Monday, November 24, 2014

Daisy meadow blanket

I miraculously finished this blanket Thursday evening and spent all weekend waiting for the sun to shine so I could snap some photos. The sun did shine amid the snow and I took full advantage.



























What a work in progress. Daisy began in March as a sort of in-between project, with forty-nine mustard circles, turned daisies, turned squares (in Sea Mist from Lion Brand), that then increased in September to number sixty-four to form more of a lap blanket than a baby blanket. My inspiration came from here but I wanted a more neutral, meadow-like color combination.


Internal debate ensued on how to join but was settled with a standard raised single stitch. The border consists of a row of double crochet (in Dusty) and two rows of half-double crochet (in the Dusty and the Taupe). Again, debate about whether to finish with a single stitch of the mustard, a color I quite like, but decided against. I'll use that color more prominently for another project.







































It snowed two weeks ago and only just began to melt this weekend, it was that cold and then it snowed again on top of the frozen snow. Super fun stuff. At church on Sunday, poor little man's hands were beet red from a short, block-and-a-bit walk to the building and when feeling started to return to those extremities, he was not a happy person. The bushes along the drive have kept a nice patch of ice rink for the kids to enjoy, though I'm terrified one of them will conk their head. After plenty of snow play, we have been sipping on Husband's homemade hot chocolate and warming chili to keep us cosy. Now that this blanket is finished, we can add it to our extra snuggly pile and watch what's left of college football and move on to college basketball.





Thursday, November 20, 2014

Throwback

Today I'm coming in a day early (after having totally missed the last two weeks other than to promote the husband's book on Monday) and I'm bringing to you the very first blanket that I ever crocheted.

It's only slightly a cop out because I don't have a new project to show, though, Monday should bring a "ta-dah" moment, if the sun decides to cooperate, which is debatable.

This blanket stayed wrapped in Christmas paper for, we're in November, so a year. I am the absolute worst at sending gifts, I usually have the best of intentions but then I forget or get sidetracked or totally lose my mind.





My sister-in-law taught me to crochet after she visited another sister-in-law who taught her how to crochet. The sister-in-law who taught me is left handed and I am right handed so we ran into a wee bit of confusion, plus I'm a bit dense and didn't pick up on it very easily. I played around a bit with some yarn and made a scarf like thing using single stitches that became a shawl for one of the girls' dolls because it was way too small for a human being to use.

This blanket was my first attempt at a double crochet. I look at it now and laugh a little. There are so many little flaws, skipped stitches, extra stitches and a clearly defined line where I ran out of one skein of yarn and attached the other. I had no idea about counting stitches and hadn't discovered Pinterest so the proportions are all wrong. The border is wonky and bunches near the corner; it is far longer than it is wide and it could stand to have several more rows added. But it was my first ever completed blanket and for that it holds a pretty special place.






Monday, November 17, 2014

Swans and Swallows: A Comedy

I have been working away at various projects and when they are completed I'll share them here.

In the mean time, I've been keeping busy promoting a book written by my husband and his brother. It's entitled Swans and Swallows: A Comedy. It's a satire all about the main character, Gregory Nightingale.



Here's the blurb from Amazon: Gregory Nightingale is a revered author, known as much for his rambling, post-modern philosophies as his ability to create relatable stories. Eccentric, apathetic, and in love with both alcohol and sensation, Gregory unwittingly becomes an active participant in efforts to tear down his reputation. Can he contain his antics long enough to clear his name? 
With a cast of witty, realistic characters, Swans and Swallows: a comedy, hilariously explores the complexities of human nature, and modern relationships. It is a must-read for anyone who likes to laugh.

It is currently only available for order at Amazon (dot) com in ebook format, but if you ask me it is well worth the $3 they are asking for. We found out today that it made the Amazon New Release hot list and jumped to #53 in their genre. I am so proud of all the hard work they both have put into this novel. May this be the first of many. 

You can find the book HERE