The most gorgeous afghan I’ve ever made

When I first saw this pattern, I fell instantly in love.

Pattern: Moorish Mosaic Afghan by Lisa Naskrent, from Interweave Crochet Fall 2009 (Ravelry link). Also available for download at The Crochet Garden.
Hook size: I

As luck would have it, the stash contained enough of one color of acrylic worsted to use as the Master Color (MC) and a bunch of single skeins of acrylic in various colors for the accent colors. Thus, the perfect project to use up some stash.

Little did I know the yarn requirements in the magazine were off by more than half! My single skeins weren’t enough, and I was forced to substitute various other reds in stash, and buy various yellows, pinks, and greens — because I couldn’t find the same yarns in the same colors — to make it through. I kept my fingers crossed the multi-colored nature of the mosaic motifs would make this variation in hue less obvious.

Yarn:

MC: Bernat Berella Burgundy
A: Patons Canadiana Light Sage, Red Heart Super Saver Frosty Green
B: Patons Canadiana Gold, Vanna’s Choice Mustard, Cascade 220 Gold
C: Bernat Berella Natural
D: Vanna’s Choice Cranberry, Red Heart Heathers Warm Red, Vanna’s Choice Brick
E. Patons Canadiana Rosewood, Hobby Lobby I Love This Yarn Old Rose

Total yardage: 4,408, plus or minus.

I embarked on this blanket project on December 9, 2010 and finished the last of the crocheting on February 22, 2011. I was so tired of it that I put it away, telling myself I’d wait a couple of months until it was fresh again before beginning the assembly process.

Eighteen months later, in mid-August 2012, I dragged the pieces out of hibernation and started assembly. Two weeks later, all the sewing was done. On September 4, 2012 I finished the last round of the single crochet border. And, other than the color choices, the border was my only modification. Instead of one single crochet round in the Master Color, I went four rounds: Round 1, Burgundy (MC); Round 2, Brick; Round 3, Mustard; Round 4, Burgundy again.

Then began the weaving in of the endless endless endless ends. Endless. Ends. Endless. More than once I asked myself what I thought I was doing making something with so damn many color changes.

And then, last night, the last of the ends disappeared into the weave. I threw the finished blanket into the washing machine, threw it in the dryer, shook it out, took the photos, and patted myself on the back for a job well done.

More than well done. It’s flat gorgeous. Yes, I’m tooting my own horn here, but the finished blanket is more beautiful than I ever dreamed. I love it more than chocolate. Well, almost.