#1395 Star Ruby - Blanket Knitting Pattern for Home in Valley Yarns Superwash Super Bulky

Pattern Summary: #1395 Star Ruby Blanket Knitting Pattern by Marykate Fleming

The #1395 Star Ruby is a charming and versatile blanket knitting pattern designed by Marykate Fleming and published by Valley Yarns. This pattern produces a generously sized, cozy blanket or playmat with finished measurements of 44½ inches by 33 inches, making it equally at home draped over a couch or laid flat on the floor as a soft, durable surface for a baby or toddler.

What Is Being Made

The finished object is a large, flat blanket or baby playmat worked in a single piece. One of the most delightful design details is the paw print motif that repeats across the surface, with each new repeat adding an additional paw. This incremental approach makes the blanket a fun and interactive learning tool, helping young children count along as the paws accumulate. The playful aesthetic combined with practical washability makes this pattern an excellent choice for a baby gift or a household with young children.

Construction and Techniques

The Star Ruby blanket is constructed using a distinctive bias knitting method, meaning the fabric grows diagonally rather than in a straightforward horizontal or vertical direction. This technique gives the finished piece a dynamic, visually interesting structure and is central to how the paw repeat motifs are built up across the blanket.

• Worked flat: The entire blanket is knitted flat, meaning it is worked back and forth in rows rather than in the round, making it accessible for knitters who are comfortable with basic flat knitting.
• Seamless construction: Despite being worked flat, the blanket is knitted in one piece from start to finish, so there is no seaming required at the end — a welcome feature for those who prefer to avoid finishing work.
• Bottom-up shaping: The piece begins at one corner or edge and builds upward and outward using strategic increases, reaching a center point of five paws before transitioning into decreases to complete the shape.
• Increases and decreases: Shaping is achieved through increases such as M1R (Make 1 Right) and corresponding decreases, which define the bias construction and the overall silhouette of the blanket.
• Slipped stitch edge: A neat, tidy edge is created by slipping the first stitch of each row, giving the blanket a clean, professional border without any additional finishing.
• Long-Tail Cast On: The pattern specifically calls for the Long-Tail cast on method, which creates a firm, elastic, and attractive foundation edge well-suited to a chunky blanket.

Stitches Used

The primary stitch used throughout the Star Ruby blanket is stockinette stitch, which creates a smooth, classic knitted fabric on the right side. The paw print motifs are worked into this stockinette ground, adding texture and visual interest. The combination of knit and purl rows in flat stockinette is straightforward, making this pattern approachable for advanced beginner knitters who are ready to tackle shaping and bias construction for the first time.

• Stockinette stitch — the foundation fabric of the blanket
• Slipped stitches — used at row beginnings to create a clean selvage edge
• M1R (Make 1 Right) — an increase stitch used in shaping
• Purl rows on wrong side — standard wrong-side rows completing the stockinette fabric

Materials and Tools

This pattern is designed specifically for Valley Yarns Valley Superwash Super Bulky, a luxurious yarn made from 100% Extra Fine Superwash Merino wool. Each skein weighs 100 grams and contains approximately 55 yards, and the pattern requires 12 skeins in total. The colorway used in the sample is 202 Moontower Mustard, a warm, golden yellow that gives the blanket its cheerful, playful personality.

The Superwash treatment of the Merino wool is a particularly important feature for a baby blanket or playmat, as it means the finished object is machine washable —