Each crochet blanket I make has it’s own story. Each blanket is made with so much love. I get a lot of enjoyment from creating a masterpiece that hopefully will bring joy to someone else.
The waffle blanket came about as I was just getting back into crocheting. It had been a while since I last crocheted (reminds me of confession) and I had decided to have a look on You Tube to see if there was anything new on there that I could try out. The waffle stitch looked so much like a real waffle that I really needed to try it out. My love of food obviously influencing my creative flow.
Lisa and I both tried the waffle stitch. It was pretty tricky to get the hang of. I started many times, pulled apart many times, tried all over again until I finally felt I had mastered the waffle stitch and then decided to make a blanket. For some reason I didn’t make squares. Instead I ended up with rectangles. But they didn’t look too bad so I went with it. I didn’t work too fast on this blanket because at the very beginning I wasn’t sure who I was making this blanket for. I just enjoyed the feel of the waffle stitch so I kept making the rectangles.
Lisa (my sister) was making her own waffle rectangles for her own blanket, Natalya (her daughter, my niece) was also helping. Lisa would look over mine and ooh and aah and it became obvious that the waffle blanket should be hers. Only I didn’t want to tell her, I wanted it to be a surprise. I love surprising people.
The waffle blanket really became a labour of love. I would take my crochet basket everywhere with me. I could crochet anywhere. I didn’t care if people stared. I didn’t care if the kids were embarrassed. If I was going somewhere, my crocheting was coming too! Soon people came to expect I would just turn up with my crochet basket in hand.
Whilst making this blanket I overcame some hard times, some real struggles.
I first started making waffle rectangles in May 2016. Shahni left for Brazil in August that same year. Zeb had just been diagnosed with Chronic Fatigue. I had left my job at Idea Services (full time, permanent) to start a fixed term, part time position at Cobham School. Zeb needed me at home. I spent many hours sitting at the doctors with Zeb or at A&E, depending what was happening. There were visits to the paediatrician, CAMHS, the dietician, radiology … seemingly endless amount of visits. And all through this to keep me focussed, keep me calm, keep me from crying, keep everyone from seeing how scared I was … I crocheted … I “waffled” on. It truly was my sanity.
I crocheted at everyone’s house. Lisa, Glenda, Mum, Donna & Mathieu, Lizzie, Caro, Sandy & Dennis … they all knew to expect me to arrive basket in hand. I took my crochet to coffee, dinner, lunch … I drew the line at Speedway though. There was no way I was getting all that dust in my crocheting. I even gave lessons … Mia, Donna, India, Louise, Eilish … the more the merrier. The waffle blanket was very popular. What I loved the most was that everyone knew the waffle blanket was for Lisa, except Lisa.
The waffle blanket took over at home too. The bedroom, the lounge, the couches especially … no where was crochet-free. Okay maybe the garage but like the speedway, there was no way I was letting my wool be around dirty, dusty, oily stuff … no way!
Every night I would spend some time crocheting. It helped me to relax, wind down, remove myself from reality a little. A saviour when we had so much upheaval and uncertainty around us.
And then something else happened. Carla was killed. I can’t write about how that day unfolded. Not in this blog. I will eventually though. I came unraveled. Just how I would unravel a crochet square because I had made a mistake or it wasn’t quite right, my mind unraveled just like that. Nothing made sense anymore. I was so sad. My mind just wouldn’t “unsee”. I needed to heal and what got me through was my crocheting. In every aspect it was therapeutic, it got me through. I had to see people, talk to people and each time I took my crocheting. Sometimes I think I used the crocheting as a barrier between me and the real world but at the end of the day it started conversation, kept my mind busy, let me think, was a creative outlet and mostly it let me produce something that had so much love poured into it for someone else.
This waffle blanket was made with so much love. It was only right that I give it to the one person in my life that deserves all that love. I can only hope it brings her as much joy as it brought me. I love you Lis!