A Knitter's Revolution

Project Specs
Pattern: Revolution designed by Pat Ashforth and Steve Plummer from Woolly Thoughts
Pattern Source: Woolly Thoughts Ravelry Store
Yarn: Malabrigo Organic Cotton in Mandarina, 71g (165 g); Pace, 53g (123 yds); Nispero, 53g (123 yds); and Melon, 53g (123 yds).
Needles: Denise Circular Needles size US7 for blanket, US9 for bind off
Cast On: 2/7/2010
Finished: 2/11/2010
Finished Size: 26.5" in diameter
Modifications: Only knit four rings and worked an i-cord bind off using the color of the last wedge knit.
See it on Ravelry!

When my niece was born, I had my heart set on knitting her a special baby blanket that could grow with her for the coming year. She's a Vegas baby and wouldn't really have a need for a wool blanket, so it gave me a chance to use some Malabrigo Organic Cotton I've had stashed away for way too long. I rarely use cotton yarns, especially after being spoiled by how soft Malabrigo Worsted is, but it was a welcome change and I loved every second of knitting this blanket.

Picking a pattern was easy. I've always loved the Revolution blanket and have been looking for an opportunity to knit it for some time now. It is a great pattern with lots of diagrams, clear instructions, and plenty of examples to inspire you. Since you can knit as many rounds as you'd like, this pattern would work just as well for a full sized throw as it did for a baby blanket. Keep in mind though that each round takes twice as much time as the previous one, so even though a baby blanket really flies by, a larger blanket could be pretty time consuming.

The construction is rather ingenious and simple, but you will find yourself with moderate amount of seaming at the end. I found this to be the hardest part of the whole blanket, so make sure you sit down in a quiet place with plenty of light and study how the other color sections join together. You will end up with one seam for each round, but once you figure one section out, the others are easy to duplicate. To finish my blanket, I used an i-cord bind off in the same color as the last section knit. It is important to go up a few needle sizes to make sure that it is loose enough. I used the Knitty tutorial as a guide (scroll all the way to the bottom of the page).

The colors I used don't really match my sister's nursery but I was thinking this would be a great blanket to keep in the car or with her stroller. Malabrigo Cotton seems like it will be kid friendly since it is rather soft (and softened more after a wash in Eucalan) plus I have read that others have had no problem machine washing and drying it.