How to Knit a Temperature Blanket (Free Knitting Tutorial + Tracker)

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Creating a temperature blanket is a fun and personalized knitting (or crocheting!) project that allows you to capture the year’s weather patterns in a beautiful, cozy keepsake. Whether you live in a hot and sunny climate or enjoy milder temperatures, this blanket can reflect the unique weather of your area.

This year, I’m knitting a brand new temperature blanket to celebrate my 40th birthday! One row at a time, one day at a time. Instead of looking back at a past year, this blanket is about living it as I go and turning everyday moments into something meaningful and cozy.

I’m sharing daily updates across all my socials as this blanket grows, from color changes and progress shots to real-life moments behind the stitches. If you’ve ever wanted to start a temperature blanket but felt overwhelmed, this project is proof that you don’t need perfection, just yarn, a plan, and the willingness to show up each day.

You can follow along daily and knit yours right alongside mine using the free tutorial, yarn guide, and printable temperature tracker below.

This is not my first temperature blanket, I made on in 2023! But I learned a lot along the way and I would like to revisit it, using dark colors this time!

Jump To: 2023 Colors | 2026 Colors | Temp Tracker | Tools | Stitch Tutorials | 2023 Pattern | 2026 Pattern

So, What is a Temperature Blanket Anyway?

A temperature blanket is a special knit or crochet blanket where you create one row each day throughout the year, using a different color of yarn to represent the high temperature of that day. It’s a beautiful way to capture the changing seasons and create a unique, colorful blanket as the year progresses.

…ok, let’s get started with the basics and dive into the materials you’ll need.

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Knit Temperature Blanket Tutorial

The Yarn

Before you begin, you’ll need to choose your yarn. While there are many temperature blanket color keys available online, I found that most of them didn’t quite suit the weather in my area. After working on my first blanket for two months, I realized I wouldn’t even get to use half of the rainbow! I wanted a full spectrum of vibrant colors that truly represented the climate where I live. So, I created my own color key, specifically designed for areas where the high temperature rarely dips below 50°F (10°C) but often soars above 100°F (37°C). If that sounds like your climate, you’ll love these color schemes!

Here’s the yarn I used for each temperature range:

2023 Temperature Color Key

High Temperature	Yarn Color	Yarn I Used (Link)
>32°F (0°C)	White	Caron Simply Soft in White
40°-44°F (4°-6°C)	Light Pink	Caron Simply Soft in Strawberry
45°-49°F (7°-9°C)	Hot Pink	Caron Simply Soft in Neon Pink
50°-54°F (10°-12°C)	Light Purple	Caron Simply Soft in Orchid
55°-59°F (13°-15°C)	Dark Purple	Caron Simply Soft in Iris*
60°-64°F (16°-18°C)	Light Blue	Caron Simply Soft in Robin’s Egg
65°-69°F (19°-20°C)	Bright Blue	Caron Simply Soft in Cobalt Blue
70°-74°F (21°-23°C)	Light Green	Caron Simply Soft in Lime Light
75°-79°F (24°-26°C)	Bright Green	Caron Simply Soft in Kelly Green
80°-84°F (27°-28°C)	Light Yellow	Bernat Super Value in Yellow**
85°-89°F (29°-31°C)	Bright Yellow	Caron Simply Soft in Lemonade
90°-94°F (32°-34°C)	Light Orange	Caron One Pound Yarn in Peach***
95°-99°F (35°-37°C)	Bright Orange	Caron Simply Soft in Neon Orange
100°-104°F (38°-40°C)	Bright Red	Caron Simply Soft in Red
105°-109°F (41°-42°C)	Dark Red	Caron Simply Soft in Autumn Red
<110°F (43°C)	Black	Caron Simply Soft in Black****

Yarn changes I would make if I knit my temperature blanket again using this color key:

* I would use Caron Simply Soft in Grape. I think it would have been a prettier purple.

** I would use Caron Simply Soft in Sunshine. I should have used the same brand yarn throughout the whole blanket. The yarn I chose was just a little thicker and stiffer than I like, and I had to use quite a bit of it so you can feel and see the difference in yarn.

*** I would have used Caron Simply Soft in Light Country Peach for all the same reason I just mentioned above. I just happened to have a ton of this yarn already so I figured I would use it.

**** I did not use black for my over 110°F (43°C) days and I wish I did! I used the bright red and dark red together and it is so thick and bulky, I hate it!

Fun Fact: Even though I made this color key myself, I still did not have a single white or light pink row on my 2023 knit temperature blanket!

2026 40th Birthday Temperature Color Key

High Temperature	Yarn Color	Yarn I Used (Caron Simply Soft)
>32°F (0°C)	Dark Grey	Charcoal Heather
40°-44°F (4°-6°C)	Rose	Victoria Rose
45°-49°F (7°-9°C)	Pink	Fuchsia
50°-54°F (10°-12°C)	Purple	Purple
55°-59°F (13°-15°C)	Dark Purple	Plum Perfect
60°-64°F (16°-18°C)	Blue	Ocean
65°-69°F (19°-20°C)	Dark Blue	Dark Country Blue
70°-74°F (21°-23°C)	Green	Kelly Green
75°-79°F (24°-26°C)	Dark Green	Dark Sage
80°-84°F (27°-28°C)	Yellow	Autumn Maize
85°-89°F (29°-31°C)	Gold	Gold
90°-94°F (32°-34°C)	Orange	Persimmon
95°-99°F (35°-37°C)	Dark Orange	Pumpkin
100°-104°F (38°-40°C)	Dark Red	Autumn Red
105°-109°F (41°-42°C)	Burgundy	Burgundy
110°F-114°F	Dark Brown	Chocolate
<115°F (43°C)	Black	Black

Unless we have a cold snap in my area, I will most likely never use grey or the pinks!

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You can follow along with my all year on my Instagram! – Join in if you like, it is never too late!

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Knit Temperature Blanket Tutorial

The Needles

Next, you’ll need the right tools for knitting. The needle you are going to be using is circular 40 inch (100cm) knitting needle size US 3 (3.25mm). For this blanket pattern, I used my favorite needles, ChiaoGoo Red Lace Knitting Needles in US Size 3 (3.25mm). After trying many types, from plastic to bamboo to cheap metal ones, these ChiaoGoo needles are by far my top choice. If you’re building your knitting supply collection, I highly recommend the ChiaoGoo Twist Stainless Steel Interchangeable Set. While they are a bit pricey, they’re truly the only set of needles you’ll ever need.

If you are following along with my 2026 40th Birthday Temperature Blanket, you will need to grab a 40 inch (100cm) knitting needle in size US 4 (3.50mm). And of course I bought a new cable needle for this and picked up my favorite ChiaoGoo Red Lace Knitting Needles in US Size 4 (3.50mm).

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The Other Stuff

A few additional tools can make this knit temperature blanket even easier. You’ll likely want to have some stitch markers on hand. Placing a marker after a set number of stitches helps you count in smaller sections, especially helpful when knitting blankets. A yarn bowl keeps my yarn from tangling, a yarn winder makes perfect center-pull yarn cakes, and a fabric shaver helps create crisp lines and makes the pattern really pop!

Knit Temperature Blanket Tutorial

Temperature Tracking

You’ll also need a method to track your daily temperatures. Choose whichever tracking method suits you best. To help you begin your temperature blanket project, I’ve created a free PDF temperature tracker that you can download and use. This tracker will make it easier to record the daily temperatures and keep your project organized. Just download the file below, print it out or import it into your favorite digital notebook (I used Good Notes) and start noting the temperatures to create your own unique, beautiful blanket! Download the file below.

There are several ways you can track the temperature for your area. Personally, I used a mix of my local weather forecast on the morning news, my weather app, and, when I fell behind on recording in 2023, I would check wunderground.com for the weather history of the days I missed. One great feature of this website (which I have no affiliation with, by the way, I just really like it) is that it allows you to look up weather data from any year. For example, if you wanted to make a temperature blanket as a gift for someone’s birthday, you could go back to the year they were born and create a blanket that reflects the temperatures from that year!

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You can follow along with me all year on my TikTok too! I just started over there – Join in if you like, it is never too late!

@amandahknitanddesign

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Me too! Lets do this…

Knit Temperature Blanket – Free Tutorial

Skill Level: Beginner! Make this your first knitting project!

Materials:

• 1-3 skeins of yarn in each color (use your best judgement for the average temps in your area)
• 2023 Temp Blanket – Circular 40 inch (100cm) Knitting Needle Size US 3 (3.25mm)
• 2026 40th Birthday Temp Blanket – Circular 40 inch (100cm) Knitting Needles in US Size 4 (3.50mm)
• Stitch Markers

Abbreviations

• K – Knit
• P – Purl
• RS – Right Side (the front of the blanket)
• WS – Wrong Side (the back of the blanket)
• S – Stockinette Stitch (Knit the RS, Purl the WS)
• x – Times the stitch is repeated
• * – Stitch Repeat

Stitch Video Tutorials

• Long Tail Cast on
• Knit Stitch
• Purl Stitch
• Changing Color and Weaving in Your Ends
• Binding Off – Coming Soon!

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2023 Knit Temperature Blanket Tutorial

Disclaimer: This blanket took me 18 months to knit, and I learned a ton along the way! In this tutorial, I’ll be sharing my experience, including what I did and what I would do differently if I were to knit this blanket again. Keep in mind, this is intended as a guide, not a full pattern, and your blanket may vary.

Cast on: Between 300-350 stitches depending on how wide you want it. I did 290 stitches and it is pretty narrow. As long as there is an even number of stitches for this border, you can cast on as many stitches as you like.

The border for my temperature blanket is a simple 1×1 rib as follows:

(RS) Row 1: K1, P1*

(WS) Row 2: K1, P1*

Repeat this for the first 16 days of your blanket.

From here to the last 16 days, you’ll be working in stockinette stitch (Knit on the right side, Purl on the wrong side) with a 1×1 rib border on the first and last 20 stitches of each row. Make sure to add your new colors on the right side (RS) of the blanket so that all the ends are on the wrong side (WS). On days where the temperature is the same color as the previous day, simply work back and forth as you would in regular blanket knitting.

When I made my temperature blanket, I wanted clean, distinct lines between colors, so I chose to knit two rows per day—one knit row and one purl row. This approach ended up making my blanket over 7 feet long! In hindsight, I should have only done one row per color.

Knit Temperature Blanket – Free Tutorial

The Unofficial “Pattern”

Cast On between 300-350 Stitches

Rows 1-16: (K1, P1)*

Rows 17-333: (K1, P1*)20x , S*310x, (K1, P1*)20x

Rows 334-365: (K1, P1)*

Bind off, weave in ends! I prefer to weave in my ends as I go, but for a 1×1 rib, this can make the border stitches a bit stiff. Feel free to weave in your ends in whatever way works best for you.

2026 40th Birthday Temperature Blanket Pattern Tutorial

I am writing this on January 5, 2026 which means I am only 5 days into this Temperature Blanket. This blanket is a knit with me pattern and each day I am walking you through the pattern on my socials. I will say that I am making my life much easier with this one and only knitting ONE row per day, which will make this blanket about half the length of my last one. I am also leaving out the border this time. I will crochet one around the finished blanket in January 2027.

To start, I casted on 320 stitches using my January 1st color.

January 2nd I used a different color and knit straight across.

January 3rd had a similar temperature so I did not need to change colors so I purled on the backside.

January 4th was a little cooler so I need to use a different color. It is VERY IMPORTANT that anytime you use a different color, you start KNITTING on the front of the blanket. Otherwise you will end up with ugly colored dashed lines on the front of your blanket. If you are using the same color several days in a row, you can just knit and purl to make a stockinette stitch.

This temperature blanket, like the last one, is being created free hand. I am not following anyone’s patterns or color chart. I did not make a gauge swatch so I will only know how this turns out once I am done. I have had some people express concerned with the length since I am only knitting one row per day, saying it will be too short. My last one was two row per day and it tuned out so long and heavy and cumbersome! I am going more for a smaller throw blanket I can keep on my couch. I DO NOT know what the final dimensions will be, so if you are knitting along with me, we will all find out together in the end!

Check back regularly if you choose to follow along with me. I will post a monthly update on how it is going!

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I hope you enjoy creating your knit temperature blanket as much as I did! If you make one, I’d love to see your finished work. Feel free to tag me on my socials. There, you can also find 30-second video tutorials demonstrating how to do every stitch, cast-on, and end-weaving technique used in this temperature blanket.

If you have any questions about my pattern or anything in this post, don’t hesitate to reach out, I’d be happy to chat! Be sure to sign up for blog notifications so you never miss an update.