Twenty to Crochet: Crocheted Granny Squares

By Val Pierce

“With twenty granny squares of flower patterns, hexagons, circles and triangles you can make eight different crochet projects . . . A great stashbuster.” —Examiner.com

Want to learn how to crochet? Make a granny square! The simple techniques have lasted for decades and now they are trendier than ever. With endless colour and size variations, creating these squares is fun and easy. They can be used like building blocks and combined with other squares to make original projects and gifts or used to embellish larger items.

This book will show you how to create twenty different squares, including flower patterns, interpreted in different colours and yarns to create a kaleidoscope of effects. Also included are projects that show you how to make the squares into a simple baby blanket, arm warmers, a purse, a pin cushion, a mug cosy and a stylish pair of boot toppers. DMC yarns as well as fancy yarns are used, all of which are readily available, and both US and UK crochet abbreviations are used throughout. Granny squares are an ideal way to learn how to crochet, so this book is perfect for beginners.

“The venerable granny square is updated, refreshed and explored in this exuberant collection . . . The virtues of this pretty little book are its portability and engaging images of attractive motifs.” —Crochet Savvy

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Oct 15, 2012
• ISBN: 9781781260463

Val Pierce

Knitting and crochet have been a lifelong passion for Val Pierce, her father having taught her to knit at the tender age of 5. Having worked for many major yarn companies and various well-known designers, she decided it was time to branch out and begin making her own designs. Author of Love… Knitting, Val's work is published regularly in knitting magazines. She also teaches knitting and crochet to both adults and children.

Book preview

Introduction

The hand warmers shown opposite were based on the Tudor Rose design above (see page 24).

If you want to learn how to crochet, what better way than to make a granny square. The simple techniques have lasted for decades and now the humble granny square is making a comeback. Now even trendier than ever, and with endless colour and size variations, creating these hip little squares is lots of fun and very, very easy.

Used like building blocks, granny squares can be stitched or crocheted together to make gorgeous gifts, accessories and items for the home, or used on their own to embellish larger items. Each square takes only a few hours to make, and along with your hook and yarn will fit easily into a small bag, making it highly portable. Take your project with you when you go out and work on it whenever you have a few minutes to spare – you will soon have enough squares to make a stunning throw for a bed or sofa that is totally unique and will last a lifetime.

In this book I will show you how to create 20 different granny squares, including flower patterns, circles, hexagons and triangles, all interpreted in different colours to create a kaleidoscope of effects. Also included are eight projects that show you how to make your squares into a pretty baby blanket, a pair of arm warmers, a gorgeous scarf, a vintage-style shoulder bag, a floral mat, a pincushion, a dainty mug cosy and a lacy cushion cover. DMC yarns have been used to create the granny squares, but various other knitting yarns have been used for the projects to demonstrate their amazing versatility. Experiment with different yarns and colour combinations, and you will soon be hooked.

Happy crocheting to you all!

Hints and tips

American and British crochet terminology

In all the patterns, US terms are given first, followed by the UK terms afterwards in brackets. So US single crochet would be written as sc (UKdc) and US double crochet as dc (UKtr).

Techniques

The first pattern in this book is the traditional granny square. It is very simple to make and perfect for learning the art of crochet.

For all the granny squares, DMC Petra 3 crochet cotton and a 3.00mm (US D, UK 10) crochet hook have been used. You can, however, replace crochet cotton with an equivalent fingering (4-ply) yarn. For the projects, various knitting yarns have been used.

Granny squares can be made in most weights of yarn, though you will need to vary the hook size to accommodate the thickness of the yarn: use hook size 3.00mm (US D, UK 10) with Petra 3 crochet cotton and fingering (4-ply) yarn; hook size 4.00mm (US G, UK 8) with double knitting (8-ply) yarn; and hook size 4.5mm (US G, UK 7) with aran weight (10-ply) yarns. As you progress to more bulky yarns then the hook you use obviously