Sunday, November 09, 2014

Storms blanket finish

On Friday evening and over the weekend, I took part in FNWF over at Gone Stitchin' blog. I decided that this was the weekend I was going to finish my Storms blanket.  You can click on the image to find out more about it.

http://stitchingcubbyhole.blogspot.co.uk/2014/11/sign-up-time.html

I began this blanket some months ago when DROPS were having a sale on their merino. I think I got it for about £1.20 a ball which is a ridiculous price for merino so I hastily took up their offer. Once the wool I had ran out, the blanket lay folded up waiting for another sale to come along and eventually it did so I bought the remaining balls and continued on slowly and surely.
 
And here she is.......

 
Neat ripple pattern courtesy of Attic24

 
Drops merino colours used were:
 
Pistashio
Steel Blue
Light Greyish Green
Grey Blue
North Sea
Denim Blue
Light Grey Blue
Medium Purple

 
It was a nice warm blanket to snuggle up to in the evenings especially now it has started to get colder. This has to be my favourite time of year. There is nothing I like better than to pop the fire on and cosy up with some long term blanket making.

 
It was an absolute joy to work and I feel that it is finished now. My starting chain was too short to fit vertically up my bed so I just made sure it was long enough and turned it around so it fitted on width wise. I think it looks good like this and it fits fine.

 
So now my mind turned to... what next? It is an absolute must to have a blanket on my knee now the nights are drawing in and the rooms are getting colder. I happened to notice that Lucy from Attic 24 has gone and done it again with another beautiful blanket CAL and this time, what I particularly like, is that she is showing us what colours she is using in what order.... as we crochet along! This is a fab idea, especially for someone as lazy as me who can't be bothered to think about colour placement. As you will notice I did a set pattern for the Storm ripple although I do much prefer random colour placement. The CAL is called the Cosy CAL and it uses the most joyful autumnal colours. If you would like to check out the pattern then go here. My wool is ordered and I am hoping I will get it tomorrow so I can make a start and catch up.
 
I have been doing some stitching of late too. I have been diligently working away on A Quaker Christmas and have almost completed page 1. I love the Wine Red from Threadworx that I am using for it. It is super rich and warm and the design is actually quite quick to stitch up.
 
 
The other piece I have been working on is a square for Love Quilts. Love Quilts is a charity whereby you donate a stitched square and it contributes towards a quilt that gets given to very sick children. It is a most worthy cause and I have felt guilty that I have only ever completed one square in the past several years. So I made a decision and I am working towards completing my second square. If you are interested in joining in then please look here for more info on Love Quilts.
 

 
I have also been busy making these pretty tissue box holders for our school Christmas fair to help raise funds for our after school craft club. I have made 3 different ones so far and really hope they sell as we are desperate at the moment.

 
So you can see how very busy craftwise I have been and why I needed to make a list in my last post. I am getting there slowly and surely.
 
To finish off I thought I would show you my new Christmas present that I got early from my husband. Well, truth be told this was on offer at a really really great price and I asked him to fork out for it which he kindly did. It is a Tassimo! This is an amazing drinks machine as it not only makes fresh coffee within seconds but also other hot drinks including tea and hot chocolate. All made at the touch of a button. It is so easy and so yummy. A real treat during this cold weather snap.

 
They even do Costa coffee Latte and Cappucino. Oh yum. I truly have been in coffee heaven this last week, playing around with it and even the kids have enjoyed some Orea hot chocolate and Cadbury's too. Now, I am not going to say the drinks are cheap but much cheaper than if you were to buy them in the coffee shop. Here's one of the Costa Lattes freshly made up.

 
Deeeeelish. Now if you'll excuse me for a bit, I have a Cappucino waiting.
 
Love to you all.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
 
 

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

Your blanket is beautiful, I love the colours.
Lovely stitching too.
Have a good week.

stitcherw said...

Your afghan turned out beautifully, I love the colors in it. your quaker piece is looking great as well. Enjoy your drink machine, the Latte looked soooo delicious, it will be quite welcome in the colder months :)

Vickie said...

Oh my! That storms blanket is awesome! Good job.
Yummy treats. ;)

Starry-eyed stitcher said...

Oh, I've started to crochet along with Lucy. Wait til you see the colours, they are beautifully autumnal and Lucy's instructions are so easy. I'm not very experienced with a crochet hook, but it's looking lovely. Irene xxx

VeggieMummy said...

Beautiful blanket and beautiful stitching too! I am so envious of your new drinks machine; I could just do with a latte right now. Have a great week. x

Jackie's Stitches said...

Congratulations at finishing your blanket! You did so well with the color selections. I always find that such a struggle.

Bev C said...

Hello Hazel.

I am in love with your blanket, being made from Merino wool it must be so lovely to have on yourself.
Love the Quaker cross stitch too.Such a lovely idea to stitch the blocks for the children.

Happy days.
Bev.

Margaret said...

I love your afghan! It's gorgeous! Love your stitching too! The next CAL at Attic 24 looks great too. I'm so tempted to try crochet again!

NADINE said...

Hi, Hazel :)

I just found your lovely blog, and the information about your gorgeous wavy blanket...
GREAT blog, really ! I'll certainly make frequent visits :)

Keep going, dear !

Nadimarie (Ravelry-Lucy Group)

Valentina said...

Love your blanket!! You've chosen a great colour mix.
I'm on the Cosy Cal too, can't wait to see your update on that and I hope to be able to get back to my blog and update myself!
And I also like A quaker Christmas, really nice stitching!

Giovanna said...

What lovely colours for that blanket - beautiful! Great stitching too.

Julie said...

Super blanket, very cosy.
You've been busy with needle and thread too.

Cheryll said...

You were very busy at fnwf on some wonderful projects. Thanks for joining in with us... I love your blanket.

Stitchabilities said...

What a fantastic Blanket, love the colours. I have actually finished my Quaker Christmas...I think ..I will have to check in a bit, might get it framed eventually, I love my tassimo, although I have to have decaff which I have to order online :0(

Anna van Schurman said...

Great colors on the blanket!

ruthsplace said...

Your blanket is stunning!

Andrea said...

Love the blanket, just gorgeous colours. Looking forward to seeing a finish on Quaker Christmas soon!

Annette-California said...

Congratulations on finishing your beautiful blanket. It looks gorgeous and warm:) We got a coffee maker (Krieger coffee maker a few Christmas's back) and we love ours too. Perfect gift for the whole family.
love Annette