At the same time, I have a third room in my house that functions as both an office and a guest room... and needed 'something'. The decor was spare: a desk, a folding chair and a daybed were all you'd find. Some of its spartan appearance was due to it having been previously occupied by my Mom. She'd since moved out, generously leaving the bed behind and, hence, solving at least one aspect of our challenge in furnishing that room. Some of the austerity had to do with the fact that the carpet in there is a thick-piled, luxuriously deep, brilliant red.
Red is a lovely color, adding a rich elegance when properly applied. However, we're talking about a girl who has steeped her living room in turquoises, apple greens and tangerines (looong before it was 'in', thank you very much). Red's not exactly on my radar as a decor color in my home. So, as you can imagine, I've had a hard time wrapping my mind around how to address the 'beautifying' of this space.
Change the carpet, you say. Well, as a renter of this adorable little ranch, that's simply not an option at the moment. And, even if I owned the place, new floor coverings simply aren't in the budget.
Being the rocket scientist that I am, it's taken living in this home, complete with yarn stash, for almost two-and-a-half years before coming to the realization that yarn and rug complement one another. Seeing as how I'd also just inherited another bed and was in need of bed coverings, I began trolling the internet for crochet afghan patterns. I liked the idea of melding this wide variety of reds, wines, pinks and off-whites to complement the floor covering. Heck, I was hoping I could pull off making it look as though it was all planned. Enter the Ocean Waves Throw.
The pattern itself is simple. I felt trepidation to committing to such a large-scale project, though, knowing that a simple pattern wouldn't necessarily equate to quick closure. I'd have to work at this project morning, noon and night for weeks, nay, months, to have success. I visited the site to read the instructions and ponderously assessed my stash at least four times before finally deciding the benefits outweighed the pain... er... costs involved.
I got started right before Thanksgiving. Between that holiday, cookie exchanges, social commitments and an extended Winter Break (thanks to the snowiest winter on record in our area), I'd seat myself down to attempt busting out a couple rows at a time. Designed to span and drape over the width of a twin bed, one row seemed to go on for an eternity. Two rows created one complete row of a particular color. The original pattern called for five or six different colors. My stash had about eleven. Even at my quickest, I timed myself at one hour and thirty minutes just to finish one row of color (or, two rows total). My mantra through it all: "You're gonna have a cute blanket when you're done, AND you'll have cleared your stash... a cute blanket... an empty stash...cute blanket... empty stash..."
Life's surprises, inconveniences, busy-ness and interruptions certainly attempted to elbow their way in to usurp my attention and draw me away. I mean, really, how long has it been since you last saw me here? Just the same, a half hour here, two hours there (during my little one's nap-time), and slow and steady won the race.
It so happens I over-estimated my stash's abilities: confident I had a mountain of yarn able to knock out a possible queen sized afghan, I actually only had enough to finish half of a twin sized blanket. I'm calling it a 'coverlet'. Yeah, I made a coverlet... because I planned it that way... yeah.
Ultimately, I felt a huge wave of satisfaction when I pulled that last stitch through. I grabbed my scissors, snipped the yarn and sat, incredulous, for a moment. I stared at the blanket; I stared at the stash (which I now have to keep in a large plastic container since our new kitten LOVES to get into my yarn). The amount of encouragement I felt is indescribable. Quickly retrieving my yarn needle, I worked that last piece through, snipped any pieces of yarn peeking through, and immediately made my way to the office.
Draped across the bed, it was made expressly for that room and it looks the part. I love it. I'm so glad I didn't allow the magnitude of the job tempt me to shy away.
And, as Spring (hopefully) lingers ever closer, I find myself feeling hopeful I can accomplish even more exciting projects in the weeks and months to come.
