Another Finished Project (!!!)

I have a climber.

He's two. He's pretty darn adorable. And I'm fairly sure he's at least half wild monkey.

Which is fun in an exhausting, I-just-spend-half-my-morning-pulling-him-down-from-high-surfaces kind of way.

But it's also incredibly frustrating.  Because nothing is safe. NOTHING.

Like my camera, for example.  No matter where I hide it, he finds the darn thing.  And once he finds it, he climbs whatever obstacle stands in his way to snatch it and throw it to the floor.

Poor camera. It now makes a strange fluttering noise when I turn it on.  *sigh*

But it works (for now), so here we go with another grand 'ta-daaaa!' moment.

A finished blanket!

Another project scratched off my never-ending WIP list.

Isn't it exciting?

Isn't it bright?!

It is. I have to say it. It's super bright. But also cheery and fun and if I'm being completely honest, I dragged my feet finishing those last few rows because I really loved working on this one. And boy, was it super duper cuddly soft.

Even Monkey Boy liked it! Isn't it funny...the things I make for my kids go completely unappreciated. Yet when it's for someone else, it's the best thing EVER. Silly kids!

On to the next project on my list...

Back to the Ripple

I love to experiment. New patterns, new yarns, new techniques. It's exciting to see new ideas take form, isn't it?

But I find that after a particularly busy spurt, I crave the comfort of a few old patterns. Nothing fancy or ground breaking or out of the ordinary...just a common pattern with stitches I know well.

Which brings me back to a comfy ripple.

After creating so many little bunnies in such a short span of time, my fingers have been itching to tackle a bigger project. Big, cushy, blanket stitches as opposed to tight, tiny amigurumi ones.

And with a touch of luck, a custom order came in for just such a blanket.

So, there are about a million ripple/chevron patterns out there. Most free. But I've always had this love/hate thing going on with those patterns.  I either love one and can't find it's pattern (Let me tell you, I'm absolutely horrible at figuring out the pattern where there isn't one - my brain is simply not wired for pattern-speak!) or I find one that I sorta like, but isn't quite right.

I eventually found Tara Murray's 'Be Unique' Chevron Pattern and well, it's my favorite.  That and Lucy's Neat Ripple Pattern over at Attic24 (which is totally free, by the way, and has an amazing picture tutorial, if you need the extra help). I switch between the two...but lately, I've been drawn to Tara's.

With a few skeins of the prettiest lavender yarn EVER and white, I kicked back with my familiar pattern. And it was nice. It was also quick!

There's nothing more satisfying than a finished blanket. I love it :)

And one finished blanket inspired me to tackle another custom ripple. This time in bright, summer colors.  I love when someone asks me to make a blanket in colors I'm not normally inclined to put together...

It's coming along. I've had a busy few days with the littles. Doctor's appointments and a touch of hay fever...and a few sleepless nights, thanks to my littlest who seems to be nocturnal these days. So yeah, I've been slow.

But it is coming along...  And I'm savoring every familiar stitch.

Ripples, Chevrons & Waves

I have ripples on the brain. They've consumed me for weeks now.  They're all I think about! Sad? Maybe. But true, nonetheless.  I refuse to think about what that says about me...

See, it all started a few weeks ago. I was trolling Pinterest in the wee small hours, searching for something new and creative and fun to crochet...and I kept running into ripple patterns. Boring, old ripples. Some traditional, some modified versions, some titled 'chevron' or 'waves', but all the same concept - ripple. *sigh*

Fast forward a few days. I need yarn. (Of course I need yarn! Duh.)  And I'm standing in the craft store, staring blankly at mountains of colors and fibers and all things hooky.  Now, while I'd love to buy it all, I'm stumped because even though I NEED yarn, I really have no project in mind.

Let me tell you, buying yarn with no project in mind is far more intimidating than it sounds.

My hubby is tapping his foot and I'm starting to sweat. (Why do they keep these stores so warm anyway? And why did I let my husband tag along? These questions plague me, I tell you.) I need to make a decision and pick out some coordinating colors because, darn it, I'm so not leaving empty handed.

And that's when it hit me. I needed to crochet a ripple blanket. I mean, after all, the patterns are everywhere!  So I found a few patterns that I liked, merged and modified, and got to work.

I finished my first blanket rather quickly, since it was kid-sized and worked up like a dream. And before I knew it, a second blanket was on my hook and looking fantastic. Which meant another trip to the craft store. And more yarn.

So now I have a few done and a few more to do...and I really do think I'm obsessed with this darn ripple pattern. This boring, old ripple pattern :)