Thursday, March 5, 2015

Ripple Blanket with a Twist

Hello my friends.  I hope you've had a good week?  Everything is going well here at Lilly My Cat.  I can finally sit back and relax my brain a bit.  My problem is that I anticipate my work that is to come.....and it seems to get worse with age :(  and this was one of those weeks.

My husband and I have rental properties.  We've always had rental properties for almost 38 years.  It's just the norm for us over all these years.  My husband taught for years at a university before taking a job managing a large plant but his hobby is real estate.  I worked too but also I took care of the rentals.   It meant painting, cleaning, and the never ending bookkeeping.  When we moved five years ago to California, we hired a manager. The first time ever in all those years.  But, it's hard to let go and I still want to micro manage.  Anyway, one of the rentals that became vacant was here in California and I had the honor to take out my paint clothes and wear them for two days!  Yah...and I still remember how to paint.  I really enjoy painting - it's the cleaning I don't like.

My husband told me I was crazy to do this myself as he said we should have hired to have it done.  Yes, we could of, but would they have done it to suit me?  I don't think so.  But now that it's over, it gives me a feeling of satisfaction.  And, hopefully the new tenant will appreciate our work.

 I wish I could be like Lilly.  Nothing disturbs her!

But on a fun note, I want to share with you a blanket I completed a couple of weeks ago.  It's called Jacob's Ladder and the link to the pattern can be found here.

I purchased the yarn in Istanbul when I was there last year.  I used 13 skeins.  It was a fun blanket to crochet.

I bought 13 skeins; 1 skein for border, four skeins of dark gray, four skeins of light gray and four skeins of blue. (this is what I had leftover at the end)

And, here is the finished blanket.  As I was crocheting along, I "twisted" the ladder as I went and secured the ends with some scrap yarn.

 You can see the "twisted" columns running the length of the blanket.  These are made by the "chain 10" that you do throughout the pattern.

Here's a close up of the "twist".  I twisted one of the chain 10 loops to the left and twisted the next one to the right, etc. It's gives it an interesting pattern.

Here's a close up of the border.  I just designed my own border.  I would have made it a bit more lacy but it's for my son-in-law and I didn't want it to look too frilly.

It's a fun pattern to make and it really goes by quite fast.  I know the colors I used are not bright but they do look nice when it's finished and you can see the whole blanket.

What am I working on now?  I'm knitting with a beautiful pink yarn for my little granddaughter who's expected to arrive this summer.  And, there's a pair of socks in queue, too!

Thank you to everyone who read my crazy post from last week.....I hope you have a fabulous weekend and I will be back soon.  Lilly sends you her best meows!

Enjoy your day,
Pat

Link Parties:
I'm joining Happy Friday at Planet Penny and Handmade Monday at Lucy Blossom Crafts and....Frontier Dreams and Yarn Along




35 comments:

  1. How exciting to be expecting a granddaughter. I adore your newest creation; so pretty! Lilly sure knows how to relax. She is gorgeous.

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  2. The blanket is so pretty! It is a dream of ours to have rentals someday, and we would also do the work on them...rewarding work ;-)
    Lori

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  3. Beautiful blanket! I love the colors and the pattern. :-)
    Congratulations having a new granddaughter on the way.
    Lilly is just adorable. Wish I could relax like that!

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  4. What a fantastic memento of your time in Istanbul. We went a few years ago but I hadn't learnt to crochet at that point. If I may, I think I may steal your idea to buy yarn as a holiday souvenir; such a lovely idea. Well done on finishing all that painting. x

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  5. Wow, what a gorgeous blanket, and I love the twist. Lilly is beautiful too. :) Please come share your blog posts over at the Home Matters Linky Party! We'd love to have you for a visit. The Door is OPEN. http://lifewithlorelai.com/2015/03/05/home-matters-linky-party-27/ :)

    ~Lorelai
    Life With Lorelai

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  6. What a gorgeous blanket. I love ripple stitch, it looks really effective but is very relaxing to work. Thanks so much for joining in with Happy Friday, have a lovely weekend. x

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  7. Such a gorgeous blanket! I love the colours you've chosen. I totally agree with you about painting, its the cleaning that's the horrible bit! :)

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  8. That's an interesting 'twist' on a pattern :D Love the way it's turned out :)

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  9. Oh, your picture of Lilly reminds me so much of the paintings by the artist Lesley Anne Ivory. Have you seen them? If not, a quick Google search will show you what I mean! Love your blanket, it looks fantastic xx

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  10. Your blanket looks like just the thing to snuggle into on a cold afternoon. It's beautiful!

    Julie

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  11. Your blanket is lovely - I really love the colors together and the pattern looks so intricate. A true labor of love. Lilly knows how to enjoy the day, doesn't she? xo Karen

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  12. I really like the colours you chose - those blues and greys work really well together and it's a nice thought that you bought them while you were away travelling x

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  13. That is a beautiful blanket, and a lovely design. So unusual. The yarn looks very silky. You are obviously very good with your hands, including painting apartments!

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  14. Your blanket is gorgeous, the twisted design really stands out.
    Ali xx

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  15. This blanket is BEAUTIFUL! I love the raised posts - one of my favorite looks right now - and the great color combination here. 13 skeins is a lot, and I know very time consuming. End result is gorgeous!
    I hope you'll be sharing this at our Yarn Fanatic Link Party - http://eyeloveknots.blogspot.com/2015/03/yarn-fanatic-linky-party-26.html.
    Alexandra
    EyeLoveKnots.blogspot.com

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    1. Thank you for stopping by to party with us! I hope you'll be stopping by to party with us again real soon.
      #27 is live - http://eyeloveknots.blogspot.com/2015/03/yarn-fanatic-linky-party-27.html.
      Sharing with my Facebook Fans on Friday, early evening.
      Alexandra
      EyeLoveKnots.blogspot.com
      Facebook.com/EyeLoveKnots

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  16. Oh wow that is fantastic, love the effect the stitches make. Love pink so looking forward to your next creation.

    I cannot let go of things, think it comes from managing a team of 30 staff, I find delegation hard but getting older having to let go of more and accept help.

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  17. Such a beautiful blanket, I'm sure your son-in-law will love it too.

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  18. I know what you mean about the painting, a professional would get it done in double quick time but you might not like the results. I'm obsessive about 'cutting in' and a poorly done job really bugs me! That blanket however is top notch, what a stunning job you have made of it - Just wonderful x

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  19. What a fantastic looking blanket. Love the 3d twist.
    fabulous xx

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  20. What a beautiful blanket! I love the interest and texture the twists give - I'll have to try something similar. Lilly is absolutely beautiful - we think our boys might have some Maine Coon in them - they're not as fluffy but they do love to "chat"! xx

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  21. I love the textures of your blanket. What a beautiful cat! Please excuse my ignorance, but is your header Paris?

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  22. I have seen this pattern before, but have yet to make it. It worked up wonderfully in the muted colors of your yarn. Great colors for your SIL.

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  23. What a lovely blanket, you surely have an amazing talent. That is one craft I have never taken in.

    Have a lovely rest of the week.

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  24. Beautiful blanket.
    found you at the link up.
    Have a nice day

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  25. Love the blue and gray! Wouldn't life be wonderful if we all had the lives of our cats?

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  26. It looks lovely - the twist really makes it!

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  27. The crochet is beautiful, and I am certain your new client will appreciate your work. Wonderful.

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  28. Your afghan is beautiful, love your colors!

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  29. the blanket is beautiful....and such great travel memories hooked in to it!

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  30. You blanket is stunning! I love the color combos and the twisted stitch. Very nice!

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  31. I'm like you and rather enjoy the painting part. There is definitely a sense of accomplishment once you're done with it all! I love the blanket you made as well. I keep saying that one of these days I'm finally going to learn how to crochet... Hoping one of those days is soon as I need a new hobby! ;-)

    Thank you for linking up with us at the Oh My Heartsie Girls Wordless Wednesday Linky Party! Hope to see you again at our next party!

    Wishing you a fabulous week!

    Much love,
    Lysa xx
    Welcome to My Circus
    Co-Host OMHGWW

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  32. Hi Pat, thank you for visting my blog and your kind comments about my blanket. Your blanket is gorgeous too. I love the twist pattern ad blue is my favourite colour. Glad you're enjoying your watercolour pencils - I'm enjoying my clouring book - its so relaxing and easy to fit into a spare 5 minutes. x

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  33. Gorgeous blanked - love the colours :o)

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