At long last, the Next in Line pattern is here! It's available on Ravelry and in my Etsy shop.
This log cabin afghan is worked from the center outward using four colors of worsted weight wool. The pattern includes instructions for two sizes, a smaller throw or a larger afghan. Finished (blocked) measurements are 43 inches/110 cm by 56 inches/143 cm for the throw, and 52 inches/133 cm by 60 inches/153 cm for the afghan.
There are no seams in this design — from the very first log to the last, it's one continuous piece of knitting. After you finish a log, you simply turn it to the left and pick up stitches for the next log along the top edge. Each log has just two colors, a main color and a contrast color (used in a stripe pattern). The design is named Next in Line because the contrast color of each log is the main color of the next log.
You'll need four colors of worsted weight wool for this design — see either my Ravelry pattern page or Etsy listing for details on yardage, needles, and other specs. It's worked in garter stitch throughout, but I've kept things interesting by varying the main color and contrast colors in each log, as well as the placement of the stripe pattern. In all, there are five different color and stripe combinations, which begin to repeat after a while, lending the design a visual coherence as it grows.
Two of the five different color combinations in my sample use silver grey as the main color, which gives it a calm, quiet look. That's something to think about when you choose colors. There will be more of Color 1 (in my case, silver grey) than Colors 2, 3, and 4 in the blanket. What do you want the overall effect to be? Bold and dramatic? Soft and soothing? Bright and cheery? Give yourself the freedom to express your own, unique inner spirit through color!
The four yarns used for the Next in Line Afghan are Cascade 220 #8401 Silver Grey, Cascade 220 #4010 Straw, Cascade 220 #8012 Doeskin Heather, and Valley Yarns Northampton #42 Lake Heather.
It was quite a journey, designing this afghan. When I cast on January 1, for the Fringe and Friends Logalong, I wasn't sure how far I'd get, as I'd never knit a log cabin project before and didn't consider myself overly fond of garter stitch. I chose a few colors in my stash that went well together (left over from my Journeyer and Grainline pullovers) and got started more as a lark than anything else, to see if maybe I could come up with something that would be a nice wedding present for friends who got married last January.
Before long, knitters on Instagram began asking for a pattern. My design plans for 2018 hadn't included a large, cozy blanket, but I felt like I could not let you all down. So finally, here it is!
I really loved this project from start to finish, and I hope you do, too. I look forward to seeing Next in Line afghans in all sorts of beautiful colors! If you post your progress on Instagram, tag your photos #bluepeninsula and #nextinlineblanket so I'll be sure to see them.
Thanks very much for reading — and happy log cabin knitting.
LINKS
Next in Line Instagram posts
Ravelry pattern page
Etsy listing
Next in Line blog posts