Intro to the Granny Block Sweater series, a new raglan tutorial series using dk weight yarn. Let’s dive into comfort, whimsy and joy.
Inspiration & Design
Hello and welcome to the start of a new sweater series. Ever since I created the Granny Raglan sweater I’ve been collecting your questions and concerns to create another in depth garment tutorial. I knew I wanted this new garment to use our dear granny stitch but I also wanted us to explore something new..
In this sweater series we are are keeping our beloved granny stitch but we are incorporating the sc-ch2 used in the block stitch. Henceforth I’m calling this combo the granny block stitch. We are going to be using this stitch to create two raglan sweaters. Both sweaters will be worked top down using two colors. While their stitches and constructions are similar, The difference in these granny block sweaters lies in the neckline and sleeves. The first sweater in the series, the granny crew sweater, will feature a crew neck and yarn permitting long sleeves. The second one, Granny No 7, will feature a V neck and short sleeves.
Which yarn are we using for our Granny Block Sweaters?
In order to stitch the night away without sacrificing our wrists or our eye sight, we will be using good ol’ reliable dk weight yarn. I know, I know, there are a lot of dk weight yarns available so I’m providing some options and color combos below.
Featured below, the yarn For my berry green granny crew sweater I bought dk weight yarn from Esotericloth on Instagram. It’s so perfectly pretty and soft and just absolutely wonderful.
Yarn with similar feel and yardage to this one would be Swish DK you could combine one of their solids with either the swish pops or swish tonals. Another option, a bit on the lighter side of dk would be Berroco Vintage DK
For my Short sleeve version I’ve used a cotton blend yarn that has been discontinued but some good options are Dilly Dally (a cotton, bamboo hemp blend) or the Comfy Worsted. I know its classified as a worsted but its yardage and feel is closer to a dk weight for me.
Since the color changes don’t actually create a pattern, feel free to only use one color or stash bust with whatever you have on hand. Just remember as we learned with the Chasing Autumn top, changing the fiber or weight will result in a different fabric and drape.
4.5mm furls streamline crochet hook to crochet both garments. If you are using a clover amour or a tulip hoop, you may need to go up to a 5mm to match my gauge.
Yarn requirements and measurements
For the Granny Crew neck we will need at least 400g of yarn for a sweater that has the following measurements after blocking. NOTE: Making the garment to the below mentioned measurements, I had 39g of the main color left and 3g of the contrasting color
- Bust (Circumference)- 37″
- Length measured from shoulder – 16” This is easy enough to adjust by adding more rounds for a longer sweater or less for a more natural waist crop look.
- 16 rounds of the body will equal 6″ after light blocking and the overall length of the garment will be 14.75″
- 22 rounds of the body will equal 8″ and the overall length of the garment will be 16″
- Armhole depth – 9”
- Neckline flat – 7.25”
- Sleeve length – 12″ measured from under arm (32 rounds)
- 26 rounds will give you 10″ of length with light blocking,
- stretch and pin in place for a .5″ length increase
- if you have extra yarn, make your sleeves as long as you want them.
Granny No 7 top
For the Granny No 7, we will need approximately 300 g of yarn for a top that measures
- Bust (Circumference)- 37”
- Length measured from shoulder – 16”
- Armhole depth – 8.75”
Yarn Breakdown
300g of the Main Color Yarn (Cosmia in my case)
150g of the contrasting yarn (Berry)
The neckline is wide enough for several sizes. If you would like to adjust for larger sizes you will just need to adjust the bust measurement. We can do this by continuing to increase after we have split for the sleeves. If you are only adjusting width then I would add 50g of yarn to that mentioned above so as not to play yarn chicken.
If you would like to adjust both length and width, then I would add at least 75g of yarn to the total listed above.
How are we constructing our sweaters?
To keep things light and fun we will be using a Raglan construction for both the crew and v neck versions. This means that we will start at the neckline, then increase the body and sleeve every second row until you reach the stitches needed. The final stitches are then cast-on across the underarm.
With the raglan construction we are increasing the sleeves and the bust at the same rate. Naturally, proves a problem for a smaller or larger bust. In this pattern I recommend that you follow the rounds listed in the pattern and then increase for the larger bust after we separate for the sleeves. Alternatively, you can add extra chains under the arms, but this will make your armhole wider as well.
If, however, you need less stitches around the bust, work 2 rounds less than those listed in the pattern and try on to see if the armhole fit is comfortable.
Tutorial structure
The video tutorials for each of our granny block sweaters will come out separately on the crochetcakes youtube channel.
The videos for the granny crew sweater will be released first in the following order.
- Part 1 – Introduction and Yoke Part 1
- Yoke Part 2
- Part 3 – Sleeve Separation and Body
- Part 4 – Neckline
- Part 5 – Sleeves
Then, we will follow up with the granny no 7 top.
Gauge:
- The gauge listed below is for both garments.
- For this swatch we are working in the round
- Measurements given after wet blocking. (wash, and lay flat to dry)
- Dk weight yarn with a 4.5mm hook (Furls Streamline)
- I wet blocked without cutting the yarn. After the swatch was dry, I frogged back to the foundation row.
| Sts | Rounds |
| 5 full granny sts + 2 dc in 4” [ alternatively 17dc’s ] | 10 rounds of the granny block st in 4” |
Start your swatch with enough multiples of 3 so that when we join in the round it measures at least 5” flat. For me this was somewhere between 42 and 45 foundation single crochets Tutorial for gauge swatch –
I hope to see you there for our very first granny crew video tutorial!Full Description of Pattern
