{"id":1147,"date":"2020-07-01T21:33:03","date_gmt":"2020-07-02T02:33:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/crochetmaven.com\/?p=1147"},"modified":"2020-07-01T20:33:45","modified_gmt":"2020-07-02T01:33:45","slug":"ode-to-the-granny-square","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/crochetmaven.com\/index.php\/2020\/07\/01\/ode-to-the-granny-square\/","title":{"rendered":"Ode to the Granny Square"},"content":{"rendered":"

The Granny Square is a utilitarian way of using up yarn. Generally, when many people think of a Granny Square afghan they think of lots of smaller motifs joined together in bright colors. The Granny Square, which is a simple shell or fan stitch – three double crochets with a chain stitch then three double crochets again with a few chain stitches at the corner can be used to make a block as large as you wish. This is a pattern that I can almost make in my sleep. It\u2019s versatile.<\/p>\n

The best part about making one large Granny Square is that you can use up a little or a lot of yarn and make something unique and random or planned and bold. The reason that I make the Granny square so often is that I end up with a lot of small amounts of yarn from previous projects and I don\u2019t like to waste yarn. Scrapghan patterns that have lots of colors are fun. Some people don\u2019t like the unplanned, unmatched look. The bright colors don\u2019t bother me as much as I really, really, really, REALLY do not like joining motifs. Joining colors is ok, especially since I found the craft life altering Russian Join so I don\u2019t have to weave in ends.<\/p>\n

I like color. Lately, I have been playing with random colors that are complimentary or as I like to say, \u201csort of\u201d go together and then are tied together with a neutral like gray to make the color changes in the Granny Square really stand out.<\/p>\n

Before looking down your nose at a Granny Square afghan consider that you can buy kits online that range from the tens to hundreds of dollars depending on the material and size of the finished afghan. A quick search online will yield lots of patterns for a Granny Square, and different variations – the Modern Granny, Rectangular Granny, Corner to Corner Granny, Granny Log Cabin and so on.<\/p>\n

What I like most about a Granny Square in addition to the ease of making it is that you can take a small amount of yarn to start and then continue changing colors for each round or doing multiple rounds of a color and you can make something beautiful. I have never seen a solid color Granny Afghan. It can be done but why. The beauty of the pattern is that it is so simple that the colors do make a statement. One, two or five rounds of the same color offers a nice symmetry. Even numbered rounds, odd number rounds or even a Fibonacci sequence can be used as a plan for a colorful afghan.<\/p>\n

Often when I start an afghan I don\u2019t plan that far ahead of time, I gather what I think is enough to make an afghan, which is tricky when you have small oddballs of yarn. Remaining balls of yarn are great for Granny Afghans – because you can start with just a little bit of color and go from there. The negative comments about Granny Afghans makes me wonder why I make them. The simple answer is because I like them, they are warm, and I can use a bit of yarn to make something beautiful for someone else.<\/p>\n

Happy Crocheting!<\/strong><\/p>\n