Alpha Kappa Alpha Centered Blanket - Knitting Pattern

Size: 40" x 52" (finished). This blanket places the words "ALPHA KAPPA ALPHA" centered in the middle of the blanket using intarsia (recommended) or duplicate-stitch (alternate). The letters below are presented as block letters (uppercase) for clarity and best contrast on a large background.

Materials

• Yarn (worsted/aran, Medium/4): Main Color (MC) approx 2,000 yd / 1,829 m; Contrast Color (CC) for letters approx 400 yd / 366 m; small Accent (optional) 100 yd / 91 m. Total approx 2,500 yd / 2,286 m. If using 200 yd / 183 m skeins: — MC ~10 skeins, CC ~2 skeins, Accent ~1 skein.
• Needles (knit flat): US 8 \/ UK (old): 6 \/ Metric: 5.00 mm (recommended for body). Optional slightly smaller needles for a denser edge: US 7 \/ UK (old): 7 \/ Metric: 4.50 mm.
• Intarsia bobbins or separate small balls for each color block, tapestry needle, stitch markers, waste yarn, tapestry needle for finishing.

Gauge

18 stitches x 24 rows = 4" (10 cm) in stockinette stitch with US 8 (5.0 mm) needles. Gauge is important to reach the final blanket size. If your gauge is different, adjust cast-on accordingly (see pattern notes).

Abbreviations

CO = cast on, BO = bind off, K = knit, P = purl, RS = right side, WS = wrong side, st(s) = stitch(es), MC = main color, CC = contrast color, intarsia = colorwork technique using separate bobbins.

Notes & Construction Overview

• Blanket is worked flat (back-and-forth) in stockinette with garter-knit selvedges and a garter ridge border top and bottom.
• Finished dimensions are based on the gauge above. Cast on 180 stitches to get ~40" width (40" x 4.5 sts per inch ≈ 180 sts).
• Edge: work 6-stitch garter selvedge at both edges throughout (knit these 6 sts on every row to keep them garter-textured and flat).
• Top/bottom border: Work 12 rows garter at beginning and again at the end (these 12 rows are included in the total row count below).
• Center panel (between borders) is 288 rows (total rows 312 = 12 top border + 288 panel + 12 bottom border). The letter block is 11 rows tall and will be centered vertically inside that 288-row panel. Place letters starting on Row 151 from cast-on (counting Row 1 as the first row after the 12 top garter rows): specifically, after working 150 rows from CO you will begin the first RS row of the letter chart.
• Horizontally: 6-stitch selvedge left + 6-stitch selvedge right = 12 selvedge stitches. That leaves 168 sts for the center panel. The letters are arranged in a 165-stitch-wide block; that gives 3 extra stitches which are placed as 1 extra MC stitch on the left side (inside the selvedge) and 2 extra MC stitches on the right side so the letters are visually centered. In practical knitting terms: after you knit the 6-stitch selvedge at the left edge, knit 1 MC stitch then begin the letter block (see assembly sequence below). After finishing the letter block, knit 2 MC stitches then knit the 6-stitch right selvedge.

Stitch Counts & Row Counts (summary)

• Cast on: 180 sts.
• Top garter border: 12 rows (knit every row).
• Center panel: 288 rows total. Letter block location: begin letters on Row 151 from CO (this is the RS row after you have worked 150 rows total from CO). Work letters across 11 rows of chart, then continue plain stockinette for the remainder.
• Bottom garter border: 12 rows (knit every row), then BO loosely in pattern.

Cast On & Border

1. CO 180 sts using your preferred cast-on and US 8 needles.
2. Work 12 rows garter (K every row) to form the top border.
3. Switch to stockinette body. Maintain the 6-stitch garter selvedge at each edge: on every row, K the first 6 sts and K the last 6 sts. Between them, work stockinette (RS row: knit, WS row: purl) except where you are placing the letters (see intarsia instructions).

Locate and Work Letter Block

Work center panel rows in stockinette until you have completed 150 rows measured from the cast-on (this includes the initial 12 garter rows). The next RS row is the first RS row of the letter chart. Begin intarsia on that RS row and follow the chart for 11 rows. After completing the 11 chart rows, continue in stockinette until you have worked a total of 300 rows (that is: 12 top border + 288 center panel). Then work the 12-row bottom garter border and BO loosely.

Charting & Letter Blocks

The letter shapes are a simple 9 (width) x 11 (height) grid for each letter. Each grid cell = 1 stitch x 1 row (no scaling); letters are uppercase block letters. Letters are separated by 1 stitch of MC (1-column vertical spacer). Between words there are 3 stitches of MC (3-column spacer). The full phrase has 15 letters: ALPHA KAPPA ALPHA. Layout uses 11 rows tall × 165 stitches wide overall (15 letters × 11 columns per letter = 165 columns total).

How the 11 columns per letter are counted: each letter uses 9 columns for the glyph and 1 column of MC spacer to the right; the last letter of a word will still have the 1-column spacer except where you replace it with a 3-column space between words.

Letter Chart Key

X = stitch in CC (letter color). . = stitch in MC (background)

Letter grid is 9 columns wide by 11 rows tall. Row 1 is the top row (worked first in the 11-row chart block). Below are the letters used (A, L, P, H, K). Use these as templates when following the intarsia chart across the blanket width.

Letter: A (9x11)

..XXX....
.XXXXX...
XX...XX..
XX...XX..
XX...XX..
XXXXXXX..
XX...XX..
XX...XX..
XX...XX..
XX...XX..
XX...XX..

Letter: L (9x11)

XX.......
XX.......
XX.......
XX.......
XX.......
XX.......
XX.......
XX.......
XX.......
XX.......
XXXXXXXX.

Letter: P (9x11)

XXXXXX...
XX...XX..
XX...XX..
XX...XX..
XXXXXX...
XX.......
XX.......
XX.......
XX.......
XX.......
XX.......

Letter: H (9x11)

XX...XX..
XX...XX..
XX...XX..
XX...XX..
XX...XX..
XXXXXXXX.
XX...XX..
XX...XX..
XX...XX..
XX...XX..
XX...XX..

Letter: K (9x11)

XX...XX..
XX..XX...
XX.XX....
XXX......
XXXX.....
XXX......
XX.XX....
XX..XX...
XX...XX..
XX....XX.
XX.....XX

Assembling the Full Row Across

Each letter is 9 columns. After each letter add 1 MC stitch spacer (except replace the single spacer between words with a 3-stitch spacer). The phrase ALPHA KAPPA ALPHA laid out left-to-right (with the 1 and 3 column spacers included) occupies 165 stitches. With the 6-stitch left selvedge + 1 extra left interior MC stitch, and 2 extra right interior MC stitches + 6-stitch right selvedge, the total cast-on is 180 stitches.

Practical assembly sequence for the first chart row on the RS when intarsia begins:

1. K first 6 selvedge sts in MC (these are always garter edge sts and are knitted on both RS and WS).
2. K 1 MC stitch (left extra interior stitch).
3. Begin the chart for Letter A column 1 through column 9 using CC and MC as per the letter sub-chart; then K 1 MC spacer (unless end-of-word where you will use a 3-MC spacer).
4. Continue through each letter in sequence following its 9-column pattern and the spacing rules.
5. After the last letter, K 2 MC stitches (right extra interior stitches), then K 6 selvedge stitches in MC to finish the row.

Intarsia Tips

• Use separate bobbins or small balls for each block of CC. Twist yarns at color changes so there are no holes: on RS, when changing color, bring the new color under the old color to twist and trap the yarns together.
• On WS rows you will be purling the colors: keep the same color blocks aligned vertically and pick up the correct yarn; if a color block is only 1 stitch, work that single stitch from its bobbin and leave a short tail to weave in later (or carry it if you prefer).
• Because the letter blocks are one stitch wide in places, be tidy: keep bobbins close and secure; avoid long floats (intarsia doesn’t have floats anyway: a new bobbin starts where the color changes).
• To make cleaner vertical edges on letters you can use a 1-stitch outline in a thin contrasting color (this increases CC yardage slightly). If you choose this method, add it as duplicate stitch after the knitting is finished.

Duplicate Stitch (Alternate Method)

If you prefer not to do intarsia, knit the entire blanket in MC and then use duplicate stitch to embroider the letters from the same 9x11 charts. Duplicate stitch will use slightly more yarn for CC and is simpler for beginners. You will place the same chart on the same rows and stitches as described above, but work them after blocking.

Finishing

1. After completing the bottom garter border (12 rows), BO loosely on next RS row in pattern knitwise to preserve edge elasticity.
2. Weave in all ends. Intarsia yields fewer ends than stranded colorwork but there will still be bobbin ends — weave them in with a tapestry needle on the WS.
3. Block lightly: pin to final dimensions if desired and steam or wet-block according to yarn manufacturer instructions (check fiber content). Be careful with acrylic yarns; light steaming is preferable to full wet-blocking.
4. If you used duplicate stitch for outlining or to clean edges, do this after blocking.

Care

Refer to the yarn label for washing instructions. Generally: hand wash cold or machine wash on gentle cycle and lay flat to dry for natural fibers; acrylic can usually be machine washed and dried, but check the label.

Adjustments & Sizing Tips

• To change blanket size keep the same gauge and increase or decrease cast-on stitches in multiples of 1 for each additional column in the letter grid; recalculate border and centering as needed.
• If your gauge differs, calculate cast-on = desired width in inches × (stitches per inch). For vertical centering: total rows = desired height in inches × (rows per inch).

Yarn & Needle Labels (Summary)

• Yarn weight: Worsted (Medium/4). Imperial: total approx 2,500 yd. Metric: approx 2,286 m total.
• Needles: US 8 \/ UK (old): 6 \/ Metric: 5.00 mm (main). Optional US 7 \/ UK (old): 7 \/ Metric: 4.50 mm for firmer edges.

Troubleshooting

• If letters look jagged: try duplicate-stitch outline in CC after blocking to sharpen edges.
• If edges roll: the garter selvedge prevents most rolling; if preferred, add a few more garter stitches to each side or a seed-stitch border.

Contact & Credits

Pattern created for a 40x52" blanket with centered block letters. For questions, pattern support: https://purljam.verde.uk or email team@verde.uk. Share finished projects and questions on socials: #purljam.

Happy knitting!

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