When you first begin researching temperature blankets it’s normal to have lots of questions. This is understandable because it can be a very intimidating and confusing project. To help you out, I’ve put together answers to 5 common temperature blanket questions.
(Note: if you’re still not completely sure what temperature blankets are, see this post first. In it I explain in more detail what a temperature blanket is.)
1. Will my blanket be really big?
This is probably one of the most common temperature blanket questions. The answer is, it depends. I have seen several projects done that were larger blankets. I’ve also seen several that were smaller types of projects. It’s a matter of personal preference. Definitely don’t be scared off if you don’t want a huge project. There are ways to restrict the size like choosing a certain stitch, pattern, or yarn or using motifs. You can also pick a project that isn’t a blanket, like a stuffed animal or a scarf. Or you can pick a technique that allows you to keep it smaller like cross stitch.
2. How much yarn should I get?
At the minimum, you should get one skein of each color. This would get you started for the year and would make sure you don’t overbuy your yarn. This is best done with yarn that is either so unique that you can’t possibly get more of it or with yarn that has consistent dye lots and color availability (though you can’t always count on this, as I mention in this post).
Yarn and individual colors do get discontinued, even in popular lines like Red Heart Super Saver. To be prepared for that you want to try to have enough for the entire year. For a nine color, “normal”-sized blanket, I would get around 500 to 600 yards of each color of yarn. This should be enough for the entire year, even with a bigger blanket. The more colors you have, the less yarn you need of each. The opposite is true if you pick less colors.
3. How do I pick colors for my blanket?
Picking colors for a temperature blanket is much like picking colors for any other blanket. If you’re giving the blanket away, you could use the favorite colors of the recipient. If you’re keeping it, you can pick colors to match your décor. You could also pick different shades of your favorite color or colors. You could also use a set of colors you discovered from randomly collecting paint chips. If you’re really a weather nerd, you could use temperature scale colors like the ones meteorologists use.
While picking colors, don’t worry about having perfect scale color transitions from low to high or high to low. It’s very rare, if not impossible, to have a location that provides temperatures that transition exactly from one color bracket to another in order. If you want perfectly transitioning row colors, you’ll have to pick a different kind of project.
4. Where do I get my temperatures?
There are lots of different places to get your temperatures. If you’re a bit of a weather nerd like me and have your own weather station, you can get temperatures from there. You can also get them from your favorite weather app on your phone or your preferred weather website. The website I use most often (other than NOAA’s) is Accuweather. If you’re looking for past temperatures you can contact your country’s weather bureau (e. g., NOAA) or search for “historical temperature for [your city]”.
5. What pattern should I use?
I’m a little partial to people using patterns specifically labeled as temperature projects, but only because I’ve written some of my own. (You can buy my flagship temperature blanket pattern here.) For the most part, you can use almost any pattern that you like as a temperature project. If you want help adapting a pattern, check out this post I wrote.
Temperature Blanket Bonus Question: Do I have to use temperatures?
You most certainly do not.
Other ideas I’ve seen for blankets:
Sky blanket (what the sky looks like each day)
Weather blanket (what the weather is like each day)
Book genre blanket (what kind of book you finish reading)
Weight loss blanket (how much weight you lost each day or week)
Mood blanket (what your mood is each day)
So there you have it! 5 common temperature blanket questions, plus a bonus, answered. You probably noticed that a lot of the answers were matters of opinion. Part of the difficulty of learning about and/or teaching about temperature blankets is that there aren’t really any “right” ways to do them.
If you’re ready to plan your temperature blanket and would like a little help doing so, my 4 Day Email Course walks you through planning it one day at a time!
If you prefer a different format, I also offer an e-book to help you plan your project.