Large Granny Square Blanket

Here's a crochet project I started nearly one year ago and finished in late June (with a few long breaks along the way). The inspiration for this large granny square blanket came from this project on the Purl Bee blog.

One of my favorite parts of making my first granny square blanket was doing the border rows. There were very few yarn changes, as opposed to the inside squares, and it was easy to get into a rhythm and stay there. To make this blanket you more or less crochet one border row after the next -- I loved it.

I made a lot of progress on this blanket during our vacation to the south of France last spring. To this I attribute the fact that the blanket didn't up being exactly square -- the edges are quite wavy, probably because I was more relaxed and my tension lower (crochet tension, though my regular tension was probably lower too!).

I made this blanket as a gift for our friends' daughter who is just a few months younger than ours. I think it will be perfect for in-between weather (Spring, Autumn) since the pattern lets in light and air, but not too much.

Here's more info on the materials used:

3,5 mm crochet hook

8 skeins Phildar Phil Thalassa in Indigo

6 skeins Phildar Phil Thalassa in Horizon

6 skeins Phildar Phil Thalassa in Denim

6 skeins Phildar Phil Thalassa in Meringue

This yarn is made up of 75% cotton and 25% Lyocell, which comes from seaweed and according to Phildar has anti-bacterial and anti-odor properties (perfect for a baby!).

Log Cabin Baby Blanket, Part Deux

In a fit of organizing that hit me earlier this summer, I unearthed this baby blanket that I had started while on maternity leave last year. I love to re-watch my favorite movies and TV series while I craft, and if I recall correctly, this got me through quite a few episodes of Sex and the City. But at some point I put it down, probably to advance on the granny square blanket, and it had been buried in a closet ever since.

I had originally planned to knit a much larger blanket but instead opted for a small version that I could use to cover Bon Bon while in her stroller (and that wouldn't fall over the sides and get trampled under the stroller's wheels). The blanket is perfect for this, and I'm happy to say it's gotten quite a bit of use as Paris has been unseasonably cool this summer.

The idea to do a log cabin blanket came from this project on the Purl Bee blog. I normally go for a more muted palette in my yarn projects, and it was a nice change to get to play with colors like lime green and turquoise. Kind of makes me want to embark on a new crocheted blanket à la Jane Brocket or Lucy at Attic24...

La fête des Mères

A few weekends ago, we celebrated Mother's Day in France. This time around the day was especially important for us because we also celebrated the baptism of our daughter.

We were very fortunate that both my huband's parents and my own mother, as well as our siblings and a cousin who lives in Switzerland, were here to share the moment with us. All in all it was a day that we will always cherish.

Since they came all the way over from the US, my family stayed on a few extra days. As always, we had a blast visiting some favorite neighborhoods and sights in Paris. Here are a few shots from the weekend.

Close-up of one of the front doors of the Notre Dame de Paris cathedral 

The Eiffel Tower 

Modern sculpture in front of the main courtyard at Versailles 

And, one of my favorite sights from the weekend, bakeware that I bought (but for which we had no room in our suitcases) during our trip back in November plus my favorite cut-out, iced sugar cookies (thanks Mom & Blair!!!) 

Fabric Travel Baby Chair

With the time I can devote to crafting being limited after the arrival of my daughter last August, I recently decided that instead of committing to long-term, complicated sewing projects, I would try to find some patterns that I could work through relatively quickly. I wanted some instant gratification, and I also wanted to use up some of my fabric stash.

As much as I loved sewing my quilts, and crocheting the granny square blanket, time-consuming projects such as these can get discouraging in the long run. I tend to put them down for long stretches at a time to work on other things because I want to change simply for change's sake. Mind you, I'm still taking on projects that I realize I won't be able complete over the coming months, even the coming year: exhibit A, the Illinois quilt; exhibit B, the log cabin baby blanket -- at this point I'm not sure I could even find where I stashed this WIP if I wanted to...

This fabric baby travel chair is exactly the type of project that I was looking for -- it's quick and practical and combines both sewing and quilting. We are going on vacation in one month's time and will need something to help Bon Bon stay in her seat, whether it be in restaurants or at the place where we'll be staying. Of course, most places have high chairs, but some don't, and I think this will be a far more comfortable option for her.

I found the tutorial for this travel chair on This Mama Makes Stuff. I've been working on it a little at a time over the last few weeks, but I think it could be doable in one (uninterrupted) afternoon, especially if your fabric is pre-quilted. I quilted the fabric myself using leftovers and the same quilting style as for the Friendship Bag I made over one year ago. It seems a little roomy to me now, but hopefully by next month it will be perfect.

Highlight of my weekend

Lately my weekends have not been too productive on the crafting / baking front. I've basically spent them running errands, going to the doctor (we've all been sick for about 3 weeks straight now), doing laundry and -- my favorite activity as of late -- making baby food.

Bon Bon received a baby-food maker for Christmas + more color-coordinated baby-food-making accessories than you could ever wish for. I decided I would feed her homemade baby food during the week and save the store-bought baby food for when we're out and about.

So far she's been very good about trying new things -- she always gives us a suspicious look when tasting the first few spoonfuls of a new food, but she quickly warms up to it. She's already eating carrots, potatos, apples, bananas, zucchini, artichokes and leeks. On deck this week: pears, celery root and parsnips.

Even though the baby food maker is tiny (we use the one made by Beaba), it sometimes produces more than I can store. This is no problem as I normally just combine any left over puree with part of the cooking liquid to make soup, or we just eat the puree as is. I then take the remaining cooking liquid, which is basically vegetable stock, and freeze it in a miniature muffin mold to use later in recipes. It's all very economical and nothing goes to waste.