Tag: afghans

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The Borg Afghan

The Borg Afghan. That’s what this afghan is becoming. It is part of the Borg collective. I feel I should name it Loctus, Jr or something.

All of a sudden it is September and I have to get a move on with finishing this afghan. Not only do I want this wedding present to be given before the wedding, I also want to offer a custom made afghan in the shop so it needs to be done for that.

There are 20 squares in this afghan and I am just on square 5. 5 of 20. Borg. And I feel an act of science fiction is needed to get this thing across the finish line on time.

This afghan is a mixture of three sources: my own mind, and two sampler afghan patterns: The Caron Sampler afghan and Leisure Arts Sampler Afghans books. See? A collective right there. Melded together to create something new. I am also frogging a WIP afghan to make these squares so assimilation is going on all over the place. There should be a star ship for me to captain.

I have been resisting the urge to buy more yarn. I really don’t need it. If I needed it, there would be no hesitation or pouring over what to buy. I would just go get it. This is a clue to me that it is an emotional purchase. I can probably get the am rush by looking through the domesticated yarn in the closet. There would be some pleasant surprises in there.  I am taking this as a sign of maturity. Let me have my moment.

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Looking Back

I’ve been looking back at some old photos of things I made. Mostly I do it to free up some space. I eliminate them 100 at a time and it amazes me there are so many photos that I can get rid of them at such a rate.

I ran across this hat today:

These are the kind of photos that make me want to pick up my hook and create some magic.

And I am creaing magic with my needles and hooks. I’m excited about the things I am working on. I am letting listings in the shop expire and I’ve added some planner pages and stickers.

There’s some new patterns I’m working on. Looking back helps with the road ahead.

I am working on the crochet version of the Kravitz Blanket Scarf. The jury is out if I like the knit version better but the crochet version is coming out beautifully,.

I also have some stocking caps in the works and they are fun and beautiful. Some have already sold so I am working on making more. And there are 29 skeins of cotton yarn waiting for me to get to them and turn them into spring and summer accessories. I am looking forward to that.

I am hoping all these things turns my shop into a year round thing and not just for the fall and winter and I am also hoping the ready to ship and pattern sections become the bulk of what I do. That would make it easier as I get older. 

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The Finish Line

 

I can see the finish line for the blanket. Which means I will continue until I reach the desired six feet mark or until it’s time to leave for the party. The first update, the blanket was in the infant stages. 

Remember this from last month? The time when the world was new and dreams were tangible? The good old days.

 

 

 

A few scant weeks later and here we are. As you can see, it takes up the space. It no longer fits on the small table but it was fun trying to get it to. But I know that doesn’t really give a good look to the stitches, though you can definitely see the texture. 

 

How about this one? I can’t believe how the light changes in the same room only a few feet apart. This is taken without the flash and the colors are not that bright.

But you can see it. It might seem like it’s big enough but it’s still too much of a rectangle. Needs to fill out a little more and it will be good to go.

 

 

 

 

 

 

In other news, I have been using chunky yarn and made two cowls and have a third one on the hook.This is using the Buttercream Luxe Craft Alpaca. I have the idea of making a less chunky but still chunky version of this cowl using the Tea Cakes. This is using two strands of yarn. That makes it very chunky and cozy but also makes it very expensive.

 

I’ve also started using Ice Yarns Glitz! It’s taken a while to get there but it’s on the needles and the work has progressed a far cry from what you see here. 

I’ve also started doing some embellishments but haven’t done any photos but they are coming. I did say I was ready to start doing the 2020 stuff, right?

I still have two more things to start. I pulled some cotton yarn to start my market bag – one of two market bags; one knit, one crochet. And then I need to start the fingerless gloves.

Did I mention we also just purchased a condo? Nope, not busy over here. Not at all.The finish line seems to have moved.

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Happy New Year

Don’t judge me. It took me a minute to remember I haven’t yet posted this year. I was doing the last few orders and the final was shipped off a few days ago and now I am free…

…to start working on 2020 items. I did take a few hours off and played some Candy Crush Soda but then it was back to work. Though there are no deadlines so the work is a little more relaxed.

I have three items on needles or hooks – not counting the afghan I need to finish for Mr. Honey’s family gathering next Sunday. It is a crap shoot to see how finished it gets. I measured it yesterday and it was a little over 2 feet long. I’m headed for 6 feet. It’s 3 rows to the inch. 

Let’s do the math, shall we?

It’s 31 inches as of this morning. We want to get to 60. 60-31=29. 3 rows to the inch. 29×3=87 rows. 9 days. 87/9=9.666. I think the 666 is significant. 

This seems doable. I will show you the process I am making in another post. When I have the camera upstairs. But 9 rows of 171 stitches could be manageable. Someone wake me up from this dream.

It should also come to no surprise that I changed the pattern. The intention to do the fast and easy blanket was real. But you all know I am a chronic changer. But hey, it’s still an afghan and it’s still being crocheted, so that’s something. I did think about how to create knit stitches but time didn’t allow it.

I will be more than happy to post my version right here on the blog when it is done.You really should have known I would change it. I mean, it’s a baby blanket and I just told you I have 170+ stitches to a row. Do you think that would have been my only change? It’s like you don’t know me at all.

As I was saying, I have three things currently going and two more items that will probably get their start today. I have a Claire Outlander cowl started (it’s way too basic to even call it a pattern but I will also post how I did it and you won’t have to buy it.) I also have another cowl and then some embellishments – currently hearts. The first of the fingerless mitts will be started and the first of the market bags.

I have my first orders of 2020. I kicked one off pretty quickly and the other was a pattern. I’m excited for the new patterns coming. Of the five items that are going on, only the embellishments are the only things I’m not doing from scratch. There are other things I want to do that I will use a pattern (as far as my condition allows.)

All in all, the beginning of the year looks really hopeful and creative. So Happy New Year!

Looking forward to it. I don’t do resolutions. Do you?

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New Year’s Eve

Sometimes stash diving is a good thing. I have almost three skeins of this Caron Big Cake in Pistachio Macron and was wondering what to do with it. I’ve made a long scarf with it and that’s about it. 

I started the family afghan for the giveaway but I wasn’t liking how it was looking. I was using a solid color and I thought it would look better in a stripe or a variegated yarn. I was thinking of buying some when I realized I had to have something in the stash. I saw it when I was looking for something else. Perfect.

 

There should be enough to make a nice sized blanket. Each cake has 600+ yards and I have two and a half. It might make it to lapghan size; which is fine.

My December yarn haul is almost complete. I am contemplating some cakes from Paintbox because they sent a nice 20% off coupon and I can get a nice 5 ball sample for less than $25. So tempting. I know I don’t need it…but still.

We’re headed out to the movies for our annual New Year’s Eve celebration. See a movie that starts in the old year and ends in the new. I have a dozen orders to get out. And some new ideas I want to get to.

Hope this new year is all you need it to be!

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It Is Finished

For a moment I didn’t know what I was going to do with myself. It is finished. We were out last night on our date night. Which was later than usual because Mr. Honey volunteers the second Thursday of each month and we eat afterwards. I told him I didn’t know what to do with my mornings when I remembered his family get together is in January. For the past five years, I’ve made an afghan to give away. Everyone’s name goes into some kind of receptacle and one name gets pulled out. You can’t win it two years in a row.

I have not yet started the afghan – I usually have one lying around but not this year. So, one will have to be made fresh. I was fretting about which blanket to make when my Google feed showed a really lovely one. Which I did not bother to look at right at that moment. I would have to scour Google to find it and I did on the YouTube. It’s here in case you want to know what it is. It’s a simple two row repeat. Which means I only made minor adjustments. I just don’t know how to leave well enough alone.

First, it’s sized for a baby blanket and I want something bigger.So I increased the chain. Second, I am almost always wary of just jumping into pattern rows so I like to make a base row. So while the pattern says one thing, I made a  row of single crochet just to make myself feel better. The row also serves another purpose. I am using one skein of Caron One Pound Century in Golden Yellow. I remember when I bought it years ago. I got two of them. I know where one is. I don’t think I have the other one. I have approx. 800 yards to make this work. The base row is so I don’t have to make the larger edge she worked into her blanket. One row of single crochet, then sc in the first and last two stitches, should give me enough of an edge.

It is not lost on me that I am doing a somewhat mindless crochet project, albeit an important one, right after doing a sweater that caused ingrown hairs in my brain. My breathing is somewhat normal. Though I am using a Tunisian afghan crochet hook to make it. Hey, it was was the only one available. Heaven forbid I go downstairs, get a hook and come back up.

I am expecting a new laptop to arrive today. I had to order a new one because the b on this one takes forever to type. It is worn out. In fact, I have a line of b’s sitting here in a row and I go get one when I need one so I can rock the flow. It didn’t occur to me to just make a few then copy and paste as needed. Then again, if FedEx holds true, this is the only time today I will need to worry about it. Though I will hold on to them because this can be the backup laptop and I will need them.

bbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbb bbbbbbb BBBBBBBBBBBB Might as well leave them here. Just in case.

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Sibling Rivalry

These afghans belong to my elder brother and eldest sister, respectively. I have four siblings; two of each, and they each have a afghan from me.

Except my elder sister, doesn’t believe that to be true. With each afghan that went to a sibling she reminds me that she doesn’t have an afghan.

“You got the first one.” I remind her. “You were the one that started this. Because I gave you one; I had to make one for everyone else.”

“You didn’t make me an afghan.”
“I was at your house when I was making an afghan and you asked for. I gave it to you.”
“But I used that one in my classroom.”
“You were free to do that.” I said. “Because it was your afghan. Otherwise, you would have taken my afghan and put it in your classroom.”
“I don’t understand.”

This is how it goes. This isn’t the first time sibling rivalry has shown itself when I give an afghan to a sibling. After giving the afghan to Carole (elder sister), I decided it would be nice if they each got one and decided the best way to go was to go in order. So, I asked Vel (eldest sister) her favorite colors. I made the mistake of asking on a conference call with the other sibs. So they wanted to know why she was getting one. Going in order. That seemed to calm the beasts a bit.

When Rick (elder brother) got his, we were all at his house in Phoenix for Thanksgiving. There was some discussion about how much effort I put into each one and that was somehow an indicator of who I liked best. There was a mention that Carole was never asked her favorite color the way everyone else was. Because you asked for the afghan I was making so you must have liked the colors enough. (That explanation didn’t fly.)

Recently, Facebook did a memory of Vel sending me a photo of her afghan on her sofa. I ain’t gonna lie, that afghan was a corner to corner and was a PITA. It looked good on her sofa and that was a saving grace. But along with the memory of the photo were to comments where Carole declared she never got the afghan in the picture so it must have been intercepted on the way to her since the post said my sister sent me a photo of her afghan.

“You have another sister.”
“What’s that got to do with anything?”
“It’s her afghan.”
“There’s something wrong with you.”

It was a pleasure to make all their afghans and give it to them. I felt as if I was given the gift. Despite the weirdness that comes from DNA, I know they all appreciate them. Will I make another one for Carole because she used her in a classroom in a school she no longer teaches? Nope.

I’m the youngest. I can get away with bratty moments.
 

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Thanks In Advance

Hello lovely afghan, look at you sitting there all jeweled toned and elegant. I think you are beautiful and will be even more so when you are finished.

And therein lies the rub. I touched this beauty yesterday and got its hopes up that I was going to work on it some more. The truth is, I don’t even know where the yarns for it are. I haven’t worked on this for months. Months. And there’s another unfinished afghan in the same spot. They live next to each other in the living room and I am doing something of a spring cleaning of the living room (yes, it’s summer. It’s progress, trust me.) and I touched them both but just to move them out the way.

But they imparted such a feeling of guilt. Look at it. It will be beautiful. If I can ever get around to finishing it. And now, since the yarn is free ranging in the yarn room, it will be nigh near impossible to get them all together again.

So, I am asking it for forgiveness and saying thanks in advance because it is the nature of knits to be forgiving – except when they aren’t – but that’s rare. There are times when the yarn in a project just won’t cooperate. This is one of the reasons I tend to stay with yarns that are at least a 3. Though I have been known to work with thinner yarns, they have an attitude. Could be they’re hungry.

The way things work, I will eventually be able to complete it. I will run across the olive green that’s the cornerstone to completion. It will be more of a fate thing than a planned thing and that will be fine, too. But touching it yesterday brought up longing with the guilt. That must mean it has more of my heart than I realized. And where the heart is; the knitting will follow. One day.