Patchwork Granny Blanket

I'm not sure if you guys remember the Summer Garden Throw I made for Luna's first birthday last year, but I had a ton of yarn left over when I was done. I also immediately went into project withdrawal and needed something to work on right away. I got to work right away on making this beauty and a little over a year later, it's done!

I worked on it off and on (truthfully more "off" than "on") throughout the whole past year. Maybe TV shows were watched while making this blanket. Also, a lot of Harry Potter audio books. Hehe.

I love the end result though...88 Squares later, here it is in all its glory!

 

Of course once you finish a big project like this you must prance it about with you take pictures. How would it look in a chair? How about with a matching pillow? Folded up?

And for those who are curious...here are the stats:

Patchwork Granny Square Blanket:

• Yarn: Tons of leftover Simply Soft Yarns
• Hook Size: If you look closely you'll see I didn't use the same size hook for the whole thing. Ugh. I started off with my favorite 4.25mm hook but then around Christmas I got the awesome Clover Hook Set and switched to a 4.00mm hook. I didn't think it would make so much of a difference but you can kinda tell one side is skinnier.
• Time: One year off and on. If I worked on it consistently then it probably took about 2-3 months.
• Size: 42in x 58in
• Fun: 6/10. I tend to think of really large projects like this as not so much fun. It's super fun at first, then it becomes a battle of discipline, perseverance, and dedication.
• Pattern (ish): I used the Granny Patchwork Tutorial Lucy made from Attic24.
• Help: Click on the links above for help!

Bonus shot! Lucy is right...this blanket totally is reminiscent of Elmer, the Patchwork elephant:

I must have a problem because I just started another project (another copy cat version of Attic24's Granny Stripe Blanket) this past week. A queen sized granny stripe blanket. I may not be done for two years or so at the rate I work on things. Follow me on instagram (twofortysix) to watch the progress on my crochet projects. You can also click here to see some of the other crochet projects I've done.

I know the Attic24 designs are pretty darn popular so...how about you? Have you made one? Link to it in the comments, I'd love to see it!

-Mrs. 246

*Affiliate links used when possible. I do receive a (very) small amount of commission which will probably be used to buy more craft supplies. ;)

Feel free to pin!

Granny Square Toy Blanket!

So, during my cleaning spree last week I came across some granny squares I had put aside two or so  years ago. They were my first granny squares and I was going to make an epic blanket. Being my first granny squares and out of crochet practice, they were all a bit wonky.

I decided instead of throwing them away I needed to do something with them. I decided to sew them all together and make Luna a "play blanket" that she could carry around and/or tuck her stuffed animals into bed with.

Luna was napping as I did the finishing touches so I laid it out in the middle of the floor to see if she'd notice once she came into the living room.

This is the first thing she did:

She ran up to it, squatted/sat on it and pet it. Then she picked it up, toddled about the house, and showed daddy.

She is practically a blur in all my shots of her 'cause she's running around like crazy these days. (Oh, and do you like her shirt? She picked it out at Wal-Mart and is in love with it. I think it's adorable on her and the dinosaur looks Reptar from Rugrats.) I took the blanket and showed Luna how she could tuck in her animals. Here's "Frankie Bear" enjoying the first use:

 

So, a cute little toy blanket for Luna out of something I was going to throw out. Lovely!

Project Stats: 

•  Measures: 24 inches x 20 inches
• Yarn: Impeccable (After using this yarn I don't care for it much. It's kind of thick and not very soft. They do have a somewhat decent selection of colors for being a major store chain.)
• Pattern: I don't recall the exact granny square pattern, but I found this instruction and it is pretty much the same thing. The border is two rows of double crochet - nothing special.
• Joining: I usually join-as-you-go but since I had a bunch of squares I had my first delight of sewing them all together. I have realized I like join as you go a lot better, but I do like the look of sewing them together. I followed the instructions here from the blog Do You Mind if I Knit and it worked out beautifully. Mr. 246 likes how flat all the squares lay when you're done.
• Extra: Since the granny squares were so wonky, the blanket was a bit wonky as well when all was said and done. I followed Lucy's instructions on steam blocking here (at the end of the post) and it ended up laying pretty flat. I love steaming certain projects afterward. I think it makes the whole blanket softer and more user-friendly. It's amazing!
• Likeablity Factor: Would do again if I had more spare squares (ooo...a rhyme!). It was completely worth it once Luna was smiling and running around the house with it. 

That's about it! If you want to check out more crochet goodness, feel free to peruse my Crochet Board on Pinterest: Hooking Makes Me Happy.

Alright, I'm off to enjoy the evening. Thanks for stopping by!
-Mrs. 246

The Amazing Bean!

I didn't make jam tonight. I think the combination of work and the afternoon lack of energy put me in quite a funk. Oh yea, and the letter from the county clerk saying our marriage license wasn't put through. It didn't say why, it just gave a #. I called and left a message but I knew it was probably too late to actually get a hold of someone. Sigh.

Mr. 246 did his best to ease my irritability: He made dinner. He made breakfast for me tomorrow. He made lunch for me tomorrow. He even cleaned up the kitchen when all was done. He really is the best, isn't he? I think marrying him again wouldn't be too shabby if I had to. ;)

The thing that brought my mood around though, was the little Bean. She is at that age where she is learning and doing SO MUCH. She's really turning into quite the little person. Here are some things she's done in the past couple of days:

1. The other day we were getting ready to go to the store and she brought me my flip flops (from the front door to the bedroom) then nudged them at my feet.
2. This evening she picked up one of Boo's toys (she knows the difference between his and her which amazes me), held it up, then kept calling out to him, "Puppo! Puppo!" trying to entice him to play with her.
3. We got her new fridge magnets (animals!) and we had a couple in the living room. I tested her and said, "Luna, will you go put this on the fridge?" I didn't point or anything, but she understood! She took the magnet, walked into the kitchen and put it on the fridge! I figured she understood me before, but now we have proof!
4. We had a bunch of books out before bed in the living room and we needed to get ready for bed and I handed her a book and asked her to put it back and she went over to the shelf and tried her hardest to put the book back. Then we worked out a deal where she would hand me the books off the floor and I'd put them back. Success!
5. Oh yea...she will fetch toys like a dog now. The dog didn't want to play, but she was more than happy to frolic down the hallway to retrieve them.

Yea, so I'm being one of those mom's that just talks about their kid, but that's okay. I just find it amazing how much she knows at such a young age! I've never been around kids in my life so I don't really know much about them (I make a great school nurse, right?) so it's neat to witness all the different changes and how much they really know and understand.

Anyways, she changed my mood around so I decided for my crafting for the night I'd work on something for her to have now (I'm making her a Christmas blanket right now). I have a bunch of spare granny squares from my first attempt. They're a bit wonky and the colors are terrible, but I couldn't just throw them away. I'm sewing them together so she can have a little blanket for her stuffed animals. You just wait...it'll be adorable.

Anyways, I really must get to bed. This whole waking-up-for-work business is terrible. (Although I wake up at the same time, it feels so much earlier when you have to go somewhere.) What have your little ones been up to lately?

-Mrs. (maybe?) 246

50 Projects in 2012 (Part TWO!)

Alright folks, I'm back. The countdown to 50 projects for 2012 continues...25 more. I haven't counted in advance, but I'm trying to see if I can or have already hit 50 craft projects for 2012. Read more about it and see the first 25 projects in this post. Let's get back to it...

#26: Baby crib quilt - Purple border, yellow background
#27: Baby crib quilt - Pink border, orange background
(Again, I apologize for the crappy picture.)

Does a pinterest fail count? If so...
#28: "Rainbow Sugar Cookies" These things made me resort to drinking with how horribly it all turned out. Every time I go to bake I seem to forget that I can't stand baking.

#29: Tie-Dye Onesies - I made a couple, some others were made by friends for my baby shower.

#30: Re-Upholstered dining room chairs. Mr. 246 helped with these. They were originally that brown swede and we chose a green/yellow swirly pattern. So freaking easy. I may have to change them again and again.

#31: Crocheted squares for Knit-A-Square charity project. An organization sews them all together to make blankets for AIDS orphans in Africa. Inspired to make these due to the S.P.E.W. (HP Charity Crafting) craftalong on Craftster.

#32: Small Cuddle Texture Blanket out of a scrap I had. Sewed it all up nice for Lunabeaners.

#33: Another S.P.E.W. Project. This one was for Snuggles. You make soft snuggly blankies for shelter animals. :( The way that this lady feels about cats is how I feel about shelter dogs.)  It's a double-stranded crocheted mini blanket. I think it's about 30x30 inches.

Another shot at the blankets brings us...
#34: The second blanket in the pile is a blanket for Lunabean. (I had originally gotten the fabric on clearance to make blankies for the doggies, but it was so lovely and Luna liked it a lot so I made her one as well.)
#35: The "snuggle" on the bottom of the pile is for the Snuggle project as well.

#36: Set of "Defense Against the Dark Arts" HP ornaments made for the "Back to Hogwarts 3" swap on Craftster. They include (from left to right kind of):  A boggart trunk with a boggart of my partners worst fear - losing control, Mad-Eye Moody (Mr. 246 helped since unless I have therapy before hand I cannot work with clay), a set of three mini chalkboards with lessons on the Unforgivable Curses, in the back there are two DADA textbooks, a small Scabbers in the middle, two hand painted, decoupaged Prof. Umbridge kitty plates, set of three "In case of dementor attack" chocolates.

#37: Another project for the "Back to Hogwarts 3" Swap based on my partners favorite store - Weasley Wizard Wheezes.

#38: We nicknamed these "Jackson Pollock's Balls", but they're really Oreo Truffles. Quite delicious but also quite decadent. You definitely can't eat a lot of these.

 

#39: Crocheted Owl Bag - Made for my pseudo niece (my brother's girlfriend's child) since she was starting kindergarten (and it was her birthday). Her mommy said she loved it and was carrying around socks in it. Yea....I don't know. Haha.

#40: Crocheted Infinity Scarf: Modeled by Mr. 246 who now wants one of his own. ("Is this a girl thing? Can guys wear cowls?" "I think so!") Based on a pattern I found on Ravelry which I can't find again at the moment.

#41: Tiny Pumpkin - Made just yesterday in honor of Halloween.

#42: Chalkboard Calender - We are lost without this calender. It's kind of fun 'cause I get to decorate every month.

#43: Moon and Stars Baby Hat - Followed directions for a newborn size and unfortunately it never fit.

#44: Ear-flap Baby Hat - mentioned in previous post

#45: Slouchy Crochet Hat - not pictured. Made for a friend for her birthday and I forgot to take a picture.

Whew...so I've made it to 45! I'm impressed. There's probably a thing or two I'm forgetting, but I'm still impressed. I have a couple long-term projects that I work on from time to time - a granny square blanket which I work on when I have nothing else to work on. Here's a sneak peak (sorry for the picture quality, it's from my phone):

It's got about another half row currently. I know it doesn't look terribly wide, but once it's done (It's going to be 12 squares x 12 squares) I'm going to made a pretty wide border. 

The other in progress project I'm working on is my Harry Potter quilt. I'm following the pattern here from HP Paper Piecing. I must admit, though, since Luna's been born I haven't broken out the sewing machine too much. I don't have a designated spot to sew so I just set up at the dining room table. When I do paper piecing there's a bit more involved because you have to iron so much and it's just a big production I feel like. I can't wait for the day I have a craft room.

Well, I think I can make 5 finished projects by the end of the year. I'll update as I go. Then I get to start planning crafts for next year. First I must get through the holidays. (I finally feel like an adult because I am somewhat dreading the holidays. Not enough time to get things done, we have to travel with an infant, there's too much to fit in in too little time. It's just forced. I'm dreaming of a relaxing Christmas, but I have a feeling it won't happen this year. Anyway, this topic can fill a whole other post. I'm just being a Scrooge about Christmas today. Hehe.)

Thanks for looking!

Kindest Regards,

Ms. 246