Sassy Does It

Baby’s out, and it’s a girl! 

That crochet border can be as feminine as it darn well wants to be.

Three girls for Sissy B now.  Boys are nice and all, but back in the day, my two sisters plus me made a total of three, so this feels about right.  No boys allowed in the treehouse.

Everyone is happy and healthy and hopped up on the promise of sleep deprivation.  All is right in the world.

Let’s get ready to rumble with a rundown on this Summer Baby Blanket.

First – I do realize it’s a simple blanket pattern and there’s not a whole lot to write up here…but I’m a big writer-up-er, as you know.  Partly because I like to blab on about things (hence the blog); moreover because it takes me so long to get things done that it seems each FO should be fawned over.

Pattern: 
Summer Baby Blanket, free pattern here (all in Japanese, but you only need the chart download)

Yarn:  Blue Sky Alpacas, Skinny cotton

Needle:  US 6 / 4.0 mm, circulars

Dimensions:  43”H x 40”W (blocked)

Overall – yes, I like the look of this blanket very much.  The pattern isn’t tough - very easy by heart with six rows of repeat - but for some reason it just looks cool to me. 

The blanket might look lacy, but I don’t see it as lacy.  The Skinny yarn isn’t really that skinny (5 st/in on size US 6, bigger needle than recommended) so the plump stitches create the kind of texture that makes the pattern pop up.  I like the way the each column of three knit stitches stands out between the purls, a neat double-decrease twist that comes up to meet each flower before tucking under. (And yes, I can call it a flower now.  A girly-looking one.)

Either side could be considered right-side, but for me it’s the side with predominantly purls.  Wrong-side shown facing up in the photo below.

It ended up wider and longer than I anticipated (I blocked it firmly in the end, on purpose), but bigger is usually better in my opinion.  All the more room for spreading out and (eventually) rolling around.  I like that it’s a touch longer than wide, as this is the way my eye likes my blankets.

I’ve been trumpeting on about the crochet border, and really this was the cherry on top for me.  It was fun to make and I like the finished look. 

I used this site to coax me along with videos of crochet stitch instruction, including a little reminder education on the chart symbols.

Even though as a crochet novice I had my share of screw-ups along the way, everything panned out with a little patience for the occasional rip-out and re-do (inserting a beer in between did help).

Because I’m weird, I tend to be frightened of color combos in knitting (both with multiple solids and variegation – what if my stripes end up looking stupid? what if people roll their eyes and say, “who puts those two colors together?), but I went out on a crazy ledge here, and I do like the sagey-green Pear color against the natural tone of the border.  I think it works.

My only beef with this project is the fiber I chose, really.

I do like the yarn, but I don’t love it. 

Very splitty.  Very. 

Not that it wasn’t manageable, just annoying on a fairly frequent basis.  You can see here that there are a lot of plies involved and my heavens, do they ever like to separate whilst one knits.  Like a bunch of strings.

The finished fabric is softish, but not dreamy.  Not like the slightly heftier (yet not bulky) cotton from Blue Sky Alpacas that I used for Curlicue (this cotton was much softer, and with plies that stayed together, mind you).  It seems counterintuitive to me that Mr. Skinny is heartier than Mr. Only A Bit Bulkier from this manufacturer.  In the end, though, hearty is good: this increases the durability, which is what I was shooting for – something that will take a good beating and wear well over time.

All of that said – now that this puppy is finished and blocked, the afore-dinged yarn and I are getting along better.  It’s got a nice drape, and the fabric isn’t too heavy for summer.  And I think it will soften up a whole lot with a couple of good machine washes and a nice slug of Downy.  Part of the draw was that this cotton can go straight into the wash (and the blanket’s big enough that there can be plenty of shrinkage and it will still be big).

Pattern-wise, well, I made a few adjustments, even though it doesn’t seem like this would be that critical for a blanket (uh, knit it as wide as you want, and then stop knitting when it’s long enough, duh).

The number of stitches repeating in the main blanket pattern is different than the number repeating in the border, so it seems they should both divide in to the same multiple (assuming you want them to meet up and play nice at the corners).  With that in mind, the recommended number of stitches for the width and height seemed off to me.

But.  That may be because I was guessing as to what was actually recommended.

The only numbers in the pattern were wedged in between Japanese characters, so I kind of assumed that these particular numbers corresponded to the number of total stitches.  It’s true that my lack of Japanese fluency may have led me astray here.

Anyhoo, I did a back-of-the-envelope calculation (OK – I did a spreadsheet, because I’m a nerd) to come up with a stitch count that had the proper multiple.

• The pattern suggests 163 across; I cast on 155.
• Where the pattern came in at 194, I finished with 200 rows.

With these stitch counts, the repeated crochet border pattern overlaid with the blanket repeats very neatly.  Small changes, but they appeased the math beast and made me sleep better at night.

On the border: lovely as it is as written, I actually decided to nix the last of the outside rows.

There were quite a few (simple chain) stitches meant to trace the total surface area of the already-curvy border. 

Very pretty indeed, and I wanted to keep it, but there was just a little too much ruffle. 

I’ve got nothing against ruffles, but in the end it seemed A) too flouncy and B) too heavy in contrast to the airier look of the blanket. 

And I wanted it to block out flat, which it just wouldn’t have done with the last row in place.

If you want a pretty ruffle (seems more appropriate if you’re forging ahead with the feminine idea from the start), a lighter-weight yarn would rock that look.

Blocking:  even without that extra outside row, the border wanted to ruffle a bit length-wise, but this went away with blocking as desired. 

I got out the fancy blocking wires I was all excited about a few months ago and slid the longest straights down each side.  I could’ve used a boat-load of T-pins to achieve this, but don’t the wires make more sense?  The before and after pics make me proud of my blocking bling (and grateful for the quick work).

I opted for a gentle wash with my mild-mannered Eucalan prior to blocking.  Always a pleasure, that stuff.  For some reason, I feel quite fancy whipping it out of the closet.  I think I’m still chuffed that I’m no longer confounded by the likes of Woolite, the rarely-wielded luxury item whose function perplexed me as a child, looking up at Mom’s laundry shelf and wondering what the heck it was for. 

I have my own special soap now, tra la la.

The blocking was definitely needed as the blanket wanted to pull in width-wise before blocking, leaving the poor thing with that unkempt didn’t-check-myself-in-the-mirror-this-morning look.

This initially put me off when I checked the pre-blocking photos of others’ work before committing to this project, but since their blocked blankets looked nice and uniform, I trusted that mine would, too, after blocking.  And it did. 

After washing again, it could bunch back up, but really – who cares, for Pete’s sake. As long as it’s loved.

Well.

Looks like this is the end of the line for me and Summer Baby Blanket. 

It’s been fun, blankie, but it’s time for you to sally forth.

My brand spankin’ new niecie awaits, and she’s a fine little lady.  Keep her safe and warm.  Be her companion, her comfort,  her shelter when she needs you. 

Enjoy, pretty girl, and know that you’ll always be wrapped up in my love.

I’ve been holding off to see if Sissy B is gonna have this kid already before I post my hurrah-it’s-done Summer Baby Blanket FO.

Her due date has passed, so she’s been left to wait patiently for el laboro.  And she’s not the only one.  Maizy and E-dot are all over this baby thing.

There’s no way in heckfire I’m posting the FO yet; it seems jinxy.  Good to have the gift done before baby is born, good to bestow soon after baby is born, which also seems a good time to post the FO.

In the mean time, I’ve had a couple of posts come and go in my head without actually posting them.  The most elaborate one involved a rant about being grumpy on an airplane; slightly peeved to find a bunch of colleagues boarding a plane to the same place I was going.  This was unfortunate because I suspected my plans to knit obsessively for several hours (and maybe even finish an elusive crochet border) could be thwarted by the need to appear more committed to productivity.

It was also unfortunate because I was caught unprepared in the Looking Professional department. 

I’d rolled out of bed and proceeded to the airport looking very greasy indeed.  No shower, so the hair was a bit wild; in fact, I don’t think I even brushed it.  Straight to the messy but functional ponytail.

And, I’m not quite sure my make-up remover from the night before had done the complete job; I seem to remember a bit of smudged eyeliner lingering near one eye.  It wasn’t a pretty sight.

Anyway, there I am, looking ship-shape for promotion in my I’m-sure-no-one-will-see-me travel outfit.

I really should have known they’d be on the same flight with me since there was a big conference happening, but sadly, this did not cross my mind when I arose at 6AM to head to the airport.  The scary thing is that this has happened before.  Recently.

I’m an idiot.

It’s not a huge problem, really, knitting on a plane in the presence of colleagues, but it’s true that I had work to do (yeah, like the kind they pay me for) and my laptop was right there.  So I was forced to abandon the productivity-eschewing ways of my D hook to do stupid work.

Until my battery ran out.

Well.

OK, it didn’t actually run out, per se, since I just got a new extended life battery (curses!), but it was plausible that it could have run out after two hours, especially when I shut it down and said (to whoever might hear), “Wow, this battery is really losing its mojo.”

Then I got my blankie out and powered through another row of the border.

I love the way the crochet turned out, but I’ll save that report for the FO post.  Suffice it to say that there were a few bumps in the road with this part, because I’m an idiot (see above) who reads directions, understands them completely, and then ignores them.  But more on that another time. 

It’s fun, the crocheting.  It’s a yarn hog, though.  I think I knew this before about crochet but had forgotten. It does make sense as there’s a lot of stitching before much is produced. Crochet fabric, made out of simple stitches, is definitely denser than the average stockinette.

I ran out of yarn about two-thirds of the way through the border; or at least what seemed like two-thirds of the way.

I couldn’t believe one skein didn’t do it. I mean, it’s a trim, right?

Point is, I needed to make an emergency run to get another skein.  I had to call six LYSes to find anyone even carrying Blue Sky Alpacas, let alone my Skinny Organic.  Love it.

As much as I complain about the quality of my LYSes (not even all local, but within a 30-mile radius), it was sad to learn in the course of these calls that two of the shops I’d visited before had closed since the last time I went a-calling.  I feel bad – even though it was, in all honesty, probably because they sucked that they closed.

Right, so Summer Baby Blanket - that’s where things are until that new baby comes out to receive it.

After the blanket was off the needles, on the last leg of my return trip home (I did shower before getting on that plane), Fifi, bless her heart, got a few more inches added to her.  She’s been so patient.  She just wants to be loved.  And I do love her.  She now has my full attention, and really, I should be able to knock this out over the weekend.  Should.

One more thing to share before I close.  Back on that flight from earlier (the one where I was stinky): after we’d all boarded and were more or less seated comfortably in our little rows and things had gotten nice and quiet, I hear a voice half-shouting half-singing, “Spank the monkey!”

“Ohhhhhhhh….spank the monkey!” 

The guy on the aisle in my row had piped up with these lyrics, which may have been coming from his own head (no iPod in sight).  I think it might have been Peter Gabriel’s “Shock the Monkey,” except with “spank” in there instead.

At first I thought he might have been trying to embarrass or entertain a friend traveling next to or near him. He got a few glances but I saw no takers in what might have been a little inside joke. One of the dudes in front of me craned around to have a look, but that was about it.  A fancy-pants I-showered-this-morning coworker also sitting in that row didn’t flinch, too professional-looking to be fazed by the oddity.

The freak show continued for a few more minutes, varying between singing, mumbling, and moaning. There were some hand gestures thrown in, too.

After the monkey-spanking, I couldn’t make out much of the song(s), but he was grooving over there to whatever it was.  I felt bad briefly because it occurred to me that this man might be mentally challenged or have Tourette’s or something (although I didn’t hear any swearing) and perhaps I really shouldn’t be laughing…but then he broke out of his reverie and starting maintaining a perfectly lucid conversation with the lady across the aisle.  Not in a we-know-each-other kind of way, but in a strange-weather-we’re-having-isn’t-it kind of way. Then he proceeded to fall asleep before take-off, and the weirdness was suspended.  He piped up again toward landing, and then smiled and nodded at everyone upon de-planing, as if he weren’t a weirdo.

Well.  I may play the role of Stinky on planes these days, but at least I don’t sing out loud and frighten my travel companions.  I don’t.

Pretty sure I don’t.

Ah, finally - I’m done with the primary color on my Summer Baby Blanket.  Bound off.  Goodbye Pear, hello Birch.

The appearance of Birch means it’s time to forge ahead to the questionably-gender-neutral-but-I-don’t-care-if-it’s-feminine crochet border.

I’m excited about the crochet bit.  I know I’ve mentioned this before.  Not that I’m thinking of switching teams or anything, because I think it’s fair to say I’m firmly rooted in Team Knit.

But.

Mom crocheted back in the day (she also went through a macramé phase in the early 80s, a fad that seemed to crash and burn as the cool thing to do shortly thereafter - at least in the hip happenings of the church craft circle).  She didn’t knit, so crochet is it in terms of my maternal influence in all things yarn.  Well, if you don’t count the little projects with snippets of yarn, Tacky Glue, and popsicle sticks, because that featured pretty heavily.

I’ve never more than dabbled in the single-needle hookiness of crochet, and in the few times I’ve tried it, it’s weird how vividly it brings to mind the smooth, repetitive movement of my mother’s hand, from my child’s view.  Not that weird, I guess, considering that when you’re a kid that’s what you do - watch your mom’s every move - but it’s cool to remember something that seems unuseful for the brain to store. 

The only time I ever crocheted with the intention of actually making something was for a little blanket in my university colors.  It was made out of scratchy acrylic, because A) that’s what I could afford, and B) I don’t think I knew that anyone bought yarn if it didn’t come from Jo-Ann’s.  Not that there’s anything wrong with Jo-Ann’s.  I just didn’t know.  Did. not. know what awaited outside the world of Jo-Ann’s.

But I digress.  I don’t think I even finished that blanket, which is understandable, considering I probably wouldn’t have used it unless it was sandwiched in-between two things appreciably softer.  It certainly wasn’t complicated:  I’m pretty sure it was entirely comprised of double-crochet stitches.  In two colors, though - hot stuff.

I think the Summer Blanket border will be pretty, based on the nice smorgasbord of stitches that are charted out on the pattern.  That and the proud-as-punch picture from the pattern that says, “Check me out, I look so awesome all finished.”

In planning ahead (a few minutes ago) by looking at my handy-dandy Ravelry needle chart (which took me a year to fill out, but I did it), I can see that I don’t have the crochet hook I need.  Um, not surprising considering that the only hooks I have (for weaving in ends) I bought in a little convenience pack.  F, H, I, J and K. 

Mr. G is suspiciously missing, so I might have lost him.  Who knows. 

Maybe he’s just less popular than the other kids and doesn’t get picked for the convenience packs.

So in Japan, where my designer originally slapped this border on the blanket, their millimeter-based sizes don’t always jive with the US lettering system.  Of course they used a 2.5-mm hook, which is between a B and a C.  Neither of which I have; guess I’ll round up and make this sucker with a C, 2.75 mm.

Come on, LYS - don’t let me down when I come knocking. I don’t want to drive all over creation.  Stock those crochet hooks.

Maybe I’ll go nuts and buy another convenience pack that has the rest of the elusive crochet needles I’m missing.  Maybe even Mr. G.

UPDATE:  LYS did not hook me up with the C.  The smallest they had was D, so for $1.95 and half a millimeter difference, I paid the lady and hustled out of there, slightly embarrassed to be popping in solely for crochet purposes.  I’ll give it a shot.  Scratch the itch for tonight.

Oh, and I saw Mr. G Hook.  There were plenty of him in stock, darn it.  Nobody wants to take him home. Poor little bugger.

OK, so since we’re at about a month from blast-off, I’ll go ahead and unveil my Summer Baby Gift in the making.

Not that it’s some huge impressive project, or even that big of a surprise to at least one person reading this, but since it’s for a baby that’s not born yet, it seems worth putting a little drumroll to it, a nice sense of occasion.

Usually I wait until the kid makes an appearance, but ehhh.  Spill the beans.

So Sissy B is having another one; this’ll make three.  She’s already got plenty on her hands with my two little nieces, and this will spice up all 24 of her waking hours come June.  Not sure if this one’s a boy or girl as they’ve elected to wait to find out. 

At least that’s what they’ve told me.  It’s possible they are sneaking around giggling behind everyone’s backs, secretly knowing.

Maizy calls her little brother- or sister-to-be “Cellpho” (as in, yeah, get ready to dial), and she does this with some confidence, as if this common name has already won the contest for her sibling’s playground moniker.  Hence the blog name of this child is born, ahead of the physical debut.

Regardless of whether Cellpho is a girl or a boy, this kid is going to get a lot of girly influence, what with the two older sisters and all.  (It seems weird to call E-dot - pictured here: awwwwww - an older sister, since so far she’s been the little guy.  Girl.  You know.)

So is it weird that I always make blankets when it comes to baby gifts? 

I know it takes much longer than booties or a layette set, but I always think to myself:  if you’re going to knit something, then really knit something.  Something that the little bundle of joy won’t grow out of in five minutes. 

Sweaters for toddlers make more sense to me: you might get a good year out of that before it’s handed down.  But for a baby, a blanket seems like something they can really use (to the extent they can use anything, other than a breast).  They can lay around on it, drool on it, burp up on it (ah, the joy of machine-washable cotton), all for a good little while.  

Then, once they can walk, that blanket can be really used. 

Beat up.  Dragged around for a long time.  Colored on.

Loved.

But.  Am I boring?  Should I branch out?  Put a little more thought into it?  If you had a kid, what would you want to receive?

Too late now on this one - but your opinions would either pacify my concerns that I’m in a rut with baby creativity or spur me on to make interesting-er tiny things in the future.

On the color, as I believe I announced when I started this thing, we have Blue Sky Alpacas Skinny Dyed in Pear (yes, that’s another name for green, and I think this may have been the start of what Clumsy Knitter kindly called Greenmersion, rather than a Green Problem).  But this hue seemed a good bet for a maybeboymabyegirl baby.

Here’s a little preview.  The repeats bunch up a bit unless they’re nice and stretched: blocking will help this.  (Yes, that is my new red bedspread behind it.  Oh, glorious red.)

Now that I look at it (a lot, often), the lace pattern on my Summer Blanket (otherwise known as “24-25-48 Lace Baby Blanket“, which is the catchy name the Japanese designer gave it) does look a bit more feminine than not feminine.  I was shooting for neutral in the beginning.  But hey - even boy babies are all soft and pretty.  I think a daisy-like pattern will probably fly if indeed a penis makes an appearance.

And there is the aforementioned girly factor that will surround this child. 

Right, OK, stop worrying about the lace pattern.  Good thing, since I’m probably about 2/3 through on the length.

I think what sold me on this pattern is the cool crochet border.  Not everyone who made this (and reported back to Ravelry) followed through with the border, but for me the blanket is a bit lukewarm without it.  I’m not usually a crocheter, but I can hold my own, and this border is going to be spectacular.  I hope.

Feefers is chugging along in the few minutes I can find here and there to work on it.

More time lately on Summer Blanket, which tends to get done on planes, when for some reason the monotony doesn’t bother me as much.  And I don’t like hassling with patterns when other people’s elbows are already touching mine in a fight for the armrest.

So this is the state of affairs that leads me into the weekend.  At this point I’m craving quiet:  sweet, still, quiet laziness.

And some fries with that.

Color me pink, Sheer Poncho is off the needles (again), this time for good.  It’s currently blocking and you’ll have full details shortly.

I’ve been making modest progress on the as-yet-undisclosed summer baby gift, which I’m liking.  I’m traveling this week, so I’ll have some plane time to crank on it.

In other baby-item news, I noticed that another Curlicue-maker finished her project this week.  Rowan liked mine (*blush*) and crafted hers in a lovely oatmeal color.  Very cuddly-looking.  Curlicue was so much fun to make that I’ve still got a soft spot for it.  Go, Curlicue, go.

In addition to hitting the summer baby gift this week, I’m also going to resurrect the terribly neglected Raindrop Lace Socks that have been hibernating under my bed, where I found them poking out this weekend.  I’m nearly ready to turn the heel on those suckers, so after a bit more effort it should be fairly smooth sailing to the end.

This leaves my mind to wander about what’s next in my queue; something that will require forethought before any yarn can pounce on a pair of vacant needles.  It’s all very exciting. 

Something summery comes to mind, but sadly, the devil on my shoulder is telling me I might as well just start working on wooly jumpers and Christmas gifts, since I never seem to leave enough time for this type of thing once the weather starts to turn chilly.

Hmmm.  We’ll see if the angel fights back and demands something light and lovely to be knit for me, myself, and I.