Finished Object - Sophie's Universe Mandala

I started this crocheted blanket last year, after deciding that something needed to be made from the two single skeins of vintage (old) yarn in my stash. I wanted to make something that I hadn't made before, something cute and colorful. 

I found the Sophie’s Universe mandala afghan pattern and thought it was just so neat. The pattern calls for lightweight yarn, but my two skeins were worsted weight aqua and white. I figured the yarn weight didn't matter too much because I was making a blanket. The pattern calls for so many different colors, I had no good way to calculate how much yarn I would need for a little blanket, or how big the blanket might turn out once I ran out of yarn.

I wasn't at all sure how the final product would turn out. Crochet isn't like sewing for me. When I am picking out a sewing project, I can usually see the finished product in my mind’s eye.

  

Once I started crocheting I began worrying that I would run out of yarn, and I didn’t want to play yarn chicken. So, I went through my stash again and found the sunny yellow yarn. It’s lighter weight than the other two yarns, but somehow it works. I loosened up my tension when stitching with the yellow. I was pretty certain that the yellow was going to look out of place and weird when I added it. I love the brightness and cheeriness that is added to the look of the blanket.

This blanket could work as a doll blanket, as a wheel chair blanket, or a snoozing place for a cat or two. Our cats always gravitate to projects I am working on. My UFOs seem to make the best sleeping spots for the kitties. 

LINKS:

Link to LookWhatIMade.net website with all of the Crochet-A-Long with all of the instructions.

Link to the Sophie’s Universe CAL on Ravelry. 

Grrr. As I was taking the photos outside I was reminded of the importance of checking dyelots. While working on the blanket inside, I could not see a difference in the whites. As I was happily snapping away, I noticed the difference between border and the yarn at the center of the mandala and almost fell off the chair I was standing on to take the pics. 

Happy Stitching!

It's Moving Pretty Quickly (for me) - Jiffy Knit Sweater

I just started working on a new project: the 1940s Jiffy Raglan Sleeve Sweater from our shop. I was really happy to find that I could use yarn already in my stash: a wool/acrylic blend. I purchased the yarn about 15 years ago, back when we still had a Ben Franklin craft store in town. I bought the yarn and started a sweater vest for my husband. I thought he would look cute. He thought I was nuts! So the partially completed vest has been in storage since then. I purchased so much yarn that I can probably make two of these sweaters.

The sweater is knit from the top down. Once you hit the bottom of the sweater, the vast majority of your work is already completed and your project is almost ready to wear. That seems pretty fantastic to me. In the first pic, I have the sweater waiting on my circular needle cable while I work on the sleeve.

I used a modified traveling loop that I first found a few year ago on YouTube to work the sleeves of the sweater. Liat Gat has fantastic knitting videos that are really well done. This is the video that I used to get me going on the sleeves. I might break down and buy a 16" circular needle if I make the sweater again. I think it might go faster if I didn't have to fiddle with the cable on every single round.

I will be posting my progress on the sweater. It should go fairly quickly since it is the Jiffy Raglan Sweater.

Happy knitting!