Orry Yarn – Alloway Raindrops Baby Blanket Knitting Kit
Designed by Tilde Olsen – Orry Yarn
The Alloway Raindrops Baby Blanket sets a moss stitch edge around a textured centre that shifts across by a stitch every other row. That shift is what gives the fabric its scattered, rained-on look, and it is also the thing to keep an eye on.
The stitches themselves are only knit and purl, so there is nothing new to learn before you cast on. The demand sits entirely in tracking where you are in the repeat, because a stitch out of place in a shifting pattern does not announce itself for several rows. That is why this one is rated above the Cassilis blanket despite using no harder technique.
The kit is knitted in Orry Yarn Merino DK, our own soft, springy, ethically sourced merino.
Skill Level:
Easy (Adventurous beginners) ★★ (2 out of 5)
Simple stitches throughout, but mistakes in the shifting pattern can be tricky to spot straight away, so a little knitting confidence helps.
Sizes:
Baby and Toddler. Choose your size when you order.
Finished measurements:
- Baby: approximately 55 x 70 cm
- Toddler: approximately 70 x 90 cm
Gauge:
22 sts and 40 rows = 10 x 10 cm, measured over pattern on 4 mm needles.
The Kit Includes:
- 5 x 50g balls of Orry Yarn Merino DK for the Baby size, or 8 balls for the Toddler size, in your chosen shade
- Printed pattern in English, covering both sizes
You'll Also Need:
- 3.25 mm needles, for the top and bottom edges
- 4 mm needles, for the main patterned section
- Wool needle, for weaving in ends
- Two stitch markers, which are optional
A note on the needles:
You need two needle sizes for this one. The moss stitch edges are worked on 3.25 mm and the patterned centre on 4 mm, which is what keeps the borders firm and stops them flaring. The blanket is worked flat throughout and nothing is worked in the round. The Baby size casts on 127 stitches and the Toddler size 159, roughly 58 cm and 72 cm of fabric, so an 80 cm circular in each size is the comfortable choice. A long pair of straights will cope with the Baby size.
Techniques used:
- Moss stitch
- A textured stitch pattern that shifts position every other row
- Changing needle size partway through a project
- Using stitch markers to separate the moss edge from the patterned centre
- Casting off in pattern
Why You'll Love It:
- The scattered texture looks far more involved than the stitches behind it
- Knit and purl only, so there is nothing new to learn before you start
- Knitted in merino chosen for softness against new skin
- Named for Alloway on the Doon, where Burns was born, and the soft west coast rain that comes with it
- Size modifications and knitting tips at the back of the pattern, drawn from years of teaching