625 Welcome Home Blanket - Knitting Pattern for Babies in Valley Yarns Valley Superwash Bulky

625 Welcome Home Blanket – Baby Knitting Pattern by Kirsten Hipsky

The 625 Welcome Home Blanket is a beautifully designed knitting pattern created by Kirsten Hipsky and published by Valley Yarns. This pattern produces a soft, colorful, and machine washable baby blanket that works up quickly thanks to its chunky weight yarn and straightforward repeat structure. Available as a downloadable PDF, it is rated as an intermediate difficulty project, making it an excellent choice for knitters who are comfortable with basic lace techniques and multi-color stripe construction.

Finished Sizes

The pattern offers three finished size options to suit different needs:

• Small: 27" x 35" (shown in the pattern photos)
• Medium: 36" x 42"
• Large: 45" x 49"

Whether you are knitting a gift for a newborn or a slightly larger blanket for a growing baby, the three sizes provide excellent flexibility.

Yarn and Materials

This pattern is specifically designed for Valley Yarns Valley Superwash Bulky, a luxurious yarn made from 100% Extrafine Merino Superwash wool. Each skein contains 100g / 109 yards, and the pattern calls for 1 (2, 3) skeins each of seven different colors, creating a vibrant, striped palette. The seven colors used are:

• Color A: 16 Misty Lilac
• Color B: 05 Silver
• Color C: 09 Teal
• Color D: 10 Spring Leaf
• Color E: 12 Soft Yellow
• Color F: 01 Natural
• Color G: 02 Tan

The Extrafine Merino Superwash fiber makes this blanket exceptionally soft against delicate baby skin, while the superwash treatment means the finished blanket is fully machine washable — a highly practical feature for a baby gift or everyday use item.

The recommended needle size is US size 10.5 (6.50mm) 40" circular needles, or the size needed to achieve gauge. The long circular needle is used to accommodate the full width of the blanket, even though the piece is worked flat.

Gauge

• Approximately 3 stitches = 1 inch in Stockinette stitch
• 4 stitches and 6 rows = 1 inch in the stitch pattern

Design and Construction

The Welcome Home Blanket features a fresh and modern take on the timeless Feather and Fan stitch pattern, one of the most beloved traditional lace patterns in knitting. Feather and Fan — sometimes also called Old Shale — creates a gently undulating, wave-like texture through a combination of decreases and yarn overs worked in a simple four-row repeat. The result is a fabric with beautiful rhythmic movement that looks intricate but is surprisingly approachable once the repeat is memorized.

The blanket is worked flat on circular needles, meaning it is knitted back and forth in rows rather than in the round. This construction keeps the project seamless — no seaming is required at the end. The long circular needle simply provides the necessary cable length to hold the large number of stitches comfortably.

Stripes are introduced by working each color for a set number of inches — 5 (6, 7) inches per color depending on the chosen size — and then joining the next color in sequence. All seven colors are worked in order from Color A through Color G, creating a cheerful, rainbow-inspired striped effect across the length of the blanket. Each stripe section ends cleanly after completing a full pattern repeat, ensuring the lace pattern remains consistent throughout.

Stitches and Techniques Used

Key Stitches

• Knit (