Beginner friendly, Lap blanket Knitting Pattern

Let’s get started!

When knitters first start learning, a frequent suggested pattern is a garter stitch scarf. These patterns are great because they get a lot of repetition with the knit stitch…and I mean it. There is a lot of repetition. Scarves require a lot of rows and new knitters can get bored or stuck of “scarf island”. In my opinion, a quick project is often a better solution, because you get to the finish much faster. When you finish this lap blanket, you’ll get that sense of accomplishment from trying and mastering something new. You’ll also have a tangible and usable item rather than something that you might not wear very often.

This lap blanket pattern is versatile. After you knit it for the first time, say in a solid color, you can come back again and again to make these for everyone in the office, your family, or circle of friends. You can easily add more stitches and more rows to make it an actual blanket rather than a lap blanket.

You can also then try something like this simple baby blanket.

What you’ll need to knit the Beginner Lap Blanket Pattern:

Yarn
Knitting Needles
This pattern

Beginner Blanket Pattern Option 1:

Yarn: Red Heart’s Hygge Yarn. 3 Skeins of your favorite color

I love Hygge. Its a bit thicker which makes it great for a quick project and it’s so soft that you’ll love using it as a blanket. It’s machine washable and you can tumble dry it on a low setting. You can find it online or at your local craft/yarn store.

Needle: US Size 10 or 10.5 knitting needle. (6.5mm for my European friends)

You can choose a straight or circular needle but for this project, I recommend a circular needle.

Beginner Blanket Pattern Option 2:

Yarn: ButterCream’s Luxe Yarn. 4 Skeins

This yarn is a bit thicker than the Red Heart option. It’s machine washable on gentle.

Needle: US Size 15 or knitting needle. (10mm for my European friends)

You can find one here.

Begin Pattern:
Cast on 54 Stitches

Row 1: Knit all 54 Stitches
Row 2: Turn the work and knit back across all 54 Stitches.

Continue working until you are ready to add in a new skein of yarn. I recommend knitting your yarn tails into the project to avoid having to sew them in at the end. This means that you would hold the “tail” or end of the last skein of yarn together with the working yarn from the new skein of yarn. Wrap both pieces of yarn around the needle to knit with them. The trick is to make sure you knit both of the resulting loops together as one on the next row.

If you are switching colors, do not switch in the middle of a row. Knit to the end of the row and then begin with the next color. Always start a new color on the same side of your blanket. You might have a longer bit of yarn left over but it will make for a clean break in your lap blanket and look more polished when you are finished. Another note for switching colors on your lap blanket, is to make sure that you are always on the same side when starting a new color. This will create a clean break between the two colors. You’ll notice on the “wrong side” will have a bit of dashes or bits of color when you change.

Continue working until have you knit through all of your yarn.
Bind off Stitches. If you’ve knit your yarn tails into your work simply trim these. If you have not, grab a darning needle and sew in the ends of yarn (try to match the shape of the stitches as you go.

Looking for other beginner friendly knitting patterns? Try this free simple dish cloth pattern that uses knits and purls.