A winter blanket built from snowflake motifs – fifty of them, arranged as five strips of ten and joined into a throw. Working on a blanket in winter has an obvious advantage: it keeps your lap warm while you make it.
Skill level: intermediate. Worsted weight yarn (written for Red Heart Super Saver) with a 5.5 mm (US I-9) hook.
Working in strips
Strip construction is a good middle ground between a single huge piece and fifty individual motifs. You get portable sections that finish satisfyingly often, without ending up with a pile of loose snowflakes and hours of joining ahead of you.
Complete one full strip before starting the others. It tells you how long a strip takes, how much yarn it uses, and whether your tension gives the width you expected – all before you have committed to the whole blanket.
Blocking is not optional
Snowflake motifs come off the hook curled and shapeless. Their points only appear when they are wetted, pinned out and left to dry. Skipping this step is the single most common reason a motif blanket looks disappointing.
Block each strip flat rather than trying to block the finished blanket in one go. Strips fit on a towel or a spare bed; a full throw usually does not.
Colour
White or pale blue on a darker background gives the most obvious snowflake effect. A single-colour throw is quieter and shows the texture rather than the shape – both work, but decide before buying yarn, because it changes how much of each colour you need.
Yarn note
Acrylic is the practical choice for a throw that will be used on a sofa and washed regularly. It also holds a block reasonably well once set, which matters here more than usual.
Buy all the yarn at once in matching dye lots.
