Bunny Ear decreases make this stitch pattern best for knitted baby blankie

This week, we’ve been putting Uptown DK Magix yarn through its paces. Yesterday, we looked at the anatomy of a knitted beret, and previous days we looked at how this antipilling yarn held up in the wash, and more. Today, I want to take advantage of one of the best features of this yarn, and that is its softness.

I’m always exploring new stitches, new techniques, and ways to blend them into new patterns. I knew the moment that I received this yarn I wanted to work up a ripple or chevron stitch blankie. But I didn’t want it to be the traditional scalloped or zigzag chevron stitch. So I set out to try something else.

Over the last few weeks, in my explorations of new-to-me stitches, I had come across horizontal braids, and bunny ear decreases, and so I thought I’d try these out. As you can see, starting on the left of the photo, my stripes stayed fairly even keel despite my attempts to disrupt them with mid-row bind offs and bunny ear decreases.

As I moved further along, I figured out how to get a W-like ripple in the stripes, so I worked enough repeats that I fine-tuned the issues with the large eyelets and the placement of the other little lace motifs which remind me of evergreen trees.  I abandoned the braids early on. I’ll save them for a future project, but I kept the bunny ear decreases.

Bunny Ear decreases are so called because of the shape the 2 stitches have as they stem forth from the 3 stitches that are used to work the decrease. To work this decrease, you insert the right-hand needle into the next 2 stitches as if to knit them together through the front legs and you wrap the yarn and bring it up between the 2 front legs and then slide everything of the left-hand needle. Then you knit the next st, then take the dropped leg, which now looks like an obvious diagonal strand and you pass it over the first 2 stitches on the right-hand needle.

This creates a nice symmetrical decrease, with the “bunny ears” protruding upwards. Here’s a video to help see how it works.

The other stitch pattern that I swatched for a while to get it right are these large eyelets that have 6 stitches germinating from them. It’s actually 5 stitches at first, but the 6th is added shortly after. In this next video, I demonstrate how to work these eyelets.

I’ve combined these two techniques into the pattern that I’m sharing below. But I just wanted to revisit blocking though, because it really made these stitches stand out well in this yarn.

While Uptown DK Magix is 100% acrylic, it responded well to blocking. I did a wet soak in warm water and pinned it out to dry.

Stitch Glossary

bun-dec-w-yo (Bunny Ears Decrease with YO): Insert RH needle to knit next 2 sts together through the front legs, wrap yarn to knit, bring RH needle up between the two legs and slide all off LH needle, yarn fwd, knit next st, pass 3^rd strand on RH needle over first 2 sts.

k: knit

k2tog: knit 2 stitches together through the front legs

lki (lifted knit increase): lift the stitch 2 rows below the first stitch on the RH needle onto the LH needle and knit this stitch.

p: purl.

ssk: slip 2 stitches knitwise, then knit slipped stitches together through the back legs

S1 (slip 1): with the working yarn in back, insert the RH needle into the next stitch as if to purl and transfer the stitch from the left needle to the right.

S1 wyif: With the working yarn in front, insert the RH needle into the next stitch as if to purl and transfer the stitch from the left needle to the right.

s2tog-k1-p2sso: Slip 2 stitches together knitwise, knit 1, then pass slipped stitches over.

yo: wrap the working yarn over the right needle, from front to back (counter-clockwise).

(k, yo, k, yo, k) in next st: knit, leaving the stitch on the needle, then yarn over, knit, yarn over, and then knit (5 stitches total) into the same stitch.

1/1 LC (left crossed sts): Insert RH needle between next 2 sts on the LH needle from the back, and then into the front leg of the 2nd st, knit 2nd st, then knit first st on LH needle and slide both off. Or, slip 1 stitch to cable needle and hold in front; k1; k1 from cable needle.

1/1 RC (right crossed sts): Insert RH needle from right to left under the front leg of the 2nd st on the LH needle an loosen leg loop, knit this loop, then knit the first st on the LH needle separately, slide both off. Or, slip 1 stitch to cable needle and hold in back; k1; k1 from cable needle.

needles and yarn

1 ball Uptown DK Magix in Summer Flies
3.75mm needles

gauge

22 sts and 32 rows = 4″ [10cm] in stockinette stitch

When you work this stitch pattern, the number of stitches for each repeat will increase and then gradually decrease. This is in part what forms the ripples. Stitch counts are provided on all rows where there’s a change in the total number.

Cast on 93 sts.

Work in Garter Stitch (knit every row) for 4 rows.
Work in Stockinette Stitch (knit 1 row, purl 1 row) for 2 rows.

Then you can begin the W-ripple motifs in the following stitch pattern rows:

W-ripple Stitch

Row 1: S1 wyif, k2, p1, k1, 1/1 LC, p1, [k5, bun-dec-w-yo, k2, s2tog-k1-p2sso, k3, k2tog, yo, ssk, k3, s2tog-k1-p2sso, k2, bun-dec-w-yo, k5, p1, k1, 1/1 LC, p1] twice, k3 (83 sts).

Row 2: S1 wyif, k2, {[k1, p3] twice, p2, [p1, yo] twice, p17, [yo, p1] twice, p5} twice, k1, p3, k4 (91 sts).

Row 3: S1 wyif, k2, p1, 1/1 RC, k1, p1, {k7, [yo, k1] twice, k2, s2tog-k1-p2sso, k3, (k, yo, k, yo, k) in 1, k3, s2tog-k1-p2sso, k2, [k1, yo] twice, k7, p1, 1/1 RC, k1, p1} twice, k3 (99 sts).

Row 4: S1 wyif, k3, p3, k1, {p7, [p1, yo] twice, p21, [yo, p1] twice, p3, [p3, k1] twice} twice, k3 (105 sts).

Row 5: S1 wyif, k2, p1, k1, 1/1 LC, p1, {k9, s1, k4, s2tog-k1-p2sso, k5, lki, k4, s2tog-k1-p2sso, k4, s1, k9, p1, k1, 1/1 LC, p1} twice, k3 (101 sts).

Row 6: S1 wyif, k3, p3, k1, {p37, [p3, k1] twice} twice, k3 (101 sts).

Row 7: S1 wyif, k2, p1, 1/1 RC, k1, p1, {k5, [k8, s2tog-k1-p2sso] twice, k13, p1, 1/1 RC, k1, p1} twice, k3 (93 sts).

Row 8: S1 wyif, k3, p3, k1, {p33, [p3, k1] twice} twice, k3 (93 sts).

Row 9: S1 wyif, k2, p1, k1, 1/1 LC, p1, {k36, p1, k1, 1/1 LC, p1} twice, k3 (93 sts).

Row 10: S1 wyif, k3, p3, k1, {p33, [p3, k1] twice} twice, k3 (93 sts).

Row 11: S1 wyif, k2, p1, 1/1 RC, k1, p1, {k5, bun-dec-w-yo, k2, s2tog-k1-p2sso, k3, k2tog, yo, ssk, k3, s2tog-k1-p2sso, k2, bun-dec-w-yo, k5, p1, 1/1 RC, k1, p1} twice, k3 (83 sts).

Row 12: S1 wyif, k2, {[k1, p3] twice, p2, [p1, yo] twice, p17, [yo, p1] twice, p5] twice, k1, p3, k4 (91 sts).

Row 13: S1 wyif, k2, p1, k1, 1/1 LC, p1, {k7, [yo, k1] twice, k2, s2tog-k1-p2sso, k3, (k, yo, k, yo, k) in next st, k3, s2tog-k1-p2sso, k2, [k1, yo] twice, k7, p1, k1, 1/1 LC, p1} twice, k3 (99 sts).

Row 14: S1 wyif, k3, p3, k1, {p7, [p1, yo] twice, p21, [yo, p1] twice, p3, [p3, k1] twice} twice, k3 (105 sts).

Row 15: S1 wyif, k2, p1, 1/1 RC, k1, p1, {k9, s1, k4, s2tog-k1-p2sso, k5, lki, k4, s2tog-k1-p2sso, k4, s1, k9, p1, 1/1 RC, k1, p1} twice, k3 (101 sts).

Row 16: S1 wyif, k3, p3, k1, {p37, [p3, k1] twice} twice, k3 (101 sts).

Row 17: S1 wyif, k2, p1, k1, 1/1 LC, p1, {k5, [k8, s2tog-k1-p2sso] twice, k13, p1, k1, 1/1 LC, p1} twice, k3 (93 sts).

Row 18: S1 wyif, k3, p3, k1, {p33, [p3, k1] twice} twice, k3 (93 sts).

Row 19: S1 wyif, k2, p1, 1/1 RC, k1, p1, {k36, p1, 1/1 RC, k1, p1} twice, k3 (93 sts).

Row 20: S1 wyif, k3, p3, k1, {p33, [p3, k1] twice} twice, k3 (93 sts).

Repeat rows 1-20 the desired number of times, ending with a row 18.
Work 2 rows Stockinette and 4 rows Garter Stitch.
Then you can bind off.

The dimensions of my lovey blankie are 10″ x 16″.

To make this blanket wider, you simply need to add multiples of 41 to the current 93 sts.

If I didn’t have tens of other things to knit, and design, and dream up, I’d start a larger W-stitch blanket, but for now, the next friends who have a baby will have some sort of gift wrapped up in this lovey blanket made out of Uptown Dk Magix.