When I first saw the Marguerite Blanket pattern by Sandra Eng many years ago I just loved it! It was so different from anything I'd seen before and the colour placement possibilities are mind blowing! I added the pattern to my long list of things I wanted to make and every now and then I'd think about starting it but just couldn't decide on a colour combo to do it justice so it would go away again. Colour choice and placement makes or breaks a blanket for me, it has to be right for me otherwise I will just get bored and abandon.
I've also struggled with my crojo a bit lately, I've been really busy with the day job the last month and been feeling a bit meh as I've experienced some imitation from another cross stitch business, (copied website wording, business approach, photo staging, subtle but not subtle enough to go unnoticed!) I’m trying to be flattered, I really am, but really I’m highly irritated by it and it’s consumed me a little lately.
Anyway....I digress! I think I just needed somewhere to let that out! Let's get back to Marguerite..........
Back at the beginning of April I once again thought I'd found the perfect combo for Marguerite by using a variegated yarn (Yarnsmiths Lagoon DK) with a solid colour yarn (Yarnsmiths Create DK) but the more I did, the more it just didn't work for me. Variegated yarn can be difficult to visualise when it's sitting there looking all pretty wound in a ball, it doesn't always 'pool' how you want it to with your pattern and that's what happened here, it just didn't give enough variation within the 'flowers' in the circles that I had envisioned.
I also didn't really like the yarn.........there, I've said it!!!! I got sucked in on Insta by all the accounts who had been sent freebies and ordered the colourway Marano Grando but when it arrived the colours were a lot duller in real life than I thought they would be. It's also a thin DK, it’s kinda between a 4ply and a DK thickness which does prove problematic when you're using it with a true DK using tapestry crochet technique and this meant my circles didn't lay right so I gave up on it. This is not to say the other colourways or that particular yarn will work for other things, it just didn't work for what I wanted it to this time and I didn't enjoy using it.
I felt a bit defeated so once again the pattern got put to the back of my mind while I concentrated on the day job. Fast forward to this month and I felt my crojo coming back. I always find that if my crojo starts to disappear the best way to entice it back is to start something new, any excuse eh! Cue Marguerite (again!) and this time I was convinced I'd found the perfect combo.......and so far so good!
I'm using the following shades of Yarnsmiths Create DK
- Oatmeal
- Vintage Pink
- Off White
- Rust
- Chocolate Brown
- Dusky Peach
- Antique Gold
You'll see that the darker pink is missing from the picture above, I added this shade in afterwards, I felt it just needed a little something more and the darker pink worked really well with the other colours
This is really the first time I've used tapestry crochet technique in a large project. It is not as complicated as you might think once you get into a rhythm. If you want to just give one of the circles a go to see how you feel about it Sandra has kindly put the circle pattern up for free on her website here
I am really enjoying making the Marguerite circles, come and follow me on socials to watch it all progress and I'll update the blog as and when I have more to share with you.
I hope you have found this combo inspiring and I'd love to see how you use it! It’s always nice when someone has the courtesy to credit me with the inspiration for their project and you can use the hashtag #littledovecolourcombos on social media to share your creations with me
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Thank you and happy crocheting
Faye :)