Blanket of Roses afghan

Bits and pieces so far... Started January 29th, 2007.
Outer edges of the hex are poofy...adding more dimension.

front and back views

See.. Granny squares included too !

Blanket of Roses pattern

Babette... A journey in color

A journey in color is the phrase used in the article http://www.interweavecrochet.com/2006/materials.asp , and the phrase that continues running through my head as I crochet these little squares.
UPDATE : magazine sold out...PDF available here.

I am using the colors in the pattern..which is not the way I normally do things.
I love bright, mixed colors.. and never what patterns suggest for the larger audience.
Thinking I must learn to use colors more "normal".. I have seen nothing but drab.
But.. I feel like my choices have become routine, and in the middle of my Ripple-a-Long ripple...there it was... my standard choices screaming ..."it's time for change !"

Went through and through my pattern books and magazines.. when there it was .. the end of my quest. The Babette Blanket !
Bought that issue just for this moment in time. ;)

My resolve is constantly being tested.. as I come onto a positively hateful color mix in a particular square.. but I persist. I will NOT slip back into my old ways on this blanket.
What I have found is there is always a REASON for the 'hateful' square being there when viewed as a whole blanket.. and fudging will downgrade the finished product at this point.

I find myself enjoying the guessing as to the influences to this combination of color. It feels a bit Pennsylvania Dutch ? or Brazilian ? Yet as I focus on the shapes / numbers/ balance.. it feels Asian to me ? Enjoying the mystery for now.
Here's hoping the squares tonight happen to be pleasant ones..*lol* The last two ,last night were almost my undoing.

Yarn
I used a mix of Simply Soft, TLC Essentials, RH Soft, and Bernat Satin in my attempt to duplicate the original that I fell in love with. My afghans are washed often, so the acrylic works best.

Tips and Tricks
1. Do the last large block first !
I find I am in good company while viewing other Babette's on Flicker.. many of us run out of steam on the last block.. 'cause it's huge.. and now we are finding the process less interesting...and the prospect of the huge block a bit over whelming.

2. To lessen the number of ends to weave in...and speed up the joining process... eventually I learned ..
When starting the last color of each square.. do it about three chains before a corner. As that color is finished.. slip stitch to the corner... leave a long enough length of yarn to join two sides. ..plus a bit to weave in.
Once I figured this out.. things really moved along.













My Ravelry Projects

More color choices here in the Flickr Babette Pool

Ripple in an Oregon Spring

I remember when I planted only a very few, very tiny purple hyacinth bulbs here. True to their reputation.. they have increased beautifully.

And the ripple increases as we speak.

The facts:

Pattern is the soft waves from Jan Eaton's book, " 200 Ripple pattern stitches".

Yarns : Caron Simply Soft, Red Heart Soft Yarn, TLC Essentials in their lighter colors, as they are thinner yarn due to the dye, Bernat Satin, and a few unknown stash scraps.

Hooks: Both sizes G and H...depending on the yarn size. With the thicker yarn I am using the smaller hook..which seems to help the various yarns appear uniform in size.

I'm loving this experience.