MODular Knit Quilt pattern by Two of Wands

I’ll be honest - I love the concept of a quilt but I don’t love the typical traditional aesthetic of a quilt. I’m not a fan of the country style Americana vibe, but in recent years there’s been a movement toward a more minimalist, modern quilt style which I can totally get behind. Enter the MODular Knit Quilt. This knit blanket speaks to my modern-loving soul and it’s one of my favorite throws I’ve ever designed. Scroll down for the free pattern, click here to purchase the ad-free printable PDF, or click here to grab the full yarn kit.

Quilt look but make it knit. Traditional but make it modern. Multi-colored but make it sophisticated. Garter stitch but make it interesting. These are the defining attributes of the new MODular Knit Quilt, and I can’t tell you how obsessed I am with this blanket. Maybe because it’s the color palette of my dreams, maybe because it’s the squishiest, cuddliest blanket of all time, or maybe because who isn’t looking for the most meditating yet interesting project in the middle of February?!

There’s just something about the squish of garter stitch that always makes me swoon. I love the thick and stretchy fabric it produces and find it so lovely for a knit throw. But how to keep it interesting when every stitch is the same? When I designed my log-cabin style Rockwell Blanket back in 2020 I really enjoyed the modular technique of it and found that breaking the big blanket up into smaller sections and throwing in some color changes made it such a fun project.

I’ve been wanting to design a quilt-inspired throw for quite a while now, and with the release of the newest six colors of Hue + Me last year, I immediately knew I had the perfect seven color palette of my dreams that would be perfect for such a design. I took the modular concept of the Rockwell Blanket and expanded on it to give this new design an even more quilt-like quality and as I worked up the initial sketch (the schematic you see below), I was instantly smitten! I used the word “MOD” in the title to represent both the modular construction and the modern aesthetic of the blanket.

If you’ve been following me for a while you know that I used to design almost exclusively in neutrals and blues. I’ve always been drawn to these colors, and I love how blues and greys compliment warmer neutrals like cream and brown. The combo of warm and cool tones is subtle but lends great contrast and a very pleasing visual appeal. When Hue + Me first debuted in 2020 I was limited to only 18 colors, so I couldn’t include as many neutrals and blues as I would have liked, but over the years the palette has grown to 30 colors and the latest additions really have my heart.

When choosing your own palette of seven colors for this project, pay attention to the contrast between them. For example, when choosing my colors I opted for three cool tones in various shades ranging from light to dark, three blues in various shades ranging from light to dark, and one vibrant warm tone to add a little pop. Overall there are three lighter shades, two mid-range shades, and two darker shades. The contrast between both the colors and the shades (lightness/darkness) is what makes the finished piece so dynamic and striking. If you’d like to learn more about color theory and how to put together beautiful palettes, check out my Color Theory Lesson Series here!

Can’t decide and looking for more color guidance? Here are my top 8 alternate combos for this project:

MODular Knit Blanket pattern by Two of Wands

This is an easy level pattern and the techniques involved are the knit stitch, kfb and kfbf increases, k2tog and k3tog decreases, and picking up stitches along horizontal, vertical, and diagonal edges.

MATERIALS

2 skeins each Lion Brand Yarn Hue + Me in Harbor (617-106BH) for color A, Whisper (617-121P) for color B, Marine (617-111U) for color C, Smoke (617-151Z) for color D, Cement (617-149AV) for color E, Macchiato (617-126AI) for color F, and Peacoat (617-110AU) for color G
(bulky, weight 5; 137yds/125m per skein)

Size US 13 (9mm) circular knitting needles, 40”/100cm or longer
Tapestry needle

FINISHED SIZE

(A) Width: 48”/122cm
(B) Length: 58”/147.5cm

GAUGE

10 sts + 20 rows = 4”/10cm in garter stitch

ABBREVIATIONS

*All Two of Wands patterns are written in standard US terms

CO – cast on
K – knit
K2tog – knit 2 together
K3tog – knit 3 together
KFB – knit front and back
KFBF – knit front, back, front
Rep – repeat
RS – right side
St(s) – stitch(es)
WS – wrong side

Note: Blanket is worked in six blocks that are seamed together. Each block is worked modularly by picking up stitches along the side edge of the existing work.

PATTERN

Make 6 blocks as follows in the following color orientation:

Block 1

Part 1: Color A

Part 2: Color B

Part 3: Color C

Part 4: Color D

Part 5: Color E

Part 6: Color F

Part 7: Color G

Block 2

Part 1: Color D

Part 2: Color C

Part 3: Color B

Part 4: Color F

Part 5: Color G

Part 6: Color A

Part 7: Color E

Block 3

Part 1: Color F

Part 2: Color D

Part 3: Color G

Part 4: Color C

Part 5: Color B

Part 6: Color E

Part 7: Color A

Block 4

Part 1: Color C

Part 2: Color G

Part 3: Color E

Part 4: Color A

Part 5: Color F

Part 6: Color B

Part 7: Color D

Block 5

Part 1: Color G

Part 2: Color A

Part 3: Color F

Part 4: Color E

Part 5: Color C

Part 6: Color D

Part 7: Color B

Block 6

Part 1: Color B

Part 2: Color E

Part 3: Color D

Part 4: Color G

Part 5: Color A

Part 6: Color C

Part 7: Color F

BLOCKS

Part 1:

With first color, CO 1 st.

Row 1 (RS): KFBF. (3 sts)

Row 2 (WS): K.

Row 3: KFB, K 1, KFB. (5 sts)

Row 4: K.

Row 5: KFB, K to last st, KFB. (7 sts)

Rows 6-39: Rep rows 4 and 5. (41 sts)

Row 40: Rep row 4.

Do not bind off.

Part 2:

Change to next color.

Row numbers will restart for simplicity.

Row 1 (RS): K 1, K2tog, K to last 3 sts, K2tog, K 1. (39 sts)

Row 2 (WS): K.

Rows 3-36: Rep rows 1 and 2. (5 sts)

Row 37: K 1, K3tog, K 1. (3 sts)

Row 38: K.

Row 39: K3tog. (1 st)

Fasten off.

Part 3:

Change to next color.

With RS facing, pick up and K 30 sts evenly down left side edge of part 2 (approx. 3 sts for every 4 rows).

Next 19 rows: K.

Bind off.

Part 4:

Change to next color.

With RS facing, pick up and K 10 sts down left side edge of part 3 (1 st for each garter ridge), then 30 sts evenly down left side edge of part 1 (approx. 3 sts for every 4 rows) for a total of 40 sts.

Next 19 rows: K.

Bind off.

Part 5:

Change to next color.

With RS facing, pick up and K 30 sts along bind off edge of part 3 (1 st for each st), then 10 sts down side edge of part 4 (1 st for each garter ridge) for a total of 40 sts.

Next 19 rows: K.

Bind off.

Part 6:

Change to next color.

With RS facing, pick up and K 10 sts down left side edge of part 5 (1 st for each garter ridge), then 40 sts along bind off edge of part 4 (1 st for each st) for a total of 50 sts.

Next 9 rows: K.

Bind off.

Part 7:

Change to next color.

With RS facing, pick up and K 40 sts along bind off edge of part 5 (1 st for each st), then 5 sts down side edge of part 6 (1 st for each garter ridge) for a total of 45 sts.

Next 9 rows: K.

Bind off.

CONSTRUCTION

Arrange blocks as per diagram below and use mattress stitch to seam them together with color A.

EDGING

With color F, RS facing, and starting at bottom right corner of block 6, pick up and K 45 sts long right side of block 6 (1 st for each garter ridge along parts 4 and 6 and approx. 3 sts for every 4 rows along part 1), then 45 sts along right side of block 4, then 45 sts along right side of block 2 for a total of 135 sts.

Next 9 rows: K.

Bind off, using color E to K final st so that the last st remaining on the right needle is color E. Do not fasten off.

With RS facing and continuing with color E, pick up and K 5 sts down side of edging just completed (1 st for each garter ridge), then 55 sts along top edge of block 2 (approx. 3 sts for every 4 rows along part 2 and 1 st for each garter ridge of parts 3, 5, and 7), then 55 sts along top edge of block 1 for a total of 116 sts.

Next 9 rows: K.

Bind off, using color C to K final st so that the last st remaining on the right needle is color C. Do not fasten off.

With RS facing and continuing with color C, pick up and K 5 sts down side of edging just completed (1 st for each garter ridge), then 45 sts along left side of block 1 (1 st for each st of part 7), then 45 sts along left side of block 3, then 45 sts along left side of block 5 for a total of 141 sts.

Next 9 rows: K.

Bind off, using color B to K final st so that the lasts st remaining on the right needle is color B. Do not fasten off.

With RS facing and continuing with color B, pick up and K 5 sts down side of edging just completed (1 st for each garter ridge), then 55 sts along bottom edge of block 5 (1 st for each garter ridge of part 7 and 1 st for each st of part 6), then 55 sts along bottom edge of block 6, then 5 sts up side of first edging (1 st for each garter ridge + 1 st in bind off edge) for a total of 122 sts.

Next 9 rows: K.

Bind off. Secure and weave in all ends.

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