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November 03, 2006

Verde! Verde! Verde!




Thank you all so much for your generous comments about my log cabin blanket. It's OFFICIALLY an FO. I've woven in all the ends and finished the border. After consulting with the expert on all things log cabin, I decided to use the patent-pending Cro-Kay method for the border.









Basically, you cast on a stitch then another stitch then bind off the first stitch and continue around the entire blanket. Nice and neat and doesn't distract from the beauty of the squares. ;-)

Take a look at the seam here - can you find the seam?



That's whipstitch baby. All the way. But somehow I managed to get it nice and deep and have it look like a bind off - just like the squares themselves.





I'm particularly pleased with the wrong side:




Log Cabin Blanket
Pattern: My own design - inspired greatly by Mason Dixon Knitting. Basically I knit twelve squares using three colors - there are four different square patterns. I alternated light, medium and dark greens within each square pattern.



Yarn: Socks That Rock Heavyweight Yarn from Blue Moon Fiber Arts. Two skeins each color: Beryl (dark green), Jade (medium green) and Limestone (light green.)
Needles: Addi Turbo US Size #5s

I absolutely LOVE this project - conception, process, finish. I'm delivering the blanket to the Blue Moon booth at Stitches East later on today. If you happen to be there this weekend - check it out. If you happen to be there today, well, then, see if you can find me and tell me how much you love it in person. ;-)

(And don't laugh at me because I'm wearing the same outfit I wore at Rhinebeck. Gotta get as much mileage out of the knee socks as I can!)

I'm leaving you with some artsy outside pictures of the blanket. I miss it already.








Posted by Cara at November 3, 2006 12:04 AM
Topics: Log Cabin

Comments

It's STUNNING, Cara. Congratulations!

Posted by: Kathy at November 3, 2006 12:08 AM

gorgeous! absolutely gorgeous!

Posted by: Allegra at November 3, 2006 12:36 AM

I've said it before, and I'll say it again -- your blanket is a knockout! I hope it will also be traveling to Stitches West next Feburary :-) Have fun at Stitches East.

Posted by: nona at November 3, 2006 12:42 AM

I especially love the last photo. Cara, this blanket is truly a work of art! Congratulations!

Posted by: miss ewe at November 3, 2006 01:01 AM

Absolutely lovely! Great job on this one :).

Posted by: grumperina at November 3, 2006 01:06 AM

I *heart* green! Lovely. :)

Posted by: Rosemary at November 3, 2006 01:10 AM

It looks absolutely fabulous. Congrats on a job well done!

Posted by: LizKnits at November 3, 2006 01:28 AM

Oh it's sooo cool. I love how the wrong side looks as good as the right side. Great job! Creat idea! Just thought you should know. :)
One question-how could you give it away? I'm too selfish when it comes to cool things like that.
Here's something I haven't said in a while-goreous pictures!!!

Posted by: Kimberly at November 3, 2006 02:52 AM

Absolutely amazing! Great job! :)

Posted by: Jessica at November 3, 2006 06:17 AM

It's beautiful, you are the most amazing knitter. The stitches and seams are exquisite! Congrats on finishing.

Posted by: Heidi at November 3, 2006 06:29 AM

oh cara, that is beautiful.
'let's get through november' indeed...sending hugs.

Posted by: mrspilkington at November 3, 2006 06:39 AM

It's absofuckinlutely fabulous, honey!

Posted by: Carole at November 3, 2006 06:44 AM

The yarn, the desgin and the finishing are all so expertly executed that the end result is perfectly beautiful. You should be very proud.

The photo montage is quite lovely too.

Posted by: LaurieM at November 3, 2006 07:09 AM

What a gorgeous blanket! I love, love, love those greens. I'm so very impressed by your finishing work...I've been thinking of trying a log cabin but the finishing scares me a bit. Lovely pictures, too (but that's always true!).

Posted by: whitney at November 3, 2006 07:24 AM

It makes me want to curl up on the couch with a good book!
Have a great time at Stitches!

Posted by: Kirsten at November 3, 2006 07:27 AM

Gorgeous! Now you'll be starting a run on the heavyweight greens. ;-)

Posted by: Jan at November 3, 2006 07:41 AM

You're up and atem early! The blanket could not be more beautiful. You have created a work of art. Enjoy Stitches East...sounds like fun!

Posted by: margene at November 3, 2006 07:51 AM

Stunning, absolutely stunning. And such great advertising for the newly posted Beryl colorway on the Blue Moon website... I hope you're getting paid! ;o)

Posted by: megan at November 3, 2006 08:22 AM

Fantastic, Cara! Have a good time this weekend.

Posted by: Vicki at November 3, 2006 08:23 AM

wonderful! i hope you have many great moments wrapping it around yourself in sheer bliss.

Posted by: margaux at November 3, 2006 08:28 AM

Amazingly gorgeous.

Posted by: Kirsten at November 3, 2006 08:33 AM

Beautiful! I love it!

Posted by: Melissa at November 3, 2006 08:44 AM

Beautiful job Cara!

Posted by: Kelly at November 3, 2006 08:46 AM

Oh, that last picture is too inviting. Gorgeous blanket!

Posted by: Phoe at November 3, 2006 09:14 AM

What a lovely, gorgeous blanket.

Posted by: Jennifer at November 3, 2006 09:19 AM

it looks great! :) I love it!

Posted by: jess at November 3, 2006 09:30 AM

That is just beyond beautiful. Truly amazing, Cara.

Posted by: regina at November 3, 2006 09:32 AM

That is a stunning blanket! I've eyed the log cabin section of Mason-Dixon Knitting for a while now, and this is just amazing. I love the colour scheme you chose, it's understated but very, very sophisticated.

Posted by: expatknits at November 3, 2006 09:32 AM

That's amazing! I need to learn some of those finishing skillz. So you don't even get to keep it? Or are they just borrowing it?

Posted by: Elli at November 3, 2006 09:35 AM

One word - WOW!

Posted by: Julie at November 3, 2006 09:42 AM

I love the blanket. It's so pretty.

Posted by: cathy at November 3, 2006 09:52 AM

But tell us, really . . . do you LIKE it??

(It's stunning.)

Posted by: --Deb at November 3, 2006 09:54 AM

It's beautiful and inspirational! I'm so impressed that you could give it up!

I definitely have to get myself out to the Fold so that I can start my own log cabin project.

Posted by: Theresa at November 3, 2006 09:54 AM

Log Cabin d'Art! Beautiful!

Posted by: Carol at November 3, 2006 09:57 AM

Oh no! I see another round of log cabin-ing in my future. Inspired by that beauty of course! Looks great!

Posted by: sarah b. at November 3, 2006 10:00 AM

It rivals the DFS... no, it's better than the DFS, being all yours. I genuflect in your general direction.

(Those look like English ivy leaves. Please tell me that's nice harmless English ivy.)

Posted by: Lucia at November 3, 2006 10:01 AM

That is absolutely beautiful! I love it!

Posted by: Betsy at November 3, 2006 10:08 AM

And lookie! No poison ivy this time!

It's wonderful and I'm totally jealous and wish you all the best at Stitches. You are converting me into someone who might actually like green (years of prep school with ugly green uniforms has made me a confirmed loather of most greens).

Posted by: liz at November 3, 2006 10:12 AM

A masterpiece. A work of art. Simply beautiful.

Posted by: Nancy Hart at November 3, 2006 10:17 AM

Gorgeous!!!

Posted by: Karen at November 3, 2006 10:22 AM

Yes. Love this, love the yarn, one day I will participate in the log cabin trend that will hopefully not have faded into obsolescence by the time I get around to it...

How big is this blanket?

Posted by: Heather at November 3, 2006 10:29 AM

Not be be repetitive, but that's gorgeous!!!

Posted by: christine at November 3, 2006 10:40 AM

Gorgeous!

Posted by: Dorothy B at November 3, 2006 10:47 AM

It looks gorgeous! The seaming is really great, and I love the colors.

Posted by: Kate at November 3, 2006 10:51 AM

F-ing georgeous!! Have fun at Stitches.

Posted by: Kim P at November 3, 2006 10:55 AM

Congratulations on an FO which obviously pleases you so delightfully. I love the natural and knitted shading in that first photo. Well done!

Posted by: Chris at November 3, 2006 10:56 AM

Beautiful job, Cara. I'd love to see the blanket in person at Stitches West next February.

Posted by: carlotta at November 3, 2006 11:22 AM

gorgeous! simply beautiful in many ways. i hope that you're getting the blanket back when blue moon is done with it :)

Posted by: gleek at November 3, 2006 11:35 AM

Beautiful blanket. Oh and the colors.... Nice! Have a good time at Stitches.

Posted by: Jeanine at November 3, 2006 11:39 AM

Its absolutely stunning Cara and I love the last photo.

Posted by: yvette at November 3, 2006 11:45 AM

It looks so beautiful! How's the other one coming (you know, the random one with all the colors? That one made me drool!)

Posted by: Scribbles & Bits at November 3, 2006 12:25 PM

Great looking blanket! I love the color.

Posted by: Jessica at November 3, 2006 12:37 PM

Beeyoooooootiful! You probably answered this somewhere, but I must have missed it. What are the dimensions of the blanket?

Posted by: cookie at November 3, 2006 12:39 PM

Gorgeous!! Your photography is also stunning--shows the blanket sooo pretty

Posted by: Isela at November 3, 2006 12:41 PM

That blanket is gorgeous! Excellent job, that will be an heirloom someday :)

Posted by: Adam at November 3, 2006 12:41 PM

It looks beautiful! I love how the pictures make it look as though it has a personality...

Posted by: Bookish Wendy at November 3, 2006 12:54 PM

Totally amazing

Posted by: Wanda in AR at November 3, 2006 01:09 PM

Wow. That is all I can say.

Posted by: elizabeth at November 3, 2006 01:30 PM

Wow, Cara. That blanket totally Rocks the STR! What a great sense of accomplishment you must have. This project has jumped up on my "I need to knit it!" list. Have fun at Stitches...try to make it by the Black Water Abbey booth and say hello to my Colorado friends Mariyln and Judy!

Posted by: Stacey at November 3, 2006 01:54 PM

Love that last photo. And I *too* hope it travels to Stitches West so I have a shot at seeing it in person :)

Posted by: Stacey at November 3, 2006 02:35 PM

Gorgeous, Cara! And, as usual - GREAT PHOTOGRAPHY! xox, J

Posted by: Julia at November 3, 2006 02:46 PM

Gorgeous and inspiring!

Posted by: diana at November 3, 2006 02:52 PM

Stunning! Cara, it's really beautiful. Do you have any links to how you did the whipstitch? It's really beautiful, and I'd like to try it...

Posted by: Jenny at November 3, 2006 02:54 PM

Absolutely lovely. And the inside too! Raising that bar. I'll have to pull mine out and lower it.

Posted by: Carrie K at November 3, 2006 03:05 PM

ABSOLUTELY STUNNING!THOSE SEAMS ARE BEAUTIFUL

Posted by: tere at November 3, 2006 03:09 PM

Gorgeous! Love all the photos and details on this project.

Posted by: brooke at November 3, 2006 03:21 PM

I'm in awe of your photos.

I'm planning to buy a new camera and take classes. Can you tell what camera you use? I'm thinking about a Nikon SLR.

Love your blog!

Posted by: Joanne at November 3, 2006 03:44 PM

Beautiful work of art, Cara. Congratulations.

Posted by: jacqui at November 3, 2006 03:57 PM

GORGEOUS!!! (Even the shot of the little yarn bits is beautiful!)

Posted by: allison at November 3, 2006 06:28 PM

It's an awesome blanket Cara!

Posted by: Karen at November 3, 2006 07:25 PM

I thought I recognized the blanket when I stopped by their booth tonite! As great as it looks on your site, it is even prettier in person. Hope you are enjoying SE.

Posted by: Beth at November 3, 2006 09:28 PM

I didn't see the blanket at the BMFA booth on Friday but I was really excited to see you and Kay! Thanks for putting up with me. It was a pleasure.

Posted by: Suzanne at November 4, 2006 05:21 PM

SOOOO pretty! I especially love the first picture, and the wrong side looks very cool and kind of industrial. The last picture of it lounging by the water is hysterical - almost like it's a person.

Posted by: melanie at November 5, 2006 07:23 AM

cara, it is so lovely-- i'm gobsmacked...

Posted by: kelli ann at November 5, 2006 01:16 PM

SOOOO pretty. Must remember to book mark the whipstitch/seaming part. I haven't gotten that far. Lovely.

Posted by: PainterWoman at November 5, 2006 04:14 PM

It is so very beautiful and I saw it at Stitches East! In person, at Blue Moons booth. I recognized it immediately. Asked the lovely Kaci and she confirmed it. This blanket is beautiful!
Great job. Sorry I didn't see you- I was looking!

Posted by: Shelley at November 5, 2006 04:24 PM

It's even lovelier up close and in person! The seaming is just fabulous. I made a friend stand with me in awe at the booth today at Stitches.

Posted by: Christine at November 5, 2006 07:42 PM

It is perfection! Will it eventually come back to live with you?

Posted by: Leslie at November 5, 2006 08:35 PM

simply gorgeous!

Posted by: vanessa at November 6, 2006 07:42 AM

I saw the blanket on Sunday. It is very lovely. Nice work!

Posted by: Michelle at November 6, 2006 08:15 AM

love it!

Posted by: amanda at November 6, 2006 08:15 AM

Saw the blanket at Stitches Saturday- it is GORGEOUS. the greens are electric! nice job!!!

Posted by: beth at November 6, 2006 09:14 AM

Holy wow, that's gorgeous! Now I think I know what I need to do with the rest of the greens left over from this sweater!

Posted by: Shannon at November 6, 2006 10:09 AM

Verde Bellissimo! Let's set our minds on a date early in December for some cosy dyeing chez moi. After you learn to do that, the next step toward total fiber independence will just be to raise your own herd of Blue Faced Leicesters! Stranger things have happened.

Posted by: Cristina at November 6, 2006 10:35 AM

I saw it! I touched it! and I wanted a picture with it, but no go on the pics ;( those Stitches people are crazy with the no-photo rule. Too bad we missed each other! I had to work on Friday, so I went on Saturday and Sunday. One of these days we will have a meeting that is more than a 2-minute hug and squeal ;P

Posted by: Lolly at November 6, 2006 11:21 AM

Exquisite finishing. As a person who hates to finish (but spent a whole weekend finishing up what wasn't finished) I wished I had seen that technique before I spent all that time sewing sewing sewing.

Posted by: Denise at November 6, 2006 01:37 PM

I hope you make it to my comment after all these; you're blanket is STUNNING! It has made me re-think Log Cabin.

Posted by: sahara at November 6, 2006 07:28 PM

Stunning! I'm awed by the finishing work.

Posted by: Laurie at November 8, 2006 08:56 AM

Oy. That is so beautiful. The pictures of it on the grass make me think of Dorothy sleeping in the poppies. What can I say, it's free association.

Posted by: Sarah at November 8, 2006 10:04 AM

That's not a blanket! It's a work of artful love, loveful art.

Posted by: Carol Dean at November 12, 2006 03:16 PM