Comfort Blanket - Finished!

After I finished the edging on the shawl I was able to return to work the edging on the blanket to use up as much of the remainder of the full size skein as possible.  I did a modified log cabin edging, working the two opposite sides first - picking up 200 stitches - and then the other two opposite sides where I also picked up stitches in the edging of the first two sides so that things were symmetric.  I kept track of my yarn usage, and after working a couple of rows I did the math to figure out how many rows I could work and not run out of yarn (I ended up with about 5 grams left).  I could have done one more row on each side, but I wanted to bind off on a wrong side row because I like the look when I’m working garter stitch, and if I had worked that one more row I would have been binding off on the right side.  This didn’t take very long to finish, I finished up on July 27, but had to wait until the following Monday to block it as we had to go out of town over the weekend.  Jezebel has claimed the blanket.

Pattern:  Comfort Blanket KAL 2023 by Louise Tilbrook

Yarn:  Mad Scientist Yarns Hybrid 2021 Jekyll Advent

Needle:  US 3 (3.25 mm)

 

Comfort Blanket - 25 Blocks Done!

I actually finished up the 25th block back on July 16, but never got around to posting about it.

24 blocks, also completed on July 16.

23 blocks, completed on July 9.

22 blocks, completed on July 8.

21 blocks, completed on July 7.

20 blocks, completed on July 4.

Jezebel approves of the blanket, and takes any opportunity to lay on it.

I have already started working the border using the full size skein that came with the set.

The colors:

Day 1 - Blue Sea Squirt:  20.5 g / 8.4 g

Day 2 - Brain Coral:  20.8 g / 8.6 g

Day 3 - Electric Clam:  20.4 g / 8.4 g

Day 4 - Violet Sea Slug:  20.5 g / 8.4 g

Day 5 - Peppermint Shrimp:  20.2 g / 7.7 g

Day 6 - Squat Lobster:  20.4 g / 8.3 g

Day 7 - Mauve Stinger:  20.7 g / 8.4 g

Day 8 - Larval Grideye Fish:  20.9 g / 8.6 g

Day 9 - Bearded Scorpion Fish:  20.4 g / 8.5 g

Day 10 - Orange Cup Coral:  20.7 g / 8.8 g

Day 11 - Pharaoh Cuttlefish:  20.9 g / 8.5 g

Day 12 - Barred Soapfish:  20.7 g / 8.3 g

Day 13 - Trumpet Anemone:  20.7 g / 8.6 g

Day 14 - Green Torch Coral:  20.7 g / 8.5 g

Day 15 - Bigfin Reef Squid:  20.3 g / 8.5 g

Day 16 - Hairy Hermit Crab:  20.3 g / 8.8 g

Day 17 - Peacock Mantis Shrimp:  20.4 g / 8.5 g

Day 18 - Wart Comb Jelly/Sea Walnut:  20.7 g / 8.9 g

Day 19 - Cockatoo Squid:  20.1 g / 8.5 g

Day 20 - Siamese Fighting Fish:  20.2 g / 8.4 g

Day 21 - Slender Tailed Lantern Fish:  20.7 g / 8.4 g

Day 22 - Dinoflagellates:  20.6 g / 8.7 g

Day 23 - Polychaete Worm:  20.8 g / 8.5 g

Day 24 - Hammer Coral:  20.5 g / 8.1 g

Day 25 - Moon Jellyfish:  20.8 g / 8.6 g

Pattern:  Comfort Blanket by Louise Tilbrook

Yarn:  Mad Scientist Yarns Hybrid - 2021 Jekyll Advent Calendar

Needle:  US 3 (3.25 mm)

Comfort Blanket - 19 Blocks Done

No blogging last weekend as we were in California for my step-daughter’s graduation from her surgical residency program.  It was a good trip, busy, and tiring.  But I have been making fairly steady progress on my Comfort Blanket.  I even caked up all of the remaining mini-skeins and took this with me, but I only managed to knit a few rows.

Day 18

Day 17

Day 16

Day 15

Day 14

Day 13

Most ends have been woven in, and I will add some sort of edging.

The colors so far:

Day 1 - Blue Sea Squirt:  20.5 g / 8.4 g

Day 2 - Brain Coral:  20.8 g / 8.6 g

Day 3 - Electric Clam:  20.4 g / 8.4 g

Day 4 - Violet Sea Slug:  20.5 g / 8.4 g

Day 5 - Peppermint Shrimp:  20.2 g / 7.7 g

Day 6 - Squat Lobster:  20.4 g / 8.3 g

Day 7 - Mauve Stinger:  20.7 g / 8.4 g

Day 8 - Larval Grideye Fish:  20.9 g / 8.6 g

Day 9 - Bearded Scorpion Fish:  20.4 g / 8.5 g

Day 10 - Orange Cup Coral:  20.7 g / 8.8 g

Day 11 - Pharaoh Cuttlefish:  20.9 g / 8.5 g

Day 12 - Barred Soapfish:  20.7 g / 8.3 g

Day 13 - Trumpet Anemone:  20.7 g / 8.6 g

Day 14 - Green Torch Coral:  20.7 g / 8.5 g

Day 15 - Bigfin Reef Squid:  20.3 g / 8.5 g

Day 16 - Hairy Hermit Crab:  20.3 g / 8.8 g

Day 17 - Peacock Mantis Shrimp:  20.4 g / 8.5 g

Day 18 - Wart Comb Jelly/Sea Walnut:  20.7 g / 8.9 g

Day 19 - Cockatoo Squid:  20.1 g / 8.5 g

As you can see, I’m using about 12 grams of yarn per square.

Pattern:  Comfort Blanket by Louise Tilbrook

Yarn:  Mad Scientist Yarns Hybrid - 2021 Jekyll Advent Calendar

Needle:  US 3 (3.25 mm)

Comfort Blanket - 12 Blocks Done

While I was focused on finishing up my Campfire Cardi I didn’t make much progress on my Comfort Blanket (I think I only managed one block), so I didn’t bother posting about it last weekend.  But I made up for it this week, finishing 4 more blocks for a total of 5.  The above photo is Day 8.

Day 9.

Day 10.

Day 11.

Day 12.

The colors so far:

Day 1 - Blue Sea Squirt

Day 2 - Brain Coral

Day 3 - Electric Clam

Day 4 - Violet Sea Slug

Day 5 - Peppermint Shrimp

Day 6 - Squat Lobster

Day 7 - Mauve Stinger

Day 8 - Larval Grideye Fish

Day 9 - Bearded Scorpion Fish

Day 10 - Orange Cup Coral

Day 11 - Pharaoh Cuttlefish

Day 12 - Barred Soapfish

Pattern:  Comfort Blanket by Louise Tilbrook

Yarn:  Mad Scientist Yarns Hybrid - 2021 Jekyll Advent Calendar

Needle:  US 3 (3.25 mm)

Comfort Blanket - 7 Blocks Done

When I finished up the fifth block I then had to decide how I wanted to work the second row.  I had originally thought to keep working from the left to the right, but when I looked again at the color progression of the yarn set I decided to work the second row from right to left.  This creates a zig-zag pattern with the decrease lines, which I am fine with.

I just thought that the sixth block against the first block would be too different.

The seventh block is a shocking pink, and only a tonal variation, as opposed to the other blocks that are pretty riotous when it comes to the colors.

The colors thus far:

Day 1 - Blue Sea Squirt

Day 2 - Brain Coral

Day 3 - Electric Clam

Day 4 - Violet Sea Slug

Day 5 - Peppermint Shrimp

Day 6 - Squat Lobster

Day 7 - Mauve Stinger

Pattern:  Comfort Blanket by Louise Tilbrook

Yarn:  Mad Scientist Yarns Hybrid - 2021 Jekyll Advent Calendar

Needle:  US 3 (3.25 mm)

 

Comfort Blanket - 4 Blocks Done

My Comfort Blanket is also proceeding well - popcorn or potato chip knitting.

I have already started the fifth block, and then I will start the next row.  At this point I am thinking of starting the next row above the first block, and always working left to right.

Day 1 - Blue Sea Squirt

Day 2 - Brain Coral

Day 3 - Electric Clam

Day 4 - Violet Sea Slug

Pattern:  Comfort Blanket by Louise Tilbrook

Yarn:  Mad Scientist Yarns Hybrid - 2021 Jekyll Advent Calendar

Needle:  US 3 (3.25 mm)

Comfort Blanket - 2 Blocks Done

When Mad Scientist yarns did their Hertzsprung Russell inspired Advent Calender in 2020 I was pretty much gob-smacked and super impressed with the creativity and skill, so in 2021 I purchased another Advent Calendar set.  This one was not quite what I was expecting, so I set it aside.  The theme is Bioluminescent Marine Life.

It is nominally a fade, but it is pretty crazy and I was really at a loss as to what to make with it.  Fast forward to today and Louise Tilbrook’s Comfort Blanket.  It is just mitered squares, and you can make them different sizes and, so long as you follow a few basic rules, they will fit together.  You join them as you go so there is very little finishing.  I’m doing the 40 x 40 stitch squares, which should have taken more yarn than they did (I’m using about 12 grams, vice the 23 stated in the pattern), but my size is about right.  My little blanket will be 5 squares by 5 squares.  I may work an edging with the solid skein, but I haven’t decided yet.  Once you get the square picked up it is mindless knitting - or popcorn knitting, if you prefer, because you want to see how the next color will look.

As with the 2020 Advent Calendar, there is some nice swag.  The project bags are very nice, and there are little picture cards with the marine life that inspired each of the colors.  I am sad that they closed up their shop, but they still put out the occasional special, to support charities.  They just did that with an amazing purple to green fade set, that I had to get, although I really, really, really, do not need to buy any more yarn.  Ever.  But we know how that works, don’t we.

Pattern:  Comfort Blanket by Louise Tilbrook

Yarn:  Mad Scientist Yarns Hybrid - 2021 Jekyll Advent Calendar

Needle:  US 3 (3.25 mm)