Mondrian-Style Blanket

I have a bad habit of starting a yarn project, getting partially done, deciding I don't care for it, and frogging* it. My husband is amazed at how many different things I can make with the same yarn... I tell him this way I never have to buy more yarn. But... it also means I rarely finish something. 

I don't like to admit it, but I can be a real stinker when it comes to finishing a project. Once I know how it will turn out, I find it less compelling, and if I don't like what it's shaping into, I'm even less interested. I have this trouble with books and movies too. It's one reason I dislike seeing movies of books I've read (unless it's been awhile), and I never read the last chapter first. 

I started this blanket the second winter in our current house, almost five years ago. It was a struggle. Mostly I fought with carrying the different colors. I admire color-work, but it's too fussy for me. I wanted the blanket to be viewable from both sides; carrying yarn along on one side was not possible. And the endlessly repetitive single crochet was, well, endlessly repetitive (but I repeat myself...). The yarn and partially crocheted portion sat in a large multi-colored lump in the corner for three years. I ignored it and made other things. Socks. Sweaters. I'm pretty sure the lump was mocking me. I ignored it some more. 

And then, I thought: I will not be brought to heel by the mocking lump. I decided not to allow myself to start any new project until I finished or disposed of this, or any other, existing WIPs. This blanket was first on the list (mostly because of the size of the lump. And the mocking). I devised a mostly acceptable, not too annoying, method for trailing along several separate balls of color (full disclosure: I confess to several bouts of whining). But: it is done. At last. And it is good. And the peasants rejoiced. 

I used Lion Brand Wool-Ease and adapted the colors to suit our living room. The Mondrian Blanket pattern is available free from Lion Brand, but you have to register/log-in to get it. I like how the colors interact, and I imagine you could substitute other color sets with equally good results.  



*rip-it, rip-it, rip-it (get it?)

Upcycle: Old T-Shirts

I had an "omigosh - me too!" moment while checking out a blog post at Re-Nest: turns out I'm not the only one with unrealistic emotional attachments to t-shirts and a closet full of them to prove it.

Over the years, duhMan & I have purchased or received t-shirts on purpose, as participant swag on bicycle rides, vendor freebies (back when companies were allowed to give out freebies in academia). We have piles of them. Most clothing items I don't mind giving away when they cease to be useful for us, but t-shirts...? They don't last well, and for those with true sentimental meaning, well, they're just garbage for anyone else. So I keep them.

Turns out there are other people suffering from the same issue, and they're smart enough to come up with solutions. I'm only smart enough to use their ideas (and give them credit). Regina Yunghans at Re-Nest had five ideas, my favorite coming from Stefanie Japel at Glampyre Knits where she has a video tutorial on turning t-shirts into yarn. Awesome! Just think of the softness of a blanket made of your favorite, wash-worn t-shirts....