12 
Tagsit’s football season!
This past weekend was opening weekend for the NFL, and for the first time in months I found myself drawn to the couch, yarn in hand. This summer was just too hot, too muggy, and too busy to want to do any knitting/crocheting at all. But there’s just something about the sound of helmets crashing on helmets and those random shouts of the count that make me feel like picking up yarn again. The weather even cooperated—Sunday was cool and rainy, the perfect weather for staying on the couch. Plus, my Eagles (and my Redskins—yes, I can divide my loyalty between two teams in the same division, much to my boyfriend’s indignance) were playing, so I had a reason to keep an eye on the TV.
The pattern is Your Great-Grandma’s Ghan from Crochet Today‘s March/April ’10 issue (you can order back issues by calling 800-865-7240; ask for the issue by date). I’m using various shades of Cascade 220, bought on sale. I know, I know, danger! 100% wool used as a gift? Well, this is my wedding present for my best friend and her now-husband, and she will understand that this can’t be tossed in the washing machine! Her husband I’m not so sure about, however—so I’ll send it on with clear directions and dire threats to him. I mean, so long as he doesn’t touch or otherwise enjoy this gift we’ll be fine, right?
Picking colors for them was next to impossible! There are too many awesome shades of Cascade available—and Webs carries practically every one. They recently bought a house but have no furniture yet, so it’s not as if I could go on what I’ve seen in their home. I don’t even know what colors he likes. I resorted to a time-consuming system of screen shots and Photoshop (and then I was surprised when the yarn arrived, because none of the colors was exactly how it had looked online). I spent a lot of time on a delicious combo of teals, mustard, and purples . . . and then I realized that those colors were more a blanket for me than for them. In the end, I worked up a color scheme using blues, a red, and a pop of lime green. I hoped it would be inoffensive but at the same time interesting.
Figuring out my color combos for the individual hexes was another ordeal. I have hexes all over the apartment now, and half the time I’m not sure which ones I considered successes and which ones I did not. Luckily, I set my favorites down one day and took a picture. I resorted to emailing that picture to myself so that I could download it onto my phone—voila, visual reference handy at all times, and a replacement to all those little scraps of paper that said things like “lt bl – med bl – heather” that were hiding in my yarn basket. This picture makes sense to me, if it seems completely random to you—what you see here represents, basically, the bottom edge of the blanket. There are gaps because some hexes I’d only made one of so far. Whatever! You don’t have to understand it, I do.
I’m working the hexes up generally one color at a time. Two colors are actually finished in their entirety, so I’m making great progress! Now to just not lose steam . . . It’s my first-ever blanket project, actually, so I’m both very excited and very daunted at the undertaking.
12 Responses to it’s football season!
Looks like a fun blanket to make and colorful too. Good luck getting over the daunting number of hexes.
I totally understand your system! I think the color choices will be great for any color scheme. Who knows, maybe you’ll inspire their decor…
I’m doing my first ever crocheted blanket right now too – Alicia Paulson’s Baby Day Afghan, only for big people not small people. I made the mistake of doing the math to figure out how many squares times how much time it takes to make one and the number scared me so much that I’m pretty convinced I’m never going to finish. I know I will, but it feels like a black hole right now. I hope yours is making better (feeling, anyway) process!
I think you need to make some squares in Bears colors. GO BEARS =D
Love the look of the blanket so far, especially as I feel the white really modernizes it! However, I’m also horrified that you’re an Eagles fan and Redskins fan. Oh well, it’s not like you’re a Cowboys fan too. I think that is something all of us Eagles fans, and Redskins fans, and Giants fans can agree on. The Cowboys suck.
Love the blanket project – that’s going to be beautiful! Can’t believe you can be a Redskins and Eagles fan at the same time though! Doesn’t doing both of those things at the same time make your brain hurt? ;)
Glad you’re back!
Hex on, the blanket looks great. It can be the inspiration for their furniture purchases.
Oh cool! How many hexes are you planning to make? Love the colour scheme, and it looks neutral enough to go with whatever furniture they pick. Good luck!
what a fun and thoughtful gift! i think you chose the colors perfectly. the colors in the hex in the top most photo are awesome. i’m always wary of making afghans because i’m afraid i’ll get bored and just give up. i hope you stick with it! it should be pretty awesome when it’s finished. also, go ‘skins! :)
Gorgeous! I absolutely adore granny square, or hexagon, blankets and this has definitely inspired me :)
Beautifully done, I like your choices of colours.
*kisses* HH
Love the colors
Love that you’re blogging again even more.