Should I finish?

[catsncrochet]

I started crocheting a wedding afghan for my brother and his fiancee a few months ago. I decided to make it all white and queen size. I had no clue what I was getting into! I haven't ever made an afghan this big before...had no idea how long it'd take. It just seems to keep going on and on and .... well, you get the picture.

 

A few weeks ago, I set the white monstrosity aside and started crocheting double-stranded Snuggles. Meanwhile, the wedding afghan sits untouched. I'd told myself that I'd work on the wedding one during part of the weekends, but it hasn't worked out that way. And with the weather starting to get somewhat warmer with the impending arrival of spring, the thought of working on this huge white afghan doesn't sound like the most comfortable thing in the world to me.

 

So, now what? Should I force myself to try and finish this thing by July? I'm not even sure finishing by July is a possibility as I'm working again and don't have the crocheting time I used to. Or should I buy them something else...like something off their register instead? I've even thought about ending the afghan where it is and giving it away as is. lol.

 

Any ideas?

[Adreeyen]

If it's big enough for a twin bed or bigger you could call it it a "couch blanket"

[crocheting turtle]

I think that if you finish it now, they will love it, no matter what size it is.

[catsncrochet]

It's definetly big enough to be considered a "couch blanket." I'd just had my heart set on finishing this thing before...or try to finish before Spring started and it hasn't happened.

 

The funny thing is I'm more motivated to work on the Snuggles. I've tried working on the monster afghan I think once since the Snuggles and now, it's really hard to get used to a smaller hook and only one strand. Go figure. lol.

[RoseRed]

It's easy to get spoiled with 2 strands and an N hook lol. It's really hard to go back to the smaller sizes, too.

 

In measurements (like inches or feet) how big did you want to make it and how big is it now?

 

Depending on the sizes, we might be able to help you fudge it into something smaller. Also, can you post a pic? I'd love to see it.

[birdlady1]

Make it as a first anniversary present.

[Real Deal]

Isn't this a horrible dilemma? I did this to myself when I made my first bed blanket. I didn't have the slightest clue back then about the kind of time it was going to take. I ended up stopping half way through it. I turned it sideways, edged it, and it became a personal size afghan ~ which I have loved and used ever since.

 

If I made one that size now, I'm much more prepared, understanding the length of time and amount of work involved. I KNOW it would take me a year. I don't know how some of the women here can crank out the work they do.

 

Well, you've got all that white. I'm trying to envision this without laughing, because I would feel like I was buried in a marshmallow, teeheehee!!! I usually use 3 or more colors or use variegated, so that helps a little with the monotony.

 

Maybe this will help you decide ~ how big can you make it, and they'll still be able to get it in a home washing machine? You don't want it so big that they have to take to the laundromat and do it in a triple loader. This is your pretty white wedding afghan, and you don't want them to have to take it to a laundromat.

[Cherokee2]

I've got one I started months ago, and hardly ever work on it because it is HOT to hold on my lap.. homespun... but I'm nearly half done... so I try to do a little more every week... since it's for myself, I'm in no rush.

I say, try to do at least one or two rows every day... more if you can manage. Is it at least halfway done? If so, and if you can manage to do a little every day, in no time you will see the end results. That's a little trick I taught myself... if I can manage to work up to the halfway point on one project... I just keep going. Halfway there means a little more and I'll be ALMOST DONE!

[RoseRed]

One tip that can help is to lay it out on the floor in front of you so that it's not actually on top of you.

[catsncrochet]

The thing about laying it on the floor and trying to crochet with it, is we have 2 cats and they'd take it as an invitation to lay on it, make biscuits on it and eventually fall asleep on it. lol. Otherwise, if I could lay it on the floor, that'd work great. We have a dining room table, but the chairs aren't the most comfy and it's set in a corner, so it feels like you're isolated from the living room...I hate corners. It makes me feel like I've misbehaved or something. lol.

 

Really, when I started this thing back in December, I thought I'd have plenty of time to finish it. I got laid off in December and right after Christmas, I started it. I'd work on it at least 2-3 hrs. a day...sometimes around 5-6 hrs., but the rows are so wide and I'm not the fastest crocheter anyway, that it takes me about an hour to get through one row...and that's without interruptions from the cats. lol.

 

I'm seriously considering cutting my losses and just ending it now.

 

LOL @ a big marshmallow. Also, to make it even funnier, I'm not that big of a person...I'm 5'1" and this thing already covers a good section of my body. So, in the warmer weather, this could get real uncomfortable real fast. lol.

 

I wish I could post a pic. I'm still waiting on my DH to get me a USB cable for the digital camera he brought me home from his work, now all I need is a cable, so I can transfer the pics to the computer.

 

It's a nice pattern and relatively easy to do...it's alternating V-stitches and puff stitches....so that the stitches are staggered.

[Elvee]

I have a wooden stand that is kind of like the old tv tray things that i use to prop my big project up on so it's not on the floor, etc. would you have something like that you could use?

 

Also, just try to work on it a little at a time. Everyday for like one hour. It will get done faster than you think!

 

Lorry

[Real Deal]

:lol Eeeeeeeeeee!!! It has puff stitches ~ so it DOES look like a big marshmallow!!! :lol

[Elle]

The "couch blanket" idea is a good one, but if you have your heart set on making it bed-sized, and the wedding is in July and you don't think you can make it, why not buy them something (or make them something smaller and more do-able) for the wedding and finish the bed-sized afghan and give it to them for their first Christmas as a married couple? That will buy you a few more months to be able to finish it the way you want it.

[crazyboutcrochet]

We all go through "cycles". I have put down a piece that I just knew I would never finish because I was so sick of it. But after a few months I would pick it up again and finish it. One good example is the blanket I made for my eldest son. It is queen size and is all done in single crochet. It just got to the point I was going to pitch it. I put it down for almost a year and just last fall I finished it. He's happy...I'm just happy that the godzilla of blankets is done! If your desire is to make a queen size, tell them that you are making them something that is going to take a while. I'm sure that they will understand.

[alchemyfyr]

If you will be ok with it only being couch sized then I say finish it as is. If it will bug you till no end that you didn't make it queen-sized then I say keep going. Although I agree with another poster about making sure it will fit in a regular washer/dryer. Especially with it being white....if they have animals that will lay on it...it will need to be washed frequently. When I have a project that just never seems to end I get out another smaller project and work two or three rows alternately, or work for 15 minutes on each, or just pull out a few armlengths of yarn from the skein and work till that's gone, etc. Good luck to you!!!

[ItzMe0905]

Why not do the best of BOTH??? End off what you have in the pattern you are working on... and then find a component that would be compatible to the blanket that is more portable and less hot that you can sew onto the blanket to eventually make it the queensize that you need. Understand? Add something like pretty granny squares, or some Mile-a-Minute strips to the basic blanket. You may actually end up LOVING it by the time you're finished...

 

I just made an afghan of 80 eight-inch squares. It was easy to deal with a square of one pattern - monotonous... but easy. I used 4 colors, black, white, gray and red. Alternated the color placement in the squares, and when I got all of them made, I then crocheted it all together. Not hot work at all. I'm now working on a giant granny rectangle and that thing gets hot...

 

Irene

[kazily]

I agree with Irene! That is a great idea. Finish off what you have now & free yourself of white yarn! Then let that be the "centerpiece" of the blanket. Trim it with some of the beautiful flower squares found free on the net. It will be a one of a kind gift for them & squares should be easier to finish in time. I think pastel colored squares would go nicely for a wedding afghan.

 

And if you can't get it to queen size, you can always make it smaller so it will set on top of their bed from edge to edge as a focal point of their bedroom.

 

Another idea if you are really really tired of it & cannot stand the thought of doing anymore to it, it to buy them a quilt stand & lay the wedding afghan across it (since you have so much finished already). It will stand at the foot of their bed for an heirloom rather than to actually use. If they have a daughter later, it can be passed down (a son when he gets married).

 

I certainly understand your position. No way I could attempt something that large.

It takes me forever to finish a sofa size ghan LOL After a couple of weeks I have to take a week break, then rinse & repeat. Large projects are tiring to my mind & hands, not to mention my lack of patience!

 

Good Luck with whatever you finally decide.

[AutumnWindsong]

I can't say much here. In one year I made 5 - 6 foot by 6 foot crochet blankets, and 1 - 6 foot by 6 foot knit blanket. They were all single strand...because back then I didn't realise you really could crochet in double strand. But, I can make a very large blanket in 13 days...because I'm extremely fast with crocheting. I wish you luck with whatever you choose.

 

Blessed Be.

[ama]

I have to agree with most of the posters here. I too burn out on large projects if I don't pace myself. It's hard to dial down the initial enthusiasm of a great idea/project but I know that if I don't set a time limit on working I will definitely get sick of seeing the project. I work no more than 2 hours on any one project, unless I've been slacking off then I have to make up for lost time Someone raised a good point in that a queen size afghan still has to be laundered. I never thought about that point. I do like the idea of trimming the ghan you have already completed, and calling it a wonderful gift of heirloom quality. I'd love to see a pic if you manage to get one posted.

 

Just as an aside, I have a really hard time working with large projects when they're in my lap. I lay the afghans on the counter or table (I don't like to sit too much) and I work standing at the counter or scrunched on a chair. Strange, but true.

 

Let us know what you decide. Good luck!

 

annie

[catsncrochet]

After all this, my final decision is to give the afghan to one of my friends. I'm going to let her unravel it and keep all the yarn. I don't know what it is, but whatever inspired me to work on it in the first place is gone. Also, after looking at the color...Bernat Satin's Snow...the white comes off as a bit dirty for my taste. It's strange I didn't feel this way before. I'll find out where they're registered and go from there. What a lazy *ss I am, right? lol.

[CLLinda]

After all this, my final decision is to give the afghan to one of my friends. I'm going to let her unravel it and keep all the yarn. I don't know what it is, but whatever inspired me to work on it in the first place is gone. Also, after looking at the color...Bernat Satin's Snow...the white comes off as a bit dirty for my taste. It's strange I didn't feel this way before. I'll find out where they're registered and go from there. What a lazy *ss I am, right? lol.

No, you are just being realistic. Maybe next time, do something like squares or mile-a-minutes so that it won't be a big monstrosity to work on.

 

You are just on burn-out now. Find some smaller projects and work on those. Then you will feel you accomplished something. We all have had projects like that which end up in closets never to be finished. We start all gung-ho on it and then just burn out.

 

Here's a hug to make you feel better. .

 

[LittleJadeFrog]

After all this, my final decision is to give the afghan to one of my friends. I'm going to let her unravel it and keep all the yarn. I don't know what it is, but whatever inspired me to work on it in the first place is gone. Also, after looking at the color...Bernat Satin's Snow...the white comes off as a bit dirty for my taste. It's strange I didn't feel this way before. I'll find out where they're registered and go from there. What a lazy *ss I am, right? lol.

So sorry to hear that! I know how you feel though. Sometimes its hard to come back from the burnout. I was making a graphghan for DH for Christmas and it was tedious and hot (this IS Florida). I worked alittle every night until I was tired of packing it up and hiding it each time..kept telling myself tomorrow night...tomorrow night. It finally did get done but only because I messed around and had nothing else to give him...At least you have time to find something else...good luck!

[jura2908]

lazy, not at all. if you feel negative about the yarn, you would never be happy even if you finished it to full size. and then you probably would not be happy with it as a gift.

[ama]

No, no, no. Not lazy. If you were lazy you wouldn't have put so much heart and thought and labor into your project. I call it project remorse What seemed like a good idea yesterday maybe isn't such a good idea today. Tomorrow is another day!

 

 

annie

[catsncrochet]

Project remorse...I like that. lol.

 

Well, there's a good side to it. My friend will appreciate the yarn. She doesn't mind unraveling it for me and I even have some untouched skeins (which she'll also be receiving) that'll go along with the afghan.