Easy to Knit Striped Throw Blanket Pattern Using Lion Brand Hue & Me Yarn
There is something deeply satisfying about making a throw blanket. It is one of those projects that feels purposeful from the very first cast-on stitch, because you can already picture exactly where it will land — draped over the arm of a couch, folded at the foot of a bed, or wrapped around someone you love on a cold evening. If you have been looking for a project that combines approachability with a genuinely beautiful result, this easy striped throw blanket knitting pattern using Lion Brand Hue & Me yarn might be exactly what you need.
This pattern is designed for knitters who are past the absolute beginner stage but not quite ready to dive into complex colorwork or intricate stitch patterns. If you know how to cast on, knit, purl, and bind off, you have everything you need to make this blanket. The stripe sequence adds visual interest without requiring you to think too hard, and the chunky weight of Lion Brand Hue & Me makes the whole project work up faster than you might expect.
Let’s get into everything you need to know.
Why Lion Brand Hue & Me Is Perfect for This Project
Before we get to the pattern itself, it is worth spending a moment talking about the yarn, because the yarn is genuinely a big part of what makes this blanket work.
Lion Brand Hue & Me is a super bulky weight yarn (size 6) with a beautiful tonal color palette that does some of the visual work for you. Each skein transitions gently through different shades of the same color family, which means that even a simple stripe pattern ends up looking layered and rich. You are not just knitting with one flat color — you are knitting with something that has depth and movement built right into the fiber.
The yarn is made from a blend of 80% acrylic and 20% wool, which gives it the best qualities of both. The acrylic content keeps it machine washable and highly durable, which matters for a throw blanket that is actually going to get used. The wool content adds softness and a slight elasticity that makes it enjoyable to knit with and gives the finished fabric a nice drape.
Each skein contains 137 yards and weighs 7 ounces. For a throw blanket sized approximately 40 by 50 inches, plan to use about 6 to 8 skeins total depending on your gauge and the exact dimensions you want. If you want a larger blanket — something closer to a full lap blanket at 50 by 60 inches — bump that up to 9 or 10 skeins.
The color palette for Hue & Me includes warm neutrals, earthy tones, deep jewel shades, and soft pastels, so there is something for nearly every aesthetic. For a cozy, classic look, consider combining two colors in a tonal family — a warm cream paired with a soft oat, or a deep forest green with a lighter sage. For something with more contrast and a modern feel, try a charcoal paired with a soft dusty rose, or a rich navy against a warm ivory.
Materials You Will Need
Here is a complete list of everything you need before you cast on:
Yarn: Lion Brand Hue & Me in two colors of your choice. You will need approximately 4 skeins of Color A and 3 to 4 skeins of Color B for a standard throw size. If you are doing a three-color stripe sequence, adjust accordingly — roughly 3 skeins of the main color and 2 to 3 skeins each of the second and third colors.
Needles: US size 13 (9mm) circular knitting needles, 40 inches or longer. Circular needles are not required here because you are knitting flat, but they give you much more room to hold all of those stitches than straight needles would. A 32-inch cord will technically work but can feel cramped.
Notions: Scissors, a tapestry needle for weaving in ends, stitch markers if you like to track your row count, and a ruler or tape measure.
Gauge: Approximately 9 stitches and 13 rows in stockinette stitch over 4 inches with US size 13 needles. For this pattern, gauge is not critical in the way it would be for a fitted garment, but getting close to this gauge will help you hit the intended finished dimensions.
Finished Dimensions
The pattern as written produces a throw blanket approximately 40 inches wide by 50 inches long before any finishing. Knitted fabric has some natural stretch, so the blanket may relax slightly after blocking or after its first wash. If you want a wider or longer blanket, simply cast on more stitches (adding in multiples of the stitch pattern repeat) or work more rows before binding off.
Stitch Pattern
This blanket is knitted in a simple combination of stockinette stitch and garter stitch that creates subtle texture variation across the stripe sections. There is a garter stitch border worked throughout to keep the edges from curling, which is especially important with stockinette fabric.
Stitch glossary:
Knit (k): Insert needle from left to right into the front of the stitch, wrap yarn counterclockwise, pull through, and drop the old stitch.
Purl (p): Insert needle from right to left into the front of the stitch, wrap yarn counterclockwise, pull through, and drop the old stitch.
Knit all rows: Garter stitch — creates a ridged, reversible fabric.
Alternate knit rows and purl rows: Stockinette stitch — creates a smooth fabric on the right side and a bumpy fabric on the wrong side.
The border stitches (the first and last 5 stitches of every row) are worked in garter stitch throughout. This means you will knit these stitches on both right side and wrong side rows regardless of what the main body of the blanket is doing. This keeps your edges tidy, flat, and finished-looking without any additional finishing work.
The Pattern
Cast On
Using Color A and US size 13 circular needles, cast on 92 stitches using the long-tail cast on method or your preferred cast on. The long-tail cast on is recommended here because it creates a stretchy, neat edge that looks polished on the finished blanket.
If you want to adjust the width, add or subtract stitches in multiples of 2 to keep the pattern symmetrical.
Bottom Border
Rows 1–8: Knit all stitches across every row. This creates a garter stitch border at the bottom of the blanket that will mirror the top border and keep the blanket lying flat.
Body of the Blanket
The body of the blanket is worked in alternating stripe sections. Each stripe section is 10 rows tall. The border stitches (first 5 and last 5 stitches) are always knitted, no matter what row you are on.
Stripe Section Setup (worked in stockinette with garter borders):
Right Side Row (RS): K5, knit to last 5 stitches, k5.
Wrong Side Row (WS): K5, purl to last 5 stitches, k5.
Repeat these two rows for the length of each stripe section.
Stripe Sequence:
Work 10 rows in Color A (5 RS rows, 5 WS rows). Cut yarn, leaving a 6-inch tail.
Join Color B. Work 10 rows in Color B. Cut yarn, leaving a 6-inch tail.
Rejoin Color A. Work 10 rows in Color A.
Continue alternating Color A and Color B in 10-row stripes until the blanket measures approximately 48 inches from the cast-on edge, ending with a completed 10-row stripe section.
The blanket body should contain approximately 13 to 15 complete stripe sections depending on your gauge.
Optional Three-Color Variation:
If you want to add a third color for extra visual interest, work the stripes in a three-color rotation: 10 rows of Color A, 10 rows of Color B, 10 rows of Color C, and repeat. This works beautifully with tonal colors from the same family — for example, a light, medium, and dark version of the same hue.
Top Border
Once your blanket body measures approximately 48 inches, work the top border to mirror the bottom.
Rows 1–8: Knit all stitches across every row (garter stitch).
Bind Off
Bind off all stitches using a stretchy bind-off method. The standard bind off is fine here, but if you tend to bind off tightly, use a larger needle for the bind-off row or try the following method: knit 2, insert the left needle into the front of both stitches from left to right and knit them together through the back loops, then knit the next stitch and repeat. This creates a more relaxed edge that matches the cast-on edge.
Joining New Colors
When you join a new color, simply drop the old color at the edge of the work and begin knitting with the new color, leaving about a 6-inch tail on both the old and new yarn. Do not cut the old color if you will be returning to it in 10 rows — you can carry it loosely up the side of the work by looping it around the working yarn at the beginning of every RS row. This reduces the number of ends you need to weave in at the end, which is always a welcome shortcut.
If you are switching between three colors, it is generally easier to cut and rejoin rather than carry all three up the edge. Secure the tails carefully when weaving in to prevent any unraveling.
Weaving In Ends
Threading each tail onto your tapestry needle and weaving it through the back of the work in a zigzag pattern is the most secure method for a blanket that will be washed and used regularly. Weave through at least four or five stitches in one direction, then turn and weave back through two or three stitches at an angle. Give the tail a gentle tug to make sure it is secure before trimming.
For a blanket with many color changes, this step can take a little while, but it is well worth doing carefully. Nothing is more disheartening than noticing a loose end working its way free after you have gifted or washed the blanket.
Finishing and Blocking
Blocking a throw blanket made with a wool-blend yarn can make a noticeable difference in how the finished piece looks and feels. Wet blocking works well here: soak the finished blanket in cool water for about 20 minutes, gently press out the excess water without wringing or twisting, and then lay the blanket flat on a clean surface. Pat and smooth it into the desired dimensions and allow it to air dry completely before moving it. This step evens out any slight inconsistencies in your tension, softens the fabric, and helps the stripes lie flat and look crisp.
Because Hue & Me contains acrylic, it is also perfectly fine to machine wash the finished blanket on a gentle cycle in cool water and tumble dry on low. The wool content means you should avoid hot water and high heat, but the blanket is genuinely easy-care, which makes it ideal for regular everyday use.
Tips for Knitting This Pattern Successfully
Tension is the thing most likely to affect your finished blanket, so it is worth taking a few minutes to knit a gauge swatch before you start. Cast on 20 stitches and work in the same stitch pattern for about 4 inches, then measure your gauge against the target. If your stitches are too large, go down a needle size. If they are too tight, go up.
When you are working a striped blanket over many rows, it is easy to lose your place in the stripe sequence. A simple row counter or a tally mark on a notepad works perfectly well. Some knitters like to use a sticky note on the pattern to mark which stripe they are currently working.
Keep your floats — the lengths of yarn carried up the side — loose enough that the edge does not pucker. When you wrap the working yarn around the carried yarn at the start of a row, give yourself a little extra slack.
If your garter stitch borders are looking looser or tighter than the rest of the fabric, try slipping the first stitch of every row purlwise instead of knitting it. This can create a neater selvedge edge and makes seaming or picking up stitches along the side much easier if you ever decide to add a border.
Making This Pattern Your Own
One of the most enjoyable things about a simple stripe pattern is how much room there is to customize it. You can vary the stripe widths — narrow stripes of 4 rows alternated with wider stripes of 12 rows create a classic nautical feeling. You can introduce a neutral between two bolder colors to give each stripe more visual breathing room. You can work the entire blanket in garter stitch for a softer, more textured fabric with no wrong side, which makes it ideal for a baby blanket version worked in a finer weight yarn.
You can also use this same basic structure with other yarns in the Lion Brand family. Wool-Ease Thick & Quick is another excellent super bulky option with a huge color range. Mandala Thick & Quick offers a self-striping effect that can reduce the number of color changes you need to manage manually.
A Note on Yardage and Buying Extra
With any blanket project, it is smart to buy a little more yarn than you think you will need. Running out of a dye lot mid-project is one of the most frustrating things that can happen, and it is a problem that is entirely avoidable by purchasing an extra skein upfront. Dye lots can vary noticeably between batches, and even if your craft store has the same color in stock when you return, it may not be the same dye lot as your original skeins.
Write down your dye lot numbers when you purchase your yarn and keep them until the project is finished. If you end up with leftover skeins, Hue & Me is wonderful for hats, cowls, and small accent pillows, so nothing goes to waste.
Why This Makes a Wonderful Gift
A handmade throw blanket is one of the most thoughtful gifts you can give, because it represents real time and effort and because it is something most people would not buy for themselves. The combination of Lion Brand Hue & Me’s tonal palette and the clean stripe structure means the finished blanket looks polished and considered — it does not read as a beginner project even though it is genuinely achievable by someone who has been knitting for less than a year.
Because this yarn is machine washable, it is practical enough to give to families with young children or pets without worrying that it will require delicate care. It is warm enough for serious cold-weather use but lightweight enough to be comfortable through three seasons.
Whether you are making this blanket for yourself, for a housewarming gift, a holiday present, or a new baby, it is the kind of project that you will find yourself returning to again and again in different color combinations.
Final Thoughts
This easy striped throw blanket pattern is exactly the kind of project that makes knitting feel rewarding at every stage. The yarn is a pleasure to work with, the stitch pattern is meditative without being boring, and the finished result is something you will be genuinely proud to have made. If you try this pattern, we would love to see how it turns out — tag your finished blankets and share your color combinations. There is always something inspiring about seeing the same pattern interpreted through a hundred different color choices.
Happy knitting.
