If you read my previous post, you will know that my mother was the "official" baby afghan crocheter for our family and friends. Well, she's no longer around, and it seems like I have inherited the position. My family has had a population explosion in the past few years. I have new nieces and nephews, and their older brothers and sisters, and their even older cousins, and, of course, my grandchildren. And I'm not even mentioning our good friends who are becoming grandparents right and left. That adds up to a lot of afghans - baby size and larger. When I make an afghan for a present, I like to make one of my patterns, whether it's been published or not. The first one I made for my great-niece, the one I wrote about in the previous post, was one of my original designs. I had made one for me years before, and just changed the colors to pink and white. When I started designing for publications, I proposed the pattern to an editor, and it was published in a book. Then, I started working smaller baby-sized afghans, using another pattern, and when I submitted the proposal, it also was published. And ditto for a third afghan. I knew these patterns were good - they were easy for me to work quickly, and the new mothers loved them. Eventually, though, I ran out of previous designs, and now, anytime I'm asked to design an afghan for a publication, I have to put on my thinking cap, and do some work. I have some basic criteria for afghans that I crochet for presents. I like them to be quick (I don't have much time to spend on each afghan - see "population explosion" above.) I like to be able to remember the stitch pattern and not have to look at the directions many times in each row or round to see what to do next. I like to be able to make the pattern in all sorts of yarns. And, I like to be able to make the afghan larger or smaller, depending on the recipient. A small one for a baby. A larger one for a child. An even larger one for a grown-up. With all these criteria in place, I made umpteen afghans this past year for my family and friends. (When you make one for a new baby, you have to make another one for the older sibling.) I also made some for publications - one for a book that was just published: Unexpected Afghans by Robyn Chachula.
Unexpected Afghans is a book of 24 afghans, and pillows to match, all innovative crochet designs with traditional techniques. Each afghan is designed by a different designer, and there are hints and tips throughout the book, to make your crocheting experience easier. There are 5 different styles of afghans - cables, granny motifs, color, lace, and tunisian. It's a great way to learn how to work these different techniques if you're not familiar with them. And it's a great way to practice them if you are familiar with them. My afghan (the first in the book) is called Eloise Baby Blanket. It has easy cables and lacy shells. So if you're not used to working cables, or have never worked cables, or just find cables impossible to do, this would be an excellent blanket to crochet. Did I say the cables are easy? Very easy! And remember my basic criteria for making afghans for presents? Quick, easy-to-remember stitch pattern, able to be crocheted in all sorts of yarns, and easy to change the size. This blanket meets all these criteria - so I'm going to make this one for the next baby that shows up. Or the next wedding. Or just because!
If you are interested in the book, here's where you can find more info:
Unexpected Afghans
And, if you want to read the blogs of the other designers in the book, here is that info:
Meet the Designers
(in alphabetical order):
Finally, I am giving away one free e-book copy. All you have to do is leave a comment - what kind of afghans do you like to make? Or what are your "go to" afghans? And please be sure to leave your email address, so I can get in touch with you when you win! I'll be picking the number by a random number generator, this coming Sunday, July 8. All comments made before midnight, eastern time, on Saturday, July 7, will be eligible. Good luck!!!
