This gingham crochet bow pattern only uses small amounts of yarn scraps, so it’s perfect for a stash-busting project. Little bows, whether gingham, checked, plain, large or small, they’re a super speedy crochet project. In this blog post, you’ll find patterns for both the large and small sizes.
Both crochet bow patterns are also very easy to adapt. Why not add more rows for a deeper, plusher bow? No one says you have to go gingham, so make them all in one colour, or edge them in contrast colours. What about crocheting a giant bow in super chunky yarn? Play around with these crochet bows and have fun because it’s the sort of crochet pattern where you can’t stop at just one!
You could even crochet some tie sections in gingham (or plain colours), too! I didn’t do this as I’ve only just thought of it (8 years after first designing the crochet bows!), but I think that would look really cute. Instead, I hastily crocheted short chains of about 15-18 chains for the little bows, which can be easily stitched to the back to look like ties. See the next photo to have a visual of the chains. I pulled the knots tight so they don’t come undone, but you may want to sew the ends in to secure.
Below are the written patterns, but I’ve also put together a video tutorial for the gingham crochet bow pattern. I demonstrate how to make both the small and large bows in the gingham pattern, which uses a basic tapestry crochet technique.
It’s a pattern I designed for Inside Crochet magazine back in 2017, but I have a feeling crochet bows are on their way back into fashion, so it’s the perfect time to revisit this easy pattern.
The approximate sizes are: Large bow5 x 12cm /1¼ x 2¼ inches. Small bow 3 x 6cm / 2x 4¾ inches. But don’t let that stop you from experimenting and making them in different yarn weights to come up with different-sized crochet bows. I used a super chunky yarn and a 6 or 7 mm hook ( I can’t remember now) to make a giant bow. I have no idea what to do with it, but it was fun to make! [Edit:: just in the last few minutes, one of the kids has taken ownership of it!]
Materials for Crochet Bow Pattern
I use DK cotton in the main pattern because it’s sturdy and creates a nice, firm bow. You don’t need very much yarn at all. Below, I’ve said 20 grams, which is generous. So you probably won’t need that much. We’re talking fewer than 50 metres of each colour. This should make one large and two small crochet bows
20 grams Drops Muskat DK (100% cotton, 50g/100m/109yds), in Denim (Yarn A), 15 grams each of Rico Cotton Essentials DK (100% cotton, 50g/130m/142yds) in Navy (Yarn B) & Natural (Yarn C).Â
3mm hook.
Needle for sewing in ends.
Headband and 2x 5cm hair clips – Suggested because I added the crochet bows to hair accessories.
Hot glue gun (or other strong glue) – optional.
You’ll be using US single crochet stitches for this crochet bow pattern. That’s UK double crochets. There’s also the option of finishing off with a slip stitch edging to make them a little bit tidier. That, and chaining, are all the techniques you need to know.
Crochet Bow Pattern Notes
Colour changes: Yarn is changed during the third stitch of the current colour. Ie, insert hook in stitch, yarn over and pull through stitch, drop current yarn and finish stitch by yarning over and pulling through the new yarn to complete.Â
The yarn not in use is crocheted over as you go, ready to pick up when you need it.
With Yarn A chain 64. Row 1: 1sc in second ch from hook, 1sc in next 2 sts, *change colour to Yarn B, 1sc in next 3 sts, change colour to Yarn A, 1sc in next 3 sts; rep from * to the end, turn. – 63 sts. 2: 1ch, 1sc in next 3 sts, *change colour to Yarn B, 1sc in next 3 sts, change colour to Yarn A, 1sc in next 3 sts; rep from * to the end, change colour to Yarn C on the last st, turn. 3: 1ch, 1sc in next 3 sts, *change colour to Yarn A, 1sc in next 3 sts, change colour to Yarn C, 1sc in next 3 sts; rep from * to the end, turn. 4: 1ch, 1sc in next 3 sts, *change colour to Yarn A, 1sc in next 3 sts, change colour to Yarn C, 1sc in next 3 sts; rep from * to the end, change colour to Yarn A on the last st, turn. 5: 1ch, 1sc in next 3 sts, *change colour to Yarn B, 1sc in next 3 sts, change colour to Yarn A, 1sc in next 3 sts; rep from * to the end, turn. 6: As Row 2. 7: As Row 3. 8: As Row 4. 9: As Row 5. 10: As Row 2. 11: 1ch, sc to end. Cut yarn, leaving an end for joining. Sew in the other ends and fold the piece in half (neatest side inside) end to end. Join ends together using sc stitches or sewing. Fasten off and sew in the last end. Turn right side out.
Large Gingham Bow Middle Band
With Yarn A chain 19. Row 1: 1sc in second ch from hook, 1sc in next 2 sts, *change colour to Yarn B, 1sc in next 3 sts, change colour to Yarn A, 1sc in next 3 sts; rep from * twice, change colour to Yarn B, 1sc in next 3 sts, turn. – 18 sts. 2: 1ch, 1sc in next 3 sts, *change colour to Yarn A, 1sc in next 3 sts, change colour to Yarn B, 1sc in next 3 sts; rep from * twice, change colour to Yarn A, 1sc in next 3 sts, change colour to Yarn C on the last st, turn. 3: 1ch,1sc in next 3 st, *change colour to Yarn A, 1sc in next 3 st, change colour to Yarn C, 1sc in next 3 st; rep from * twice, change colour to Yarn A, 1sc in next 3 st, turn. 4: 1ch, 1sc in next 3 sts, *change colour to Yarn C, 1sc in next 3 sts, change colour to Yarn A, 1sc in next 3 sts; rep from * twice, change colour to Yarn C, 1sc in next 3 sts, change colour to Yarn A on the last st, turn. 5: 1ch, 1sc in next 3 sts, *change colour to Yarn B, 1sc in next 3 sts, change colour to Yarn A, 1sc in next 3 sts; rep from * twice, change colour to Yarn B, 1sc in next 3 sts, turn. 6: Rep Row 2, ending without the last colour change. Fasten off and leave a tail for sewing. Sew in all the other ends.
Large Plain Crochet Bow
Chain 59. Row 1: 1sc in second ch from hook, sc to end, turn. – 58 sts. 2: 1ch, sc to end, turn. Rows 3 – 14: As Row 2. 15: Join contrast yarn, slip stitch along to end. Fasten off and sew in the ends. Rep slip stitch edging on the right side of Row 1.
Make a middle band in one colour (as instructed above for stitch count and rows). Add contrast slip-stitch edging to the first and last rows of the middle band.Â
Assembly For Large Bows
With the joining seam in the centre of the back, pinch the middle of the main piece to make a bow shape. Hold against the headband (if using) and wrap the middle band around all. Sew the ends of the middle band together to secure it all in place. You can also use glue to secure the bow to the hairband or any other surface you wish to attach it to.
Small Gingham Bow
With Yarn A chain 16. Repeat rows 1-6 of main piece. – 15 sts. Fasten off and sew in ends.
Assembly For Small Bow
Using 80cm of Yarn B, tightly tie a knot around the centre of the bow, leaving a 10 cm tail. Wrap the yarn tightly 12-14 times around the centre. Tie a knot at the back of the bow and sew in ends, then with a hot glue gun (or equivalent), stick the bow to the hair clip. Alternatively, sew the bow to the clip. Repeat with the other small bow.
And that’s it! Pretty simple, hey? If you liked this crochet bow pattern, then please feel free to check out my free crochet pattern page to find more fun projects. Cheers! x
I Made a Crochet Granny Square Sweater & So Can You!
I’m going to write a little intro about my new crochet granny square sweater, but honestly, I’m too excited about it to make much sense! However, I will do my best to break everything down and provide as much information as possible, so that you can make your own colourful crochet sweater too.
Firstly, I must remember to give credit for the source of crafty inspiration. This crochet jumper, put together, block by block with happy little granny squares, has been inspired by theAriana Cardigan by Amy Christoffers. It’s a very popular pattern that combines knit & crochet stitches. Funnily enough, I was so intrigued by hybrid patterns for knitting and crochet that I’ve written a blog post about my favourite knitchet/croknit patterns.
Other makers have made jumper versions of the cardi, and they all looked so lovely (on the Rav project page), I was super enthused to make one of my own, in my own colours and actually, with my own granny square pattern.
If you want to make the Ariana cardigan, luckily for you, a pattern already exists and it’s free on Ravelry. What you’ll read here is more of a recipe for a jumper inspired by the original. Probably the only thing they have in common is that the granny squares are on the diagonal and the ribbing is knitted.
Whilst I downloaded the original Ariana cardigan and gave it a quick once over, I didn’t read or follow it for this sweater. Therefore, I don’t feel like it’s wrong to share what I did in recipe format.
The other reason for it being a recipe rather than a pattern for a crochet granny square sweater is that garments using granny squares are a nightmare to grade across different sizes. Blocks of squares aren’t fun to format into wearables, and like me, perhaps you can get a pretty good idea of how to make a granny jumper without a pattern.
Below, I share the charts I drew up for two sizes, both of which can be tweaked to make bespoke, unique crochet garments. I have also shared a few tips on ways to make adjustments to your crochet granny square sweater.
Step 1: Scroll down to charts and decide on large (64cm / 24inches wide) or small (48 cm / 19inches wide). Or make your own based on your measurements and the size of granny square you plan to use.
Step 2: For the large, dig out 700 grams /2000m /2120yds of DK stash in as many colours as you like, I recommend a minimum or 7 or so. The more colours you use, the more higgeldy piggeldy.
Step 3: With a 4mm hook (US G/6), crochet 54 squares and 15 triangles, working the final round with Join As You Go (JAYG) to join the sweater. Be careful at the sides and sleeves – use stitch markers to hold in place.
Step 4: With 4mm needles or hook, knit or crochet the ribbing.
Step 5: Sew in thousands of ends. I saved this until last in case I had to rip back any squares – eg to shorten verrry long sleeves. Actually, you can sew in the first 4 rounds of every single square and triangle before this stage….
What You Need to Make a Crochet Granny Square Sweater
I used double knit (DK) yarn for this patchwork crochet sweater, a 4mm hook and 4mm knitting needles. Tension is not a major issue, as this is a design that’s ideal for making it up as you go along.
Just because I used DK doesn’t mean that you have to. Technically, you can make this sweater in any yarn weight. It’s worth working up a few swatch squares in your preferred yarns to see if they work. You can also get a rough idea of how much yarn you’ll need by making a swatch or two. Don’t forget to add in enough for ribbing, too.
If you veer off from DK, you will likely need to think about the number of rounds per granny square. I’ll chat about my measurements in a sec, and that should inform you on sizing. If you’re thinking of working granny squares that are drastically different in size or yarn weight, you’ll end up with a crochet granny square sweater with different measurements. However, if you’re happy to draft your own charts, I fully support your experimentation by cheering from the side.
The Best Yarn for a Crochet Sweater
I think DK is perfect for a crochet sweater. If you go to heavier yarn weights, garments can start looking a bit clunky and heavy. Everyone is different, and we all have our own personal preferences, so at the end of the day, you can use your favourite weight of yarn. However, as garments go, DK is an awesome yarn weight. I love a lighter 4ply too, but for a crochet granny square sweater, 4ply yarn is more work as the squares would need to have more rounds to get them to the same size, and I kinda enjoyed this as the quick project that it was. Double-knit yarn is a good balance.
If you’re curious about different yarn weights and using something different, check out my blog post on Yarn Substitution.
The majority of my yarn stash here is wool I’d had for a number of years, which deserved to be part of a special crochet project. About five years ago, I treated myself to colourful skeins of merino from Folkestone Harbour Yarns. Then, to complement this collection, I matched it with rich brown shades from Loom Wool. It’s all gorgeous! I love that the browns are all slightly different; it adds a unique quality to my crochet sweater.
How Much Yarn Will You Need?
Make a granny square from a pattern that you’ll be using in your jumper (the one below, or other fave). If you’re being super diligent, wash and block it too. I’m not going to make you do this, but learning how to block crochet is useful for your garment-making endeavours. It determines final measurements (as well as other things), so it will help calculate sweater stats.
Weigh your square, and it will give you a fairly good idea of how much yarn you’ll need for the whole project. Multiply the weight of that one square by the final number of squares (don’t forget the triangles too). This is the total amount of yarn you’ll need.
Not gonna pretend I actually did this though. I just grabbed the lovely yarn stash I wanted to use up (and I am always going to have enough stash!). I think I used 10 colours plus the border colour. I made sure to have 4x 100 gram skeins of my joining colour, but there is plenty left.
The total weight of my finished jumper is just under 700 grams. I cannot recall the specific number, but I did weigh it especially for the YouTube video on making my crochet granny square jumper, so feel free to watch. I begrudgingly calculated yardage and meterage, too! Oof, from memory? Around 2000 metres/ 2120 yards.
The square that you make will also be useful to measure, so you can calculate the size of your sweater too (more on this below).
Cute Granny Square Pattern
There is only a slight change to the traditional granny square with this pattern, but it’s one I think makes a decent impact. The first round is eight dainty little petals rather than the standard four clusters. The following rounds are then just super simple granny clusters.
Find the granny square pattern here. The video tutorial that’s linked in that pattern is also useful to demonstrate the Join As You Go (JAYG) technique.
FYI, I have yet to determine how five rounds of this pattern compare to five rounds of a traditional granny square pattern. Just in case you assumed it was the same measurement. It might not be. *Shrugs*. Whatever the weather, these squares measure 16cm from corner point to corner point. As we’re working on the diagonal, this is the measurement you need.
The Granny Triangle Pattern
Because this crochet granny square sweater is worked with the squares on the diagonal, triangles are also required to straighten the bottom edges of the main body and sleeves. Find the free granny triangle pattern here.
For both the granny square and granny triangles, I worked four rounds of each, knowing I was going to work a 5th round as I crocheted JAYG. Oh, and it’s best to sew in your ends after Round 4 so you’re not left with a hideous job of sewing in yarn tails at the end. Like I was….
Granny Sweater Measurements
Having decided on a granny square pattern with five rounds in DK yarn, there were two choices: go for fitted or oversized.
I was slightly concerned that the smaller option would be too tight across my chest. Knowing the measurements of the squares, I think the smaller size would just about fit my body (99cm circ), but with very little “positive ease” – i.e. extra room. I dithered and doubted enough to opt for the oversized version. Charts for the oversized version I made and the smaller, fitted size that I’d like to make are both below.
The following measurements are taken after I washed and blocked my jumper.
Sweater Measurement Details
My oversized jumper is 4 diagonal squares wide. Remember that 16 = one square’s point to point measurement in cm. 4 x 16 is 64cm (approx 25 inches). Therefore, this is the width of my crochet granny square sweater.
The sweater length, including the waistband, should come in at 53/54cm after blocking. What with the weight of the yarn and the wear it’s had, the final length of my sweater is more like 57cm. I’m happy with that!
The final sleeve length (with cuff) is 44cm (approx 17.5 inches). These are shorter than I would ordinarily make. The drop shoulder construction, paired with the oversized width, means the sleeves start further down my arm. Originally, I hadn’t factored this into my plans as well as I’d thought. So the sleeves I initially made were clownishly long. Bum. Long story short, I ripped out a few squares at the sleeves. I had a terrible time doing this, but I made the effort to change them because I wanted to be satisfied (and happy) with the result. Sometimes it’s worth pushing through the difficult times!
The upper arm depth is 16cm; the measurement of one square on the diagonal. There’s a bit of stretch here, too. That’s OK.
It’s useful to note that should you wish to adjust the sleeve length or main body length by only a fraction, you can add or subtract ribbing rows. I think I went for 9 rounds of ribbing, but redid cuffs and only did 8 rounds the second time around.
Granny Sweater Chart – Square Layout
If I have done my counting correctly, for the size I made, I needed 54 granny squares and 15 triangles. On the chart above, I have shaded out sections along the top of the sleeves and sides for the “front”. These squares are already accounted for on the back section (they’re just folded round – watch the video at timestamp 34:00 to see what I mean).
The chart above was useful to work out the sweater schematic, but what I found even more useful was to lay it out how I actually intended to join the granny squares.
Take a look at the next image. When joining, I left the squares A to H to the end. These needed to be joined in two different places to bring everything together, going from a flat piece of crochet fabric into a 3-dimensional structure. For example, square B is joined (JAYG method) to the sleeve at both the green and blue sections.
Using plenty of stitch markers at this point is enormously helpful as well. I think I would have struggled without temporarily pre-joining squares before crocheting them together. Using stitch markers to pin everything together first allows you to see that you’re on the right track, showing that you haven’t accidentally joined a side of B to the main body instead of the sleeve. You can see how easy it might be to accidentally incorporate the side of E (pink line) into the B join, as it sits right next door!
I also chat about this in the granny sweater video from 31:04, Sometimes it is easier to see a visual of it.
The Smaller Granny Square Sweater Size
Yes, I do want to make a second crochet granny square sweater, and I would like a fitted version. The initial chart for this is drawn up below. I have reduced it by one block in the body and lengthened the sleeves. I have a reasonably good feeling that this will work. If I have to reduce the sleeve length back down, I will. I won’t mind too much! If you have short arms, stick to the shorter sleeve.
However, look at the neck and you’ll see it’s different. It’s deeper at the front, and I left a triangular space at the back of the neck. Ultimately, if I put that triangle back in, the neck space would be the same as the large size, but with more of the action at the front. This means a deeper V-neck and no shaping at the back neck. There’s room for playing around with this, I think.
The neck is surprisingly gapey before adding the ribbing; it would be suitable for several sizes. Play around with the number of ribbing rounds to make adjustments.
Potentially, a triangle could be added at the front to square off the neck into a kind of round neck. I mention this in the video, but watching it back, it just looks like I’m wearing the sweater back to front!
And where it says 49cm, ugh, it’s supposed to be 48. Oops.
Knitted Ribbing on a Crochet Sweater!!
I know!!? It’s crazy, I’m such a huge crochet fan, but I knew I was going to grab this opportunity to improve my knitting skills. From just the ribbing sections, I have learned loads! Not only did I remind myself how to pick up stitches, I also worked Magic Loop for the first time, and tried SSK for the V neck shaping.
For the 2×2 knitted ribbing, I use continental style knitting as it’s easier to switch between knit and purl stitches. It’s got to the point where I have forgotten how to purl in throwing style. Links for the tutorials I used are above, in the resources section.
Don’t get me wrong, I have a long way to go in my knitting journey. If you look closely, you’ll no doubt see that I’ve done a terrible job; regardless, I am thrilled!
Alternatively, there are absolutely loads of crochet ribbing stitches you can use too. You know I love crochet ribbing!!
Adjustments & Issues re “Winging It”
The sleeves! They were way too long for me in the beginning, and I had to make adjustments. If you’re unsure, think about the body width of the jumper. If you are aiming for oversized, take this into account as it will have an effect on sleeve length. Think about the total wrist-to-wrist measurement (up one arm, across the back, down the other arm). That’s the measurement you want to aim for. Not always easy to do.
If your upper arm circumference is larger than 30-32cm, you may wish to consider adding another row of squares at the sleeve to make them wider. This comes with added complications as the construction at the underarm will change. It’s not something I’ve looked at before. In my head, I’m thinking of an additional square to create shaping under the armpit?? Sorry, I don’t have a clear guide for that.
If this is too much of a headache or, indeed, creates deeper sleeves than you would like, this is the moment where you’ll want to question the measurement of a single square. The alternative is to add another round to all squares and triangles. This will deepen the arm depth but also increase the width and length of your final crochet granny square sweater. What would you go for?
Final Thoughts on Making a Crochet Granny Square Sweater
Oh, I have so many photos I could share, but we’d be here forever. It’s all the unpretty step-by-step progress shots that I’m not sure would be that useful. Things like before and after sleeve changes, such as the ones below. They’re reminders of learning and progress, which is good, I guess?
Oh go on then, let’s have a gallery of my new granny jumper!
What do you think? Has it raised more questions, or do you think this recipe will help you make your own crochet granny square sweater?
If you do have questions, please let me know in the comments section and I’l try to edit the post as and when I can.
I always start off thinking crocheting a garment in the “winging it” style will be fun and simple. Making the thing often is! In real terms, however, the writing up of the “recipe?” Goodness me, there are quite a few elements required, and there’ll always be something I’ve missed.
Have you noticed a recent increase in knit and crochet combo patterns? I have started to see more designs popping up on Instagram and Ravelry that combine both crafts, and I don’t mind at all! I think it’s a yarn trend for this year, and I am here for it. I’m ready and willing to give it a go! In fact, I have a granny square sweater on my needles as I type. Eek!
Knit & Crochet Combo Patterns Together
Patterns that combine knitting and crochet have been around for ages. Looking through my collection of vintage crochet books, it is definitely not new. In those books, the focus is obviously crochet, but they are often finished with knitted ribbing. Maybe that’s because more makers were multi-crafted a few decades ago. Perhaps it’s because crochet ribbing wasn’t up to scratch, which isn’t the case today (no old-school crochet dictionaries that I own show half thecrochet ribbing stitches you see in patterns today, and I own a lot of crochet stitch dictionaries!).
Many new makers who learned knitting and crochet during lockdown might still be exploring the first crafts they picked up. I wonder if now is the time crafters are taking the next step and picking up the hook, now that they’ve mastered the needles, and vice versa?
What feels new is the merging of the two crafts within the same design. It is becoming popular again, and this time it is more of an intentional design choice. Knit & Crochet combo patterns are on my radar. Are they on yours?
Through research on Ravelry, Pinterest and the internet in general, I have spotted a few excellent designs for knit & crochet combo patterns. It’s fantastic to see knitwear designers embracing crochet, and I think that’s part of the resurgence. Crochet has become cool and is way more appreciated as a craft in its own right.
What’s interesting with the latest knit/crochet combination designs is that neither one is always the star of the show. In these dual craft combos, there is an equal mix in that it isn’t always crochet with the knitted ribbing, or knitting with a lace crochet edging. I love that those designs exist, but a lot of recent mixed patterns feature granny squares sharing a space with knitted stitches, for example. This is cause for a happy crafter to celebrate! I absolutely love a granny square, but if you don’t, there are other cro-knit /knit-chet (?!) patterns for you too.
Learning New Knitting & Crochet Skills
One of the things that has won me over about combining knitting and crochet in one pattern is that it provides the opportunity to learn new skills. It keeps it in the yarny sphere, so nothing is entirely alien, but it also offers the building blocks for new techniques. It’s super exciting, and that’s coming from someone who grew up with both.
For some reason, as an adult, I travelled on the path of crochet (despite struggling to learn it when I was little). I abandoned knitting as a teenager and forgot most of the skills that my Nanna taught me. Slowly but surely, I am ready to pick up two needles again. Under my belt, I have the basics, but I want more. A way for me to do this comfortably is to incorporate learning how to knit into my crochet.
I am hoping to learn about the differences in gauge and yarn consumption. And I’m expecting to learn from my mistakes – hello dropped stitches! There will, no doubt, be some surprises, and I’m looking forward to that. I am curious about short rows, and picking up stitches from crochet to then start knitting ribbing. So far so good. I remember picking up stitches before!
Hopefully, I will share more of my own adventures soon enough, but for now, let’s take a look at examples of the knit & crochet combo patterns there are…
Patterns That Combine Knitting & Crochet Stitches
I’ve compiled a few patterns combining knitting and crochet below. However, you may also wish to take a look at the Ravelry Bundle for Knit & crochet combo patterns here. There are more fabulous designs in the bundle. However, if you know of any other gooduns, please let me know in the comments. I’d love to hear from you.
Granny Squares in Knitting
I’m grouping some granny square patterns together because knitting designs that incorporate granny clusters are riding high. Granny squares are a popular beginner project for new crocheters, so it makes sense that they’re a bit of a gateway drug for folks who are already expert knitters.
Bubble Pop Wrist Warmers
First up, here we have the Bubble Pop Wrist Warmers by Jen Yard. This pattern made me do a double-take, crikey, I am in love! Jen is known as Everything Shapes Us on Instagram and is a queen when it comes to stash-busting and yarn scraps. These wrist warmers feature dainty little granny squares surrounded by stockinette stitch. The bobbles are worked using a crochet hook.
I plan on making these one day. I have already made a pair that is 100% crochet (eyeballed it), but I think I can stretch my knitting skills for these beauties.
The Geddy Tee
Tanis Lavallee of Tanis Fibre Arts is clearly having a fabulous time with granny squares at the moment with three knit & crochet combo patterns. First came Fleetwood, followed by Jethro. This is the Geddy Tee, which creatively uses granny squares within the saddle shoulder.
I really enjoyed Tanis’s podcast episode where she talked about designing with granny squares. She hits the nail on the head. It’s called Mixing Crochet and Knit in one Garment.
Ariana Crochet (and Knit!) Cardigan
Ariana, by Amy Christoffers, is the source of inspiration for my current knit/crochet project. I am making a jumper version of the Ariana Cardigan and have already completed and joined all my granny squares. Earlier today, I picked up the stitches around the waistband to try knitting the ribbing instead of my usual crochet ribbing. I’d be faster at crochet, but like I said, I want to improve my knitting skills.
This granny square cardi has nearly 1000 projects on Ravelry. Wow!
Prairie Skies Sweater
Ooh la la, just look at the Prairie Skies sweater!! It’s a gorgeous mix of a granny square yoke and stockinette stitch for the main body. I want to make this so I can learn how to knit short rows.
This amazing crochet/knit pattern is by Imke Von Nathusius and featured in Pom Pom Quarterly. It is also available to purchase on its own. I reeaaally want to make this, and it has been in my Ravelry favourites since its release in 2023.
Knitting With Crochet Edging
The Adventure Bandana
With 90% of the knitting population making a Sophie Scarf or ten, it isn’t surprising to see similar scarf patterns popping up in knitting and crochet designs. I have been making the same Sophie Shawl for about three years, and nearly finished. Once I’m done, I’d love to give this knitting pattern a try. Pictured below is the Adventure Bandana by Jodi Brown of the Grocery Girls.
The options for different crochet edgings are fab, they all look brilliant and super achievable if crochet is new to you. I am the other way around, it’s knitting that I’m not so good at, but this pattern? I could totally make this!
Fun fact, I remember when Lily was asking how to measure “nip to nip” when designing this top. Turns out the proper term is “apex”. Whatever the term, the construction of this pretty vest is impressive. This is a pattern for those with more knitting and garment-making experience, but once I’m down the road a bit, yep, I’d make this!
Other Knit & Crochet Combo Patterns
The cute 373 cardigan is by Pierrot Yarns, a company that makes lots of knitting and crochet patterns, including several that combine both crafts. This one is for crocheters who are happy to knit a small section to elevate this delicate design. This is super wearable and I need to make one, one day.
Where does one person find the time to make everything they fall in love with?!
Link Tee
A crochet yoke with knitted body; this kind of combo design works really well. The Link Tee, by Tomomo Yoshimoto is modern and very wearable indeed. It highlights the best of both knitting and crochet without either overshadowing the other. It has a structural elegance that only both can provide. Loves it!
I have chosen this Marie Wallin design as my last picture to share with you, as Marie is a prolific knitwear designer. In amongst her catalogue is a collection of knit and crochet combo patterns. Anemone is one of my favourites, but there are several that cover all seasons. This one is beautiful and summery, but Marie has also designed a winter collection too.
Want More Knit & Crochet Combo Patterns?
Don’t forget to take a look at the Ravelry bundle that has some of my favourite patterns that combine knitting and crochet. I would love to add more too, so if you know any that look completely amazing, please do let me know.
Honestly, I swear this is a new trend that we’ll see more of over the coming year or two. As crochet becomes more popular amongst knitters and in the crafting community in general, it only seems like a natural direction for designers to explore.
What do you think? Am I barking up the wrong hook? Let me know what you think!
We are well into the year now, but for the past few weeks, I have spotted a few new crochet trends popping up on the scene. If something crochet-related makes me feel excited about my favorite yarny craft, then the first thing I want to do is write about it, so here we go…!
Crochet Trend Predictions
There are currently loads of new creative directions that are happening in the world of crochet and it is very exciting! I have spent the last couple of weeks listing new styles, techniques and ideas, thinking about which ones might be part of the next crochet zeitgeist. Or maybe, it’s just the ones that I want to be part of the next crochet zeitgeist?!
I love jumping on a bandwagon or two, it is so inspiring to discover what new things we can do with crochet. What is everyone into at the moment? What’s just around the corner in terms of the next crochet trends? Let’s get a lovely list together. Read on to learn what I predict will be some future crochet trends. I may be wrong but I don’t actually care. This is excellent fun, regardless of the outcome!
A caveat before we begin: I am not going to include granny squares or much that’s granny related (although there are a couple of projects because I love it!). I think we all know that Granny Square fashion has had a massive resurgence over the last few years. Will she stay around? I think so but let’s focus on what else crochet can provide.
Stash Busting Yarn & Sustainability
With sustainability high up on everyone’s agenda, using up precious collections of yarn is the best way to save on buying new clothes and accessories. By using what yarn you already have in your stash, you can save a lot of money.
Last night I spent half an hour digging through my stash to find yarn to add to a new project. There is so much joy in rediscovering what you have in your collection. You can literally “shop” from your own collection! I am not going to mention that I couldn’t find the yarn I wanted because I had already used it in the perfect stash-busting pattern, The Wayward Sisters. Duh. Whatever, I had a good time.
Because colour makes us happy, it’s great to throw lots of shades together to see what happens. There is freedom in stash-busting and crocheting scrap yarn projects. There don’t need to be restrictions on colour use, nor restrictions on yarn weights, fibres or textures. Grab everything and put it together for truly unique crochet.
When you use up your yarn stash, what then? Choose to focus on sustainability. Think about plant-based fibres or recycled yarn. You can even buy second-hand sweaters to unravel and reuse [my notes for this post say “frog chazza jumpers”, which I think is funny!].
This crochet trend started a couple of years ago and I think it will only get bigger. There has been a very noticeable increase in patterns for using advent yarn minis and makers go mad for them at Christmas.
There is nothing to say you can’t use those patterns with your stash yarn too. Minis from advents are on people’s radars. Just watch, maybe around November time you will start to see more colourful crochet patterns emerge. Whatever you can use for a mini, you can use to bust the stash you already have.
Mohair and Other Fluffy Yarns
My favourite crochet trend right now and forever! I am addicted to using fluffy yarn in my crochet projects! It’s awesome!! As well as mohair yarn, which I have used a lot, I am also really into brushed alpaca yarn this year. Dreamy, light and drapey, the soft halo in a crochet project that uses floof is a delight!
Check out my Top tips for using mohair yarn and other Fluffy fibres here. I have one more tip to add actually, a recent dawning. Ready? When swatching fluffy yarn it can be a pain to see stitches. So, add one stitch marker just before a stitch. Then, laying your swatch flat, measure 10cm (or 4 inches, if that’s what you use) from the stitch marker. Place another stitch marker there. Hold it up to the light and count. You can see each stitch clearly where in other circumstances, they can be hidden by the floof they’re encased in. Do the same for rows. Boom, a new mohair yarn top tip!
Crochet Patterns Using Mohair or Alpaca
Above are some of my favourite crochet patterns that incorporate mohair yarn, or other fluffy yarns (I also have two new crochet garments on their way soon – look out for Fuzzy Duck & Ducky Fuzz): The Cirrus Shawl – a crescent shawl that uses mohair paired with beautiful boucle yarn. A Black & Blue granny square sweater. Wheatfields Shawl. Miu Miu inspired granny stripe scarf(I am trying very hard not to talk about granny too much!) A proper scrap yarn rib stitch hat with mohair. The Isca Cowl is a knit-look cowl with bobbles. Talking of knit-look…
Knit Look Crochet Stitches
Has this crochet trend had its day yet? I don’t think so. The thing about knit-look crochet is that it’s accessible to crocheters who love the look of knitting but don’t want to wrestle with two needles or struggle with knitting for other reasons.
Knit-look crochet patterns use very simple stitches that are often worked in the back loop only to push the rows forward into ridges. This is what creates the knit look effect. It isn’t everyone’s cup of tea as a lot of the patterns require row upon row of slip stitches. The results are incredible but the commitment can be intense.
Oh goodness! I have resisted the temptation to design a ribbed “fisherman’s” style crochet sweater. There are so many excellent patterns available. I definitely have some in my collection, waiting to be made. The Nantucket Ribbed Cardigan by Two of Wands has been waiting a while, it’s gorgeous. I’ll make it one day. Just the Worsted has a few sweater designs that fit this category too.
If you are put off by whole garments that use, for example, Yarn Over Slip Stitches (less challenging than basic slip stitches and quite rhythmic), why not just use them for the ribbing at cuffs and waistband? Check out my tutorial for the best crochet ribbing. You’ll find fab alternatives to slip stitches too.
The Houndstooth Stitch
Have you spotted the crochet Houndstooth Stitch on your Instagram feed recently? It is gaining traction and I’m here for it. I LOVE Houndstooth stitch, it is classic crochet through & through.
Whether it’s the scrumptious texture of the stitch or the fun you can have with the colour choices, I have noticed that the houndstooth stitch is riding a wave in current crochet trends.
The great thing about classic crochet stitches is that they are very versatile. You can use these stitches in many ways. Scarves, shawls, hats? Check! Sweaters and cardigans? Check! A cute purse? Check!
The houndstooth stitch is such a simple crochet stitch pattern; just US single and double crochets (AKA UK double and treble crochets) sitting together in pairs to replicate the classic textile of the same name. In one colour, these stitches are often referred to as the Lemon Peel Stitch but when you introduce two colours, on top of each other in tidy rows, a little bit of magic happens. It’s so pretty!
Depending on which side you look at the fabric, one colour will stand out more than the other. Both sides look fab and you get to choose your favourite “right” side.
Have you seen my Barking Mad crochet scarf pattern? It uses the Houndstooth Stitch worked on the bias. I also have a couple of other Houndstooth crochet accessories that will be joining the scarf soon. Watch this space because the houndstooth stitch is one of the crochet trends on the rise.
Crochet Plaid & Argyle Patterns
Moving on from the simpler crochet check patterns from last year more plaid patterns are arriving on the scene. It seems like a natural progression.
I’ve seen styles and techniques in a few different forms: Basic colour changes, assigned colour pooling yarns, mosaic crochet, entrelac crochet and surface crochet. There is definitely more plaid about right now.
I heard mention of argyle patterns too. I wonder if this has anything to do with Only Murders in the Building?!? I am a latecomer to this marvellous TV show but now I have a dedicated Pinterest board, Only Sweaters in the Building! What a glorious collection of cosy knitwear. I want Mable’s wardrobe.
Neutrals and Neons
I went to Unravel yarn festival last Friday and a group of us were drooling over this year’s Pantone Mocha matched with neon yellow! Wow, what a combo! Neutrals and neons together is a pairing that makes me swoon quite a lot.
Being at a yarn festival is a great opportunity to see what is popular. I was so pleased to see all the fluffy yarn! But it was also fascinating to see many neutral shades of yarn. It feels quite grown up. Are we moving away from bold crazy brights? It looks like the bold brights and neons are welcome in small doses. They are subtle pops of contrast, gentle nods to it rather than in your face. Yes, please!
Semi-solid and tonal yarns are pushing their way to the front after years of variegated yarn being the “It” yarn. This is very exciting because crochet stitches shine in tonal yarns. When you have beautifully complex colourways in a skein of yarn, crochet can translate it into pixelly blocks or, stitches can be overwhelmed. With a sophisticated semi-solid, the crochet stitches do all the talking.
Knitters Embracing Crochet!
Who’d have thought!!? In the last few months, it has become evident that knitters have been embracing crochet. What took you so long, knitters? Come in, grab yourself a hook and join the fun.
I am not sure where the new wave of knitters who crochet came from but it is so interesting to see this as one of the most recent crochet trends. I wonder if it is the crazy popularity of the granny square that might have been the tipping point. To see colourful crochet squares hit such highs since Lockdown, that power has reached far and wide. If you have any theories, let me know.
But whatever the reason, there are knitting designers introducing crochet patterns into their portfolios and I hope they also join our lovely community of crocheters!
Funnily though, I think this could be enough to convince me to pick up the needles again. I can knit a bit but it often hurts my hands so I can’t do it as much as crochet. However, what if I combined stitches and made a crochet & knit combo sweater?
Combined Knit & Crochet Patterns
Looking at the most popular patterns on Ravelry (filtered to crochet) there a handful of patterns that are a hybrid of both crafts. You will likely have already seen the Ariana cardigan by Amy Christoffers. The ribbing is knitted with the main body being crochet squares. Same for the Agnes Sweater and oof, how about Prarie Skies by Imke Von Nathusius. Sorry, they are all granny square related and I said I wasn’t going to focus on grannies. Oops! But that seems to be a draw for knitters and I’m Ok with that.
A lovely podcast that I’ve been watching recently called, Breathing Yarn regularly celebrates both knitting and crochet. I’m not going to pretend I know her name, I’m not sure she ever says it but the crafter behind the channel blends knitting and crochet really well. Mostly in different projects but one top is a granny square vest with knit ribbed edging. Beautiful.
And There Are Other New Crochet Trends Too…
My goodness, I have bleated on for a long time but I think I got over-excited by all the crochet possibilities!
However, I daresay I will be wrong on some of these, and/or there will be other crochet trends that crop up over the next twelve months. What do you think? Can you see the continuation of oversized sweaters? With or without roll necks? What about early nineties crochet trends as we move slightly onwards from the 80’s? Does that bring with it, slub yarns? More textural fabrics? Are we moving away from heavier yarn weights? I’d love to see more DK projects in crochet and merino with stunning stitch definition. I’m also not over vests and sleeveless tops (even though they don’t look good when I wear them, I love how they look on everyone else!).
Phew! What a lot of information. But honestly, this is just a bit of fun. It’s best not to be led too heavily by crochet trends. If in doubt go with your gut. I was saying to friends this morning that I love a bandwagon to jump on but have to resist and make sure I follow my own path. If that path includes neons & neutrals with a little bit of houndstooth stitch and some knit-look ribbing then so be it.
If you didn’t know already, I am a massive fan of crochet bags. I love quick crochet projects that are not only fun to make, they are practical too. I love love love crochet items that have a real use. And a bag really fits into this category!
Without really trying, a crochet bag is reusable, it doesn’t take up too much room and is easy to wash (cotton works best). A crochet bag also make the perfect handmade gift. You can whip one up in no time and the recipient will have totally unique crochet to enjoy.
Some of the patterns below are free on my blog, check out my Free Crochet Patterns page. Or I have added links to buy some of the patterns.
Wildcard, Crochet Market Bag
First up is my latest design: a crochet market bag that is easy to make and looks pretty fancy. This is Wildcard, named because the mesh and bobble stitches remind me of tennis. Bobbles for tennis balls? The lacy section as the net? Perhaps I should have launched it for Wimbledon…
This kind of handmade market bag is made all in one piece. It starts out as an easy square shape, which is then transformed into a gathered holdall using a few basic crochet stitches.
My Wildcard market bag is super similar to this slouchy Granny Market Bag (available on Ravelry, Etsy & Lovecrafts). This crochet design came to life after I was contacted by a crochet magazine asking for a simple, colourful shopping bag idea. There wasn’t much time so I knew I needed ideas that would work up quickly. This bag style fits the bill perfectly.
My favourite design element is that granny stripes are worked using the corner to corner method, which means that the stripes are on the diagonal. It’s modern crochet at its finest!
This granny stripe market bag is larger than Wildcard, with deliberately loose stitches to give it drape. I use this bag when it’s my turn to go on my weekly shop; it fits loads in it! You could always go down a hook size to tighten up the stitches if preferred.
Granny Stripe Tote Bag
Whilst we’re on the subject of a granny stitch crochet bag, do you like my free pattern for a colourful hotchpotch tote? This one can made in all sorts of sizes. Check out my blog post on How to make your own Granny Stripe Purse. It also has an accompanying video tutorial for a lil purse size version too.
Another brilliant stitch that works fantastically well for a crochet bag is the corner to corner (c2c) stitch, aka the diagonal box stitch. Find this C2C crochet bag here.
If you know how to crochet the C2C stitch you can easily make this bag. This one is more of a recipe than a pattern because C2C is the same no matter the project. However, I have lots of C2C projects on YouTube if you need a bit of guidance.
Another Drapey Market Bag
Are you starting to see a familiar theme?! Yes yes, there are lots of granny patterns here but I make no apologies for that. It just so happens that granny is a very versatile stitch and looks great in crochet bags.
Check out my pattern for a round bottomed granny market bag, here. It’s another crochet bag that I have made again and again. You absolutely cannot have too many crochet bags!
This is a teeny cotton purse that I put together so I could demonstrate how to add a zipper to a crochet bag. I also line the crochet purse with fabric too so it’s a useful tutorial for crocheters. This one is from my early days as a designer but it’s still effective and helpful.
Wahey, it’s another granny project (still not sorry!). This time it’s using the ubiquitous granny square. I created two video tutorials for this cute tote. One video demonstrates theJoin as You Go Technique (JAYG) so you can crochet the squares together rather than fiddle about with a sewing needle. The second tutorial shows you how to turn a rectangle of crochet fabric into this retro inspired crochet bag.
This crochet bag is a bit different to the others. The single crochet ribbing with the shell clusters are a lovely contrast that create an impactful crochet design. The bag in this pattern is small enough for kids but you can increase the size if you prefer.
The pattern shares the stitch multiples used so you can play around with different sizes. I called it We Don’t Need Roads as it’s a sort of sister project to a shlanketty shawl I designed with the same motifs, that crochet shawl is named Road to Nowhere.
A Crochet Bag for Kids
The last Granny bag (I’m obsessed!).
I created this petite crochet granny stitch bag to film the making of video tutorial. I didn’t want to make the large version as the process would have taken much much longer. Therefore, boom, new crochet pattern!
Finally, here’s another from my early days of crochet design. This easy crochet market bag pattern is perfect for scrunching up in your pocket and whipping out, ready to add a few bits on a small shop.
Looks can be deceiving with this crochet bag. You wouldn’t believe how many messages I’ve received over the years telling me one skein is DEFINITELY not enough to crochet a market bag. My response is always the same: Yes, it is! I can fit a bottle of soda water, a bag of sugar, pack of mint leaves, 3 limes and a small bottle of rum in this bag. So there.
Too Many Crochet Bags?
In my opinion, you can never have too many crochet bags. Be it a tote, market bag, purse, or other style, bags are useful and tidy away to nothing. I have them in my car, in my pockets, tucked away in my other bags, ready to grab as and when they’re needed. Phew, I admit it, I’m a bag lady!
So good I made it twice, here is my second Granny Square Jumper!! I’m here to write about it again as, not content with leaving things as they are, I made adjustments which I think you will find useful.
If you haven’t seen my first post about how I made a super colourful version (with lots of fabulous yarn stashbusting), you can find that HERE, on a post imaginatively titled Granny Square Sweater. That’s where you will find the original recipe on how to crochet a jumper of your own. I also created a crochet video tutorialto show how to put everything together.
If you’re a beginner crocheter, you can make this sweater with the resources I have provided. However, it’s not just some granny squares stitched together. There is shaping (at the shoulders and sleeves), nice ribbing, and techniques that will up your skill level.
If you like this granny square sweater, perhaps you’ll like my other crochet ideas. Please peruse my free crochet patterns page. And if you really really like what you see, you can buy me a Ko Fi! Although, it’ll most likely be tea because I’m not a coffee drinker…
My stashbusting original Granny Square Sweater
What’s Changed?
Ok, so, it would be easy for me to say that this is just the same jumper as my original stashbusting sweater but that’s not technically true. Here are the things that I tweaked:
I used different yarn – a merino DK held with mohair lace weight.
I only used two colours.
The main body granny squares are smaller, allowing me to add width later by using a few rows of granny stripes at each side. This also made room for a slightly deeper neckline because….
I changed the shoulder tabs – fronts are longer than the orginal, and different to the back tabs.
The plan for this blog post is to talk you through these changes so they’re not scary. I have drawn up some rudimentary charts, which will help visual learners, and hopefully I won’t bamboozle you with information overload!
Using Mohair Yarn
As I’ve mentioned above, I used different yarn to make this black and blue fluffy jumper. The original is made with aran weight yarn with wool content. Rather fortuitously, my gauge is the same.
Whilst this black and blue sweater/jumper was also intended as a stash buster (using yarn I had leftover from other projects), I wasn’t sure there was enough of the black so ordered more. I vastly overestimated and have ended up with the same amount that I started with. A little bit more, in fact. So much for stash busting!
If you’re daunted by the fluffy stuff, fear not, read my blog post with some top tips for using mohair yarn. Ultimately, please don’t be scared. This is actually a really good project for mohair yarn because the stitches and design are simple. And holding the mohair with a non fluffy yarn, eases any anxiety too.
I used Drops Kid Silk, I had loads of Cobalt blue in stash from a neglected then rejected design idea.
Merino DK Yarn
I chose to use West Yorkshire Spinners Bo Peep Luxury Baby DK (double knit). The black (Incy Wincy) is leftover from a knitted jumper that went into a Vivienne Westwood inspired Sex Pistols jumper that was the husband’s Christmas present (I didn’t knit it, I asked MiL to do it!). There was leftover Drops Kid Silk black mohair from the same project as well.
More blue (Space Hopper) was purchased as I think I only had one ball in stash. This shade went beautifully with the Cobalt mohair.
I sometimes find that merino can be quite heavy, this one is lovely and light (probably because it’s a nylon mix). It doesn’t create a cumbersome jumper, which can be a bit much for an item of clothing.
Two Colours of Yarn
As a stashbuster, the choice of yarn was made for me. I didn’t have to worry about colour because black and blue were what I had and that was that.
The best thing about only using two colours is that for the main squares, you can float the yarn. No snipping, no time spent sewing in loads of ends, huzzah! Obviously, float along what you decide is the wrong side of the granny square.
I’ve worked out that for this jumper (an approximate size 3), I used:
7x50g blue DK
5x50g black DK
4x25g blue mohair
3x25g black mohair
As a general rule, every 100 grams of the DK merino uses a 25 gram ball of mohair. However, meterage is 112m per 50 gram ball of the DK (therefore 224m per 100g) and the meterage for the mohair is 210m per 25g ball. There’s a little bit of an imbalance so an extra ball of mohair is a good idea, to make up the shortfall.
The amount needed will vary depending on the size you make and how much adjusting you do. You will need more than me if you’re making a larger size. I have not done the maths to find out precisely how much for each size.
Float your yarn
Cropped Granny Sweater
Two large granny squares are the basis for the main body panels of both sweaters. For this version, the two main squares are four rounds fewer than the colourful jumper. This is so the final sweater doesn’t have the length of the extra rounds but it has the width because I add granny stripes to each side of the front square.
Front and back granny squares have 19 rounds. The front square then has 5 granny stripes at each side. 19+5 is equivalent to a 24 round square for the width, which is one round more than version 1 (cos, why not?!). I added the shoulder tabs to the top, working into gaps between stripes, and gaps between clusters. See pics and charts below.
The back doesn’t have separate side stripes, instead, I crocheted around three sides of the square five times to get the same amount of extra sides and also add it across the top too. Hopefully this is not gobbeldegook!! It’s difficult to put into words but I think the charts are my saviour.
You can use the maths from the original post to work out gauge and measurements if you’re not keen on eyeballing.
Front panelA pic highlighting how the front panel is put together. Granny Square, side stripes, and shoulder tabs.
Shoulder Tabs
If you make a sweater with the more basic elements, like I did for the original, by the time you’ve added shoulders and a waistband, the sweater is longer than it is wide. For version no.2 I wanted a more cropped style. In order to achieve this there are the additional steps, discussed above. They are arguably more tricky to wrap your head around but I absolutely love the result.
The first jumper has the same number of rows for both front and back shoulder tabs. It’s super easy to do it this way because it means you don’t need to think about maths and stitch placement too much.
However, what would happen if you attached different length tabs (front v back) to main body granny squares? Let’s say 8 rows for the front tabs and 3 rows for the back tabs. Your front body panel would be 5 rows longer than the back panel. This difference needs to be accommodated.
Below I have included the basic charts. I think they are the easiest way to show you all the shaping shenanigans. The charts are truncated so they show you the intention without literally showing every row. The real life jumper has 8 rows of front shoulder tabs (repeat the last two granny stripes rows of the chart to get 8) and 3 rows of back shoulder tabs (samesies as the chart).
Shoulder Tabs Clusters
The important bit is that shoulder tabs should end up the same width across at their last rows. Or thereabouts. I don’t think it matters if there is one stitch difference (mine were!). If there is more of a difference then it might be worth going back to the drawing board.
FYI, My shoulder tabs end measuring approx 16cm.
To begin, the first row of my front tabs has 7 full clusters, plus the end stitches. After four rows of shaping/decreasing and four rows of even granny striping, the tabs end with 6 full clusters and 1 stitch either side = 20 stitches.
The back tabs start with 6 full clusters plus the ends. These tabs are only three rows but because of a little manipulation/decrease at the neckline, I ended with 5 full clusters and 2 stitches at either end, that’s 19 stitches. I’m happy matching 20 stitches to 19. You can’t tell on the finished garment.
However many clusters you choose to add, make sure the width (no. of clusters per tab) isn’t going to create a massive neck hole.
Front Main Body
The first chart (below) is for the front of the jumper. Make the granny square first, then join as many stripes you want to either side. That’s the black and blue section of the chart. Then work the shoulder tabs. I have only shown one tab here but it gives you the picture of what you need to do for both. Don’t forget that more is explained in the colourful granny square sweater post, go check it out.
Back Main Body
The second chart shows the back. Now, here is where it gets more than just a tweak, we’re making different adjustments to ensure everything is the same size and will fit together. You can see that rather than working some side stripes, the chart shows three worked sides of the square (chart has three rows/rounds, in real life I did five). This is to accommodate the different lengths of the front and back shoulder tabs. So, five additional rows along the top of the back, plus 3 shoulder tab rows = 8, which equals the same as the front tab rows.
Crikey, at this point, I feel like I need to say “Thaaaat’s Numberwang!”
Granny Stripe Sleeves
Sleeves remain the same, thank goodness! But because they are stripes, you still have loads of ends to sew in. I started using the ends to sew the sleeves together but it was a major faff so decided to sew them all in first and then sew together using a length of the DK. There’s no need to use the mohair as well when you’re sewing your pieces together.
Ready to Wear Crochet Sweater
And everything else is the same! When writing out the differences it feels like it’s quite complex but in real life, once you have the hook in your hand and the yarn gliding through your fingers, it’s actually a lot simpler. In no time whatsoever you’ll be wearing your new handmade jumper! And it will look great!!
Please share your makes on Instagram by tagging me @zeensandroger and using #ZeensAndRoger
Also, there’s Ravelry too. Adding your project there is super helpful as it helps others see what designs look like when made by others.
I was at the very cold and windy beach yesterday when I realised how much I LOVED the crochet cowl I was wearing! Sat securely & snuggly around my neck, it wasn’t going anywhere. The best thing about a cowl is that there are no flappy scarf ends, breeze whipping them about my face! Neither will it slowly work itself free and slide to the ground. A crocheter can also hook up a handmade cowl pretty quickly.
I started counting up how many there were in my crochet collection. A LOT is the answer!! And they all get worn at this time of year. The ice cold weather this week isn’t set to rise above 3 degrees. A warm cowl is the first choice crochet accessory that I’m going to reach for.
Whether fancy 4ply or super chunky, there are all sorts of styles you can try. It doesn’t matter if you’re a beginner crocheter as there are loads of easy cowl patterns to try. It doesn’t have to be fancy stitches or anything, you could smoosh together four largish granny squares (5 inches would do it) and that’s a cowl. When I say smoosh, I mean sew them together in a row and then join ends to create a circle. Voila, a cowl has been made.
This blog post is also a blatant excuse to share loads of my designs to tempt you into getting the yarn and hooks out. Of course it is….
Leaping Waves
I love this ripple cowl so much! I gave it to my mum for Christmas one year. Do you know I have never seen her wear it!? Shocking! It’s a DK merino project and the soft, buttery merino feels beautiful against a delicate neck.
I called it Leaping Waves as the ripple stitch undulates around. It’s also a nod to Outlander, which i haven’t seen for years. Everyone loved that first season, didn’t they?!! You can find the pattern HERE.
Isca Cowl
At one point last winter I briefly had red hair. It goes really well with the blue of my Isca cowl!
This pattern also comes with a matching head band too. You can find it HERE.
The mix of rib and bobbles stitches is one I would really like to visit again. It looks super sophisticated in this design. Especially as I’ve held a merino 4ply with a laceweight mohair. It’s gorgeous! The border of this design is a rib look that runs perpendicular to the verticle pattern on the main body, which is another feature that looks fab.
Striped Crochet Cowl Pattern
Companions, is a cowl and wrist warmers pattern set. I am so so pleased with this colourful stripey set. Ridiculously pleased. Every aspect works: the yarn, the pattern, the style. It’s exactly what I had imagined. This is the cowl I was wearing yesterday at the beach (the wrist warmers were left at home as I didn’t want them getting mucky whilst rooting through pebbles, looking for seashells!).
Apres Ski, C2C Cowl
I’d say that this hat and cowl are suitable for beginners who fancy a quick project that’s simple yet visually effective. A corner to corner chevron? It’s all in the colour work. Here’s the YouTube tutorial to show you how. The same pattern can easily be turned into a hat too (it’s good to have options!). I use a thick woolly yarn that’s definitely going to keep you warm on the slopes. Or, more importantly, after the skiing while you have a drink or two. [disclaimer:: I have never been near a ski slope in my life]
I got the idea for a C2C chevron fromthe granny chevron I designed(below) which, in turn came from a big floofy version I did. (I am currently obsessed and delighted with how ideas beget ideas – it’s fascinating).
Granny Cowl
A couple of years ago I was asked to design a granny stitch cowl for the front cover of Mollie Makes magazine (still a very proud moment of mine). The brief was for it to look a bit like a shawl. A shawl that’s not a shawl! It turned out to be one of my most popular designs ever. It’s for sale on Ravelry, Etsy and LoveCrafts. I included a chart which shows the shaping on this one.
I see triangle cowls popping up more and more in the knitting and crochet community. I’ve got more than one design now too.
Brighter Future
See? Another triangular shaped crochet cowl!
Brighter Future is a really pretty cowl that hasn’t been popular at all! Poor thing. I think perhaps that is because it’s slightly different from my usual style. However, I am really pleased with its delicate stitches. Made in 4ply yarn, this keeps your neck warm but isn’t heavy or cumbersome. It doesn’t get in the way whilst you’re wearing it, which is a real boon.
All the Fun of the Fair
This colourful granny stripe cowl is made in aran weight yarn. It was originally inspired by the stripes of the big top circus tents. It comes in two different sizes so you can have a small, neat one that fits more snuggly. Or this larger one (above) that has lots of colour and is, as the name suggests, pretty fun! I hope you like the post stitch ribbed edges too. It’s now pretty obvious to me from sharing these patterns that I have a thing for ribbed borders and edges. I don’t know if I’d noticed before).
Claudia Crochet Cowl
The Claudia Cowl is a simple and beautiful one skein project. Make yourself something special out of that gorgeous hand dyed yarn you’ve been saving. The skein I used was bought for my by my friend Claudia of Crochet Luna when we were at Yarndale together in 2018. It has subtle stitch texture with a Join As You Go rib edging.
An Asymmetric Granny
I know I know, this blog post features a lot of granny stitch cowls! But I love Granny stitch, it’s my medicine and I make no apologies for that. For this design, I bought some chunky nep yarn one day when I fancied a splurge. It became this interesting shape of a granny triangle shawl. You may be curious to learn that the origin of this one came from all the scribbly sketching of different ideas for the Mollie Makes front cover.
Have you made any? They don’t have to be small and simple. You can make elegant, double looping infinity scarves, or massive super chunky things that envelope your entire top half. There are loads of variants in between. Do have a favourite? Which one? Hopefully there’s something here to inspire you to get crocheting. Let me know how you get on!
Before I go there’s also ascarf and cowl bundle on Ravelrywhich is worth looking at. It’s a great starting point if you’re interested in quick but useful crochet projects.
Thanks to some very keen crocheters out there, my first version of a crochet JW Anderson cardigan has been super popular. Thanks for that! I’m not sure I need to explain at this point but I will: it’s the one that was made enormously popular by Harry Styles. Pretty sure you’ll know about all the cardigan by now, whether knitted and/or crocheted.
[FYI I recently signed up to the LoveCrafts affiliate program so I have linked to the yarn mentioned in this blog post (further down). I have no idea if it’s worth it yet but it won’t make any difference to your wallet whatsoever – just mine!]
My sister saw it and asked me to make one for her Christmas present. Initially I said “ugh, No”. I couldn’t be bothered to make another! Then my conscience got the better of me and I decided I should go for it. I thought about the changes I could make and it was enough to make me enthusiastic about knocking one out again.
The Second Cardi
The only reason I’ve made it again is because one of my sisters requested it for Christmas. She still hasn’t seen it yet because the rules of Covid have meant that I’ve not seen my family this Christmas. I posted it last week but apparently it takes a long time for parcels to get from one end of the island to the other.
My sister is smaller than me. Let’s say she’s a UK 8. I think. With my lockdown lard, I’m edging back to a 12. Because of the difference I did some maths based off the measurements from my first cardigan (see first post). This new cardi isn’t oversize on me but it probably will be on her. I actually prefer this fit to massively oversized (I do not require additional bulk on top, thank you very much).
After I saw this picture I took off the buttons and re-positioned them. I hadn’t noticed they were wonky at first! Oops!
Yarn
Colours: I bought new yarn rather than doing a random stash dive. I chose to use Paintbox wool mix aran. You can get it from Lovecrafts HERE (this link takes you directly to the wool, which is one of my fave yarns to work with). If you purchase by hitting the link, it means I will get paid a small percentage of the sale. There’s also a button somewhere about the place (on this blog) that is linked to my affiliate program, so if you spot that, give it a click to peruse more yarn!
I used one of each in the following colours: Buttercup yellow, Lipstick Pink, Light Caramel, Royal Blue, Bubblegum Pink, Marine Blue, Raspberry Pink, Grass Green, Paper White, Blood Orange, Coffee Bean, Ballet Pink, Dusty Rose, Spearmint Green, Washed Teal and Dolphin Blue.
When using the same colour in two different places it’s easiest to wind off enough so you can work the two squares without more tangle (rather than working both ends of the same ball, which I’ve done in the past). Just make a separate ball that’s big enough to make a square.
You can use other yarn like DK but it will affect the size. How about swatching!? Make a square, measure, multiply by nine (the amount of squares that equal the width around in this garment). Will that fit you? You may wish to add or remove two or three stitches and add or subtract a row or two. Experiment, work it out to find the size that suits you. The ultimate corner cutting is to find a sweater in your wardrobe that fits as you want this to fit and get the tape measure out.
Before I get into the knitty gritty, I am taking a moment to tell you that I have a Ko-Fi account HERE. Perhaps you would like to give me a few quid! I’d be very happy if that happened. Or, hop across to check out my free patterns page. Thank you.
Anyway, back to the crochet cardigan! …..
Ch Ch Changes
Hook size: This time I went for a 5.5mm, I like the tension it gave on this yarn.
Measurements: It’s 50cm (just under 20 inches) deep and 50cm wide, a boxy square! Sleeve length is also 50cm. The sleeve circumference is 31cm (12 inches).
Square size: each square is roughly 11x11cm (approx 4.5 inches) depending on the stitch used. Balancing out different stitches throughout means things won’t get too wonky (so don’t layer all your FLO squares on top of each other, they’re not as tall). But this cardigan is not about precision, it’s OK if it looks rough around the edges. To get the squares this size, each square is 15 stitches by 12 rows.
Buttons: Due to it being a smaller garment, I decided to drop a button rather than squeeze on 5. I also bought smaller ones, these are 25mm buttons. In these pics I hadn’t paid too much attention to button placement, my squares misaligned. I cut the buttons off and did them again. Remember to pay attention!
Button Band: It’s chain 8 and work 7htr (that’s US hdc stitches) for the band. Therefore, when it comes to making the button holes you need to do: 3htr, miss 1 st and chain 1, 3htr.
Decreasing at collar: I started the decreases earlier here because they’d have been too high on the neck. Check out the chart below, you can see where the sides come in just after the half way mark of the piece. To decrease each row, literally all I do is to stop one stitch short of the end, or skip one at the beginning of the row. You could do a different decrease if you wanted, whatever floats your boat.
Plaid
I got bored fiddling with animal print on cardi number one but definitely wanted a few squares that were different to the others. Plaid was the option I chose.
The circled ones (below) are the two I used as my guide. Each square on the grid represents a stitch. You swap yarns depending on what colour is due next, with three in the play at once. I drew a couple of others to show that if your squares have a different amount of rows and/or stitches, you may need to muck about to find a pattern that fits. Note, a half treble (US hdc) stitch is taller than it is wide.
Blocking
There are few different blocking methods. Here I steam blocked because the yarn has acrylic content (if all wool then I wet block). Not gonna go into the details of differences, that’d take too long. In this instance, pin out on a towel on the carpet, get some hot steam on it. I use the steam function on my iron. Every time I do this I brick it, thinking I’m going to melt hours of work! Never touch the iron to the work!
Some people will block before sewing everything together and others prefer to block the finished article. I’ve not explored which is best but I blocked the separate pieces this time. You can stretch it out as you pin which affects the size and shape of your crochet.
Are you willing to block it to size? I blocked this one but didn’t block the first version. Pretty sure I didn’t block my swatch for the first one either. This means that my first garment is even bigger now after a few months of wear (the weight of it has left it to stretch out on its own). I blocked this one as it was a gift for someone else and I didn’t want any surprises for my sister. Maaaaaybe it’s not an essential requirement but I think it is better to block.
Sleeve after blockingIn the rush to get it finished, I made mistakes throughout. It all adds to the look!
The End
And that’s it! Never making another patchwork cardi again! I am done.
I did get a few questions about the first one so it might be a good idea to read the comments section on both posts to see if there’s good stuff in there. Or, please do ask a question if you think of one. But all the elements should be included within these posts if you want to make your own. You just have to read it all! But that means if you want to make a different size you will be able to work it out with the information I’ve given you. Honest!
Hello, how are you?! I’m fine. Just squeezing it all and getting in a flap as usual. Episode 60! Sixty episodes of my daft crochet podcast! Who would have thought it?! I am still loving every minute of it though and I hope you enjoy it too! Thank you so much for hanging out with me.
All my vids (both podcasts and tutorials) are HERE on YouTube. Links and pics to things I chat about in this episode are below.
Hello! I hope you’re well!? I really enjoyed putting this episode together, I hope you enjoy watching 😀
As usual, click on the image above to go to Episode 59 of the latest crochet chat, or if you fancy going back to previous episodes or checking out some crochet tutorials, go HERE to my YouTube channel. Ta very much!
In this episode I reveal the name of last episode’s Giveaway and there’s a new Giveaway too!!
Links and pictures for all things Episode 59 are below…
I have rewritten my old owl pattern because it’s terribly done. I’ll write a blog post for the new version soon but I’ll be keeping the old one available HERE. Go forth and be embarrassed on my behalf!
