A Bluestocking Knits

Here is my "Big Bad Baby Blanket" — project one of two for the Baby Knit-Along over at Emy’s vintagefusion.

This is a fast knit, and makes a very handsome blanket.  I didn’t think that I really had that much time for knitting, but it worked up in a little over a week of half-hours here and there.  Mine came out bigger than the original, of course — 37 inches square, after blocking — as the Nature Wool is heavier than Koigu.  I adjusted the row numbers to fit the larger gauge.  I like the Nature Wool very much.  It is a bit rougher than, say, Jaeger Matchmaker merino, but not unpleasantly so; oddly enough, it seemed softer to knit with when doubled than with a single strand.  I had a half-ball due to the earlier attempt, so in order to keep any variances of color from showing (and I had already seen that they would), I started with one full ball and the half-ball, thus blending the skeins.  This has the added benefit of keeping the splices well-spaced apart.  I love the subtle color changes within the skein.  It has a nice woolly smell when wet too — I liked the smell of it on my hands after I’d washed and blocked it!

(And note that designer Lisa Shobhana Mason at My Life in Stitches has a Big Bad Baby Blanket gallery….)

This one is for a "northern hemisphere" baby — the other project is for a "southern hemisphere" baby.  One will need something warm for winter, the other something light for spring and summer!  I have started the garter-stitch jacket from Debbie Bliss’ "Quick Baby Knits" in Rowan Cotton Glace….