Busy, busy!!

I've been a busy girl lately. I have a huge project at work coming up. (in fact, I should be working on it right now...) My students and I have been working on a conservation unit, and preparing for our state tests. I have been knitting as often as I can in my hectic life!
I started a blanket for a friend of Reed's who is having a baby girl. I have a really hard time editing myself for time. I like DK weight yarn. (sometimes smaller...) I just really enjoy the light, happy result of knitting with small gauge yarn. When I started this project I knew I didn't want to spend more than about $30, and I knew it should be quick because of my busy schedule. Despite all that reasonable thinking and planning, this is what I came up with:


In short - fine gauge yarn on itty bitty needles. I was going to muddle through it anyway. It didn't have to be done until April or May, for goodness sake! Well, here it was, April 4th, and I still only had a third of the blanket done. Surprise surprise... So, I decided to go against my instincts and try something different. "Start over?" My mom & husband thought I was crazy, but:

This is the project that came of it. It took me one week, and the yarn cost about $35. (and I got to use my pretty glass needles :)

It was made in strips as you can see, and then sewn together. I did one strip Monday night, another Tuesday, half of a strip on Wednesday, half on Thursday, and one on Friday. Last night I sewed it all together using the mattress stitch.

Now I'm wondering about embellishments... Whatever became of the other blanket? I don't want it to fade away into obscurity like so many other projects have, but we'll see. It may become another free pattern on Ravelry. It's really just a variation on the staggered eyelets baby blanket. So many ideas for the summer, I just can't wait!!