Sock Yarn Blankets~Who Knew They Were Addicting?

My New Addiction ~ Sock Yarn Blankets

The last time I crocheted a blanket had to be um…30 years ago? I recall it being an ombre blue thing made in a zig-zag pattern and it was a major event each time I completed a row and had to turn it around to crochet the next row. I had cats at the time. Lap cats. See where I’m going with this? Annoying!

I still can’t recall what happened to the thing. The hope chest I inherited from my grandfather might be where it’s hiding. (Along with the tutu I had when I was three.) I haven’t looked because the DVD and VCR player are on top of it, and well, I just don’t want to move that stuff. (Yes, a VCR player. We haven’t used it in oh, ten years or so, but it still works and you just never know.)

Anyhoo, I swore off making afghans for more than a quarter century and then I fell down the rabbit hole! I happened to be watching a YouTube podcast presented by  The Yarn Hoarder, who is an absolute hoot by the way, and when she started talking about sock yarn blankets my eyes lit up! I have in fact saved every little scrap of leftover fingering weight yarn since I discovered the nirvana of sock knitting. That being said, it’ll take me another quarter century to have enough to even come close to finishing a reasonably sized knitted or crocheted throw.

Crocheted Granny Square Blanket ~ #1

But! I had six skeins of a cotton blend sock yarn that I absolutely HATED knitting with. (Too splitty.) I’d made myself one pair of ankle socks to try it out and that was the end of that! All of the skeins were from the same manufacturer, and they were complimentary colorways. A mere three weeks later and I have made myself the perfect spring/summer weight napping blanket.

I made each granny square with twelve rounds of the main color followed by one round of naked yarn from KnitPicks. I used a US size D hook. (3-3.25mm). It turned out to be 5 squares x 6 squares in random placement. Each square, without the ivory border row, weighed just under 20g, so I got 5 squares per 100g ball. (Hint: Weigh your yarn before you start!)

And here she is, the finished item. I. Love. It.

And …Crocheted Sock Yarn Blanket ~ #2

You noticed I said “Spring/Summer weight napping blanket,” right? Turns out, I decided I couldn’t live without a Fall/Winter weight napping blanket, too! Imagine that. So when KnitPicks had a recent sale on their Hawthorne fingering weight yarn, I jumped at the opportunity to dive right into crocheting another woobie. Now, these hanks are weighing in at an average of 97g (according to my kitchen scale which may or may not be accurate.) I decided to crochet with the main color until the square weighed 24g. It turns out that 12 rows weighed 23g. (Four squares per skein)  I rooted around in my stash and came up with a skein by another manufacturer that would blend beautifully, and it weighed in at a whopping 130g. Basically, it looks like I might need to order one more colorway to make the same 5 square x 6 square size. Yep, you may need to do some math, but least it isn’t algebra!

Now, these hanks are weighing in at an average of 97g (according to my kitchen scale which may or may not be accurate.) I decided to crochet with the main color until the square weighed 24g. It turns out that 12 rows weighed 23g. (Four squares per skein)  I rooted around in my stash and came up with a skein by another manufacturer that would blend beautifully, and it weighed in at a whopping 130g. Basically, it looks like I might need to order one more colorway to make the same 5 square x 6 square size. Yep, you may need to do some math, but least it isn’t algebra!

From left to right the colors are:

• Alameda
• Alberta Arts
• Burnside
• Happy Valley
• Lovejoy
• Ladd’s Addition

While they are not currently on sale, you can find them here. Want to see the finished product? Check my Instagram for updates;-)

Thanks for stopping by! Happy crafting!