25 October, 2013

Doll's Ripple blanket

I started this ripple blanket because I've always wanted to make one but didn't want a big (and expensive!) project, plus I thought I'd be able to use up a goodly amount of my left-overs from my granny square experiment. As it turns out I ended up buying another ball of pink and one of the light green, so I'm not sure I entirely succeeded on the 'using up' bit! I thought I had heaps but crochet uses up wool like it's going out of style. The pattern came from Cute & Easy Crochet, which my friend Jess gave me when I was in Canada, but it's a pretty standard pattern with three increase stitches and three decrease stitches to get the zigs and zags.

Ripple blanket

I really enjoyed doing this, it's fun switching colours so often and using such bright ones was cheering. I think a larger blanket would be somewhat garish, but it's fun in this size. Originally I was going to make the cushion as per the instructions but it was going to be really small so part way through I thought I'd make it a doll's blanket. But then I changed my mind because Hazel is, in her own words "not much of a doll girl" and it wouldn't get used, so I finished it off square. About a week later we got an invitiation to our young friend Samantha's third birthday party and the doll's blanket idea immediately sprang to mind because she IS a doll kind of girl, big time. She loves toting them about and putting them to bed, the whole nine yards. So out came the ripples again! You can tell I had to abandon my repeat of six colours but I think it's fine. If I did something like this again though, I'd start off random so that using up one colour wouldn't matter so much.

Ripple blanket

Here is the finished bed. Since she's a girl on the go I thought perhaps a portable arrangement would be good, and I found this laundry basket thing at the Warehouse. Nice and bright, lots of handles, and it fitted the blanket fairly well. I made a simple box mattress, two flat sheets (crisp white of course), and a comfy pillow. I would totally sleep in here myself if I fitted!


Doll's bed with ripple blanket

 I can't wait to give it to her on Sunday!

14 October, 2013

Rada the rat

I've been working on this guy for quite awhile, Ravelry says I started in April, but at long last I'm done! The main hold-up was running out of yarn about half way through, and it took me ages to get into town to the shop where I'd bought it originally. Luckily the new skeins were exactly the same and I can't even tell where I stopped. The other major hold-up was my issues with finishing things and it's been 95% done for quite awhile now, only lacking 2/3 of an arm. It's not a hard pattern really, probably advanced beginner/intermediate, it's just involved and takes a lot of rounds!

Rada the rat

He's really just so super-cute I think I'm going to have to keep him for myself! More info on the pattern etc. over on Ravelry.

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