.... It wasn't just me apparently, Blogger is having some issues at the moment. I have skirted around the problem by using a different browser. If only it would find the wordy part of the post that Blogger helpfully lost too!
Anyway, are you ready to have your day brightened up? These funky ripples are from the secret project I was working on before Christmas. They were to be turned into a cushion for Mr Magpie's sister.
I revisited the Neat Ripple pattern from Attic 24 for the cushion, it is so simple and effective and works up quickly. I did the ripples randomly, unlike my Baby Blanket, which was more of a repeat.
To begin, I made a chain slightly shorter than the width of the cushion pad. I then rippled happily away until I was just short of the height, then made the reverse side with the same starting chain and the same number of ripples (forty-ish I think). Although the pattern was random, I did try to make sure that colours weren't used together too often and that the two sides weren't the same.
I intentionally made the two sides smaller than the cushion pad as I wanted to use a new contrasting colour on the edgings. I did this by making two trebles in the end of each row along the sides, once I had woven in all the pesky ends.
I had intended to flatten the ripple on the top and bottom but when I held the sides together I realised that they interlocked perfectly and all that was needed to join them together was a row of single crochet.
When I had joined the wavy ends, I turned the cushion inside out and sewed a zip along the row of treble pairs. Once that was in place I trebled all down each side again and then joined all the edges with a final row of singles. I'm afraid I forgot to take close-ups of this part.
So this is the finished result. I must say I was very pleased with it left it on the sofa for a few days so I could admire it! The recipient was pleased too and has requested more cushions on each birthday and Christmas for several years to come.
The next present was the Spectra scarf I was making for my daughter, which ended up being finished over the holidays. Again, I was really happy with the finished item so wasn't too cross when, after trying it on for the first time and keeping it on for all of seven seconds it was pronounced 'too itchy' and handed straight back to me!
I've been struggling to find a way of photographing this scarf in a flattering way, it really does look a lot brighter in 'real life' and I love the way it drapes when worn.
As predicted, I have enough of the colourful Poems yarn left over to make another, which I will probably do.
The next colourful creation is my Granny Stripe blanket, which gets the odd row added here and there when I can wrestle it away from whoever is snuggling under it of an evening (or afternoon, it has been in great demand by the various poorly Magpies who have been using it as a comforter). It really is huge now and unless I continue with my original plan to make it double-bed sized, I think I will be adding a border soon so that I can pronounce it finished.
My thoughts have already been working out the next sofa blanket I need to make (necessitated by the arguments over the Granny Stripe) and I have been steadily stashing the Stylecraft ready to make a start.
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Until I make a decision, I have decided to embark upon my own crochet cushion covers and am planning to make several in different colours, but using the same group of colours for each, starting with the purple shades.
To the untrained eye it looks as though I am rippling again. I am, but this time using a different pattern from my Handbook of Crochet Stitches. This pattern does a TR3TOG at the bottom of the valley, five trebles in between and a TR, CH, TR into the mountain, which produces the holes you can see below.
Currently I am trying to find a combination of knitting pattern and yarn I like, but not having much success. Looks like the crochet will be taking over again!
Thanks for stopping by,
Beth x
