Tuesday, December 27, 2016

Soft and Squishy Chenille Poncho

One of my large and mindless ongoing projects has been a big chenille poncho. Yesterday morning, I crocheted around the neck, wove in the ends, and called it finished.

I love it! It is big and soft and squishy and oh so comfortable. The chenille was a gift from a friend who found it in a Boston thrift store earlier this year. It was a big cone--6 1/2 inches across--so there was plenty of yarn for a large project.

I'd knitted myself a poncho last year and I wear it a lot. That seemed like a good project for this. In my other one, I had two points of increase, but I knew that on this one I wanted four. That meant I would be making a big square with a hole in the center. Then came the decision about what stitch combination to use. Because the chenille is prone to worming when knit, I knew it would be crocheted. Simple stitches are best with yarn like this--anything intricate would get lost in the plush yarn. In the end, I decided to go with a traditional granny square.

I always make my groups of 3dc (US terminology--treble in UK) without any chains in between and I work the next rows/rounds in between groups. If I make chains, I get ruffling every time. This way everything is flat. So, with the important decisions made, on 4 September, I got out my 5mm (H) hook, my giant cone of chenille, and I started crocheting.
Once I got it set up on the first few rounds, it was just a matter of crocheting around and around and around. I worked on it off and on, picking it up when I felt like it or when I was tired or wanted something that did not require concentration or attention. It was lovely to be able to sit quietly and listen to something while my hands were busy with this or to just sit quietly and let the rhythm of the work become like a form of meditation.  In these moments, the piece grew a bit at a time until it was finished.

And the cone of chenille is still quite substantial!  Now it measures just a hair under 4 inches, so more projects to come from this.
Today is another holiday here, since Christmas fell on a Sunday and yesterday was already the St Stephen's Day holiday--it is so quiet out there. It's funny how deep quiet can get. This is almost always a very quiet place anyway, but somehow at certain times, it is even more quiet.

I guess I will make some decisions--which book will be next? And what do I want to make with my leftover chenille?

Happy Tuesday!

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