Saturday, October 20, 2007

Even More Granny Squares




I have made a lot of Granny Square afghans with Plymouth Encore Worsted, but I only used one strand of yarn. So for this sample, I decided to use two strands and a larger hook (an N 15/10mm). The square worked up really fast, and it still felt as soft and as cuddly as one strand of Encore Worsted. Using two strands is a great way to use up odd colors of stash to make a quick baby or full size afghan! (See my afghan pattern, Gramma & Grandbabies, in 50 Sensational Crochet Afghans and Throws, edited by Bobbie Matela).





This next swatch is Noro Kureyon, a yarn that is not often used for Granny Squares. I love how it self-stripes, though, and I wanted to see how it would look in Granny Squares. One neat thing about self-striping yarn when you work it in rounds. If the number of rounds you work is small enough, each separate piece you make will look different, because the colors are in different places, or they are not repeated in the next piece. This is what happened when I made more Granny Squares out of Kureyon, and you can see a small portion of the other two squares I made on the sides of the middle square. Try it for yourself. One skein of self-striping yarn is all you need, and I recommend one like Kureyon (or Plymouth Bocu). Make Granny Squares of only 3 or 4 rounds. Make at least 3 of them, and see what you get. They all look like they came from different skeins! It's a great way to get lots of color into a design!

4 comments:

Yayun Anny Sun said...

Hi Dr. Miller,

I recently saw your "Gramma & Grandbabies" afghan in the "50 Sensational Crochet" book. It's BEAUTIFUL and very cheery.

I want to make the same afghans for my sister's wedding. But I read some reviews of the book online and several ppl have reported that there were pattern errors found in the book.

I don't want to be rude, but since I'm pretty new to crocheting, I lack the ability to spot any potential errors nor to work it out myself. So, my question is: (1) Has anyone reported any typo mistakes on your pattern in the book? If so, what is it?

Also, (2) did you really use dark-mauve (#180) for the pink color? The color showing up on the Plymouth website doesn't seem the same as yours.

Sorry to be bothering you like so. Any answer you can provide would be greatly appreciated!

Take care!

Anny :)

Marty Miller said...

Hi Anny,
No one that I know of has reported any mistakes in my pattern. If you do come to something you don't understand, you can always ask me about it.
Also, the color numbers for the yarn are correct. The photo in the book makes the afghan colors brighter than they really are. (I just took a look at the afghan, and compared it to the photo.) The afghan has a "retro" feel about it, with the muted colors - but not "60s or 70s retro". And if you've never used Plymouth Encore, you should try it for this afghan. You'll really like it. It's a great yarn - and completely machine washable.
I hope your sister likes the afghan. And remember, any problems, just ask.
Marty

Yayun Anny Sun said...

Hi Marty,

Thank you so much for your reply. I just ordered the yarn and can't wait to get started. Thank you for sharing!

Have a wonderful evening.

Anny :)

Yayun Anny Sun said...

Hi Marty,

Thank you so much for getting back to me. I just ordered the yarn online and can't wait to get started. Thank you for sharing your creation with all of us!

Have a wonderful evening!

anny :)