Saturday, April 27, 2013

The Horse Blanket Rides Again


Holy cow - how has it been so long since I last posted here? We are all a bit under the weather here at my house with some kind of nasty cold. We've been taking turns under this heavy green crochet blanket known in our house as the "horse blanket". It reminded me that I had done an Illustration Friday about it FIVE YEARS AGO. Five. I still love the drawing, and the story, below: 

This week's Illustration Friday topic is "Blanket". Back in the 70s my grandma crocheted a zig-zag, three tone green afghan (as she would call it) for my grandpa's naps. It matched his avocado green recliner, and was crocheted extra long to cover his 6 foot 6 inch frame from shoulder to foot. When she was done with the blanket, my grandpa took it for a test drive. Turned out all that extra yarn made it too heavy, and he called it the 'Horse Blanket'. Gramps was a wannabe cowboy in his older years, and I am sure he would have much rather saddled up a horse with that blanket than take naps under it. He was always on the go. I like to think that during his naps under the Horse Blanket he dreamed about taking a horse for a ride, and maybe letting the horse curl up with him under Grandma's heavy duty creation.

Years later after my grandpa passed away, my mom and I were helping my grandma clean out some of her stuff and the horse blanket reappeared. It was in mint condition, since Gramps had taken to napping under a much lighter blanket. "Does anyone want this old blanket I crocheted for Gramps?" she asked. Of course I snatched it up.