Yarn for the baby blankets is a relatively common and ideal way to keep a child warm; they’re adorable, snug, and cuddly. In this respect, rather than buy a ready-made blanket for your precious bundle of joy, have you considered knitting one yourself?
A handmade blanket is a unique way of extending your love and affection to a child – be it yours or someone else’s. Of course, the first thing you want to consider is the choice of yarn you’d like to use for the blanket.
Chapter 1: Factors to Consider when Choosing the Best Yarn for Baby Blankets
Knitting yarn
Yarn Fiber
Here, we recommend two frequently-used yarn options: Acrylic or Cotton. They come in vast color variations, are machine washable, and reasonably inexpensive. Alternatively, you can use Silk or Alpaca yarn if you want your blanket to last longer.
Got a few extra bucks to spare? Settle for either Cashmere yarn or Merino Wool. These are two of the wooliest and costliest fibers that ensure nothing but the best when it comes to warmth and comfort.
Washing Instructions
Stack of Folded Woolen Items
Blanket-specific yarns should be machine washable. Indeed, no one enjoys handwashing a baby blanket – or any blanket for that matter.
Settle for a machine-friendly yarn that can be tumble dried and withstand a regular wash of at least 40°C. Different threads that meet these criteria include commercial sock yarns, a few lines, and cotton yarn.
Using bleach products on your yarn is not recommended. However, there’s no harm in adding a little fabric softener.
Yarn Weight
Ideally, baby blankets should neither be too light nor too heavy. This rule applies to all three types of coverings: crib, receiving, and swaddling. With that in mind, you need approximately two balls of yarn of roughly 10.5oz each to crochet a perfect-sized baby blanket.
If you’re dealing with a Lion Brand 24/7 cotton yarn or any other medium-size yarn, settle for nothing more than nine balls.
Color
Colors influence a child’s mood and personality as they grow older. Thus, you should be extra careful when choosing your yarn shade.
First, begin your yarn color selection by picking a theme. For instance, if you want to design it based on the fall season, ensure your color scheme reflects the colors you’d see around that time of the year, i.e., gold.
Other blanket-friendly colors include pink, purple, green, red, blue, and of course, white.
Different Colors of Yarn
Tension
Here, tension refers to how loosely or tightly you knit. A standard knitting style associated with baby blankets is the garter stitch.
Therefore, if you plan on taking that route with your baby blanket, you need to ensure the yarn you’re using maintains an even tension.
A good yarn smoothly glides through your fingers, and the stitches slide effortlessly across the eye of the needle. Therefore, if your thread maintains an even tension, the type of knitting needle you use won’t even matter.
Sensitivity to Wool
Sensitivity to wool is a common problem among adults and children alike. Thus, you should steer clear of using wool as your preferred yarn if you experience specific symptoms such as skin irritations, watery or runny eyes.
Cute Baby Sleeping in Knitted Blanket
If you suspect your little one may be allergic or sensitive towards wool, use cruelty-free fibers such as Tencel, fleece, polyester, cotton flannel, and cotton. Out of all these, however, Tencel is among the best wool substitutes.
Seasonal Birth
If your baby is due for the summer, opt for a highly lightweight yarn with a straightened-out pattern. Doing so will ensure a smooth flow of air when it gets too hot.
If you’re crocheting for a spring baby, your yarn should be medium weight. Use a half-closed but warm pattern to keep out the chilly wind, but keep the weight lighter than winter.
Nevertheless, for all these season-specific blankets, remember that bigger doesn’t mean better.
Cost
Lastly, the cost of your desired yarn should not exceed your initial budget. Furthermore, if you want to spend a fortune on it, make sure that it’s a quality product and durable enough to last your baby well into early childhood.
Cute Tiny Feet of Newborn
If you don’t want to splurge on yarn for your baby blanket, don’t settle for anything less than quality. The ‘affordable’ types tend to lose their durability, color and shape pretty fast.
Chapter 2: Comparison of the Best Yarn for Baby Blankets 2021
| Brand | Material | Washing | Weight | Yardage | Price | |
| Lion Brand Hometown Yarn Creamsicle | 60% Acrylic, 40% Polyamide | Machine washable | Medium, 5 oz. | 459 yards$8.78We Crochet Brava100% Premium AcrylicMachine washable + Dryable100gm218 yards$2.49/100g skeinLion Brand Baby Soft Yarn100% CottonMachine washable + Dryable5 oz. / 140g | 459 yards/420m | $9.35 |
| Bernat Blanket Yarn Silver Steel | 100% Polyester | Machine washable | 10.5 oz. | 220 yards | $14.57 | |
| Red Heart Soft Baby Steps Yarn | 100% Acrylic Fiber | Machine wash (low temperature), machine dry (low temp) | 141g/5 oz (Solids), 113 g/4 oz (Prints) | 204 yards | $7.90 | |
| Bernat Softee Baby Yarn | 100% Acrylic Fiber | Machine washable + dryable | 5 oz. / 140g | 362 yds. / 331m | $8.94 | |
| Caron Simply Soft | 100% Acrylic Fiber | Machine wash (delicate cycle) + Machine dry (delicate cycle) | 6 oz. / 170 g | 315 yds / 288m | $7.79 | |
| Lion Brand Vanna’s Choice | 100% acrylic | Machine washable + Dryable tumble dry | 3.5 oz. / 100 g | 170 yd. / 156 m | $4.39 | |
| Universal Yarn Bella Chenille | 100% Polyester Yarn | Machine wash only | 100gm | 131 yds | $14.57 | |
| Lion Brand Yarn 24-7 Cotton | 100% Mercerized Cotton | Machine wash + dry | 3.5 oz. / 100g | 186 yd. / 170 m | $4.99 |
Chapter 3: Evaluation of the Best Yarn for Baby Blankets in 2021
Lion Brand Hometown Yarn Creamsicle
Advantage: Offers minimal pilling, 25 color variants to choose from, machine washable, sizeable skeins.
Suitable for the season: Spring/ Autumn
We Crochet Brava
Lion Brand Baby Soft Yarn
Advantage: Very cuddly, softest yarn, wide color range, easy to maintain, easy to knit/crochet, washable in temps below 40C/105F.
Suitable for the season: Winter
Bernat Blanket Yarn Silver Steel
Advantage: Soft on hands, offers 17 individual shades, easy to wash and maintain, easily manipulatable.
Suitable for the season: Winter
Red Heart Soft Baby Steps Yarn
Advantage: Coordinating multi-colors and solids, highly versatile, soft and beautiful fiber, soft and cuddly texture, splendid stitch definition.
Suitable for the season: Winter
Bernat Softee Baby Yarn
Advantage: Extremely soft and easy to crochet with, machine washer and drier friendly.
Suitable for the season: Winter
Caron Simply Soft
Advantage: Soft pastels, funky bright appearance, an attractive range of colors, smooth knitting process.
Suitable for the season: Winter
Lion Brand Vanna’s Choice
Advantage: Relatively cheap, easy to crochet with, a reasonable shininess level, extremely huggable, squishy, and soft.
Suitable for the season: Winter
Universal Yarn Bella Chenille
Advantage: Machine-washable, offers the best solid shades, velvety texture makes it very easy to work with, visibly high-quality.
Suitable for the season: Winter/Autumn
Lion Brand Yarn 24-7 C
Advantage: Comes in 24 solid shades, maintains color for the longest time, cost-effective, sturdy, and strong, easy to work with, Chainette style keeps strands together.
Suitable for the season: Summer/winter
Chapter 4: What is the Best Yarn for Baby Blankets?
Baby blankets come in such a variety of sizes that you may find the selection process somewhat overwhelming.
All you need to do is make it big enough to be used by your child for the next couple of years as a regular blanket. In this case, make your toddler blanket at least 40 by 60 inches. These measurements apply as well to crib quilt/crib blankets. A standard multi-use baby blanket should be at least 30 to 40 inches, while a swaddle blanket should be approximately 40 by 40 inches.
Summary
In conclusion, from all the options provided above, we recommend the Lion Brand Yarn for so many reasons.
Not only for its soft, cuddly texture but also other impressive features such as its wide color range (up to 25 shades), large skeins, and machine washability.
In the end, all the yarns listed above are great, so it’s just a matter of personal preference.
We hope this article helps you make an informed decision about every sector of your yarn selection process. Feel free to share it with a parent or guardian who needs some helpful advice on this somewhat complicated topic!