Ripple Blanket-TaDAA!!!

In July of 2012, I picked out yarn for a huge ripple blanket.  I agonized over it.  I didn't want to pick out yarn for a blanket that I didn't love.  I had to figure out 'my style'.  Oh what the heck...I agonize over every blanket yarn purchase!  I'm known for it!!  People have actually called the yarn store to make sure I was NOT there so I wouldn't confuse them, or talk them into making a blanket!

I've made a few blankets, but none this big.
And none I love more.

And I'm not going to pretend I don't miss our Ripple Tuesday nights....because I do.  When you decide to make a blanket, you also make a financial commitment and a time commitment.

 For those of you that have been following my blog, you might remember Ripple Tuesday.  Our crochet group got together every Tuesday evening to work on our ripple blankets.  I remember the first night.  We were following a pattern posted by Lucy at Attic 24.  And my oh my, Groovy Girl and I had a small disagreement about the pattern instructions!!! 

As the blanket grew, so did the memories. 

 If you go back through my blog and do a search (area on upper left corner) you can search Ripple Blanket, Ripple Tuesday, Tuesday Ripple (I'm so consistent!) Ripple Monday...etc.   .

When you make a blanket, you sometimes remember where you were and what was going on while you were working on it.
When I started this blanket, I was living at our house in town.  We have since moved and sold that house.  Groovy Girl yarn store has moved too.

 You probably remember the saddest time of this blanket process was when our friend Kristi had a massive heart attack.  I sure do miss her.  I hear she is doing better, but we have only seen her once since her stroke.  She was not the same person. 

 Our crochet group doesn't get together anymore.  "K" and I do still meet to crochet.  And last week we had a blast, singing off key, to songs that we don't know the words to!  Seemed like old times.  When Groovy Girl was actually moving her store, our group got together at the local coffee shop to crochet.  We made this Alexandra Mackenzienz pillow.  (I would have more pictures to show but since my old computer - Roofus - broke down I lost some pics too)

 

There was the time Mom and Dad spent the day here on Mom's birthday, last May.  I was showing Mom how to ripple, so she has woven a memory into my blanket, while Dad fished (and drank a beer!)

  

There was the time I tried crocheting with my niece and my dog on my lap.  That didn't turn out so well.

 This little guy always wants on my lap when I'm crocheting.

 When my blanket became too big to carry with me and work on, I joined a ripple crochet-a-long on Mel's blog.

It motivated me to work on the blanket again.  The problem I had with this blanket, is how do you know when it's finished?  I decided when I ran out of yarn to ripple, I was done.  Well, I still have a couple of colors that I could add on,

 But I like it the way it is.  I do want to make a couple of pillows to go with it.  And I cannot find the original pillow case that we used to match the yarn, but I will.  It's around here somewhere!

 The only thing I had to do to finish it was  tie in a few loose ends.  I did most of them as I went.  

 

And a little trick I learned is if you have to chain a lot of chains...don't worry if you end up with too many.  Just go on with the blanket.  Untie the knot...

 and re-tie it and you are fine!

 Anyway, here you go!!!

TADAAAA!!!!!

I got the two pillows on the left at a craft show this past weekend, and the one on the right a couple of years ago, at the same booth, at the same craft show!

  

What do you think?  I am so happy it is finished!

Oh...and did I mention...last night,

 I slept like a baby!

Cindy Bee