I trundled up to knitting today with my Lizard Ridge squares about my person full in the knowledge that it was a Very Important Day. Well, it was for me. Because today was the day that my blanket would finally start to take shape. I have ummed and ahhhed and then ahhhed and ummed about the colours that I have chosen since January 2008 and if truth be told the colours that I have ummed and ahhed stem back to the first time that I knit a square and lets face it, it was my idea, for a baby blanket, which was a roaring success from a knitting group I belonged to in December 2007. At the time when I suggested such a blanket for a baby that was about to be born into our group, I had no idea of just how complicated a suggestion I was making, well I had never read the pattern. I just knew that if there were, at that time, a thousand odd projects of this pattern that were displayed in Ravelry, then the pattern must be doable. And then there were the pretty colours, need I say more.

When I started to knit my first square I can remember being shocked. There was more to this than met the eye and I quickly learnt what a short row wrap was, but to do that I spent the best part of two days on the internet fine tuning what a short row wrap was that was hidden on the right side. It was time well spent, I will never be frightened of short row wrap again, especially after 36 squares!

I and my partner in crime, at least in gorgeous yarns and colourways, was quickly off the mark and Carie although she has a much heavier schedule than I simply churned out startlingly beautiful squares after square. Not content with her prowess she had to share and it was when startling beautiful squares, not least from her photography skills aided with the internet came landing on my desk that I groaned from the beauty of them all.

Resistance was futile.

It was time to spend several hours choosing colours for myself. At the time the dollar was nearly two to the pound, so it was a good time to choose my yarn. And from my records I chose seventeen balls of Noro Kureyon from Yarnela yarns, mainly because they had a rather better range of colours than had been released into this country by Noro.

Then there were others balls of Kureyon that I bought from the UK, and then most magically word spread and my knitting pals started to give me their left overs. It was wonderful to be given or to be sent random balls of wool, huge bags of left overs, or just bits and bobs, they have all made it into this blanket, which has made it even more beautiful to me. Seriously, it gave and still does give me such a buzz about just how wonderful and friendly the knitting community can be.

After Carie, Diane and I played with the squares we eventually settled on this. Before I go we had a lovely time playing with all of the colours and serious chats were held on the rights and wrongs between pinks, blues and greens. If you ever get the chance, play with colours with your girl friends it is truly wonderful and it is certainly going to be a day I always remember. It was so much Fun!!!

Well here goes….

First shot from me,

and then a photographic shot from one who is taller. (have I told you Carie is even taller than me!) Its a much better photograph,

and then,

and then a black and white to see if the blanket is balanced in the saturation of colours. I can see where it isn’t but trust me, we tried with the colours to get it balanced and to be honest I am very happy from the colour photographs.

What fun we have had today.