A Homemade Christmas – Afghans Posted on November 17th, 2009
There is just something about homemade Christmas gifts that make gift-giving so delightful. I love what Emily Rose said on her blog about homemade gifts –
"The one who receives the gift, sees the decoration, or enjoys the dish will know and remember that those things were not there because we ran out of time, but because we took the time."
This year I have definitely been taking some time to make my daughters both an afghan. Not that I am taking my time and trying to make it seem special because it has taken me so long, it’s just that I am a little slow with this project.
Last year after Christmas I was able to purchase yarn on sale so that I could make my daughters both an afghan like the one that their Great-Grandma Carmella made for my husband. We decided I would alter the pattern a bit and make it more of a wave instead of a V shape. After several months of messing with them, I decided it just wasn’t going to happen; I had to keep count all the time while I was crocheting and it was not going very fast, so I unraveled all that I had crocheted and began again. This time I went back to the traditional V shape and it has gone so much faster.
I let the girls choose their own colors. Emily Rose’s is above and Breezy’s is below.
One of the challenges of making gifts for family members in the same home is trying to keep them from seeing the gift while you are making them. Since I had the girls pick out their colors and it was going to be a bigger project, I knew that I wasn’t going to be able to do this in secret. As the blankets have "grown" I began to roll them up so the girls couldn’t see how big they were and how much more I had to do.
One thing that has been fun about making two at the same time is that when I grew tired of the same colors over and over I could just switch projects. I used Vanna’s Choice yarn that I bought at JoAnn’s Fabrics last year; it is one of my favorite yarns. The pattern that I used is called Chevron and I used this pattern as a base and then just made it much wider by about 90 stitches and I will not be adding any fringe.
Emily Rose is hosting "A Homemade Christmas" on her blog over the next several weeks. If you want to join in on the fun of sharing ideas about homemade gifts and gleaning from others, you can click here.
Dates to participate in A Homemade Christmas:
• November 17th
• December 1st
• December 15th
• December 29th (wrap-up with projects/gifts we couldn’t share before Christmas)
The main/opening dates are listed above, but the linkys will be open two weeks after the beginning date so that you have plenty of time to get in your posts.
November 17th, 2009 at 9:27 pm
I bet I can guess whose is whose!!
When I first began to crochet (literally, the same week!) I got very very sick and had to stay in bed for three days. I decided, since I had four skeins of yarn that I would make Matt (my hubby) an afghan. I also decided to make it big enough to fit a queen size bed. Of course, being the newbie that I was, I didn't realize that four skeins of yarn wouldn't make a "queen" afghan. (Silly girl I was.)
Needless to say, two years later, I am only halfway done and I had to resort to stripes (when I wanted it to be all one color) because they no longer made the exact match. :-(
I hope one day to finish that thing, but in the meantime he has a good time teasing me about making a queen size afghan in three days with four skeins of yarn.
Your afghans are lovely. And each stitch will wrap your girls with a bit of love and a prayer offered up on their behalf. No doubt they will stay plenty warm under such love.
Rebecca from http://www.zeahrenaissance.blogspot.com
November 17th, 2009 at 11:20 pm
I know what you mean about not being able to hide the gift! I'm making quilts for each of my four children for Christmas. The younger three (9, 5, 3) have no clue what I'm doing, but my 11 year old daughter watched every step. So I did what you did. I let her choose her own fabric and pattern. I'm trying to keep it at least bunched up on the table so that she doesn't get the full effect until Christmas morning!
WendyLou
November 18th, 2009 at 10:45 am
Oooh, those are VERY pretty! They also look incredibly soft.
November 19th, 2009 at 6:19 am
I love the colors the girls chose and the yarn looks so soft. I'm sure they will be happy to finally unroll them and see the full size!
I look at homemade presents as a way to revolt against the commercialism of Christmas. And Emily is right, the time spent on a gift is a gift in itself!
Love in Christ,
Laura S.
November 19th, 2009 at 5:02 pm
Those are lovely! I love blankets. :)
January 15th, 2010 at 10:57 pm
They are gorgeous! You did a really fantastic job…I need to practice my crocheting :)
I could tell almost right away that you used Vanna's Choice yarns. The Terracotta and Mustard colors are two of my favorites! (Great choice Emily!) ;)
January 24th, 2010 at 4:27 pm
Hi! I was inspired by your beautiful afghans to get crocheting again myself. So I made an afghan for my sister in greens and purples using the pattern you linked to. I have two questions: First, the edge of my afghan is curling under. Is there a way to edge it or something to help keep it from curling?
Two: I love the blue/green/brown/white colors you used and I would like to make another afghan using those colors. Could you tell me what brand of yarn and colors you used for that one? Thanks so much! ~Anna layinguptreasure.blogspot.com
annacoumos.blogspot.com