Tuesday, June 09, 2009

Log Cabin Update

Those of you who knit may find today’s post interesting. You’ll mock my skills and feel far better about your own but hopefully you’ll enjoy the post nonetheless. Those of you who don’t knit will hopefully forgive me for my bragging posting about the project I currently have on my needles.

Since this afghan is going to take several years months to finish, I wanted to document my progress. Hopefully this will inspire me to keep going when it doesn’t seem to be growing no matter how many stitches I pick up for each new log.

As I mentioned a few weeks ago, I am working on a Log Cabin Blanket. I decided to try this pattern after seeing several amazing finished blankets online. I like recipes with photos so I know what my dinner is supposed to look like, and the same goes for my knitting patterns.

The first (vaguely geeky) thing I did was to play with colours in Excel. I copied the pattern into Excel and popped different colours into the rectangles until my mother, father, and I were finally able to agree on a colour scheme.

Next, I did something I never do – I knitted a swatch. Swatches or gauge squares are much talked about and beloved in the knitting community. I for one have never believed in wasting good yarn and, better, time on knitting a tiny square whose job it is to tell that I knit too tightly. But I’m weird like that. My goal for this swatch was to learn how to pick up stitches – a fairly common knitting skill I had managed to avoid thus far.

With a firm plan in mind, my mother drove me to Mary’s Yarns – our fabulous LYS – where we bought three skeins of Cascade 220 in each of the needed five colours. (Remind me to tell you about the rather interesting economic reasons behind yarn being sold in skeins rather than the easier-to-use balls.)

Each block or “log” is twenty rows or ten bumps high. I finished the first complete round (one block of each colour) before I left Toronto at the end of April. Now a month later, I just finished my fourth complete round and am still miraculously on the first ball of each colour. The afghan measures 57cm by 63cm. This thing is going to be huge by the time I’m done!

I’d blog about my blanket some more but I obviously have some knitting to get to.

26 comments:

Corinne said...

That blanket looks like it requires more patience than I could ever possibly possess... Good job so far! Where is it going to live when you're done?

Mommyof2girlz/StephD said...

I think this is going to turn out awesome! Wow what a lot of work though. Sorry i'm behind, but thank you for stopping by C's birthday post :)

LadyFi said...

It looks great!

Is knitting something you do with needles then? ;-)

Connie said...

Very nice work!! I like the planning phase of a project too... although it seems I'm like you, so rare do I do a swatch, I'm surprised if it happens! ;D

I kept my crochet needles out when we packed up and some cotton thread. I also kept a couple of pretty acrylic skeins out too for the kids to play with (instead of my project thread!). Honor sat down this week and finger-hooked a 4ft crochet chain! Her first project (it's packed, no photos, but if I can get her working again (6yos are hard to catch sitting still...) I'll get the camera)!

Linda said...

Very cool!

Unknown said...

WOW! Very impressive... I can't do anything like that.. bless... my grandmother tried to teach me one summer... but.. well, it didn't work out...
Can't wait to see it when you are done.

Unknown said...

Looks really good - and for a girl who says she has avoided picking up stitches...yours look even and beautiful. So jealous.

My knitting is packed. :(

But I am looking forward to getting back to my fav LYS and going WILD on yarn!!!

Can't wait to see the finished product. Go knit-girl!!!

Unknown said...

A work of love, huh?

Lydia said...

I haven't gotten around to learning to knit. I crochet. Not very well, but I do it. Your's looks beautiful. Mental note: learn to knit. ;)

Anonymous said...

Whow it looks great! You are really motoring along! The knitting is so even.
What length of circular are you using--you must be running out of room on the needle?
merthyrmum

zelzee said...

The afghan looks wonderful. You are doing a great job.

I love to knit and have been designing and felting purses for awhile now. I haven't done an afghan........yours looks complicated!!!

Anonymous said...

I wish I knew how to knit. :) It would distract me sufficiently. :)

Unknown said...

I think that's totally cool!
I never could do knitting :)

N said...

I tried to knit...made scarfs but I lost my patience...

Kathy B! said...

I don't understand this knitting thing you speak of... is it like twittering?!

I am intrigued.

Katherine Roberts Aucoin said...

The colors are wonderful and this is looking like one gorgeous blanket. You are very talented!

3 Bay B Chicks said...

When I first read the title of this post, I thought, wow, a log cabin in Egypt. How novel!

Now I see that you have actually made something by hand and I am even more impressed. I think I started knitting a scarf a few years back. Needless to say, it is still a "work in progress."

-Francesca

Unknown said...

Looks great!

Winks & Smiles,
Wifey

(If you ever want to chat about magazine writing just e-mail me - smiles!)

theUngourmet said...

Oh my goodness that is coming along nicely. I love the colors!

illahee said...

beautiful! i cannot wrap my head around the concept, though. i just ain't that smart!

Betty said...

LadyFi wrote my thoughts! :) I would never be able to do this.....no patience and not smart like that! :)

Keys to the Magic Travel said...

I have never knitted. I learned how to crochet when I was pregnant with Madalyn. But after I had her...I didn't have time to finish my project. And now...I can't recall how to do it!

So where is your blanket going to reside? Your project is beautiful!

Lynn said...

i love it! i can't believe that you're still on the first skeins! wowowowow. i have gots to cast me on one of those!

YEOW!

Roxane said...

Oh wow! I've been looking for an "Easy" pattern for an afghan... I'll have to check it out!

Jemma said...

You multi talent you- I am impressed!!!

honkeie said...

I havent a clue as to what you are talking about this is a topic truely lost on me