Great Grandma's Afghan

G. Grandma's Afghan
When I attended the family reunion in South Dakota last month, my Aunt Mary brought me a bag and said, "I thought that you should have this."  Now I love gifts like that, when someone has something they think I will love ~ but this turned out to be doubly special!  She went on to tell me that this afghan was crocheted by my Great Grandmother and that she thought that I was the one who would appreciate it and take the time to fix it!  Having that family connection to a piece of beautiful handwork is something I cherish!

There are a few things I've noticed as I've examined the afghan.  All the diagonal rows are matching... except in spots where she must have run out of a particular color, and then there is a subtle change.  I love that she did that!  I also found that many of the blocks were sewn together with a different color yarn.  It makes me think that this was a true, use up your leftovers, afghan!  And yet it all looks wonderful!

Loose Seams
It needs a few repairs where seams have come undone.  Those should be fairly easy to fix.

Repair Needed
Other spots will be a little more difficult where the stitching itself has come undone.  In this spot, the yarn is already there to do the repair, it's just a matter of finagling it together.

Black or Brown?
There are also a few spots where the yarn has simply worn out, mostly in the black areas.  Or is it really black?  Turns out what at first appears to be an all black background is really a mix of black, dark brown and maybe some very dark green!  I have some dark navy blue wool yarn that is a perfect match of weight and density ~ I'm thinking it might work to make the repairs, right in keeping with using what you have, just like my G. Grandma seems to have done when she made this!  I might take a look first though, and see if  I can find some nice old black wool sock yarn of the right density.  What a fun project to work on.  I love being able to take something from my ancestors and fix it up so that those in the future can also enjoy it!

First Snow 5Nov2011
We've had our first real snow of the season!  Nothing compared to what much of the rest of the country has received in the past couple of weeks, but it does mean that autumn is over here and winter has arrived!

First Snow 5Nov2011
I must have a set of pictures like this for the start of every winter that I've been in Flagstaff.   It's hard to believe that it's already been nearly 5 years!  I do love the look of the ponderosa pines covered in fresh snow and the deep blue skies peeking out between the breaking clouds!

Living Room Re-do
Inside, there has been a bit of rearranging as I have acquired a sleeper sofa.  Now I have a lovely spot for people to stay, which is much nicer than an air mattress on the floor.  Mollie Kitty has already picked out her new favorite spot on the top of one of the back cushions!  And Thomas can sit curled up beside me instead of in my lap when I'm busy stitching!

Living Room Shelf #2
Since I had to move some things around in the study as well, this little shelf came out to the living room. A perfect place for the bunnies and a few other critters to show off!

Inspiration Wall of my Study/Studio
The cubby hole shelf moved back into the study.  I loved having it in the living room, but it did tend to look pretty messy when I was in the middle of a project.  The inspiration boards are filled with lovely bits and pieces including quotes and bits of scripture to keep me focused!  The stack of scrapbooking stuff on the right needs another go through as the bins are filled to overflowing!

Study/Studio/Library
The bookshelves continue to overflow as well.  Every now and then I go through and purge them of things I'll never read again, one once in a while, I box up things I want to keep, but don't necessarily want out all the time.  What that means is that I have at least this many books in storage!  Yikes!  I love having the big work table back up in here.  So nice to have a spot to spread out a project and work on it and leave the main living spaces neat and clean!

Cream/White Quilt interlining
And that project on the table?  Today I finished basting the flannel interlining to the Cream/White Crazy Quilt!  Hopefully, in the next post or two, I'll have it all finished to show you!  Now to figure out what I'm going to use to bind it and also where I'm going to hang it!

One last note!  I hadn't posted lately because I was busy studying again!  On Friday, I passed the Maternal Newborn Certification exam, so now I have an advanced certification in my specialty area of nursing!  I also received the results of the IBCLC exam at long last and am pleased to announce that I passed it as well!  So my new credentials are listed as follows: Lisa Boni, RNC IBCLC!

Comments

Gerry Krueger said…
How lovely to get that afghan.. No stitchers in my family... I envy you that big table... What a luxury that is...What a bunch of letters to follow your moniker!!! Very impressive... Gerry K.
Anonymous said…
Congratulations on so many things you have accomplished, your nursing achievement and your "new you" pictured on the side bar. You look wonderful!!! I always love anything you do or recreate and your living room looks so inviting. You will feel all tucked in this winter when you watch the weather outside. Enjoy as much as we will when you share all of this with us. Mary
Laurie said…
Congratulations Lisa! What a fantastic accomplishment! I love the afghan, what a treasured heirloom. I love your work space, I too have a large table in my craft room that makes projects so easy. Fantastic post, and again! Congratulations!!!
Leslie said…
I love when you post pictures of your home. It just looks so cozy. And the studio shot makes me want to start peeking into drawers and looking at the stuff in the cubbies. Great work space. And a nice old afghan. I have 3 from DH's grandma and we use them all the time.
Anonymous said…
The snowfall, the afghan, the rearranging of furniture all make for an exciting change of seasons for you. And, like you, I've been purging my books, stash, and scrap booking supplies. Lots of projects on the back burner due to travel as well. I'm anxious to see the results of your quilt project as well. Happy quilting! ~Jan from Spokane
maire said…
I'd love to cozy up in your wonderful living room this winter...I so enjoy your blog and your pictures and work. Congrats on your many new achievements!! Maire

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