Heartland Patchwork Granny Square Blanket

I'm so excited to share my latest work-in-progress with you! Just a few more rows, a fun/funky border, and it will be complete. And what a long road it's been: I've been working on this blanket for a little over a year. 

Well, that's not exactly true, now, is it? I started planning this blanket a year ago, worked on it for a month, then let it have a nice little "hibernation period," if you will. Did ya know that projects really enjoy a time of prolonged rest and incubation? Well, they do. 

Actually the reason that this project lingered so long is that I designed it as my "take along" crochet project. All you need is your hook and one ball of yarn and you're in business! Much easier than toting along all 15 yarn colors that might be going into your current ripple blanket. 

The lavender square on the left was the last one I crocheted. Ran out of yarn right at the end. Ahhhh!

I specifically planned this as my "take along" crochet project for our trip to Iowa last summer. My husband is from a very small town in eastern Iowa, and he is a very proud Iowan. When we first met, he told me all about his family, tales of people in his town ("Calamus Stories"), and about how beautiful Iowa is. 

Uh . . . right.

I, myself, am from the great state of North Carolina. You know. Great Smoky Mountains. Blue Ridge Parkway. Outer Banks. If you grew up in North Carolina, it's just sort of cute when someone else tells you how beautiful their state is. "Ok, I'm sure, honey. Bless your heart."

I took this picture somewhere in eastern Iowa. I have no idea where we were. And I didn't care.
Beautiful day, beautiful scenery, great music, and my family with me. Happy happy. 

But here's the thing: Iowa actually is beautiful! I'd been to the Midwest before, though not Iowa, and my impression was flat, flat, flat. But Iowa, at least the part he hails from, isn't flat at all. It's near the mighty Mississippi River, and has all these gorgeous hills and bluffs.

The sky goes on forever. 

I took this picture at the western edge of Wheatland, Iowa.

And the sunsets are stunning. 

And as you drive through the countryside, you see a beautiful patchwork of colors and shapes blending into one another. Of green, green grass in front of a field of golden corn. Of bold red barns dotting the landscape. Or the bright yellow sun sparkling off the deep blue of the Mississippi River as bald eagles swoop and soar overhead. (They really do! It's an amazing sight.)

Snow covered field in Wheatland, Iowa.

So those are the colors that I decided to play with for my blanket. And what better project to work on as we traveled around Iowa than a patchwork blanket made of granny squares? I just love the humble granny square. I don't know if this simple construction evokes meaning and memories for anyone else, but to me the granny square represents generations of crochet, passed down from one strong, creative woman in my family to another. I find just looking at the colorful squares to be soothing. And I can practically make them in my sleep at this point, so that's definitely a bonus.

Mr. Kody stomping on the squares early in the project.

I picked Berroco's Vintage yarn for this blanket, purchased at my local yarn shop. This is a very high quality, soft yarn, and the colors are just to-die-for gorgeous. I've had many fun trips to the yarn shop to pull out various colors, place them next to each other, and carefully select the perfect ones that I wanted to use.

I'm joining the blocks together using the join-as-you-go method, which really is the best thing since sliced bread in the world of crochet. It took me a few tries to get the hang of it, and I find it is most successful when I pull the slip stitches very tight. Otherwise there can be a slight gap between squares. I'll send you off to Lucy at Attic24 to explain the method, which is where I learned it from. There are any number of join-as-you-go tutorials out there, but I find her explanations really made it click for me.

Tractor pulling a hayride at Pride of the Wapsi farm.

Now I'll share my way of making granny squares for this blanket. I don't know where the original granny square came from, but I think it would be a fun idea to research it and learn more about its history (future blog post?!). For now, I'll say that of course I didn't invent or create this pattern, but this is my take on it. Give it a try, have fun, and let me know if you have any questions!

Granny Square Pattern

This is a pattern that is older than the hills. Here's the version I used. When working in one color, as in my Heartland Patchwork blanket, I flip the square every round so that there isn't a "good side" and "bad side." It also creates a neat little ridge around each section of squares in the piece. Another main thing I do that I omit the chain space between the corner stitches and the side stitches. It still keeps a square shape, but creates a tighter piece without large holes or spaces. If you like lighter, more airy crochet, then keep those chain spaces in there. View my full granny square tutorial here.

Heartland Patchwork Granny Square Blanket

Yarn: Berroco Vintage

Colors: Aquae, Aster, Banane, Fuschia, Envy, Macaron, Mistletoe, Ruby, and Violetta 

Hook: Size I

To Begin: Make a slip knot. Chain 4 and slip stitch (SS) to the first chain to make a circle.

Round 1: (This is the round you make the cross in the middle of the square.)
Chain 3 and make two double crochets (DC) into the circle. Chain 2. (3 DC, CH2) 3 more times, then join with a SS into the third chain of your starting chain. Flip your work so that you are working on the reverse side now.

Round 2: (This is the round in which you make the corners of your square.)
Chain 3, 2 DC, CH 2, 3 DC all in same space. (3DC, CH2, 3 DC) 3 more times. Join with a SS into the third chain of your starting chain. Flip your work so that you are working on the reverse side now.

Round 3: Chain 3, then make 2 DC into the same space. (3DC, CH2, 3 DC) into each corner, and 3 DC into each side space. Join with a SS to the third chain of your starting chain.

Each subsequent round follows this same pattern until your square is as big as you'd like it. I normally do five rounds if I am making a small square that will be joined with others in a blanket.