See how, at the top of this page, it says that this is partly a knitting blog? I mean, that’s even what the title refers to.  Not that you’d know it since I haven’t had a knitting post for, oh, MONTHS.

Here’s why:

Way back in January, I thought, oh, I’ll knit a blanket for my friend Irene for her wedding.  She’s getting married in July.  That’ll give me PLENTY of time to finish.

*snort*

I’ve learned that it takes a long time to knit a blanket out of worsted weight wool. A looong time. I suppose if I was one of those people that was able to devote 2-3 hours daily to knitting then I could finish one in less time than it takes for Congress to accomplish anything. (What, you say that still hasn’t happened? Nice to know that I’m finishing something faster than someone out there. )

I first started this blanket with these colors because Irene mentioned that the walls in her family room had recently been painted a copper color. I wasn’t sure if it looked that pretty, so I took a picture and sent it to my sister, who promptly replied that it looked like a 70s bathmat. I think that was her way of trying to be diplomatic instead of just screaming in horror. Sadly, she was right and I had to start over, this time substituting ivory for the dark brown and rearranging the colors.

The technique is adapted from quilting, and is the log cabin technique and specifically the courthouse steps or bricklayer. Many of the famous Gee’s Bend Quilts use this technique.  A few years ago the exhibition came to the Denver Art Museum–if you ever have a chance to see them in person, they are so beautiful as is the history around the quilts.

You start by knitting a center block, then picking up and adding on a strip to each side, then picking up along the newly created long sides, and so on and so forth until you have a big cushy blanket, just perfect for wrapping up in. I finished with a two rows of single crochet around the entire blanket, which gives it a more finished look.

The blanket is gifted and onto a new home–all the happiness to the newlyweds, and many warm and cozy nights.