3 Color Patchwork Blanket - Knitting Pattern

The photo above © Michelle Kupfer

Love the look of a patchwork blanket but not the idea of sewing dozens of separate squares together? 3 Color Patchwork Blanket by Michelle Kupfer creates a bold geometric baby blanket using three colors, while the entire blanket is actually knitted in one piece.

The clever construction uses intarsia colorwork to create the appearance of individual patchwork blocks without traditional patchwork assembly. Worked in chunky yarn, it is also a relatively compact baby blanket project with a modern, graphic look.

3 Color Patchwork Blanket at a Glance

Pattern: 3 Color Patchwork Blanket

Designer: Michelle Kupfer

Craft: Knitting

Category: Baby Blanket

Construction: One piece, seamless, worked flat

Colorwork: Intarsia

Yarn Weight: Bulky / Chunky

Suggested Yarn: Berroco Vintage Chunky

Yardage: About 360–400 yards / 329–366 m

Needle Size: US 10½ / 6.5 mm circular needle

Gauge: 3.5 stitches and 4 rows = 1 inch in stockinette

Finished Size: About 22 × 27 inches / 56 × 68.5 cm

Pattern Availability: Paid pattern

About the 3 Color Patchwork Blanket

Designed by Michelle Kupfer, the 3 Color Patchwork Blanket is a small unisex baby blanket built around a simple but effective idea: creating the visual appearance of patchwork without knitting and joining separate squares.

Instead, three yarn colors are worked across the blanket using intarsia colorwork. The changing blocks of color create the geometric patchwork effect while the blanket remains a single piece.

A Patchwork Look Without Sewing Squares Together

Traditional knitted patchwork blankets are often constructed from many individual squares that must eventually be arranged and joined.

This design takes a different approach. The blanket is worked flat as one continuous piece, so there is no final assembly of separate knitted blocks.

That makes the construction especially interesting for knitters who enjoy the appearance of patchwork but would rather avoid a large seaming project.

Three-Color Intarsia

The patchwork effect is created with three colors worked using intarsia.

With intarsia, different sections of color are worked with separate yarn supplies rather than carrying every color continuously across the entire row.

One of the important skills is managing the yarn correctly where two colors meet so that the sections connect cleanly instead of leaving unwanted gaps.

If intarsia is new to you, practicing a small two-color swatch first can make the full blanket much easier to manage.

Finished Baby Blanket Size

The finished blanket measures approximately:

22 × 27 inches / 56 × 68.5 cm

This is a compact baby-blanket size, making the project more manageable than a full-size throw while still giving plenty of room to experiment with geometric color placement.

Yarn and Color Planning

The original design uses three colors of bulky-weight yarn. Ravelry lists approximately:

360–400 yards / 329–366 meters total

The suggested yarn is Berroco Vintage Chunky.

The designer's current pattern information recommends allowing enough yarn for each color rather than planning around an exact last few yards, since individual knitting tension can affect consumption.

The three-color format also gives you plenty of freedom when choosing a palette. You could combine three soft nursery colors, use neutrals, or create stronger contrast for a more graphic patchwork appearance.

Needles and Gauge

The pattern specifies:

US 10½ / 6.5 mm circular knitting needles

A circular needle approximately 24–32 inches long is useful for holding the blanket stitches, even though the project itself is worked flat.

The published gauge is:

3.5 stitches and 4 rows = 1 inch in stockinette stitch

Check your gauge before starting if you want the finished blanket to match the designer's dimensions.

Knitting Skills Used

The project combines fundamental knitting with basic colorwork skills, including:

• Casting on
• Knitting
• Purling
• Binding off
• Changing yarn colors
• Working intarsia color sections
• Managing multiple yarn supplies

The blanket can therefore be an interesting introduction to intarsia for a knitter who is already comfortable with basic knit and purl stitches.

Is the 3 Color Patchwork Blanket Free?

No. 3 Color Patchwork Blanket by Michelle Kupfer is currently a paid knitting pattern.

Amazing Knitting does not reproduce the designer's copyrighted row-by-row instructions or color-placement schematic.

Visit the original pattern listing for the current price, complete materials, color placement, and knitting instructions.

View the Original 3 Color Patchwork Blanket →

Pattern credit: 3 Color Patchwork Blanket was designed by Michelle Kupfer. Pattern pricing, availability, materials, and technical information are controlled by the designer and may change over time.

Looking for a Free Alternative?

Prefer a free pattern? Amazing Knitting has another geometric block-style blanket you can explore without purchasing a pattern.

Garter Blocks Blanket — Free Pattern

This is a different design — not a free version of Michelle Kupfer's pattern — but it offers a similar geometric block effect. The blanket combines garter and stockinette blocks with cable divisions and uses super-bulky yarn for a substantial finished blanket.

View the Free Garter Blocks Blanket →

More Baby Blanket Knitting Patterns

You can also explore more baby blanket knitting patterns, patchwork-style blankets, and free blanket knitting patterns from the Amazing Knitting archive.

Before You Start

If you choose the original 3 Color Patchwork Blanket, check Michelle Kupfer's current pattern listing before purchasing yarn. Confirm the current yarn requirements, gauge, needle size, finished measurements, and pattern details before casting on.

Mitered Squares Throw With a Fabric Lining – Knitting Project Guide

This colorful Mitered Squares Throw With a Fabric Lining is a beautiful example of how a knitter can take the construction ideas from an established blanket pattern and give the finished project a very different look.

The version shown here was created by Elaine of Italian Dish Knits. Her project was inspired by Mitered Crosses Blanket by Kay Gardiner, but Elaine made several important modifications, including replacing the original crosses with colorful mitered squares and adding a fabric backing to the finished blanket.

The result has the visual character of both knitting and patchwork quilting: color-changing knitted squares are surrounded by broad light-colored borders, while the fabric lining gives the reverse side a clean, finished appearance.

Featured project and photos: Elaine / Italian Dish Knits. Original blanket design inspiration: Mitered Crosses Blanket by Kay Gardiner.

Mitered Squares Throw Project Overview

• Featured project: Mitered Squares Throw With a Fabric Lining
• Project by: Elaine / Italian Dish Knits
• Based on: Mitered Crosses Blanket
• Original designer: Kay Gardiner
• Project type: Knitted throw / blanket
• Main technique: Mitered garter-stitch knitting
• Featured modification: Squares instead of crosses
• Finishing modification: Fabric lining
• Construction: Modular knitted blocks
• Original pattern availability: Paid

About the Featured Mitered Squares Throw

Elaine originally discovered Kay Gardiner's Mitered Crosses Blanket and decided to use its modular construction as the starting point for her own throw.

Instead of reproducing the cross motif from the original design, she changed the colorful sections into mitered squares.

This creates a striking geometric effect: multicolored squares appear to float inside wide light-colored frames.

The individual blocks also make the project portable during much of the knitting process because the blanket does not become one large piece until the blocks are assembled.

The Original Mitered Crosses Blanket

The inspiration for this project is Mitered Crosses Blanket by Kay Gardiner, originally published in 2011.

Kay Gardiner's original blanket combines two modular knitting ideas: mitering and log-cabin construction.

Each original block begins with knitted miters that form a cross. The cross is then surrounded by garter-stitch strips to create a larger square block.

The blocks are eventually joined and finished with an applied edging.

How Elaine Changed the Design

The blanket featured in the photographs should not be confused with an unaltered sample of the original pattern.

Elaine deliberately changed several elements to create her own version.

Most noticeably, she chose mitered squares rather than mitered crosses for the colorful centers.

She then surrounded those colorful sections with a neutral background, producing the strong grid-like appearance visible in the finished throw.

What Is a Mitered Knitted Square?

A mitered square is shaped by strategically decreasing stitches around a central point.

As the decreases are repeated, the knitted fabric develops diagonal lines that travel toward the center of the square.

When worked in garter stitch with a self-striping or color-changing yarn, those diagonal lines can make the color changes look especially dramatic.

Once the technique becomes familiar, mitered squares can be satisfying small modules to knit one at a time.

A Portable Modular Blanket Project

One advantage Elaine noted about this style of blanket is its portability.

For much of the project, you are working on individual blocks rather than holding an entire blanket on your needles.

That makes modular blankets particularly convenient for knitters who like taking a project with them while traveling or working away from home.

Only later, when the blocks are assembled, does the project grow into its full blanket size.

Using Color-Changing Yarn

The colorful centers are especially effective when knitted with yarn that changes gradually from one shade to another.

Because the mitered construction creates diagonal lines, the changing colors develop differently across each square.

Surrounding those colorful centers with a quieter neutral shade helps define each block and prevents the overall blanket from becoming visually overwhelming.

This makes the project an interesting source of inspiration for combining self-striping yarn with a solid background color.

The Fabric Lining

One of the most useful ideas in Elaine's project is the fabric backing.

After completing the knitted blanket, she added fabric to the reverse side. This gives the throw a finished appearance similar to a quilt and hides the back of the knitted construction.

The combination of knitted blocks on the front and fabric on the back also creates an interesting meeting point between knitting and sewing.

Why Add Fabric to a Knitted Blanket?

A fabric lining can serve several purposes.

It can give the reverse side of a modular blanket a cleaner appearance, cover yarn ends or joins, and add another decorative element to the finished project.

However, knitted fabric and woven fabric behave differently. Knitting is naturally stretchy, while many woven fabrics have much less give.

For that reason, the lining should be attached carefully so that it does not pull, distort or restrict the knitted blanket.

Preparing the Knitting Before Adding Fabric

Before attaching a lining, finish the knitted portion completely.

Weave in loose ends and block the blanket according to the care requirements of your yarn.

Blocking first allows the knitted fabric to settle into its final dimensions before the lining is measured and attached.

This is especially useful for a modular blanket because blocking can help the individual sections sit more evenly.

Choosing Fabric for the Backing

If you want to use Elaine's project as inspiration for your own lined blanket, choose a backing fabric that works well with the weight and intended use of your knitting.

The fabric should be large enough for the finished dimensions of the blocked blanket, including any allowance required for finishing the edges.

Washable materials are practical when the finished throw will be used regularly, but always consider the care requirements of both the yarn and fabric before combining them.

Skills Used in This Style of Project

Depending on whether you follow the original Kay Gardiner design or create a modified version inspired by Elaine's throw, useful skills may include:

• Garter stitch
• Mitered knitting
• Decreasing stitches
• Picking up stitches
• Modular knitting
• Joining knitted blocks
• Weaving in ends
• Blocking
• Basic sewing for adding a fabric backing

Original Pattern Specifications

For reference, the published information for Kay Gardiner's Mitered Crosses Blanket lists:

• Yarn weight: Aran
• Suggested yarn: Noro Silk Garden
• Needles: US 6 / 4 mm
• Gauge: 20 stitches and 40 rows = 4 inches in garter stitch
• Original finished size: approximately 40 × 52 inches
• Sizing: Easily adaptable larger or smaller

These specifications refer to Kay Gardiner's original Mitered Crosses Blanket, not necessarily to every modification used in Elaine's Mitered Squares Throw.

Important Pattern Availability Note

Older references to this project may describe the underlying pattern as a charity pattern or may point to an older download location.

The situation has changed over time.

Kay Gardiner's Mitered Crosses Blanket is currently a paid pattern.

For that reason, Amazing Knitting does not describe this project as a free knitting pattern.

Visit the Featured Mitered Squares Project

Elaine's original article explains how she adapted the Mitered Crosses idea into squares and how she added a fabric lining to her finished throw.

See the Mitered Squares Throw Project →

Get the Original Mitered Crosses Blanket Pattern

If you want to knit Kay Gardiner's original design rather than Elaine's modified project, the Mitered Crosses Blanket pattern is currently available as a paid Ravelry download.

View the Original Mitered Crosses Blanket Pattern →

Pattern Availability

Amazing Knitting links readers to legitimate designer or publisher sources whenever possible. Pattern prices, download locations and availability can change after an article is published.

Read Our Pattern Availability Policy →

Amazing Knitting is an independent pattern discovery and project-guide site. Mitered Crosses Blanket and its original knitting instructions remain the intellectual property of Kay Gardiner. The featured modification and photographs belong to their respective creator. This article provides project information and links readers to the credited sources rather than reproducing the complete knitting pattern.