How to Crochet a Blanket Out of Squares for Beginners

A granny square blanket is a good beginner project.

A granny square blanket, or afghan, is a terrific beginner crochet project. You only have to learn two stitches, and you can work the blanket in small sections and assemble it later. You can crochet a granny square blanket of all one color, a different color for every round, or any other combination that suits your sense of aesthetic. The squares are worked in rounds. The more rounds you make, the bigger the squares. You can easily make the blanket as big as you like just by adding more squares.

Things You'll Need

• Yarn
• Crochet hook
• Scissors
• Large-eyed needle

Instructions

1. Chain stitch four stitches. Join the last stitch to the first stitch with a slip stitch. This will make a small circle.

2. Chain three times. Double crochet twice. Go through the center of the circle with each double crochet. Chain twice. Double crochet three times. Repeat from the chain two twice more. Chain twice. Slip stitch into the top of the chain three. Slip knot and snip yarn if you want to change the yarn color. Each chain two is a corner of the square. This is round one.

3. Make a slip knot with the new yarn. Slip stitch into one chain two from round one. Chain three times. Double crochet twice in the chain two. Chain two and then double crochet three times. This is the first corner of round two. Make one chain. Double crochet three times, chain two and double crochet three times in the next corner. Repeat from the chain one two more times. Chain twice. Slip stitch into the top of the chain three. Slip knot and snip yarn to change the yarn color.

4. Repeat the previous step for each additional round, chaining twice in each corner and once over each set of three double crochets along the sides.

5. Connect the blocks together by sewing the blocks together with the large-eyed needle and yarn. Attach enough blocks to make up the width of the blanket. This is the first row. Make additional rows. Sew rows together until the blanket is long enough to suit your needs. Finish off by double crocheting in every stitch around the exterior edge of the blanket.

Tips & Warnings

• Plan out the color scheme ahead of time to create a geometric pattern. Often, the last round of each square is the same color to create a patchwork quilt appearance.

• The larger the crochet hook, the larger and softer the stitches.

• While you can use a variety of colors in granny square blankets, avoid mixing and matching yarn weights and types of yarn. Changing types of yarn can cause some rounds and squares to end up smaller than others.

References

• Crochet Cabana: How to Make a Granny Square