First imagined in the Winter of 2013, the Geek-A-Long (GAL) was born from unrestrained idealism and way too much coffee. The idea was ridiculous: Release a new pattern every week all year, based on pop-culture nerdiness. At the end of the year, we would join 48 double-sided squares together to make a massive blanket. Our Fandom Opus would be sent to the Child’s Play Charity Dinner Auction in Seattle, and the proceeds of the sale would go towards providing video games and other entertainment to children in hospitals and domestic violence shelters.

When Megan-Anne cast on that first square, she had no idea what the GAL would turn into. Seven years, seven blankets, and nearly 300 squares later, the Geek-A-Long has grown far beyond us. The community has grown each year and based on our square download statistics there are GAL knitters in every corner of the world. Your generosity is astounding. The GAL community has raised over $10,000 for Child’s play with individual donations and proceeds raised from the sale of the auctioned blankets.

We wanted to do something to make 2020 memorable. Admittedly, that decision was made in 2019, and 2020 doesn’t need help standing out. Still, we wanted to shake things up. When Megan-Anne finished knitting that first blanket in 2014, we never imagined we’d still be making them in 2020. We are blown away by how much love and support the project has gotten and couldn’t have predicted it. We want you to see Eight Bit, the Geek-A-Long Sweater MKAL, for what it is: a love letter from us to the entire GAL community. This free, premium pattern is without a doubt Megan-Anne’s best work. This labor of love took almost six months to design, and she couldn’t be happier with the results.

The original Geek-A-Long (GAL) is an annual yearlong mystery blanket knit/crochet along. With nearly 300 nerdy afghan squares to choose from, the patterns are free and anyone can jump in at any time. Join thousands of people across the globe in an active online community to make your very own geeky blanket in either the recommended size (24 squares), on hard mode (48 squares), or nightmare mode (156 squares using fingering weight yarn)!

Getting Started
If you’re new to the Geek-A-Long or nervous about getting started, read this comprehensive article Jac wrote that will help you get started on your nerdy adventure: Starting the Geek-A-Long. There you will also be able to download printables to help you keep track of which squares you plan to knit. To view a list and links to all of the squares we have released, click here.

The Geek-A-Long supports Child’s Play Charity, which provides games and consoles to children in hospitals and domestic violence shelters. The sample blankets made by Lattes & Llamas in 2014-2019 were auctioned off at the annual Child’s Play Charity gala in December each year. Participants are encouraged to donate to CP Charity via this portal in lieu of paying for the patterns, but it isn’t required. Additionally, to help the cause even more, Lattes & Llamas donates $1.00 to Child’s Play Charity for each skein of Geek-A-Long Yarn sold. Here at Lattes & Llamas we believe that when knitters give back, everyone wins.

Since its conception in 2014, the Geek-A-Long has raised over $10,000 for Child’s Play Charity.