Sometimes it feels like math is my nemesis. Growing up, I was good at math in school, not great, but I worked hard to get good grades. Many people do not think creativity involves math; that’s the other side of the brain. In my experience, that is far from the truth. With a lot of artistic and creative avenues, you’re dealing with spatial areas, measurements, counting, etc. Math, in some shape or form is utilized and necessary.
Last year, I told the story of how I created the “Stella” baby blanket and mentioned the math involved to make sure the pattern came out correctly. The next baby blanket in the A Faith Creation line has a similar story.
A good friend from work was having her first child, and I was ready for another challenge. Something special was needed for this special little girl. The first and most important question before I could begin: what are the colors of her room, the nursery? A blush pink, white and black (or dark grey).
Taking the measurements and gauge of the “Stella,” I worked through a written draft of how the stripes and colors would go. How many rows would make up one color verses how many would make up another color? Which colors would be the dominant colors? Or would each color stripe be equal in width all the way through the blanket?
Once I had it sketched out, from what I had envisioned in my head, I started knitting it up to see how my math was. Yes, I kept a pen handy just in case edits needed to be made.
(Yes, that is a fountain pen; thanks to my husband for introducing me to his hobby and sucking me in, because they are the only pens I use now when writing up and sketching out my knitting patterns.)
As the blanket grew, the more excited I became. It was coming together beautifully, all the way to the finish. Meet the “Mila” blanket.
Then, the first test: how would the Mother-to-Be respond? I couldn’t attend the baby shower, but I was sent pictures of the gift opening. I heard, later, about the gasps of joy and excitement upon seeing the finished product, not just from the Mom-to-Be. Oh happy day!
The next test: would it be used well and loved? I think that is a yes. Always extremely appreciative when folks provide feedback on the things I make. (And word of mouth is the best advertisement anyone can ask for.)
I’d say this was a successful design, worthy of more iterations.
