Just before Christmas, a dear friend asked me to make him an afghan. A big afghan. He originally asked for something 4’x8’, but after I did the estimating and we ordered the yarn, asked if it could be 5’x7’.
Since he didn’t know anything about crochet, I started by showing him various classic afghan styles, like ripples, fans, etc. He really liked this very plain pattern called the Moon Shadow Blanket by Anne Thubron. The pattern is free on her site, but is really just the Herringbone Double Crochet stitch, done with a bulky yarn.
The yarn is Paton’s North America Alpaca Blend, in color Butternut. We ordered 19 skeins for the originally planned size, and by a happy accident, they mailed us 20 skeins. The original pattern called for 130 stitches wide, and based on my gauge swatch, I figured I’d need 150 stitches to make it 5’ wide. It ended up about 5’6", so my gauge was a little off, but it turned out just fine.
I basically just did my foundation chain, then 126 rows of Herringbone Double Crochet, until I ran out of yarn, and finished the edge with a slip stitch. Because it’s stretchy, I’m not sure of the exact sizes, but it’s laid out on my king sized bed, and fits edge to edge. I’m thrilled with how it came out, but I’m also so glad to be done with it!
LOL. That’s actually my bedroom. I just needed a place to take pictures. I’m hoping he sends me some from his place, once it gets to him in the UP.
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AIMR
(Linda -In the year 2025, I am happy to be alive! :us:)
9
Another large project saga completed! It is always great to see them completed from the perspective of those of us watching the progress…it must be doubly great for you, the makers!
The color is classic and the stitch is just so textural…he must be a special friend for all of the work you put in.
So, another large project in the horizon or are you taking a break? I know when I completed my gold yarn blanket, I never wanted to see that color again! lol
I really like how that looks there in your room… I know you’re itching to make a second one! haha!
Seriously though, it really looks sharp. Clean lines but textured- I love that. And the color! If you had asked me “So, Mustard. Love it?” I would have answered “It’s cool, I don’t Not love it.” but now, look at that color- it’s beautiful! Not sure which of you chose the color, and I know from experience you’ll be hard -pressed to want to use it any time soon (or ever!), but it is really pretty.
Amazing gift!
Want to hear something funny? Neither of us chose it. David asked for pumpkin orange. Since it was going to be such a large yarn purchase, I didn’t want to front the cost of the yarn, to be paid back months later. So I told him to order 19 skeins in color YAM. But the default color on the website for that item was Butternut. He somehow missed me telling him Yam was the color he wanted, and so ordered the Butternut by accident. He got a discount for being a first time buyer on the website, and it would have cost a bundle to ship back such a huge box of yarn, and he would have had to pay full price to buy the right yarn. So he just gave up and had me use what we already had.
LOL. He also ‘argued’ with the website. He was certain my address was on Buttercup Court. The website insisted it was Buttercup Cove. He kept trying to ‘correct’ it, and finally gave up, hoping it would still arrive correctly as it was still going to the right city and zip code. There is no Buttercup Court. I live on Buttercup Cove.
