use of “right” side and “wrong” side. I am using Linen Quill with size 3 needles. As a long-time knitter I’ve always assumed the right side was the side you begin knitting immediately after the cast-on. With a long-tail cast-on the cast-on edge looks to me almost like little sideways v’s, while the other side has no distinctively different-looking edge, sort of like little purl bumps from the start. The pattern refers to the row immediately following cast-on as the “wrong” side and the next row with the decrease at the end as the “right” side. When I start triangle 2 I find the little ridge from picking up stitches to be on what the pattern seems to be calling the “right” side. I’ve read everything I could find and enlarged the pics to try to determine the correct approach but I’m still not sure! Please help!! Many thanks.
Hi Jackie,
Thanks for reaching out, and that’s a great question! The reason that the first row in this pattern is a wrong side row is because we used a long tail cast-on. The long tail cast-on creates, in itself, a right side row, so the next thing you knit (the first actual row) must be a wrong side row.
And you’ve already made some great observations about the quality of the long tail cast-on. The “sideways v’s” are basically knit stitches, and there are purl bumps on the other side. When you begin your first row after the cast-on, you will have these purl bumps facing you, meaning that you’re on the wrong side of the fabric.
If you’re finding that the ridge from picking up stitches is on the right side of the pattern, then you were likely holding your work incorrectly when you picked up the stitches! You’ll need to make sure that the right side is facing you (which hopefully is easier to determine now!), and that the cast-on edge is oriented vertically.
I hope this helps clarify things!
All the best,
Lili
I knit up the baby blanket in Campo (blue/green) and noticed the “Plenty” yarn. Would that be a possible option for a super squishy alternative to campo for this pattern? What would the yarn requirements be for that? Thanks! Love the Campo blanket!
Hi Kim,
I love the idea of knitting up this blanket in Plenty! You would actually need the same amount of yarn–2 skeins of each color. Let us know how your blanket turns out!
All the best,
Lili
I would like to make a smaller version of this blanket, maybe 24 by24. How many stitches do I need to cast on?
Thanks so much,
Gail
Hi Gail,
Thanks for reaching out! For a finished edge length of 24 inches, you would need to cast on 110 stitches. (Because the edge length is actually the hypotenuse of each triangle, the length of the cast-on edge would need to be roughly 17 inches.) Hope this helps!
All the best,
Lili
Hi,
I am disappointed with the pattern instructions. I cast on 156 stitches and have 43 stitches left with no yarn left to complete to one stitch. I don’t want to unravel it a second time : / , so how many stitches do I cast on? 110? 114?
Hi Laura,
Thanks for reaching out, although I’m sorry to hear that you came up short on your first triangle! We often find that running out of yarn is caused by a slightly inaccurate gauge. Have you double checked yet that your gauge matches the gauge of the pattern? That would be 26 stitches = 4 inches in garter stitch.
Before beginning the triangle again, I’d highly recommend making a gauge swatch. You may need to size up or down your needles in order to get the correct gauge! If you would like to learn more about this, we have a handy tutorial called All About Gauge, which you can find right here.
I also wanted to make sure you’re doing the version of this blanket in Linen Quill or the version in Campo. The Linen Quill version has gauge of 26 stitches and a cast-on of 156, since it’s a thinner yarn, while the Campo version has a gauge of 14 stitches and a cast-on of 86 stitches, since it’s a thicker yarn.
I hope this helps you move forward in this project, but please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns!
All the best,
Lili
I am in need of HELP! I am on the fourth panel and connecting to the first. I have 43 stitches on my needle and it looks like I have about 48 cast of stitches to connect panel 4 to panel 1. How do I correct this? Do I not reduce a stitch for a few rows? I’m stumped. I kind of see where I may have made a mistake or two but 5 rows? Do I have to tear this whole panel out? I am sick about this. Plus I just do not like the way the connection looks compared to the other panels. Can you help me?
Hi Camille,
Fortunately, there’s an easy way to correct this! All you have to do is skip a cast-on stitch every few rows. Once you’ve skipped 5 overall, the counts will even out, and you’ll barely be able to tell any stitches were skipped! If you’re unhappy with the way the join is looking though, you could try seaming instead. For that, you’ll need to undo what you have so far. Then, knit the final triangle in the same way as the previous ones (without doing the join), and at the end, use your yarn tail to sew the fourth triangle to the first one. Hope this helps give you some options!
All the best,
Lili
Thank you so much! I’m going to do the skipping.
Hi,
I’m confused on how to pick up stitches for 2nd triangle. The diagram shows as you are picking up on the edge that we knitted on for triangle one and the cast on edge as horizontal. Can you explain please, thank you!
Hi Katya,
Thanks for writing in! Here’s how to pick up stitches for the second triangle: First, make sure the right side of the first triangle is facing you. Then, rotate the triangle (with the right side still facing) so that the cast-on edge is oriented vertically. This will result in the other short edge of the triangle oriented horizontally–this is the edge you’ll want to pick up your stitches from!
All the best,
Lili
Hello, I have the desert marigold color palette. Should I fix the dye prior to knitting together or is the linen quill color fast enough to not require the extra step?
Thanks!
Hi Kimberly,
I don’t anticipate any of the colors in the Desert Marigold palette running, but it never hurts to test beforehand! I’d recommend placing a snippet of each color separate glasses of water for a few hours. If the water remains clear, then you’re good to go without refixing, but if the water is tinted with the color of the yarn, then you should refix the dye for that color. We have a great tutorial on refixing dye for when (or if) you need to do so! You can find it right here.
All the best,
Lili