Quick Crochet Granny Sweater

A crochet Granny sweater from Zeens and Roger

Obsessed with Crocheting Granny Sweaters

Yep, I got the yarn and hooks out again to work up a third Granny Square Sweater! I have a funny feeling that it won’t be the last one I crochet either.

I used the notes and charts based on my first (stashbusting colour fest granny) and second (blue and black mohair) Granny Square sweater.

Crochet Granny Sweater by Zeens and Roger

Why Crochet Another Sweater?

Each jumper builds on the last. Some people sketch a lot, swatch religiously, and try everything out first before finalising a design. Eh, yes I could do that too and sometimes I do but I still have the impulse to get an idea out of my head, turning it into a physical thing as quickly as possible. In this case I have had to crochet each sweater to see how I can adapt the recipe to make it better and/or different.

I will often make something again and again. I find it an interesting challenge to analyse why a design isn’t quite right. I enjoy tweaking the fabric, tension, shaping etc to what affect that has. It’s how one gets better at the thing they do, isn’t it? It’s the same reason I come back to my fave sitches again and again too.

I love love love my two other granny jumpers but I want to try all the things. It isn’t only about striving for perfection but also seeing how different fibres and colours work together. Isn’t it fascinating how a few changes and adjustments can create a brand new look?

Therefore, this time I wondered what a looser stitch with block colours would look like. Influenced by some leftover stash from a recent scarf project, off I went and Granny Sweater No. 3 was born.

Granny sweater. Crochet your own granny square jumper

Granny Sweater No. 3

The first two blog posts have extensive information about how to crochet a granny square jumper so I am not going to do that here. The first blog post (and accompanying video tutorial) is all about crochet sweater basics, with a little bit of optional maths thrown in for making it in the size you want. Then the second post is all about how I made adjustments to take my granny sweater to the next level. There are crochet charts too, which help with things like sleeve shaping and shoulder tabs.

Adjusting My Crochet Sweater

The first two sweaters use aran weight yarn and so does this one. I used Stylecraft Grace, which feels quite fine for an aran weight yarn. I also went up to a 6mm hook, therefore my gauge is different. 10cm only gives me 6.5 rows here. I used a larger hook as I wanted a looser, drapier fabric. As Grace is a light, fluffy yarn and I think it deserves a floaty kind of treatment.

Because my tension created bigger clusters my main squares are only 12 rounds. You would not believe how quickly this sweater worked up. So fast! Front and back weigh approx 75 grams each which, in jumper terms is nothing.

The shoulder tabs and sides are worked in a very similar fashion to jumper No.2. Tweak them as you see fit.

More About the Yarn

Stylecraft Grace only comes in 8 colours. When there is a limited range it can be quite nice because most of the agonising over which colours to choose is gone. I used Ocean for the main body as that’s what I had most of. Therefore, I had zero concerns about playing yarn chicken. The sleeves are Long Grass, and I used Petals, Hibiscus and Storm for the ribbing.

I bought the Ocean and Long Grass shades last winter when I had planned to crochet a jumper for one of the kids. It never happened… The other shades are left over from a recent commission that’s coming out in a few months.

I like it. It’s less than a fiver per 100 grams and seeing as I’m a big fan of mohair, I like that it has 10% mohair mixed with (5%) wool and (85%) acrylic. This Granny sweater would be a good project if you’re tempted to try mohair for the first time. It’s one that’s not too arduous to frog if you need to (but still a bit of a bugger, so don’t get too smug).

The Main Body

The Front has stripes of granny clusters added to either side of the square. I added four rows on each side. A square of 12 rounds plus 4+4 rows of stripes in total creates a (blocked) width of 50cm (20 inches).

The back needs additional height as well as the width, so work around three sides of the main square here. I did three rounds and then added just one stripe on either side.

I know I’m glossing over this quite quickly but there’s more detail about these adjustments in the Blue and Black jumper post. Hopefully, I can support the words with this basic diagram too:

Shoulders Tabs

The front panel has five rows of shaping to create the tabs and rounded neckline.

For the Back I only added two rows for the tabs. It doesn’t need much at the back, just a bit so the jumper hugs the top of your shoulders rather than riding up the nape of the neck.

Granny stripe sleeves
I pinned out and steam blocked my pieces before sewing together.

Granny Stripe Sleeves

My sleeves measure 51cm long (20 inches approx) with an upper arm depth of 22cm (8.5 inches). The wrist circumference is 22cm as well. Oh, and my sleeves only weigh 53 grams each.

The change here (from my original version) is that the increases are more frequent. There are only 26 rows of granny stripes (plus the foundation row of US single crochet) for this jumper’s sleeves. I wanted to see obvious shaping and the way to do that was to work increases every three rows.

To be honest, I also fancy some batwing style sleeves too, I wonder if I’d achieve this by increasing every row? Hmm…Granny Sweater No.4 anyone??

Anyway, I began with a foundation row of 28 stitches (multiples of 3 +1). I am not a fan of working into chains so this is a crochet foundation start, for which I have a lovely video tutorial!

Crochet Ribbing

Due to the loose drape created by using a 6mm hook, I went down to a 5mm for the ribbing. I didn’t want floppy cuffs and neck! I don’t think anybody does.

Unlike my colourful stashbusting version you’ll notice that I added the ribbing at the end here. It doesn’t really matter which order you do it in. However, if you do it at the end and mess it up, at least you can frog it at this stage without unpicking the entire thing.

You’ll also notice in the picture below that I’ve worked a foundation in the same colour as the ribbing. It looks sooooo much neater when you do this.

I have used my fave ribbing again, which is demonstrated in the video tutorial, around 44 minutes in.

The best crochet ribbing

Look at the image below. Around the neckline, I actually worked one round of US sc stitches in the main body colour, followed by a round of the ribbing colour. This is about little finishing touches to ensure it looks tidy.

Making a granny sweater
Trying it on for size!

Make a Sweater Lickety Split

And that’s about it. I think this one is a winner. I cannot tell you how satisfying Granny sweater No.3 was to make. There are so many things going for it.

  • The yarn is a bargain and you don’t need loads.
  • It is a crochet sweater that’s ridiculously quick to make.
  • It’s bang on trend. Crochet, especially granny crochet, is totes down with the kidz.
  • The boxy nature means you don’t have to get a perfect fit.
  • …Voila!
  • Now you can practice yoga and fall over a bit…

I hope you’ve found these blog posts useful. WIthin them you have the means to make the perfect sweater just for you. As much as I love an official, graded pattern I also love making things up as I go. The idea behind these posts is to encourage you to do the same. Embrace winging it and let me know what you think!

Cheers! x

Zeens & Roger Crochet Podcast. Episode 36!

Long time no see! Going OK?! …. Right, I’m getting stuck right in. Here is Episode 36 of the Zeens & Roger Crochet Podcast / Vlogcast (same thing, innit?!). Click on the pic above to go directly to the episode. Check out the whole YouTube channel HERE.

I haven’t taken up to date pics but there are a couple of progress shots below. And the links to stuff are… :

John Arbon Knit By Numbers 4ply.

Wool on the Exe – LYS

Yarndale. You’ve probs heard of it!

The Crochet Your Fade shawl is coming soon via Julme/MY Square Hat on Ravlery. HERE.

C2C dreaming…. Here is my C2C Pinterest board. Got any pics? Send them my way.

Somerset Yarns. Great colour ways.

Knitcrate. I forgot to mention that if you fancy a subscription box more than I do, ZEENSANDROGER20 is the code you need to get a discount off your first box.

You can find me in the following places: Instagram, Ravelry, Facebook, Pinterest.

Cheers. X

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August Garden

Hello! It has been aaaages! How’s it going? I haven’t written for nearly a month! I’ve been working on crochet commissions and hanging out with the boys as the summer holidays have started. I wanted to write a garden update a week or two ago but either we weren’t here or the light wasn’t right for photo taking. I’ve given up on waiting to take more pictures so I’m sharing what I have manged to snap.

Flowers first. I’m thrilled that the white anemone has bloomed for the first time. I bought it about four years ago and planted it down at the very bottom of the garden. It had never been happy there and not once did I see a flower after its  first year. I dug it up last year and plonked it in a pot to live nearer the house. Hey presto! Flowers! I love anemones. I don’t suppose they’re anything special but I don’t care. They’re definitely a favourite.

See? I have a pink one too! These flowers have always been happy sharing a corner with ferns.

This plumbago lives next to the pink anemone and the ferns. It looks like the ferns are spreading and will swamp it. I ought to move it but don’t know where it could go. Given the opportunity, I think this could get much much bigger. Where would it be happiest? The borders are where I do a lot of guess work. I’ll do some research.

Then there are the patio plants. This is what I was waiting to capture; none of these photos really show what’s what. Maybe it’s a good thing there are no other images, it isn’t the best bunch of pots I’ve ever had. The prolonged high temps made things leggy and sparse. But the boys chose this year’s plants and they chose bright things. The flowers that have come out really do make an impact. Sort of. All the summer’s rain seems to have fallen in this single past week. I wonder if it’ll pep things up. Then I can ask the sun to come for a photo opportunity! Quick, please, before the autumn comes!

Veg patch. I’ve been much better at keeping things tidy this year. It helps to have more plants waiting in the wings. There has been no room for laziness. Once the mange tout was over, once I’d pulled up all the (sadly, maggotty) carrots and eaten all the broad beans, I pulled it all out to make room for leeks and purple sprouting.

I got the leek seedlings from my step dad and the purple sprouting from the garden centre. I have tried growing both from seed before but I no longer see the point. I didn’t like the tangle of microscopic leeks that you had to wrangle (and you get too many – even without sowing them all). And caterpillars ate all my PS babies (I can’t be bothered to keep typing purple sprouting). I don’t feel the need to cheat in the garden all that often but there are times when it works out for the best. Courgettes, for example, I buy two plants each year because you don’t need more than that. Even if you made all the chutney and cake to feed an entire town, there would still be a magic porridge pot of mini marrows.

Anyway, I made a PS net house.  Three sodding hours it took me to build! I had to sew the netting together at the joins, which took ages. But, I have noticed lots of healthy growth and no butterflies. I was told to build it high as butterflies drop their eggs like bombs! Cheeky buggers. I’ve had to make a few repairs already as the cat has seen it as a daily challenge to break and enter. Pfft. I am hoping my efforts will be rewarded with the gloriousness of the best vegetable in the whole world! (Now that I’ve written that I realise that they’re all my favourite vegetables. I’m growing all my favourites! Of course I am, I wouldn’t grow ones I didn’t like, duh).

Finally. Have you ever happened upon a mystery squash? There’s one in the herb bed. I thought it was going to be a butternut. It’s not. I grew them once so wondered if it was a rogue seed.  The other option is it’s a pumpkin. I grew mini pumpkins about five years ago. This isn’t mini. Whilst it isn’t orange, I’m guessing it’s a Halloween job. Last year I chucked the carved ones on the veg bed to rot down. There must have been seeds  left in one of them. Do they turn orange at a later date? Squash Watch is a thing now.

Oh, hang on the rain has stopped. Right, I’m off outside. Whilst I’m gone, let me know what’s going on in your patch? Cheers. x

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When Did the Garden Grow?

Massive bush…

I find it so odd that a garden can grow and grow but it’s not until you look back on pictures that you really notice just how much. It’s all happened so quickly that I’ve been overwhelmed by the progress so I’m jumping in with random pics of the last couple of months before it all gets too much. This HERE is the last “stage” back in May.

I’ve only commented on a few pictures. You don’t need a massive essay on a garden I go on about all the time.  As it stands, right now we’re eating courgettes (zucchini) like our lives depended on it (for the first time ever, the yellow ones are bigger & better than the green).  The broad beans are just coming in, which makes me happy (I love them!). The mange tout are over but the runner beans are in flower, waiting to transform into my favourite ever beans.  Beetroot and carrots are being pulled up and added to salads and roast dinners. I’m also finding a plethora of wildflowers have cheekily wedged themselves between the rows of my veg (viola, nemesia, snapdragons). They won’t get pulled up though, they’re too pretty.

At some point this week you’ll probably find me in the kitchen, standing over a pile of courgettes, trying to decide whether to make chutney, cake or both.

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The hawthorn flowered much later than expected. Usually it’s May but this wasn’t until June. I look forward to it; it makes a great focal point smack bang in the middle of my view, down at the bottom of the garden.

Every year I forget what it’s called. Not any more, Love in the Mist!

Peony. Way too heavy for its own good.

Caught in the act. But I’m totally shocked to find that none of my hostas are riddled with holes. Winner!

  xxx

A Crochet Podcast. Episode 32.

Hola! It feels like it’s been ages but really it has been the usual amount of time, it’s just that I’ve been on holiday! For someone with a lack of crochet on the go I seem to have an awful lot to talk about. It’s all relative so don’t worry about any nonsense. See below for links to all things discussed in this episode, plus a few pics too. As ever, please click on the pic above to go to the episode or HERE to my YouTube channel. Thank you very much.

Holey Smokes! Version 1 is on Ravelry HERE. Version 2 is on the way at sometime in the future…

My original pompom edging tutorial. I plan on filming a version of this soon.

Granny and her rainbow edge. A free pattern.

Off the Chart. A c2c blanket, which is now available on Ravelry.

My C2C Pinterest board. Just in case you were interested!

Check out Crochetzine over on Instagram. I love that these things are happening for crochet at the minute.

Little Burrow Designs. A friend of mine and an amazing artist.

The Contemporary Craft Festival, Bovey Tracey, Devon.

A list of CALs: The KCACY calkal, Bad Boys/Bad girls summer romance cal,  The Cherry Heart mal, Summer top cal from the Crochet Circle podcast, Love Yourself cal from Hannah over at Cosy Cottage Crochet.

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A Crochet Podcast. Episode 31

Howdy, are you after some crochet talk? Look no further, Episode 31 is here! Click on the pic above to miraculously travel to the crochet podcast episode or pop over and take a look at the whole YouTube channel HERE. Ta very much. Don’t forget to take a quick look at some photos below, they pretty much show what I’ve been up to over the last couple of weeks. Ta very much. X

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Links for stuff I chat about:

I got my star scissors from Stitchsperation. Charlie is a cross stitch pattern designer; her designs are modern and super hot!

Are you interested in pattern testing my new shawl? please email me at zeensandroger@gmail.com

Dodgy Bag MAL

Rainbow edge blanket

Inside Crochet magazine

Crochet market bag. Free pattern

Gingham Bow pattern

My Etsy shop

x

Garden in May

In absolutely no particular order (because there are just too many – soz!), here are some recent pics of the garden. It’s been just over a month since I last shared what was going on in the garden and it has been a very productive few weeks. I can’t believe the difference from these photos to the ones in the last blog post! The garden has gone bonkers!

We had the bonfire that I said I wanted to have, took stuff to the dump, sorted out all the pots and got planting. There’s still lots more to do as I’ve not done all the lettucey type things and there are baby runner beans and purple french ones to go out.

A sunny May day is the garden at its best before there’s the weird June/July lull. I’m curious to see what the pots will look like later on in the year; the kids have persuaded me to change colour scheme. They’ve chosen lots of garish, clashy things. I hope I like it! I’m also desperate to get my hands on home grown veg. It’s all late because my early stuff got bitten by the frost and I had to start again. But, hey, it’s only May!

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Eleven Days Later…

Alchemilla Mollis. Poppin up all over the shop. Keep or pull?

(Not steel) magnolias

I said all I had to say about the latest garden exploits eleven days ago so I’m not going to say much more. It’d pretty much be repeating myself. But I couldn’t ignore the fact that just a few days has made such a huge difference to the garden (to my eyes at least). And I always ramp up the garden posts in spring/summer anyway.

No bonfire yet but guess what? I emptied all my pots! A full on sense of achievement was experienced that day, I can tell you. Expect to see a better garden blog post in a couple of weeks or so.

Cheers. X

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Hostas awakening!

Such cute babies. More hostas.

Thought this was dead

Some sort of peony

Kerria Japonica. Tiddly om pompom

  ;p

Zeens & Roger Crochet Podcast/Vlogcast Episode 26

Happy March!! We’re supposed to be thinking about spring but it’s most definitely winter outside!! Brrrr, maybe keep warm whilst watching episode 26 of my crochet podcast!? As usual, click on the pic above to go to the episode or go to my YouTube channel HERE. Ta very much.

Here’s some links to stuff I talk about, I wasn’t concentrating so I hope I have it all. If not please give me a shout and I’ll give you extra info.

March Meet the Maker – A month long Instagram challenge

#hookedonyarn2018 Another month long IG challenge.

My Easter Eggs. HERE is the link to the blog post about the latest additions to the family.

Blacker Yarns. This is lovely yarn that I’m going to get more of. I used Tamar Lustre Blend. A real woolly wool from just across the border in Cornwall.

Inside Crochet magazine

Simply Crochet magazine

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Another Granny Chevron Cowl! Pattern & Tutorial.

Crochet Granny Chevron Cowl

Fancy a very quick and easy crochet project? Last summer I designed and made a fluffy chevron cowl (see pic below). Yesterday I made a smaller, non fluffy version. I made it when I was thinking about all things granny (I couldn’t wait for the Granny CAL! I just couldn’t!). This morning I filmed a short tutorial too. It’s now up on YouTube if you want to go and have a look!

You can find the original fluffier pattern Here. I made the new cowl a bit smaller as I was restricted by the amount of yarn I had: 200 grams of chunky alpaca/mulberry silk stuff I found for £8 a skein from last year’s Edinburgh Yarn Festival. The (impulsively bought) yarn had been sat waiting for nearly a year and I had no real idea about what to do with it for ages. Funny how something can jump out at you after all that time.

Righty, Some Pattern Details.

  • I used a 6mm hook for my chunky yarn.
  • The yarn I used was only 92 metres per 100g. I think other chunky yarns are usually a bit more than that. I used almost every bit so if you don’t have at least 184 meters of chunky then you might not make it to the end.
  • It measures approx 32×32 cm (12.5×12.5 inches). That’s a circumference of 64cm.
  • I chained 47 to begin, this gives you a total of 14 clusters per row
  • To make it bigger or smaller, add or subtract 6. That’s enough for a granny cluster for each side.
  • The pattern is written in UK terms. The video uses both UK and US terms but essentially all you need to know is that a UK treble is a US double.
  • 3tr = cluster.
  • Feel feel to keep on going to make a bigger version. Why not turn this snug fitting cowl into a cosy infinity scarf?!

Crochet Cowl Pattern

Chain 47.
Row 1: 3tr in 7th from hook, (miss 2 st, 3tr in next) six times, ch2, 3tr in next st, (miss 2 st, 3tr) six times, miss 2 st, 1 tr in last st. Turn.

Row 2: Ch3, (3tr in space between clusters) six times, (3tr, ch2, 3tr) in 2 chain space, (3tr in space between clusters) six times, 1tr in last st of row. Turn

Row 3 – 29: Rep row 2, changing colour every five rows.

Row 30: As row 2 but slip stitch to join to Row 1 between each cluster. Fasten off and sew in ends.

I hope you like it. I promise it’s super easy to make and can be made in a couple of hours (maybe less, I didn’t time it).

Jeepers, I’m not wearing make up on me peepers. Again!

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