Using my birthday gift card - cotton yarn projects

For my birthday in May I got a gift card to Jo-ann fabrics and finally used it this week.

I've been feeling a little uninspired from using acrylic and wool yarn all the time. Cotton yarn has seemed increasingly appealing to me lately especially since I don't think I have ever bought my own. The only times I remember using it is when I would scrounge up a tangled ball of it from someone else's tub of crafts in my parents basement. Even then there would usually be only enough for a dish cloth. So it was very luxurious to choose my own colors and start with a neat and tidy skein. 

                          

Nothing is as satisfying as ripping into some new yarn!

The projects I want to try are:

1. Oval rugs/floor mats 

2. Blanket - might be too stiff, but I love cotton blankets so I want to try.

3. Big round baskets - hopefully I can make one thats really big, at least 12'' in diameter that won't be too floppy. 

Here is a half finished rug. Its really fun to make these! I am on my second one already. They go really fast with double thread and single crochet. I've never tried anything oval before but its exactly like starting a hat only this one I chained 13 at the very beginning rather than the usual 3. 

This one ended up being about the size of a door mat and that was using 3 regular size cotton skeins. Its perfect for the wood floor next to our bed. 

Jo-anns had giant balls of cotton yarn (regurely $10.99) on sale for half price. I didn't like any of the colors except for white, so I got the only white one they had left. Its equivalent to 6 of the smaller skeins which were $2.49 each! I may have to go back and get a brown one because that is a really good deal. 

Anyways, the rug I'm working on now is a longer oval, but I want to make it HUGE. I'll post a picture when I'm done.