a mason-dixon kind of baby shower
A couple of close friends are having a baby. Their first baby. This is a cause for much joy and celebration as well as cheering from the sidelines. Luckily for them, not only being knitters themselves, they know a lot of other knitters. Knitters that needed a focus and a project.
Way back when I stumbled upon the most excellent Mason-Dixon blog, it was at the start of the Jamie blanket, where knitters were invited to send in mitered squares to celebrate the arrival of adopted Jamie. I didn't have my act together to send in a square for that blanket, but I've had the idea of that blanket, of all your friends separately working together to concoct a knitting quilt for a wee little one that comes together in a randomly-beautiful composition, in my back pocket. Now was my chance! My friend Rachel and I planned waaaaay in advance. We test knit squares, wrangled up the knitters, sent them instructions, knit lots of squares ourselves, hated putting them together, tracked down the knitters, made the blanket smaller, threatened the knitters, begged the knitters, made the blanket smaller still and less than a week before the big baby shower unveiling, it still looked like this:
The night before the shower, fueled by mexican food, we connected our halves and figured out a way to both knit the borders at the same time on opposite sides. And we finished with just a few hours to spare.
The blanket was much loved by the parents-to-be and we are all awaiting Ella Rejoice to arrive at any moment.
Ella also scored a pair of blu jeans from the Knitty pattern by Cristina Bernardi Shiffman and Kay Gardiner at the baby shower. Thumbs up on this one! This was easy to knit with super-clear instructions and fun to see the brilliant construction details. As my first venture into demin yarn I can see you addictive one might find it!
I made size 12 months, so I'm going to have to wait a bit to see her toddling about in them.
Thank you Mason-Dixon ladies for your great designs and your amusing, inspiring blog.
Way back when I stumbled upon the most excellent Mason-Dixon blog, it was at the start of the Jamie blanket, where knitters were invited to send in mitered squares to celebrate the arrival of adopted Jamie. I didn't have my act together to send in a square for that blanket, but I've had the idea of that blanket, of all your friends separately working together to concoct a knitting quilt for a wee little one that comes together in a randomly-beautiful composition, in my back pocket. Now was my chance! My friend Rachel and I planned waaaaay in advance. We test knit squares, wrangled up the knitters, sent them instructions, knit lots of squares ourselves, hated putting them together, tracked down the knitters, made the blanket smaller, threatened the knitters, begged the knitters, made the blanket smaller still and less than a week before the big baby shower unveiling, it still looked like this:
The night before the shower, fueled by mexican food, we connected our halves and figured out a way to both knit the borders at the same time on opposite sides. And we finished with just a few hours to spare.
The blanket was much loved by the parents-to-be and we are all awaiting Ella Rejoice to arrive at any moment.
Ella also scored a pair of blu jeans from the Knitty pattern by Cristina Bernardi Shiffman and Kay Gardiner at the baby shower. Thumbs up on this one! This was easy to knit with super-clear instructions and fun to see the brilliant construction details. As my first venture into demin yarn I can see you addictive one might find it!
I made size 12 months, so I'm going to have to wait a bit to see her toddling about in them.
Thank you Mason-Dixon ladies for your great designs and your amusing, inspiring blog.
Labels: finished objects
posted by cheryl at 12:11 PM
7 Comments:
The jeans are a gift that keeps on giving, Cheryl. Elio has been wearing them for over a year (um, you know what I mean) and they turn heads wherever we go. Yay, babies! Yay, jeans! Yay, babies in jeans! CBS
And I do believe it is a first in knitting history to have a border knitted onto a blanket by two women AT THE SAME TIME.
Bravo!
goodness, cheryl! that pair of jeans got cuter than I last saw it!! keep us wooooing cuz i just love seeing what you make.
xoxo
t
Both are lovely. What a lucky Ella. I have an Ella whom I knit and crochet for, too.
lurvely blankie-- fantastic job! thanks for posting about the story & the shower!
Damn, that's a GORGEOUS blanket! And I'm so so glad that serious struggle with group projects is standard. I mean, I'm not glad, it shouldn't be that way, but it's reassuring that I'm not alone in having had those struggles.
Thanks for all your great comments and encouragement! I think I'd be up for another group blanket - in a few months from now ;)
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