I love a granny square. They are a staple of the crochet world, the first thing many people learn, and yet the variations are so far ranging. Whether you want something bold and simple or complicated and curious, there is a granny square pattern for you.

Solid Granny Squares

A total foundation of my granny square experience is this solid design. I find it so multifunctional, and with varying color changes you can use such a straight forward design in some really fascinating ways.

Bullion Stitch

Want to knock your crochet up a notch, then consider the bullion stitch. It’s not quite your regular crochet, but well worth the extra effort and the latch hook you’ll need* isn’t too pricey.

Bean Stitch Grannies

Beans, tasty and crochetable! Who’d have thought. The standard and mini bean stitch both make for gorgeous granny afghans, especially if you mix and match them in your throw.

Waffle Stitch Granny Squares

Waffle stitches are time consuming, but so worth the effort. It’s not just the look, you’ll adore the thick, lustrous texture too.

Shell Stitch

Shell stitches combine traditional crochet styles in a modern way. Gorgeous as standalone shapes or sewn together as a blanket, this sloped stitch is my bet for the next big thing.

Linen Stitches

Linen stitch might sound mundane, but it’s really not. You can use it in several ways, and combine them to make really unique yet simple style granny blankets.

Four V Stitches

I have four different v stitch granny squares for you, which bring remarkably different designs to the table. My personal favorite is the expanding version, but you can mix and match them as you like.

Bobble Stitch Designs

Bobble stitch granny squares have basically infinite variations, depending on where you choose to put your bobbles!

And you can even take your granny blanket’s cuteness to the next level by bobble stitching shapes and designs. Love it!

Star Granny Squares

These five point stars look tricky, but don’t worry, Sarah has done all the complex parts for you already with the design. All you need to do is follow her simple instructions.

Circle Designs

Circular granny squares look their very best when they are outlined in white or cream shades, to really highlight the shape.

Modern Hearts

The perfect granny square for someone you love, surely! I adore this modern style, and it goes gorgeously with the stars and circles above too.

Going Diagonal

I was bowled away when I first saw this one come together. It’s not just the slanted angle that’s been pulled off so neatly, I also highly recommend using this color combination too. It pops!

Sunny Skies

These sun granny squares made a blanket that I almost, but not quite, regret giving as a gift. I think I’m going to have to make another one for myself!

*The products linked in this pattern were carefully selected by Lucy Kate Crochet. If you decide to purchase using the links provided, we may earn a small commission on that sale. This is at no extra cost to you.

The post Free Granny Square Crochet Patterns appeared first on Lucy Kate Crochet.

No one wants to find a hole opening up in a treasured crochet blanket. Whether it’s a blanket you made yourself, received as a gift, or inherited from your family. But holes do happen, due to things like wear and tear, accidents, and moths. There are a few ways of repairing holes in crochet blankets. From restoring it exactly as it was, to visible mending techniques that tell a story of your blanket’s history.

• Replacing granny squares
• Patching holes over
• Sewing up holes
• Grafting across holes
• In praise of visible mending

Repairing holes in crochet blankets

Holes appear in your crochet blankets for all kinds of reasons. They can be the result of a yarn end working loose, moths chomping through the fibers in winter, or a space between your stitches getting snagged against something and torn. I find that lever handles on doors are a terrible culprit for this!

Luckily, crochet doesn’t ladder or unravel at the same speed as knitted fabric. So you shouldn’t experience the panic of a hole that just won’t stop growing, from the moment it forms. But a hole in crochet fabric will still get bigger if you stretch or poke at it. So it’s a good idea to put your damaged crochet blanket to one side as soon as you spot a hole, and resist the urge to use it until you’ve performed a repair.

Sewing up holes

One option for mending small tears is to sew them up with your tapestry needle and some yarn. This works best for narrow splits and tears, where the sides already meet. It’s not a very discreet or attractive way to mend wider holes. As you sew up a hole in a crochet blanket, take care to catch any loops of yarn that could further unravel if they’re not anchored back in place.

You can watch someone mend a tear in a crochet blanket by sewing the two sides together, and see how it turns out, in the video:

A needle and thread (or yarn) are also your best friends for correcting the appearance of small gaps caused by

• missed stitches
• uneven sized holes in the center or corner spaces of a granny square
• spaces where the corners four granny squares haven’t quite lined up correctly when you joined them
• or gaps caused by a lapse in tension, perhaps because you were working with an unfamiliar stitch.

These aren’t problems that will get worse with time. They’re just small visual flaws that sometimes have an annoying habit of drawing your attention. To mend them I use yarn or sewing thread, depending on whether it would be tricky to hide yarn. Run the yarn or thread around the edges of the hole, hiding it in the stitches. Then gently pull it tight like the top of a drawstring bag, until the hole reaches the right size. Secure it with a double knot and weave in the loose ends. No one will be any the wiser about what happened!

Replacing granny squares

If your blanket is constructed from granny squares, one option is to take out a square with a hole in it, and replace it. If you made the blanket yourself and you have enough of the yarn leftover in your stash, you can replace the square with an exact replica. But if this isn’t possible, a new square with a special motif to commemorate the repair can be just as successful. For example a square with the initials of the blanket’s owner surface crocheted onto it.

Make your replacement square to the same dimensions as the original one, and from the same fibers. If your blanket has been washed since it was made, wash the square too and make sure it still fits the space afterwards. Some yarns behave and shrink differently in the wash! Carefully unpick the joins holding the damaged square in place. It can be tempting to only unravel the seams as far as the corners of the old square, and insert the new square by working around its four sides. But the repair will look more polished if you unpick the seams beyond the corners, and inset the new square using four straight joins, like tic-tac-toe grid.

Patching holes over

Here’s a solid granny square crochet blanket I made about 13 years ago. You can tell from its condition it’s been well-loved since then!

About 6 years ago, one of the granny squares started to unravel from the center. I didn’t have any matching yarn left to replace the square, and I didn’t yet feel confident trying to graft in a new center. But what I did have was half a dozen crochet hearts I’d made for another project, then abandoned without finishing it.

So I took the route of sewing one heart over either side of the hole, using blanket stitch. It’s a pretty unsophisticated solution, but I think it looks quite homespun and charming in its own way. This was my first ever crochet blanket, and it has plenty of other imperfections in it already. But it also has huge sentimental value and I doubt I’ll ever part with it. I can imagine eventually it’ll have many more patches too!

Besides hearts, you could make squares, hexagons, circles or ovals. You could even turn your patch into an intentional embellishment. For example make a round red patch, and embroider a green stem and leaf onto the blanket to turn it into a juicy cherry!

You can also patch a hole in a crochet blanket with woven fabric appliques. It works best if you choose a fabric weight that sits comfortably with the weight of your blanket. For example brushed cotton or needle cord for a DK or worsted yarn blanket, and heavy flannel or chunky elephant cord for a bulky yarn blanket.

Grafting across holes

Finally, for a truly invisible mend, you can fill a hole in a crochet blanket by recreating the stitches that used to be there. If you do this with leftovers of the same yarn, your repair will be completely seamless. But I actually love how this technique looks with a contrasting color of yarn too – it’s got heaps of potential for beautiful visible mending.

Grafting across a blanket hole with new stitches is a bit more advanced than any of the previous approaches, but nonetheless it is totally achievable. Just take it one step at a time, and don’t try to rush. Here’s a video showing how it’s done:

In praise of visible mending

Visible mending has existed for millenia. From functional darning on clothes with oddments of yarn, to the beautiful Japanese tradition of mending broken pottery with gold or silver lacquer. More recently, interest in visible mending has been revived by creative menders sharing their work on social media. The philosophy behind it is simple. Rather than trying to conceal or camouflage repairs so that they can’t be easily recognized, fixes are turned into decorative features in their own right. The presence of a visible repair on a blanket becomes part of its story, and a celebration of how much service it has given you.

Visible mending also turns repairing holes in crochet blankets into a fun and satisfying creative process in it’s own right. Not just a chore! And of course when you stop trying to make your repairs inconspicuous, you no longer need to stress about whether you’ve succeeded. So there are practical and sentimental advantages of visible mending. And for me, they really helped break down the psychological barriers that used to prevent me getting started on a repair in the first place.

Repairing holes in crochet blankets – summary

Fixing holes in crochet blankets is eventually an inevitable part of owning crochet blankets, for most people. Yarn is not indestructible! But happily there are several ways of mending holes, so that you can continue snuggling under your favorite blanket. My favorite techniques are the ones that aren’t disguised – big patches, and contrasting grafted stitches, so you can see exactly where the original blanket ends and the repair begins. Let us know which approach you like best on the comments box down below!

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Granny Blankets

A simple granny square, stripe or hexagon design is the easiest crochet blanket for beginners.

This style isn’t just comprised of easy to form stitches, it works up really quickly. This is important for keeping new crocheters motivated, before they have the confidence to know it’s going to be worth all that time and effort.

You can also make granny square blankets super complicated, including shapes, patterns and pictorial designs like my sunny skies blanket!

Corner to Corner

Corner to corner crocheting is also known as c2c or diagonal box stitch crochet. This is because it’s worked diagonally, from the edge of the blanket rather than in a straight line or round.

C2C crochet has a pixelated effect that works really well for pictorial designs, especially if you like blocky images like MineCraft. Just make sure you turn over the blanket repeatedly as you work, as it’ll end up rather wonky.

Complex corner to corner blankets look intimidating, but like so many things once you’ve got the hang of the pattern they are quite straight forward. More suited to crocheters with a few months experience under their belts, they are a really fun way to work up some cool square designs.

Temperature Blankets

Temperature afghans are the perfect way to make an entirely unique color pattern. The basis of the design is formed from a temperature chart where different degrees equal different yarn colors.

You can find one of the oodles of ideas online, or make up your own chart that works well for your local climate and ideal color palette.

Ideal Materials

Yarn comes in a huge range of different fibers, strengths, elasticities and finishes. Some are easy to wash, others need a seriously delicate touch even for handling. You’ll find cheap, mass produced, manufactured styles, and those that are natural or totally eco friendly.

The best yarn for crocheting blankets will depend on your budget, the availability of the yarn and on what you’re going to use your afghan for. Textures, weights and of course the colors you are going for also play a part in the decision. How much yarn you’ll use will vary depending on the size of blanket you make and the stitches you employ.

As a general rule of thumb, when you are crocheting a blanket it’s a good idea to pick a yarn that has a soft feel but a sturdy strength, which can survive a gentle wash and looks quality even after a few months of use.

Uses and Purposes

My crochet blankets tend to be made up for babies, as gifts or just on a whim. Which means I often have blankets laying around that don’t really fit into any of my plans, or with the decor in my home either. It’s not ideal.

Don’t be like me, be a sensible crocheter and plan ahead. Plan your blanket to fit a pram, cot, stroller, crib or bedspread. Think about whether it’s going to be twin, full, queen or even king sized when complete.

Crochet blankets also make fantastic throws for couches and armchairs. These are big projects, but totally worth the extra effort when they come together.

Crochet Blanket Stitches

There are endless stitches you can use, and put together, when crocheting a blanket. Any crochet technique can be applied either into or onto a blanket. But these are some of the most popular techniques for a standard afghan project.

Single, Double and Treble Crochets

Your most basic crochet stitches are the single, double and treble crochets. The single is the shortest, and the treble the longest. The names refer to the number of loops that you are working with.

You can also give them fun borders and details, that add a bit more to the standard shapes.

Extended Single Crochets

The extended single crochet makes a good halfway bridge between the single crochet and double crochet.

Granny Stitch

The granny stitch is three double crochets made into the same gap, also known as a cluster. It can be worked straight into a foundation chain or after a border of single crochets. And of course this double crochet cluster is what creates the fabulous granny stripe, square and hexagon blankets.

Solid Granny Stitch

The traditional granny square but with no gaps!

Ripple or Chevron Stitches

I adore ripple stitches, but they are a trickier and more time consuming way to make a blanket. Especially if you’re a fan of a straight edged border. They involve at regular intervals adding in and removing stitches from the length of the row.

Moss, Linen or Granite Stitches

Moss stitch gives your blanket a very thick feel, and has a lovely raised texture to it regardless of the yarn you use.

There are several types of linen stitch, but they are all formed by crocheting in alternating rows in opposite directions.

Waffle Stitch

Waffle stitches aren’t just brilliant because they look like one of the best foods in the universe. They are a straightforward stitch to make, and can even be worked in a round like a regular granny square blanket. All you need to do is work some of your double crochets into the front post of the previous stitch.

Bobble Stitches

Bobble stitches are an addition to other blanket stitches like single or double crochets. They add a raised spherical area to the material, usually formed with clusters of double crochets that are crocheted together at the top.

Puff Stitches

Similarly to a bobble stitch, the puff stitch is comprised of a group of stitches made in one place, however in this case you don’t tighten the stitch to the loop until you’ve finished. They can also be used to make the entire fabric of the blanket, not just accent points.

Star Stitches

Star stitches, and the blankets that use them, come in many forms. We’ve got several suggestions for you here, all as gorgeous as each other.

Shell Stitches

I don’t crochet shell stitches often, but when I do it’s always a bit of a treat. They can only be described as intricate.

The traditional shell shape is easy to make, and adds detail to a range of projects to blankets and beyond.

Borders and Embellishments

No crochet blanket is complete, quite literally, without a border. Edging your blanket isn’t just a lovely way to make it look more professional, but it is also the easiest way to hide loose threads without endless weaving.

Blanket edging can be as simple as a round of single crochets, to as elaborate as an entirely different stitch, set of tassels or even added embellishments made from different materials.

Whatever your preferred crochet blanket style is, you’ll need to hide those loose ends when you’re done. There are three main ways to do that, and a border is one of them!

The post Crochet Blanket Styles and Stitches appeared first on Lucy Kate Crochet.

Blankets are a staple crochet project. And double crochet is a popular stitch for making them, since its height helps you progress quicker. Rows of double crochet don’t always have the smoothest edge though, so adding a border can elevate your blanket’s perimeter from a bit lumpy and bumpy, to flawless. Which sounds like a no-brainer, but how do you work a border along the vertical edges? Crocheting along the sides of double crochet is very different to working into the top or bottom edge. Here’s how to crochet a border on a double crochet blanket, including a failsafe first row to use, so that you can add any border pattern you like next.

• Why add a border to your blanket?
• How to crochet a border on a double crochet blanket
• How many stitches to use
• Positioning your stitches
• My failsafe first row for every double crochet blanket border

Why add a border?

Borders are the perfect finishing touch to elevate your blanket from handmade and homely, to handmade, homely and extra special. Is it strictly necessary to add a border? No. Will your baby blanket be warm, snuggly and beautiful without one? Yes. But borders are excellent for adding a bit of polish to a project that still feels like it’s missing something, and for covering a multitude of sins along a wobbly edge. For double crochet granny blankets, a border will also reinforce the edge of chain space holes.

How to crochet a border on a double crochet blanket

Double crochet is a perennial favorite stitch for blankets of all sizes. I’m trying to think of the last time it wasn’t the principal stitch in a blanket I’ve made, and I can’t even remember! But it can leave you at a loss the first time you try adding a border to the vertical sides, because the stitches are tall. How many border stitches equal the height of one double crochet stitch? And where do you even insert the hook?

Adding a border to a crochet blanket is actually pretty easy once you get started, so here’s how it’s done.

How many stitches to use

Sometimes before you get started on a border it helps if you can picture how many stitches spaces there are to work into around the edge of your blanket.

The top edge of your blanket should look pretty straightforward. The tops of the last row of stitches you made are all stitch spaces for your border. The ones at each end are where you’ll work your corners. The bottom edge should also be unproblematic – every stitch in your foundation chain (minus any used for turning to start the first row) is a stitch space for your border. With any luck, it ought to be the same number of stitches as you have along your top edge! And again, the last stitch at each end is where you’ll make your corners.

Finally those tricky vertical edges. Each row is equal to two stitch spaces. You can fill each space with one of any of the following:

• Slip stitch
• Single crochet
• Extended single crochet
• Half double crochet
• Double crochet
• Treble crochet
• Or skip over it with a chain.

Here’s a dinky double crochet blanket I’ve made as an example:

It has 42 stitches on the top and bottom edges, and 24 rows, meaning 48 stitch spaces along each vertical side. Which is 180 stitches in total!

Dealing with chain spaces at the edge of your blanket

When you’re counting the stitch spaces around the edge of a double crochet blanket, you might encounter chain spaces with a big ol’ hole on the other side. Like in my example blanket there.

• Along the top and bottom edges, the number of border stitches you can make into each chain space is equal to the number of chains. Which is two on my blanket. So I can fill those chain spaces with two border stitches (even though I was filling them with three double crochets when I was working the granny pattern).
• Along the vertical edges, the chain spaces on every other row are also going to fit two border stitches, because they represent the height of one row. This is even though the turning chain was 3 stitches long.

Which looks a bit discombobulating written down, but when you get started I promise it will become much more intuitive!

Positioning your stitches

When it comes to positioning your stitches, the top and bottom edges of your blanket are pretty straight forward again. Along the top edge, insert your hook into both loops of the last row, as you normally would. For chain spaces, insert your hook into the chain space – don’t try to wiggle it into the chain stitch itself! Along the bottom edge, it will depend how you worked into your foundation row, but there should still be a loop (or loops) free from each chain, that you can make your border stitches into.

Now those side edges!

• Where there are double crochet stitches, you’re going to insert your hook on the inside edge of the first stitch post, and make your border stitch around the post. If there’s a turning chain there too, you’re still going to insert your hook on the inside side of the first double crochet, and make your border stitch around the stitch’s post, and the turning chain.
• Where there’s a turning chain only, with a chain space next to it, you’re going to insert your hook into that big handy space, and catch the chain inside your border stitch.

So to make a simple row of single or double crochets along the side of your blanket, each of these red dots represents a place you’d insert your hook and make a stitch:

My failsafe first row for every double crochet blanket border

In theory, you can start a border on a double crochet blanket with any stitch you like. Straight forward single crochet, coordinating double crochet… Even bobbles or scallops, as long as you count your way carefully along the vertical edges, and that remember each row counts as two stitch spaces when you’re skipping across them.

But I think it is much, much easier to start any border with a row of linen stitch, a.k.a. moss stitch. Linen stitch is a simple two-stitch repeat of *1 sc, 1 ch*, which makes it perfect for working along the sides of double crochet blankets. Here’s why I love it:

• It’s very quick to do.
• When you work along the sides of your blanket, you only have to make one single crochet around the post of your double crochets – the chain counts as filling the second stitch space.
• It creates the perfect foundation for anchoring a more complicated border to your blanket
• You can use a contrasting color, which will appear as a sweet dotted line inside your border.
• Or you can use the same color as the rest of your border, in which case the linen stitch row will be practically unnoticeable.

Worked example

So obviously, I’m going to start the border on my mini blanket by adding one row of linen stitch. Starting at the top of one edge:

I’ll start by chaining 3, which represents *1 sc, 1 ch* in the corner. Then I’ll work down the side of the blanket, working *1 sc, 1 ch* into the end of each row. Here’s a stitch diagram of how that corner is going to work. The star is where the yarn is attached, the red dots are where I’ll insert my hook, and the stitch symbols are the conventional symbols for single crochet, chain stitch, and a slip stitch to join at the end. It also shows how the row will finish and join, when I get round to the top edge:

Here’s how it looks as I get going:

The pattern for each corner space is sc 1, ch 2, sc 1, ch 1. Then resume working in *sc 1, ch 1* into every other stitch space along the next edge. If, like me, you have some chain space corners, the correct number of stitches for the chain space looks like this:

After finishing the last corner with sc 1, ch 2, sc 1, ch 1, join the row with a slip stitch into the 2nd chain of the ch 3 from the beginning. And hey presto!

What you have now is a perfect foundation of neat, outward facing, evenly spaced stitches for working a wider or more complex border onto. There are lots of blanket border ideas and inspiration in this article. Ultimately though I went for a simple row of half double crochet stitches in a complementary color this time:

I can’t get enough of that raspberry pink at the moment! Now all I need is to find something small enough to wrap up in it.

Hi Brienne, looking good!

How to crochet a border on a double crochet blanket – summary

Now you’re ready to get started with a border on any size of double crochet blanket, and finish it with any kind of edging you like. If you think you’re proud of your blanket now, you’re going to be bursting with satisfaction when you see how good it looks with a border! So good luck, have fun, and let us know who your blanket is going to be for in the comments box down below

The post How To Add A Border To A Double Crochet Blanket appeared first on Lucy Kate Crochet.

Where do you stand on adding crochet blanket borders to your projects? For me, they’re a deeply satisfying finishing touch. I look forward to adding the border from the moment I start the first row! I love the fact that crochet blanket borders don’t have to be complicated or time consuming too. My absolute favorites are simple rows of linen stitch (a.k.a. moss stitch) and an easy-peasy mini bobble border (pictured above). So if you’ve been sitting on the fence about adding a border to your blanket, or you’re not sure which edging to pick, I’m here to match you with the perfect final flourish for any blanket project.

• Blanket stitch border
• Single crochet blanket borders
• Double crochet blanket borders
• Shell stitch crochet blanket border
• Bobble stitch crochet blanket border
• Mini bobble stitch crochet blanket border

Adding a border to your crochet blanket – yay or nay?

Adding a border to your next crochet blanket isn’t compulsory. Here’s a great example of a blanket which combines super bulky yarn and rich, saturated colors to make a big statement. It doesn’t need a border to feel more ‘finished’. And if the idea of working a border on top of all the effort you’ve already made fills you with dread, then don’t bother. There’s no medal for forcing yourself into it!

But I for one love a blanket border – the types of blanket I like to crochet always look a little bit naked without one. I find the transformative impact they have on a finished project always seems bigger than the effort I put into making them. Plus, my borders can cover a multitude of sins, like when I have lots of color changes at the edges of a stripy blanket!

Crochet blanket border ideas

There are countless types of crochet border you can add to a blanket. They can be wide and highly decorative, or neat and narrow. Here are six timeless possibilities I regularly use, which can be adapted or combined in limitless ways. I’m willing to bet that you could make a lifetime’s worth of crochet blankets using just these techniques!

Single crochet blanket borders

The quickest trim requires nothing more than a continuous row of single crochet stitches, and I use this a lot. Don’t underestimate how much they will elevate your blanket! A single row of single crochet is a smart and unfussy way to make the edges of a granny blanket more solid and robust, like the edge of this crib blanket I made for my friend’s baby:

But my favorite way to use single crochet stitch for a blanket border is by working two rows of linen stitch, also known as moss stitch, in two different colors. The colors can be tonal, complementary, or even contrasting. The way rows of linen stitch overlap each other means that the inner color will appear as a broken line of dots, hemmed in by the outer color.

Linen stitch crochet blanket border method

This looks like a surprising amount written down, but it’s actually so easy you’ll be able to do it in your sleep! Here’s what I do:

• Join your first yarn color in the top right hand corner of your blanket.
• Ch 3. This represents 1 sc, and 1 ch.
• Working the top edge of your blanket, *sc 1, ch 1, skip the next stitch* to the next corner.
• Sc 1, ch 2, sc 1, ch 1 into the corner.
• Repeat the *sc 1, ch 1* pattern down the left hand side of your blanket. Exactly where you place the single crochets will depend on the height of the stitches you used for your blanket. Don’t be afraid to experiment with a couple of possibilities before committing to one!
• When you get back to where you started, sc 1 ch2 into the corner space and join with a slip stitch to the 2nd chain of the starting ch 3. Fasten off and weave in your ends.
• Join your second color at any corner. Ch 3.
• Skip the first sc, then sc 1 ch 1 into the first chain space. Continue working *sc 1 ch 1* into every chain space, and skipping every sc.
• In the corner spaces sc 1, ch 2, sc 1, ch 1.
• Complete the final corner and join your row as before.

Here’s another example of a linen or moss stitch border, from when I made the Attic 24 hydrangea blanket last year:

Blanket stitch border

This border is beautifully simple, and oozes nostalgia. Just like the name suggests, it calls to mind the appearance of its namesake in sewing and embroidery – the blanket stitch used to hem the raw edges of old woollen blankets. It works best on blankets made from relatively solid, non-gappy stitches.

The pattern is as easy as can be – it’s really just another take on a single crochet border. I work a row of single crochet all around the edge of your blanket, and for every second or third stitch insert my hook into a space slightly further in from the edge of the blanket, to create a deeper stitch.

This technique can be adapted to work on all kinds of crochet (in this photo, the blanket itself is repeating rows of half double crochet). Take a little time at the beginning to identify regular intervals for your deeper stitches, and how many regular stitches are needed to fit in between them. You’ll also need to keep an eye on your tension when you pull through the yarn for your deep stitches. This is easy once you get into a bit of a rhythm, and certainly no problem at all if you have any experience of working with puff stitches.

Double crochet blanket borders

Something to have in mind when choosing a border for a crochet blanket is getting the scale right. Adding one row of single crochet in a contrasting color to a large blanket worked entirely double crochet can look a bit odd! But a few rows of double crochet will sit much more comfortably. For this solid granny square blanket, I made four rows of dc stitches using colors I’d already used elsewhere in the blanket, and turned the corners in the same way as the corners in the granny squares.

You can see a more wide-angle photograph of the same blanket in our article about how much yarn to buy for a crochet blanket.

Shell stitch crochet blanket border

Now let’s take a look at something slightly more decorative! I find that this shell stitch border makes a pretty scalloped edge for a blanket. The shells are worked in multiples of 6 stitches, plus one. Don’t worry too much about how many stitch spaces the sides of your blanket actually has though. I’ll come back to that in a moment!

Here’s how it’s done:

• Row 1: Join your yarn in any corner, and ch 3. Sc 1 ch1 along the sides of your blanket. Exactly where you place your single crochets on the sides of your blanket will depend on the height of stitch you used. But for the top and bottom edge, the single crochets should be in every other stitch, and for the sides the spacing should match the top and bottom edges as closely as possible.
• In the corners sc 1, ch 2, sc 1, ch 1. When you get back to the corner where you joined your yarn, sc 1 ch2 in the corner space and join with a slip stitch to the 2nd chain of the starting ch 3.

Before you move on…

Each time you reach a corner, count how check how many stitches you have made on that edge. Ideally each side will have a multiple of 3 single crochets, plus 1. If you’re one or two stitches out, undo a dozen stitches, and rework that section with the extra stitches either squeezed in or taken out by adjusting the spaces between the single crochets. Trust me when I say that no one is going to notice!

• Row 2: Ch 2, *skip 1 ch space and 1 sc, make 6 dc into the following ch space, skip 1 sc and 1ch space, sc into the following sc* repeat along the edges. 2 sc into the corner spaces. 1 sc into the final corner space and sl st to the 2nd ch to join.

If you still reach a corner and discover you still have stitches leftover on that edge, sc around the corner, and cover the empty space with a big pom pom or a crochet tassel at the end. Pom poms and tassels fix literally everything, and no blanket has ever been poorer for having them.

Turning shells into triangles

Did you know that shells can be easily turned into triangles, by adding a 2 or 3 chain picot between the 3rd and 4th double crochet stitches?

After your 3rd dc (indicated by the red arrow), chain 2 or 3 (try both and see which works best), slip stitch into the front loop of the 3rd dc, and continue with the rest of the shell. The picot forms a little point, and the result looks rather jolly, like bunting. Which makes this trim ideal for children and baby blankets!

Bobble stitch crochet blanket border

This next option is all about turning your border into a statement. You don’t make this border to go around a blanket – you make a blanket to go inside this border! Which means you shouldn’t be surprised when I tell you it is a bit fiddly and time consuming. It really will help to think of the journey as the destination here.

It’s helpful, but not essential, to start with evenly sized stitch spaces all round the edge of your blanket. That’s why I made a contrasting row of light green stitches around my purple blanket in the photo above, before working the bobble stitch border in teal. To make the bobble stitch border (the teal part only):

• Row 1: Join the yarn and chain 5. *Skip 2 sts, sc 1, chain 5* all the way round. Finish by making 1 sc into the stitch where you joined your yarn.
• Row 2: *Sl st into the next ch space, dc5tog, sl st around the base of the dc5tog, sl st into the same chain space* all the way around.

For row 2, you want to have the back of your blanket facing you, if it has one. You can manage this by continuing the second row in the first direction as the first if the reverse is already facing you, or by turning your work over and working back in the opposite direction if you need too. If you’re unfamiliar with the instruction ‘dc5tog’, also known as a bobble stitch or popcorn stitch, there’s a full explanation of how to make one in our guide to bobble stitch granny squares.

Mini bobble stitch crochet blanket border

If you don’t fancy making a whole blanket’s worth of bobbles like the ones above, then this last border is a much quicker alternative. This neat little trim consists of just two alternating stitches, but the result gives the impression of having far more crochet expertise than you actually need. You can use this border along blanket edges with any number of stitches, but if they are very gappy, it’s a good idea to work a row of single crochet before adding your mini bobbles.

With the back of your blanket facing you, join your yarn anywhere along the edge, and slip stitch into the next stitch. Work a double crochet into the next stitch, and slip stitch into the stitch after that. The slip stitches on either side of your double crochet will push it outwards away from you, making a dinky little bobble on the front side of your blanket. Keep working *1dc, 1sl st* all the way around, until you get back to the beginning, and fasten off.

Crochet blanket borders – summary

There you go – six crochet blanket border ideas, and infinite ways to use them! Stitches like single crochet, linen stitch and double crochet can be stacked as many rows deep in as many colors as you like. And more decorative stitches like shell stitch and bobble stitch can be jazzed up by adding a contrasting row of single or double crochet inside them first. Let us know what border your decide to use in the comments box down below!

The post Crochet Blanket Borders – 6 Techniques That Open Up Endless Possibilities appeared first on Lucy Kate Crochet.

Choosing the best yarn to crochet a blanket is a nerve-wracking part of getting started. Realising you’ve made the wrong choice half way through such a big project doesn’t even bear thinking about! Once you have experience using a handful of different yarns, you’re sure to form a preference for particular weights, fibers, and even brands, based on their finish, and their feel as your work with them. But if you’re struggling to work out which yarn to try first, I’m going to guide you through the properties you might want to prioritize. And I’ll recommend some tried and tested favorites, based on your choices.

• Choosing the best yarn to crochet a blanket
• What to look for
• 16 of the best yarns for crochet blankets

*The products linked in this post were carefully selected by Lucy Kate Crochet. If you decide to purchase using the links provided, we may earn a small commission on that sale. This is at no extra cost to you.

Choosing the best yarn to crochet a blanket

I’ve been crocheting for over 10 years, and I’ve definitely found a comfort zone when it comes to choosing yarn for blankets. Having a confident idea of which yarn will work well for my next blanket is great, because I can dive in knowing that the results will look good, and last well. Lots of yarns have the potential to work for blankets, but some are better suited to specific projects than other. What’s more, us crocheters are all unique – size and textures of wool that I love working with might not be the same as the ones that inspire you!

Experimenting with different fibers and trying out many different kinds of pattern are the best ways to find your own favorite blanket yarns. But if you’re making your first blanket, or even a new kind of blanket, for the first time, coming up are some things to look for when you choose your yarn. And in the following section, I’ve organized 16 recommendations so that you can see how they compare.

What to look for

When choosing the best yarn to crochet a blanket, here are the properties you’ll want to consider:

• Weight
• Fiber
• Pilling potential
• Color palette
• Cost

Weight

Let’s start with an important creative decision. Do you want to make a thick, plush blanket, or something more lightweight? If you have been spurred into action by pictures of other people’s projects, then you might already have an idea of the answer to this. But if not, here are some advantages and disadvantages of thick vs thin yarns.

Thick yarns are also known as bulky (size 5), super bulky (size 6) and jumbo (size 7) yarns. Lots of yarns in these categories are specifically marketed for making blankets from. You need to know that:

• They are quick to work with – thick yarn means big stitches, and fewer stitches to complete per square inch.
• Lots of beginners find thick yarns easier to manipulate.
• The results are dense, warm and snuggly.
• Since you can produce a large area of crochet quickly, bulky yarns are great for making a blanket big enough to cover a king size bed.

At the other end of the scale, DK (size 4) and worsted (size 5) yarns are popular for making more lightweight blankets. Some baby blanket patterns even use sport weight (size 3) yarn.

• Lightweight yarns require more stitches per inch than heavier yarns, so there’s more work to do and your project will take longer to complete.
• There is a much wider choice of different fibers and textures available, including sustainable natural fibers like bamboo, and luxury blends with ingredients like cashmere for extra special projects.
• Blankets in lightweight yarns have more potential for decorative detail, because the stitches are smaller.

Fiber

Next, what fiber will work best for your blanket? Synthetic fibers like acrylic are popular because they are economical to buy in bulk for large projects, come in a huge number of colors, are machine washable, and color fast. At the other end of the spectrum, luxury yarns made from 100% premium materials like merino wool or a cashmere blend can turn a simple blanket into an extra special gift, or an heirloom worthy of treasuring forever. In between, there are lots of wool blend yarns, that combine the warmth and appeal of natural fibers, with the practical benefits of a synthetic material. Finally, cotton yarns are another popular choice. Cotton fiber is heavier and less than squashy than wool or acrylic, but it is hardwearing and shows great stitch definition.

Pilling

Pilling is the enemy of the crochet blanket. Lots of fibers pill to some degree, and I try to remind myself that it’s a sign of a blanket which is well loved and used, rather than fighting against it. Some manufacturers also make yarns which they specifically describe as anti-pilling. I’ll admit right now that I haven’t tried any of them yet, but if you want to (and there are a couple of examples below) then please leave us your thoughts about them in the comments box later!

Color palette

If you already have a vision for the color palette of your blanket, then you’ll need to prioritize choosing a yarn which is available in all those colors. On the other hand, if committing to a color scheme is causing you almost as much stress as choosing a yarn, then picking a product which comes in a small number of colors that all complement each other already will solve two creative conundrums in one go!

It’s also a good idea to bear in mind that some yarns are more likely than others to vary in color between dye lots. For example hand dyed yarns, and yarns made entirely of natural fibers. If you can’t afford to buy all the yarn you need in one go, you might prefer to use a synthetic, mass-produced yarn, which is more likely to look consistent each time you buy some more.

Cost

You don’t need me to explain why cost is important we all have a budget to work within! To help you choose the best yarn for a crochet blanket project, I’ve tried to include an indication of the relative price of my recommendations in the next section.

16 of the best yarns for crochet blankets

Here are 16 yarns which all have the potential to work for blanket projects

Scheepjes Color Crafter, $

Color Crafter is 100% acrylic*, and comes in an absolutely whopping 93 solid shades, which makes it the perfect choice for blanket projects with lots of tonal color variation, such as temperature blankets.

The balls are generously-sized, and friendly on your purse. What’s more, Scheepjes promise this yarn is anti-pilling, so you can use it and wash it over and over again.

Scheepjes Merino Soft, $$$

Merino Soft is spun from 50% merino, 25% microfiber and 25% acrylic*, so it is warm, soft, light, and durable. It’s available in 56 irresistible colors, which are all named after famous artists.

This is my go-to yarn for baby blankets that I hope will be both used and enjoyed, and also loved enough to keep for younger siblings and even future generations.

Lion Brand 24/7 Cotton, $

24/7 Cotton is a versatile cult classic among crocheters. It’s 100% mercerized cotton*, which means it has been chemically treated to make the fibers more smooth and supple. The result is a yarn that’s easy to use, produces excellent stitch definition, and still drapes beautifully.

It comes in over 30 colors, but really shines when you use a limited color palette and play with different stitches to create texture instead.

Sirdar Snuggly Cashmere Merino, $$$$

Sirdar yarns come from Yorkshire – one of the oldest wool making regions in the world! Snuggly Cashmere Merino* is spun from 57% Wool 33% Acrylic 10% Cashmere, to give it an extra special touch.

The color palette is quite muted and limited, but the addition of some acrylic keeps it washable – so this is a great choice for a christening blanket, or a gift for a new baby.

Premier Everyday Anti-Pilling, $

Everyday Anti-Pilling yarn* is a great alternative to Color Crafter if you prefer worsted weight yarn to DK. It’s 100% acrylic, boasts anti-pilling technology, and comes in 66 colors from delicate pastels to super-saturated neons.

Best of all, it’s tried, tested, relied upon and recommended by thousands of other crocheters, so you know it’s not going to let you down.

Paintbox Wool Mix Aran, $$

This worsted weight wool mix is 50% wool and 50% acrylic*, for a perfect balance of warmth and washability. Paintbox are known for their colors, and this yarn comes in 48 easy to mix-and-match shades which take the headache out of planning a colorful granny square blanket.

Everyone has their own idea of which yarn has the exact right combination of properties for crocheting blankets, and for me, this is it.

Lily Sugar’n Cream, $

Sugar’n Cream is America’s most popular cotton yarn, and it’s easy to see why. It comes in a dazzling range* of solid, ombre, prints, and self-striping shades, all spun from 100% cotton grown in America. It’s hardwearing and long lasting, but it isn’t mercerized, so it’s less supple and bouncy than the other cotton yarns on this list.

Willow Dusk, $$$

Dusk yarn from Willow combines 80% wool with 20% super-soft alpaca fibers, for extra warmth and softness. It comes in a limited color palette of 12 beautifully muted shades that all work well together. Crochet blankets made from this yarn make extra special gifts for loved ones, and working with alpaca hair will be a pleasure for you too!

Bernat Blanket, $

Bernat brand yarns* have been available for years, but the introduction of their Blanket yarn *has raised their profile through the roof. This affordable 100% polyester yarn makes the softest blankets you will ever touch, and stands up well to washing. The thickness offers a good balance between being quick to work up, and narrow enough to play with pattern using it’s incredible 70-strong color palette.

Bernat Symphony, $

Symphony is a chunky, fuzzy*, 80% acrylic and 20% wool yarn. In technical terms, it’s a lightly brushed roving yarn, which means the fibers have only been loosely twisted together, and then combed slightly to tease out lots of little wispy bits. Blankets crocheted from this yarn are exceptionally warm and soft to touch, but nearly impossible to unravel if you make a mistake, because the wispy bits knot together. So if you’re not feeling confident, save this for another day!

Bernat Maker Home Dec, $

We’ve talked about how cotton is heavier than wool or acrylic. This presents a problem if you want to make a blanket with bulky cotton yarn, because it could end up weighing a lot. Well, Bernat have offered a solution in the form of Home Dec*, which has a tubular cotton exterior, and a nylon core. It’s attractive and eye-catching, not to mention washer and dryer friendly. But unfortunately it does only come in 16 shades, of which only 8 are solids.

K + C Roving Yarn, $$

Another loosely-twisted roving yarn, this time made from 100% wool. It only comes in 12 chic colors, and blankets crocheted from this yarn are dense, squashy, and luxurious. They deserve to be draped over a sofa next to a beautiful fire place, and have their picture posted all over social media. They are also hopelessly impractical and pill as soon as you use them, but I don’t care – this yarn is a beauty.

Bernat Blanket Extra, or Blanket Big

First came Bernat Blanket, then came its big brother Blanket Extra*, and it’s even bigger brother, Blanket Big*. These are the yarns for you if you want to get playful with scale, or make a king size blanket in a day. They’re both 100% polyester, and produce crochet with a chenille-like feel to it.

Yarn Bee Effortless Super Bulky, $

Yarn Bee from Hobby Lobby is a well-established brand boasting dozens of products, but let me draw your attention this 76% acrylic, 20% alpaca and 4% rayon super bulky yarn specifically. It comes in a limited palette of nature-inspired dyes, and it’s perfect for making soft, sophisticated blankets quickly!

Darn Good Yarn Cotton T-Shirt, $$$$

Darn Good Yarn are a company with a mission to produce sustainable luxury yarns, and promote ethical working practices. This bulky yarn is made from ribbons of rescued pima cotton leftover from t-shirt manufacturing. It’s 90% cotton, 5% viscose and 5% elastane, soft, highly washable, and keeps material out of landfill.

Morehouse Bulky, $$$$

Morehouse Farm’s bulky yarn is made from 100% plump merino wool. It comes in 21 shades covering bright and muted tones, and makes short work of even large blankets. If you have the budget and want to treat yourself to something special, you can’t go wrong with this yarn. Treat your blanket carefully though, and always wash it by hand!

Choosing the best yarn to crochet a blanket

Blankets are big projects. Even using bulky yarns, they represent a significant investment of time, money and effort. There are a huge number of yarns you could use, but I ultimately have one simple philosophy about making the final choice:

The best yarn to a crochet a blanket from is one you won’t get sick of looking at, half way through.

So start with a spark of an idea that excites and inspires you, and keep hold of that when you make the rest of your choices. There might be some compromises you have to make in other areas (for example compromising fiber content for the right color palette), but the original spark will keep you motivated to finish your project, and the result will always be something you love. Enjoy!

*The products linked in this pattern were carefully selected by Lucy Kate Crochet. If you decide to purchase using the links provided, we may earn a small commission on that sale. This is at no extra cost to you.

The post Best Yarn To Crochet A Blanket – Fibers For Every Occasion appeared first on Lucy Kate Crochet.

How much yarn it takes to crochet a blanket depends on the size of the blanket, the yarn, and the pattern. Baby blankets can be made with as few as 3 balls, whilst a king size blanket might need 30! And you may want to approach big blanket projects differently depending on how many of those balls you can afford to buy before you start. I’m here to help you calculate how much yarn you’ll need for your next blanket, as accurately as possible.

• How much yarn for a crochet blanket
• Factors that affect how much yarn you’ll need for a crochet blanket
• How to make your yarn go further
• Saving money
• Avoiding ending up with too much or too little yarn

I LOVE big crochet projects. The kinds that take months, or even all year. There’s something deeply satisfying about dipping in and out of them, watching each small contribution accumulate, and passing milestones along the way. But I’ve learned that it does pay to do some planning before you commit to such a big undertaking. For example by calculating how much yarn for a crochet blanket – and that’s what I want to help you with today.

Factors that affect how much yarn you’ll need for a crochet blanket

First up, here are some factors which separate the projects that gobble up yarn, from the projects which stretch it out as far as possible:

• Choice of stitch
• Tension
• Color changes

Choice of stitch

Crochet is already notorious for how quickly it uses up yarn, compared to knitting a blanket instead. And the type of stitch you decide to work with is going to be significant too. A dense stitch like knit stitch, moss stitch or star stitch is going to use more yarn per square foot than something more ‘holey’, such as a traditional granny blanket, or a lacy shell stitch. Likewise, elaborate 3D stitches will use up yarn faster than simple flat stitches.

Tension

If you tend to crochet ‘tight’, then you’re going to use more yarn per square inch than someone who crochets ‘loose’. The difference in how much yarn you use is going to be marginal on a small blanket, but it has the potential to be significant on a large blanket.

Color changes

There’s no escaping it – color changes create waste! Compared to a single color blanket, you’ll end up with the leftovers of not just one color, but several. I find this is especially true of blanket designs that have lots of small details in a wide range of colors.

Does the weight of the yarn matter?

Good question! And the answer is yes… and no. It depends on how you measure the amount of yarn you use to make a blanket. Lots of yarns are measured in ounces on the wrapper, and blankets made out of bulky yarn weigh more than lightweight yarn blankets of the same size, because they are thicker. Here are some stats from my stash to give you an idea:

• The lightweight yarns (around size 3) are between 70 and 95 yards long per ounce, depending on the fiber (cotton yarns are heavier and come shorter than wools, for example).
• Medium weight yarns (approximately size 4) are 50 – 70 yards long per ounce.
• Bulky yarns (size 5-ish) are 30 – 45 yards long per ounce.
• Super bulky yarns (size 6) are 15 – 20 yards long per ounce. This category contains all the yarns which have ‘blanket’ in their name too!
• And finally the jumbo yarns (size 7+) are just 6 – 12 yards long per ounce.

How many yards of yarn for a blanket?

To crochet a blanket you will need anywhere between 6 and 95 yards of yarn, depending on the weight you use!

So you’d need more ounces of a bulky yarn than of a light weight yarn, to make a twin size blanket. However, bulky yarns are usually sold in heavier balls, so that the yardage remains roughly consistent anyway, despite the change in thickness. Which is why making a small sofa throw in a simple flat stitch still requires about 6 – 8 balls of yarn, regardless of what weight of yarn you choose.

How to make your yarn go further

Blankets are physically large projects, and the total cost of the yarn involved can be enough to stop you getting started. But here are some tips to make your yarn go further, and add a few extra inches to your afghan:

• Use lace stitches or panels. Look for shell stitches that give good coverage but use slightly less yarn than solid stitches. Or, alternate rows of solid crochet with rows of granny stitch or lacework, to create visual interest and make your yarn go further.
• Turn your stash into granny square centers. Use yarn you already have to make up the middles of granny squares, so you only need to buy yarn for the outermost row. Use the join-as-you-go technique in the video at the top of this article so you don’t need more yarn for sewing the squares together later.
• Work with a single color. Alternatively, cut down on waste by using just one color, and using different textures and patterns to create visual and tactile interest.
• Use a larger hook. Using the largest possible hook suitable for your yarn will produce looser tension and make your yarn go slightly further. The difference isn’t huge, but your blanket will feel more supple and drape better too!

Saving money

If calculating how much yarn for a crochet blanket has brought you out in a cold sweat, or filled you with dismay because the price is putting your project out of reach, don’t give up hope. Here are some money saving tips.

• Blankets don’t need to cover your bed. Even one big enough to cover the bottom half will make your bed beautiful, and keep your feet cosy!
• Buy yarn packs. Lots of retailers offer discounts on several identical balls of wool bought at the same time.
• Shop end of lot sales. Yarn is produced in dye lots, and sometimes there is a bit of variation between one dye lot and the next. So, when manufacturers and retailers start to get to the last few balls of a dye lot they might sell them at a discount because they can’t guarantee future stocks of that color will be exactly the same shade.
• Buy a few balls at a time. Let’s face it, a lot of us take months to finish a blanket, so you don’t really need all the materials upfront anyway. Buy what you need to get started, and a little more each month after that. This is actually really great for keeping motivated and avoiding project burn out too.
• Buy up other people’s stashes. Look in thrift stores and online for leftover yarn being sold by other people. Turn mismatched colors and fibers into something cohesive by using them in alternating stripes with a neutral colored yarn you’ve bought new.

Avoiding ending up with too much or too little yarn

Gathering exactly the right amount of yarn before you start making a blanket is a bit of a guessing game. Here are some ways to avoid falling short, or realising you have far too much.

• Work to a pattern. Patterns take the guess work of how much yarn you’re going to need. Either choose a pattern you love and buy the yarn it calls for, or find a yarn you love and then look for a blanket pattern that uses it.
• Buy a kit. Go one step further, and buy one of the many crochet blanket making kits you can find online. The pattern and the exact amount of yarn you need all in one place, often with thoughtful extras like the correct size hook, some stitch markers, and a tag for your finished article.
• Check your tension. For patterns you’ve designed yourself, buy a sample ball of yarn and make up a small swatch to compare with the tension notes on the wrapper. Then use this work out how many balls you’re going to need in total.

How much yarn is needed for a blanket:

Working out how much yarn you’ll need for a crochet blanket isn’t an exact science. Since running out before you finish is definitely undesirable, it’s better to overestimate how much you need, but aim to have as little leftover as possible. You can do this by buying yarn as you go, working with a limited color palette, or following a pattern. There’s a kind of irony that so many of us start granny square blankets to use up our stashes, but end up with a fresh new batch leftovers in our stash by the time we’ve finished. Let us know if you’ve ever wildly miscalculated how much yarn you needed for a crochet blanket in the comments box down below!

The post How Much Yarn For A Crochet Blanket appeared first on Lucy Kate Crochet.

Are you looking to make a beautiful crochet baby blanket in a hurry? This article has got you covered! We are going to look at my favourite pattern for a dead simple, but drop dead gorgeous baby blanket.

This design is ideal for over the legs in a pram or moses basket, or over a swaddle under supervision. You can also use it as a play mat, putting it onto the carpet or flooring for them to look at their activity centre or enjoy some tummy time!

Why make a quick and easy baby blanket?

There are a lot of reasons you might want to make a baby blanket in a hurry. You could be expecting your new arrival to turn up soon, or have a time sensitive gift to make. For example for a baby shower or pre-birth visit to your long-distance friend.

Babies also need a lot of blankets.

If you have decided to make them all yourself then it’s a wonderful way to channel your maternal instincts. But you need quantity as well as more fiddly and intricate designs.

Just because something was easy to make, doesn’t mean that it is not going to beautiful and very special. Especially when you have such a lovely repeated stitch, in a complimentary hue of colours.

The key to this crochet baby blanket may well be the yarns that were used, with variations on colour themes and shading.

Is this Crochet Baby Blanket really quick and simple?

This blanket took me around six hours to complete, and that is including the time it took to work out the admittedly simple pattern and write it down. If you are new to crochet it will probably take a little longer.

If you don’t have small children or demanding pets, it will fly along in no time at all.

Only two technqiues of stitching are required, the chain and the treble crochet. With a few colour changes thrown into the mix. For those of you new to crochet, we will have a quick look at the techniques required before we begin. For experienced crocheters, simply skip to the full pattern below.

How to Crochet a Chain

Here is my video tutorial, follow along to find out how to crochet a simple chain:

You can then use this chain to put your treble crochets into, to form the beginning of your crochet baby blanket.

How to Make a Treble Crochet

A treble crochet (US) is the natural progression from the double and single crochets.

Before inserting your hook into the desired loop, wrap the yarn twice around it.

Yarn over your hook twice, then hook through your loops. Yarn over and pull back through. There are now four loops on your hook.

Yarn over and pull through the first two loops. There should now be three loops on the hook.

Yarn over and pull through the next two loops. There should now be two loops on the hook.

Yarn over and pull through the final two loops. You have now made a treble crochet!

Quick and Easy Baby Blanket Equipment

Here is the equipment you will need to make your quick and easy baby blanket.

• 4 x 50g balls of yarn.  I used Sirdar Snuggle Crofter Baby DK, in two different shading variants
• A 6mm crochet hook
• Scissors
• Yarn needle

(The yarn needle isn’t essential, but will give you a hand with sewing in your loose ends at colours changes, start and finish!)

When you have everything ready, let’s begin!

Quick and Easy Baby Blanket Pattern

• Row 1 – Make a chain (ch) of 140 + 3 stitches
• Row 2 – Treble crochet (tr) into the 4th stitch (st). tr into each subsquent st. Ch 3 at the end of the row.

Before we continue – if you haven’t made a blanket or scarf that builds up even rows before, remember that you must stitch into each loop of the next row. Including the last one, which will be more fiddly than the rest as it is made up of the top of your previous chain. Don’t miss these loops out, or your blanket will gradually decrease in size as you carry out.

• Row 3 – tr into the 4th st. tr into each subsequent st. (Make sure you put a tr into the last st, which is the top st of the previous row’s chain. If you omit this, the rows will gradually reduce as you go along). Ch 3 to begin the next row
• Row 4 to 8 – Repeat from * until row 8 end, where you change colours.
• Row 9 – *tr into the 4th st. tr into each subsequent st. Ch 3.
• Row 10 to 15 – Repeat from Repeat from * until row 15 end, where you change back to your original colour.
• Row 16 – *tr into the 4th st. tr into each subsequent st. Ch 3.
• Row 17 to 22 – Repeat from Repeat from * until row 22 end, where you change back to your second colour.
• Row 23 – *tr into the 4th st. tr into each subsequent st. Ch 3.
• Row 24 to 28 – Repeat from Repeat from * until row 28 end. Tie off with a long loose end, and sew back into your blanket.

It’s that simple! Once you are finished you can if you like make a border around the edge, or just leave it as the simple, functional, pretty blanket that it is.

Crochet Baby Blanket Safety

I swaddled my baby from the day I brought her home. When babies are very small they can’t manipulate their blankets or move around when they are swaddled.

This meant that from the first day home I was able to put crochet blankets and knitted blankets over her when the weather was cold.

It was cold for the first few days of her life, as you can see in this picture she is well tucked in with a cellular blanket and a knitted one over the top.

Swaddling is only recommended with light layers.

Don’t be tempted to simply swaddle with your crochet blanket as any heavy material could restric the baby’s chest expansion.

Safety recommendations for babies often advise against using any blankets other than cellular ones for the first year of a baby’s life, due to the risk of breathing being interupted by the fabric crumpling and overheating causing harm to their poorly temperature regulating bodies.

If your baby is not swaddled, or is old enough to go under the blankets but not adept enough to pull them off their face again, people frequently not advise putting a homemade blanket over them.

If they are swaddled and definitely unable to move the blanket, then tucking one over their swaddle to keep them warm should be okay as long as you make sure you are not overheating them.

But you need to use your best judgement, and talk to your health visitor before making any decision in respect of your own baby’s personal situation.

Crochet blankets are gorgeous, but keeping babies safe is more important than anything else in the world.

Supervised Uses for Crochet Baby Blankets

For supervised use, you can lay crochet blankets over your baby gently to keep them snug and happy in the pram or moses basket in the day time if the temperature is low and you are watching.  You can also use it as a play mat, putting it onto the carpet or flooring for them to look at their activity centre or enjoy some tummy time!

This blanket is made up of long loose stitches. The weave should leave enough gap from your babies fingers to curl through, but without getting easily tangled.

The blanket should still be breathable, and it’s important to remember that any hand made item is not safety tested. A good test is to fold the blanket several times and hold it firmly over your nose and mouth. If you can easily take breaths through the material then your baby should be able to as well.

Put a baby safe cellular blanket over your face and do the same test if you are unsure. Cellular blankets as sold by MotherCare and similar outlets are safety tested. They are not as pretty or personal, but let’s face it, new parents are too tired to care most of the time anyway!

However long you decide to wait to use the blankets, your child will want to use them long after the small and squishy stage is a distant memory.

My now two year old daughter went made for this finished blanket, and my wonderful five year old niece still loves the first one I made for her several years ago.

The post Quick and Easy Crochet Baby Blanket: free crochet pattern appeared first on Lucy Kate Crochet.

In my early days of crochet making, I produced a fairly insane quantity of granny squares.

Some were intended as single granny square blankets, but most were to be compiled as patterned granny square blankets.

It is not an exaggeration to say I love a crocheted blanket.

Even now with a lot more skills under my belt, they are still the thing I default to.

So let’s have a look at how to get ready and then get making your perfect multiple granny squares blanket.

Granny Square Mistakes

The first multiple granny square blankets that I designed were presents for my daughter, niece and nephews.

Unfortunately, quite a lot of them ended up hitting brick walls. Either because I ran out of the right colour of yarn, or because I messed up the pattern early on and continued without noticing until it was irreparably late.

[wp_ad_camp_2]Sadly, of those which did turn into beautiful pieces that I gave away with pride, only a few still survive.

In hindsight I am certain this was as a direct result of picking inappropriate or poor quality yarns to be used as children’s blankets.

On the bright side, I learned a great deal from those early mistakes.

Each blunder has to some extent influenced my style, technique and even currently favoured equipment for crocheting not just pretty but practical granny square blankets today.

The biggest influence stylistically is definitely that I without fail always make a granny square with a magic circle at the center these days.

Magic Circles and Granny Squares!

Granny square blankets are not a thick stable piece. Their beauty is born of the blank spaces left behind, and the pattern that they form together.

But it is my prefered choice not to include the middle of each square in this holey pattern any more. The trouble is that although it can fit in absolutely fine to make a chain circle, it doesn’t seem to hold up as well to use.

For blankets that are going to be draped delicately on an unused antique piece of furniture in the corner of your room, by all means make whichever circle is easier for you. But for anything that is going to be tugged at by tiny fingers, or stuck in the wash when a toddler gets a veritable pallet of jam and dribble on it? You have to think practically.

Magic circles are tight and solid. Harder to tug apart and harder to snap.

How to join Granny Squares together

To make a basic early granny square blanket from multiple squares, the obvious first step is to make as many squares as you desire, in a uniform size.

• You will need a size 4.5mm hook, three different colours of fairly soft 4 Ply yarn, some scissors and ideally a yarn needle for sewing in the loose ends.
• My suggested starter for this is to make 12 squares, six of one colour and six of another. The final colour will be used to crochet the squares together
• Each square should contain five rows –  a magic circle and four additional stitched rows.

I have a free crochet pattern for making a granny square blanket, which comes with a youtube tutorial for ease of use. So to make your initial squares visit this page.

• Take your 12 squares and lay them on the table in four rows of three.
• Put the side of each square that you want to be the front down onto the table.
• Slip your yarn onto your hook
• Pick up the bottom left and bottom middle squares.
• Put your hook through the corner stitch of the bottom left of your bottom middle square.
• Make sure the hook goes through the front and back of the stitch. There should be two strands on top and one underneath
• Do the same through the corresponding bottom right corner of your other square
• Yarn over and pull through both loops of the squares
• Yarn over and pull through the remaining loops on your hook
• Repeat this all the way up the side of the square until you reach the top of that side
• Pick up your next two squares and repeat the pattern
• Repeat this until you have reached the top of your blanket
• Slip and tie off, leaving a long tail to make it easier to sew in later.
• You will now have a dangling chain of single crochets with four squares hanging off each side!
• Repeat this for the corresponding sides, taking care when you cross over your single crochet chain at the joins
• When all the sides are crocheted together, simply make a single crochet into the outer edge of each stitch of the square. Make sure this goes through both loops of each stitch again.
• Once you have completed your square all that remains is to sew in your ends with your yarn needle.

Congratulations! You have made a small but perfectly formed multiple granny squares blanket.

How to use your Granny Squares

There is no end to the colour combinations and patterns you can create once you know how to put a granny square blanket together.

You can easily wing it with a granny square blanket. Some of the most amazing examples I have seen were vast, with no apparent rhyme or reason to the colour choices or how they were presented.

However, if you want to make something deliberately to match a theme, or a friend or client’s personal taste, then it’s great to have a structure to follow.

Advanced Granny Square Instructions

Before making a new granny square blanket that will be comprised of anything more than two alterate colours, I make a plan. Sometimes it is rough and ready, other times it is intricate.

When going for detailed, I tend to follow the process below:

• Decide upon the purpose of the blanket. Is it a decorative piece, or will it be used in a busy family home? Are you intending to keep it or is a gift for someone else? What colour scheme will it need to fit in with?
• Sketch out design ideas on paper. Noting the patternation of the overall blanket, and colour changes within the squares themselves. Use coloured pencils if you have them kicking around. Get a real feel for what it will become.
• Choose your equipment. Decide what size blanket you want to end up with and how close you want the weave to be. Pick your hook accordingly. Choose the texture and thickness of yarn you will use. Make sure it fits with the final purpose of the blanket.
• You are ready to get going!

How to Join your Granny Squares Together

Multiple granny square blankets can be as complex or as simple as you want in design. Planning ahead is the key to making sure that your finished blanket adds up to the image in your head. Make sure you have all the yarn you will need before you begin – there is nothing like the frustration of being nearly to the point of completion and realising you are 20g short!

Although occasionally tricky to plan, the beauty of the granny squares design is that once you have decided where you are going with it, all you have to do is follow this very familiar and repetitive pattern.

Simple design, fantastic results.  What are you waiting for?

The post How to Crochet a Blanket with Multiple Granny Squares appeared first on Lucy Kate Crochet.