Zagaround Blanket for Baby

Last Updated on March 5, 2020 by lydiaf1963

A couple weeks ago I shared a recent work in progress, Kate Oates’ Zagaround Blanket available at Love Knitting. I was working on a deadline as the baby is due in September and sometimes it takes awhile for the mail to get from Spain to the US. Fortunately I finished in good time and the Zagaround was sent on its way last week.

This is a great pattern, a little unusual for knitting since it’s a square shape knitted in the round, but not out of reach for a determined beginner. There are a few things you’ll need to know how to do:

• knit
• purl
• cast on in the round
• manage the project on both double pointed and circular needles
• increase with Make 1 Right and Make 1 Left
• work the i-Cord bind off (not in the pattern, but a nice finish)

The pattern is a simple one with an 8 stitch repeat. Every 8 rounds adds a new repeat to each section which both increases the size of the blanket and forms the zig zag stripes.

Originally I’d planned to use a different yarn but the stitches just didn’t pop the way I wanted. Fortunately I had a lovely merino yarn (Rowan Superwash Merino) in a pretty salmon color tucked away in my stash. I bought it for another project and lost enthusiasm for doing it so I tucked it away (#knitterproblems lol). It all worked out.

The pattern calls for casting onto double pointed needles and switching to circulars when the project gets large enough. With four dpns you can arrange the stitches so each needle represents one side of the blanket. Markers are used to indicate the start and end of each section of repeats, but I don’t use them as long as all the stitches fit on the needles. I like to use another marker to indicate the needle that starts the round, too. When you transfer to circular needles don’t forget to use markers to help you remember where each side begins.

When you have a pattern that is easily memorizable and you use markers to help you keep track of the sections, you won’t need to refer to the pattern after a while. It’s also easy to tell if you’ve made a mistake and you’ll only have to check the current section to find the error.

After washing and blocking my blanket was 25 inches square, large enough to wrap an infant and to use in a stroller or car seat as they get older. I used a DK weight yarn and 4mm needles. According to the pattern a worsted weight yarn and 4.5mm needles will yield a 28 inch square. This particular blanket is for some friends of ours who are having their first child, but my daughter is in love with the pattern and wants me to make another for the next addition to the family, due in November!