Secrets to Knitting Large-Scale
Afghans and Blankets Using Big Needles and Heavy Discount Yarn
© Amy Krug
If you're ready to tackle an afghan, baby blanket, or other large project, here are some tips for you.
Here are some tips and tricks related to purchasing needles, yarn and patterns in preparation for large knitting projects.
Get a good pattern. If you’re an impatient person, look for a pattern that says it can be completed quickly. Also, unless you’re an expert knitter, stay away from overly complicated patterns if you’re knitting something large, like an afghan. If you mess up the pattern, it can be difficult to recover on a larger scale.
Use Big Needles. If you’re knitting something big, think at least size 10 needles or larger; that will make the project go much faster.
Use Heavy Weight Discount Yarn. You probably don't want to try to knit a large afghan with a skein of ultrafine cashmere yarn; go for worsted weight or bulky. Or, knit with two strands held together to add a little bit of bulk. For big projects, you’re probably going to need a ton of yarn, which can get pricey. Even if the pattern calls for an expensive yarn, consider going with an acrylic/wool blend (which would be better for a blanket anyway, as it probably gets washed often). Look online for discount yarn sites where you can get skeins of yarn in bulk for less money than you may get them at the craft store.
Also, remember to get a big enough bag to hold all your accessories for the project – needles, stitch holders, pattern, etc. When you first start, a small tote bag will probably hold the project, but as it grows, you’ll need a bigger and bigger bag to keep everything together!
