Almost finished

It’s been a long-term project, begun in October 2010. It’s a well-traveled project, too, as I’ve mentioned before, having gone with me each trip I made to see Mr. F. Not much ever got done on it while I was there, but it was there if I needed it. My security blanket.

It was meant to be a Christmas gift in 2011 and I wrapped it in tissue paper and put it in a gift bag, ball of yarn and needles still attached, along with a note saying I’d finish it soon.

Somehow I didn’t think it would be this soon, even though my goal has been to complete it by the end of January. Of this year.

I put the final stitch in it last night as I was watching Downton Abbey, then bound it off while watching Upstairs Downstairs (the new series. I’m watching it only because my local PBS station is showing it following Downton Abbey. It seriously lacks the sparkle of the original series). My blanket still needs a crocheted border–I’d considered an applied I-cord, and while it’s not difficult, it would take approximately forever and more patience than I have to do that much I-cord–so crochet it is. Ends will have to be woven in as well, and if I were a fastidious knitter, it’d be given a gentle bath before it’s given to its recipient, but I’m not that fastidious so it’s going with a little dirt on its face.

That last stitch was both an accomplishment and a bit of a sorrow. I’ve loved this knit, though sometimes it was a bit of a slog, and sometimes I thought it’d never be done. But I’d be lying if I said anything other than I’ve loved it. The colors, the yarn, the soft squishy warmth of it, the simple but lovely garter stitch–nothing but knit, knit, knit–that resulted in a thing of beauty–how could I not love it? This is easily the largest and most satisfying thing I’ve knit,  but now it’s almost time to let it go and that makes me a little melancholy. That’s the inherent risk involved in loving anything or anyone, though–there is nearly always a time of letting go.

My impulse is to start another one right away, but there’s a danger in jumping back in too quickly. Those rebound romances seldom seem to work out, so I’ll bide my time. There may come another time when I’m ready for this kind of long-term commitment again, or maybe not. It’s hard to say right now. But time will tell, as it does in all things. Until then, I have the joy of what has been.

The details:

My blanket is based on the Moderne Log Cabin pattern, though I did my own variation on it, mostly knitting to the end of a skein or two to get my blocks to the sizes I wanted them. I used Brown Sheep Lamb’s Pride yarn, a lovely blend of 85% wool and 15% mohair that is soft and warm and knits up beautifully. The colors are Creme, Spice, Grey Heather, Charcoal Heather, and Deep Charcoal.  I cast on using (probably) size nine needles and did the knitting with size 8s, then bound off with size 9s. I used Clover Circular needles, my favorites, in lengths ranging from 24″ up to 48″. The almost finished product is nearly full-size bed sized and should be plenty warm for the perpetually cold recipient.

That's a lot of knitting.

I’m kind of proud of this.