rippling away

I have finally finished Annie's blanket. I must admit I am glad. Ravelry tells me I started in November last year. I have truly honed my procrastinating skills!

I used Stylecraft Special DK for this blanket. It seems to be the yarn of choice for many blanket masters. I imagined that the blanket would get plenty of (ab)use in its time and decided soft squishy wool should be used for only my very own carefully loved blanket. Annie didn't care one way other but she was very specific about the colours she wanted the blanket to be. I was sighing not so subtly when she showed me her virtual shopping basket. How can someone who shares 50% of their genes with me have such a different idea of what is beautiful? It is truly astonishing. It is truly wonderful. Imagine how boring the world would be if we all liked the same things. Annie wrote down in which order I was to use the colours, again, totally different from what I would have done with the same colours. She decided not the use the blue second from the left in the bottom row.




Annie wanted a ripple blanket. I sighed some more. The thought of long tedious rows made me tired just thinking about them. She chose the Attic24 ripple blanket pattern, which surely is the ultimate ripple pattern to go to. The pattern is vey well written and I can only recommend it. Lucy is definitely a queen of the crochet blanket.

Naturally I followed Annie's instructions carefully because I wanted her to love the finished blanket. 

I started off ok but then spent many months procrastinating, every now and then I talked myself into a week of 'just working on the blanket' in the evenings. I said to myself that I could have a slice of toast with nutella if I managed two rows in one night, or anything I took a fancy to. It was not easy. One stripe a day seemed like the most I could manage. I just don't get the relaxing ripple effect, only the are-we-nearly-there ripple effect unfortunately. 

At the beginning of August, I was finally there, I had completed the last stripe. I was singing and dancing, inwardly, as to not embarrass my children. Another prolonged period of procrastination began as I was pondering the border of the blanket. I imagined it would take me forever, or at least until Christmas. Then I remembered Annie's Birthday in September and gave myself a bit of a talking-to. I finished the border in less that two days. Annie wanted a simple border and she wanted the wavy top and bottom of the blanket to stay wavy. Easy.









Looking at the photos, I am really pleased with the blanket. It does look lovely, doesn't it? I particularly like the subtle border and the little 'v' shape the border creates in the stripes.  The blanket is now washed and folded, awaiting Annie's Birthday. It is not exactly a surprise but I look forward to wrapping it anyway. I hope Annie will be pleased with her blanket. She is a pre-teenage girl after all. I also hope she is not reading this blog post. She is too busy organising her party. I hope.

Final thoughts. 

Would I make a ripple blanket again? I am not sure. I love stripy blankets but find the long rows a bit mind-numbing. 

Would I use Stylecraft Special DK again? Probably not. It doesn't feel squishy soft and doesn't smell right. When I stroke the blanket, my fingertips seem to be covered in dozens of microscopic hooks. I don't like to wear a fleece for the same reason. I don't know what it is, it has to be sheep for me, or maybe another wool producing animal. The yarn is great value though and I purchased the shade card because I thought I could make a granny square blanket for picnics. Some day.

As always, thanks for stopping by. Cheerio for now! Cx

Comments

  1. A wonderful job you have done, I am sure Annie is going to treasure it give yourself a big pat on the back for getting done, I do like the wavy edges :-)

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  2. Oh how I love ripple blanket! It does look wonderful and I'm sure your daughter will LOVE it! I made a baby blanket with Merino Yarn and I loved it. I don't like the feeling of acrylic yarn either. I'd rather invest a little more money but then have a cuddly blanket! :)
    But it really was worth all the work! :)

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  3. There is a time and a place for acrylics and for children it is perfect, hard wearing and completely machine washable. I love Annie's colour choices it really does look wonderful.

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  4. The blanket is lovely and please tell Annie that I love her colour choices. I'm not good at creating a nice sequence of colours- this was actually the reason I gave up on the granny ripple blanket I started last year. It was just never right no matter how many times I rearranged all the colours. Maybe I should have asked Annie for advice! And I hope she has a great birthday too. And well done to you for getting it finished. I know what you mean about the mind numbingness of doing the same stitch row after row. I have great admiration for those who crochet blankets. X

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  5. It's lovely Christina, you did a great job and well done to your daughter for her colour choices and their order. I hope she has a wonderful birthday. Have a lovely week. Jane xx

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  6. It's a lovely blanket Christina, and I"m sure Annie will love it! And good for you for sticking with it, even if you did have to bribe yourself with toast and nutella. :-)

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  7. It does look beautiful and the colours really work. I made a ripple blanket in poor wool (for me!) and although lovely it is very heavy and I am dreading washing it. I made a granny stripe blanket in the stylecraft yarn and although it looks okay I know what you mean about the feel of it. I think Annie will love her blanket!

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  8. I laughed at the wonderment of your different tastes - same with my mother who favours colours I wouldn't have near me in clothing or decor and you're right - it's good that we're all different although I've often wondered where that comes from....

    Great blanket - I've chickened out of big blankies and only do lap rugs now.....

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  9. I really like it, what stitch did you use for the edging? I like doing ripples, but you're right they can be mind numbing.

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  10. It's absolutely lovely Christina, well done you. There's a lot of staying power needed for a blanket isn't there. I know Annie will love it, and no doubt keep it always. I'm using Drops Lima for a blanket at the moment, which is nice and not too pricey. I can highly recommend it, it's soft and deliciously warm. CJ xx

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  11. Woohoo - done! I love a ripple, but its true- it can make you feel seasick after a few long rows! My 9 year old daughter gives your daughter's colour choices a thumbs up. She would have chosen the same. I'm about to start a blanket for my 11 year old and I'm going to let him choose his colours. I am a bit leary, but it's his and he gets to decide. I am going to "crochet along" with Sandra @ Cherry Heart. You should check it out: http://sandra-cherryheart.blogspot.ca/2015/09/spice-of-life-crochet-along.html

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  12. Lovely to finish a blanket, isn't it? I like Annie's choice of colours, although I wouldn't go for them myself. How lovely that other people would choose such different colours!

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  13. It's a bloody triumph Christina. I love the last picture of it. What a glorious thing. I quite like her colour choices. She's a lucky girl to have a Mum that can create such a lovely thing.
    Leanne x

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  14. It's really beautiful, Christina! I love it. The colors are gorgeous and it looks so cheerful for her. I'm sure she will use it with love and admiration. Well done.

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  15. Christina, the blanket looks really nice. Having never knitted something that uses more than 4 skeins and not knowing how to crochet, I am very impressed. I can imagine the relief (and pride) at having completed it. You definitely deserve an entire jar of Nutella! I am all about the wool also - I don't even like knitting with cotton - there isn't enough texture to it.

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  16. It looks really great!!! I am sure that Annie will love and treasure it for many years to come!!! I like the colour combination, but like you they are not colours that I would have chosen myself. It is good to do things that are outside of our choice sometimes isn't it! xx

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  17. Well done!! A blanket is such a big undertaking, It looks wonderful. Some people just seem to slip these off the hook in no time. I'm not one of those people. It looks fab and I'm sure Annie will love it. I love the simple border too. I have also got very good at procrastination, I have a half finished granny stripe blanket in the cupboard I haven't touched for weeks.

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  18. Well done on finally staring it down and getting it finished! Annie will love it. It's an odd feeling, I can't exactly describe it, making something that you haven't actually chosen the colours yourself. A bit like holding someone else's baby! xx

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  19. It's fabulous and I love Annie's choice of colours, they work so well together. Well done for getting it finished, I started a Granny Stripe blanket earlier this year and it's been sat in the crochet basket all summer, I must get on with it again. Ripples are my favourite blankets to crochet though, I love getting in to the rhythm of the stitch and there aren't so many pesky ends to darn is as there are with granny squares.

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  20. looks great, she's a lucky girl x

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  21. Do you know Christina that I am still using a granny square blanket that my mum crocheted for me for my first house 30 years ago. I re-did the border when I taught myself to crochet last November and made a few repairs here and there but I still love it. The colours are watermelon pink, coral, cream and off-White, favourite colours still. Hope Annie gets as much pleasure from her blanket. You are a very good mum to your daughter.

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  22. You've done an excellent job, and I love the colours. I am a little envious of those with the patience to knit/crochet a blanket, though it's been on my list to do for years.

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  23. Your blanket is amazing. I'm sure Annie will love her blanket - the colours are great. She has a good eye! x

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  24. Fab blanket, I have never made a full size blanket as I think I too, would really struggle with long rows. I like Annie's choice of colours. I bet she will always love it X

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  25. I love the blanket...it looks amazing and your daughter has chosen the colours so well as they look fantastic together.
    Marianne x

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  26. The blanket is really lovely. I know what you mean about the Stylecraft Special DK. I've used it for a few blankets too - very handy and not too expensive but it's still acrylic. I've recently finished a cotton blanket for our bed. It cost £160 for the yarn!!

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Thank you for visiting and leaving a comment, I love to hear from you, I really do. I sometimes reply by email but I am not all that reliable... Christina xx

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