next on the needles

I promise this is not becoming a knitting blog per se, but it IS my obsession right now, so just exercise your freedom to use the scrolling function if you get sick of it. I will be sure to post as much about the girls as I can- in between knitting sessions, reading about knitting, petting and dyeing the yarn in my stash, shopping for more yarn, and doing elaborate pattern planning in my head. I promise.

The Wild Stripes blanket is well on it's way to completion, currently pinned together with it's backing, awaiting the HOURS of hand-sewing it is going to take for me to finish it. Not the most appealing thing to me, so I am working on it in small spurts. Maybe this weekend will see the unveiling- not sure though.

So of course I had to get started on the next thing- which is another blanket but this time for Jason's sister Misty, whose baby will be making his appearance about a month before ours. I have decided to do away with any attempts to make this gift a surprise, because talking about projects here motivates me to get them finished, and time is of the essence right now! Also, anyone who knows Misty knows that surprises are not among her favorite things anyway. Even though she is married now she IS still a Bray, after all. ;)

So, here is what I have so far. Misty- if you don't like it you can start making plans to auction it off on eBay- I will of course have lots of good photos you can post, and maybe you can get enough to buy something nice. No hard feelings of course.

This is the first square, and the finished blanket will have 12 in total. There are other colors in the palette, and they will come into the other squares in a random-looking fashion. You can see the pattern here, although this picture is of a full size blanket and I am only doing 3 squares across and 4 down to keep it on the smaller side. I am using Lion Brand Homespun yarn for the entire thing, which is a very soft acrylic yarn with a bumpy texture. The blanket will be machine washable and dryable, which was my goal for this project.

The first square came through the washer and dryer very nicely- extra soft and cuddly. So I delved in and will not be knitting much else until this is complete. This is the first time I have ever knitted squares, and they are a lot of fun. Very different from the straight rows on the striped blanket! I think I should be able to get this done quickly- the second square will be off the needles by this evening. And the girls start swimming lessons on Monday, so I will have 2 weeks of sitting by the pool for an hour and a half every day. Lots of time to knit!