I wooed you with an extravagant yarn purchase in June to make a baby blanket. I tried to make a heart motif but the cotton yarn was a splitter and required a 3mm hook which made the problem worse. I made a few squares and joined them together. Although the squares themselves looked lovely, when I joined them to see what the edges were like, it all looked a bit rubbish. I was predicting that 63 bad joins was not going to make it look a whole lot better so I jumped ship.
If I am honest, on closer inspection the joins in the book image aren't all that great. All that counting was also a little too taxing in the heat and I needed crochet that would see me through family viewings of the World Cup and Wimbledon.
In the end, I plumped for a pattern from ravelry which I now can't find I have eventually found again here called Serendipity. Some people call it a hens foot pattern or a clamshell pattern but anyway it was mighty addictive and easy to do.
The yarn is Drops Muskat DK cotton from here. I chose nine colours and the light grey background colour. There are paler tones too but I went for brights. It is 85p a ball at the moment!! It is a substantial cotton making the blanket quite heavy and dense which is what I wanted for a January baby.
The border is a few rounds of double crochet with my favourite baby blanket edge, the crab stitch or reverse double crochet. A neat, tidy and unisex border. I always think it makes the best edging.
The one heart I kept was my favourite colour, this one now lives on my singer sewing machine top next to where I crochet ready for a mug of tea. It has a new lease of life as a coaster.
It is truly a unisex blanket I think. This one is packed away for January a bit ahead of schedule but it was so fun to do.
I have some ball ends left over of course but I am thinking this little fellow might be fun to make to add to the gift set and bust out the stash ends. I haven't made a toy for years but I am sure it will be fine.
Happy Crochet. Thanks for calling in. Jo xxxx
You are on a roll Jo, the beautiful things just keep on coming :-)
ReplyDeleteI am glad the yarn worked out in the end, albeit not with the pattern you had in mind initially. I actually prefer the hens' foot pattern, it looks light and fluffy even if it quite heavy. The hearts look quite dense, perfect for a coaster.
Sweet rabbit! I know you like to crochet but if you want to make a funky knit toy one day, look here https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/monkey-jacobus. It is knitted in one piece! I made two for my little boys as a welcome gift when they joined the family. I also made a Loch Ness monster for Sam, that was fun, too (from Amigurumi knits). I have the patterns, just email if you are tempted.
I have too much time (hence the long comment), I am on my own with the dog... for more than a week! I am so excited, I don't know what to make first... Cxx
OMG a monkey in a dress - it is adorable. You know me so well. Have a great week. Shame we can't go out for a cocktail, all those miles inbetween!
DeleteBeautiful blankets I can't wait to see the toy make. x
ReplyDeletePhew! Making blankets in this heat must have been an effort. They turned out well though.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful both pattern and yarn, a matching toy would make a great addition and use the scraps. Such a great gift.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful blankets and the yarn colors are lovely:) Cute toy!
ReplyDeleteThe clamshell pattern looks great, what a lovely gift!
ReplyDeleteOh Jo,it's such a pretty blanket,love that stitch and colours.I'v made a similar bunny from a book called Babys Nursery,I think that was the name,so cute.xx
ReplyDeleteGood for you...successfully changing patterns, Jo! I lugged around two preemie blankets in process last year. One had a shell pattern I loved, but I lost track of my count so many times and had to rip out so many rows that I could not salvage the yarn. It was a fluffy acrylic that grabbed and knotted fiercely. That is my story and I am sticking to it! The other blanket also had issues, but friends helped me unravel it and I am using the yarn for a simple crochet single row double row repeat and hoping the blanket won't look worn out when I am done. xx
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