Tumbling Blocks Blanket in Deramores Studio Chunky Acrylic - Downloadable PDF

Tumbling Blocks Blanket in Deramores Studio Chunky Acrylic – Knitting Pattern Summary

About This Pattern

The Tumbling Blocks Blanket is an original knitting design by Sarah Murray, a freelance knitting and crochet designer, published by Deramores and available as a downloadable PDF. This striking blanket takes its name from the classic optical illusion of tumbling or stacked three-dimensional blocks, achieved entirely through clever colour placement in a two-dimensional knitted fabric. Despite its impressive geometric appearance, the pattern is rated as beginner level, making it an excellent project for newer knitters who are ready to explore colourwork for the first time.

Finished Size

The completed blanket measures 85cm x 120cm, making it a generous lap blanket or a cosy throw suitable for draping over a sofa or armchair. It is a satisfying, substantial project that produces a bold, decorative piece for the home.

Yarn and Materials

The pattern is written specifically for Deramores Studio Chunky Acrylic yarn, a chunky weight yarn that knits up quickly and is ideal for large-scale projects like blankets and throws. Three colourways are used to create the tumbling blocks effect:

• Yarn A – Ebony: 4 x 100g balls
• Yarn B – Elephant: 3 x 100g balls
• Yarn C – Frost: 4 x 100g balls

The three shades — a deep near-black, a mid-tone grey, and a pale icy white — work together to create the light, shadow, and highlight effect that gives the tumbling blocks design its characteristic three-dimensional illusion. Using an acrylic yarn means the finished blanket will be easy to care for, durable, and soft against the skin.

Needles and Tension

A single pair of 6mm knitting needles is required. The recommended tension is 13 stitches and 16 rows to 10cm x 10cm worked in stocking stitch on 6mm needles. One full pattern repeat, measuring 20 stitches by 46 rows, produces a panel of approximately 15cm x 29cm (6in x 11½in). Achieving the correct tension is important to ensure the finished blanket reaches its intended dimensions.

Techniques and Stitches Used

The blanket is worked entirely in stocking stitch, which is one of the most fundamental knitting stitches — knit on right side rows and purl on wrong side rows. This smooth, flat fabric provides the perfect canvas for the geometric colour pattern to read clearly. The colourwork is achieved using the intarsia technique, which is the method of choice when working large, distinct blocks of colour in knitting.

Unlike stranded colourwork (such as Fair Isle), intarsia uses separate lengths or small wound-off balls of yarn for each individual colour section, rather than carrying yarns across the back of the work. This keeps the fabric at an even, single thickness and is particularly well suited to bold geometric designs like this one. Key intarsia techniques covered in this pattern include:

• Working from a chart: The pattern is presented as a knitting chart. Right side (RS) rows are read from right to left, and wrong side (WS) rows are read from left to right.
• Twisting yarns at colour changes: When switching from one colour to another, the yarns are twisted together to prevent gaps or holes forming between colour sections — a fundamental intarsia technique.
• Winding off small amounts of yarn: Rather than working from whole balls, the pattern recommends winding off smaller quantities of each colour to make managing multiple yarn sources more practical.
• Weaving in ends as you knit: New colours are joined with their ends woven in on the wrong side of the work during knitting, minimising the finishing work required once the blanket is complete.

Pattern Format and Suitability

This pattern is delivered as a downloadable PDF, allowing instant access after purchase. It is designed with the beginner knitter in mind, and the use of chunky yarn on 6mm need