Hope everyone is doing well on the square for this month. Haven't heard from very many so that is a good sign. Our next square will be Ann Strong square. Use the size needle it tells you to (or your adjusted gauge size) and have your 3 ridge rows done before class so we jump right into the patterns. You will need lots of stitch markers and the patterns will repeat several times so we will discuss how you can keep track or where you are. There are a couple new stitches but they aren't hard. Looking forward to seeing you in a week, May 25. Happy knitting.

Second class just over and I am SO impressed with everyone! Almost all of our first squares are done and everyone is well on their way into the second square. Such pretty colors, too. Good job, ladies!

I have had questions on the needle size for the next square. For your gauge, it called for size 7 needles. If your gauge was the right size with that needle, then you should use a size 7 for the Ginette Belanger square (one size up from what it calls for). If your gauge was too small and you had to go up a needle size to get the right gauge, then you will need a size 8 for that square. If your gauge was too big and you had to go down a needle size to get the right gauge, then you will need a size 6 for the Ginette Belanger square. Hope this helps. See you Tuesday!

We just got back from New York City for the wedding shower for our son and his fiance. I gave them the afghan and they were very excited. I miss it here at our house but know I am making another one.

How is everyone coming? I've heard from a couple of you lately and it sounds like progress is being made. Just wanted to remind you all of class next Tuesday evening at 6:00. We will be working on the Ginette Belanger square. It is really a fun square to do. Please bring your book or enlarged copies of the pattern, stitch markers, and one needle size up from what the book says (or your determined gauge). Comment here if you have any questions. I hope we can all actually work on the square to start with and get past row 4 or 5 of Chart B. That part is the most confusing so we will work through it together. See you next Tuesday!!

How is everyone doing? Does anyone have their square done yet? I know this first square will just take awhile since it is all new to most of you. It will take some ripping out and redoing things until you become more comfortable with the stitches and pattern but just hang in there. Send me a picture on my e-mail when you get it done.
We are leaving next week for New York City and I will take my afghan and give it to my son and his fiance. Can't wait - but will also hate to give it up. It's kind of like my baby now. I'll post pictures. Looking forward to seeing all of you and your squares in a couple weeks.

Just wanted to clearify the pattern. When you get to the end of both chart A and chart B the first time, you will notice that chart A has 30 rows and chart B only has 28 rows. After 28 rows of chart B, start over with row 1, complete 30 rows in chart A then go to row 1 for that chart. From this point on, your row numbers will be different for the 2 charts. Just keep really close track or where you are on both charts and you should be fine. Hope you are all doing well. I have talked to or helped several of you and you all will be just fine. The rest of you, please remember that if you need help, please let me know.

Just a reminder about your gauge. Even if you think you have the right size needles from your original gauge swatch, make sure you double check your size of the square after you have knitted a few rows. You want to make sure you have about 12" across. If you are way off, you may need to start over with a different size of needle. It will curl up a little as you are knitting and it will block to 12" even if you are at 11" as you are knitting. If it is bigger than 12 1/2"-13", you need a smaller needle. If you have any questions, please ask.

First Class

First class went well. I know there were some frustration with the different stitches, bobble, etc. My advice is to keep practicing your new stitches on your sample swatch until you feel fairly comfortable then start on your square. Please post questions, comments, etc. if you have any. I feel everyone there last night can do this, just keep practicing. It was so much fun to see all the different colors we are all working with. Remember to always keep track of where you are on the pattern, which row you are doing, use your stitch markers, and always refer to the stitch directions on the direction page called "In Other Words". Some of the cable stitches are held to the front and some to the back. It makes a difference. One thing I wanted to talk a little about last night was blocking but we ran out of time. If you have blocked before, you can block your square to 12 inches before you come next month. Otherwise, just bring your finished square and we can talk about how to block at that time. Another thing that I did not mention last night but it is on your hand out sheet was how many times you repeat the charts. In the book, it says work Chart A twice then work rows 1-15 once more. It does not tell you to work Chart B twice then work rows 1-19 once more. Looking forward to hearing about questions, successes, problems, etc. Thanks, Donna, for showing us how to use the chart for each pattern. I am going to learn to do that on the next square.

Welcome to my blog! I am so excited to actually get started on this wonderful project. I envision this blog to be an extension of the class that we will be starting on March 23. In this class we will be making "The Great American Aran Afghan" and just focus on one square a month. I have knitted basically all my life and this is the most amazing thing I have ever knitted!! It will be fun to share it and knit it again with friends. I will share some of the little techniques I learned along the way and we will all do each square together. I really want everyone to use this blog between classes to share with each other, ask questions, and show your results! My finished afghan is now displayed at Brown's Sheep Company if you want to look at it before you make your decision on the class.

The class will meet once a month at Brown's Sheep Company on the 4th Tuesday of each month from 6:00-8:00 p.m. The charge is $7.00 per class. You can come whenever you can, make whatever squares you want. If you miss a class, hopefully this blog will help you with the square you missed. I don't want this class to be the kind of thing you get tired of having to come every month but instead, something you come when you can and enjoy what you can do. I really recommend that you are at least an advanced beginner to do this project but really as long as you know basic knitting skills and are confident with them, you can do this, even if you don't know how to do cables. We will all be learning new cable techniques along the way!

This whole project for me, started with a desire to knit something special for our son and his fiance for their wedding in May. I saw one square finished at our local knit night (thanks, Brandy), and I was smitten! I bought the book and started right away. Every square was a unique challenge but also very satisfying when you could complete one part quickly and move on to the next exciting square. Some squares are harder than others. But you will learn techniques that you've never dreamed of, and end up with a breathtaking heirloom afghan. Take one square at a time. Don't think about how many squares there are to make - and we will have fun making it together!

Here are some tips and things you need before the first class:

-Purchase the book. Donna will have several copies of this book at Brown's Sheep Company or you can purchase online. Amazon.com has the books or other sites as well.

-Yarn: If you plan on completing the entire afghan, you need to purchase all the yarn at once so you make sure you get the same dye lot. It makes a huge difference! I used Nature Spun (100% wool) from Brown's Sheep Co. It was wonderful to work with and very forgiving when you block it so each square was the same size. You need 13 skeins of the Nature Spun or 3,185 yds. of any worsted weight yarn. Donna said if you want any help choosing yarn, stop in at Brown's any time Monday-Thursday from 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. and she would be happy to help you.

-Needles: Each square has a specific size needle that they recommend but it depends so much on how your gauge comes out. I ended up using sizes 4,5,6,7 and 8 needles depending on the square. I also found I like using 16" curcular needles better than the straight needles but it is a matter of choice. We can discuss this at the first class.

-Sample gauge swatch: Please use the yarn you will use for the afghan and make a sample gauge swatch and bring it to the first class. This will determine your size of needles you will use. For your gauge, use size 7 needle and knit 19 stitches and 26 rows. Knit one row and purl the next until you reach 26 rows. It should measure 4" across and 4" up and down. If it is too large, go down a needle size and knit again, if too small, go up a needle size, etc.

-Cable Needles: There are several different kinds of cable needles out there but you will need to use a cable on every square. Brown's Sheep Co. has a few different kinds. We can discuss this at the first class also.

-Stitch markers: Needed for the different patterns within each square.

The first square we will do together is the Julie H. Levy square. Bring your yarn, gauge swatch, and size 7 needles or your gauge size. The square is fairly easy AND very rewarding when we get it done. You can do it!