Secondly Longest Running Work in Progress!

Opal Ghan. A co-worker gave me a pillow from her sofa and requested a ghan. I've made ghans for her previously, before carpal tunnel and arthritis were an issue. She doesn't like open stitches of any kind, she likes solid. When I was younger that wasn't an issue, but it is now. That's my excuse for this being the 2nd longest running WIP I've had in all my years of crocheting and knitting. I started this ghan with one idea in mind. I rarely use a pattern when making ghans, as I like to wing it. I'm actually good at that, good at seeing what something will look like, and guestimating how much yarn to purchased. NORMALLY that is. Somehow with this, I was really off. I was coming along nicely with the project, probably about 2/3 of the way there, when I grab the bag to select another skein of yarn and realized............YIKES! I didn't have enough. m I'd had it long enough I knew there was no reason to even try and match yarn, plus....couldn't ask her to buy more or give me money to do so. Sooooooooooooo, checked my stash and decided the taupe (see 2 side panels), would blend nicely. So, frogged the whole thing (except squares), though I did take apart those that had been joined. ARGH

Rip it, Rip it, I really hate frogging. Often if I run into a snag I'm able to change midstream without having to do that. Not this time. And so, the project continues. Here you see it in stage 2. The other problem I'm dealing with is working from both ends of a skein of yarn, can't risk running short with this 2nd design. So, I do a bit on the middle, then a bit on the side panels, then make a square or two. Not at all the way I like to work. I need to constantly keep counting and measuring to be sure the 3 pieces will come together properly.

The other problem I'm having, I don't like what I'm working on. I'm not a fan of the colors and I find working on something I don't like, or am not excited by difficult. I am however forcing myself to keep this out in the open and work on it a bit each and everyday, even as I work on other projects. Breaking it up like this helps.

Someone please pour me another glass of wine!

RAV

The ABC"s

Close your eyes and picture Julie Andrews singing, "Let's start at the very beginning, a very good place to start, when you sing you begin with Do Rae Me......"

And so following Julie Andrews, I give you The A
A being the very beginning of the alphabet.

A = in yarn language, AFGHAN.

I've got 3 in the works. Sorta.

Oh...you can't see into my project bags. Going left to right, bag 1 is for a co-worker Opal
I've not started it really, but I do have the yarn, and pattern....see. I will start it today, even if only a wee bit.
Bag 2 is Christmas ripple. Silly me, I actually started it a week before Christmas of 08, then came to my senses and put it away for 09. What was I thinking of?


Bag 3 is The Candy Corn Ghan, man this has been a WIP for a record long time. I plan to work on it today for either 1 hour, or until I hit the next logical section. Which is the strip with the wild corner and attach it to the ghan. This has been a piece meal type ghan, using up some donated odd colors and handful of bright colored granny squares that didn't go with anything else. I've ripped out a few times, not having enough of a particular color has required adjustments along the way.

When finished it will go to Victory Junction Gang. This is one of Paul Newman's Hole in The Wall Camps, free to children with medical problems.

**working on mittens for The Bridge Project, click on the botton on my side bar
***helping SIL with her blog, stay tuned for an introduction. She's a published Childrens' Author with great ideas about writing activities.