Granny Stripe - The Quick & Easy Way

Granny stripe crochet is a lot of fun to do, and it works up surprisingly quickly! It looks beautiful and it is super easy to work. Granny stripes are the ideal project for new crocheters, who have mastered the basics but want to move on to bigger projects. They also work well for more experienced crocheters who are looking for a project which is easy, therapeutic, and calming, and doesn’t involve too much concentration.

Granny Stripe Crochet Tutorial

Of course, the first thing that springs to mind when you mention granny stripes is a beautiful blanket, but you can use this design to create absolutely anything!

All you are doing when making granny stripes is crocheting granny clusters, but instead of going around a central point to make squares, you will be working back and forth from side to side across the width of the fabric you are creating. In fact, granny stripes are easier than granny squares, because you don’t have to negotiate those pesky corners! You can also crochet granny stripe projects in larger sizes so you don't have to learn how to join granny squares.

Granny Stripe - Materials

• Yarn in the colors of your choice. I like using worsted weight yarn for granny stripe blankets.
• Crochet hook of suitable size for your yarn weight
• Scissors
• Yarn needle to darn in your ends

Abbreviations Used to Do a Granny Stripe

This design is written in US terms.

• ch - chain stitch
• sl st - slip stitch
• sc - single crochet
• dc - double crochet
• sk - skip
• st - stitch
• sp - space

How to Crochet a Granny Stripe Step by Step

It is a good idea to start with a small sample of granny stripe, just to get the feel of this stitch.

Foundation Row:

• Create a slip knot and foundation chain.

Your starting chain needs to be a multiple of 3 + 2. This will be the width of your blanket or item. (See further down this article for some suggested granny stripe blanket pattern widths. For a single blanket, try 101 chains)

Row 1:

• Insert hook into second chain from hook. (You can see how I have inserted the hook through both loops of the chain stitch.)

If it is difficult to get your hook under both loops of the chain stitch, your chain may be too tight. This often happens. Try doing the foundation chain with a larger hook, then change back to your normal hook when working the first row.

• Work 1 single crochet (sc) into each chain stitch along the foundation chain, all the way to the end.

Row 2:

• Chain 3. (This counts as 1 dc.)
• Work 1 dc into the chain stitch at the base of the ch3 you have just created.

• Skip 2 stitches.
• Work 3 dc into next sc. (This is a double crochet cluster)

• *Skip 2 stitches.
• Work 3 dc into next sc.
• Repeat from * all the way along the row, until 3 stitches remain.

• Skip 2 stitches,.
• Work 2 dc into last stitch.

• Turn.

(If you started with the 200 chains to make a single blanket, you should now have 65 dc clusters. Stop for a moment and check!)

Row 3:

• Chain 3. (Counts as 1 dc.)
• Now you will be working into the spaces formed by your dc clusters.
• Work 3 dc into first space. (1 granny cluster.)

• * Work 3 dc into next space.
•  Repeat from * all the way along the row.

• Finish the row with 1 dc into the top of the 3ch that you made at the start of the previous row.

If you are making the single bed blanket, do a check on your stitch count. You should now have 66 granny clusters, with 1 dc at the beginning and end of the row. It is worth taking the time to do this, as it ensures that your sides are even and straight.

Row 4:

• Change color.

Now of course your color pattern choices are entirely up to you! You may want to work your blanket in 2 rows of each color, as I did with my sample swatch. In which case, you must end off your yarn and change to a new color now. Be sure to leave tails of yarn long enough to be able to weave them in later!

• Chain 3. (counts as 1 dc.)
• Work 1 dc into same space.

• *Work 3 dc into next space along.
• Repeat from * to end of row.

• When you get to the last space, work 2 dc into that space. (This row has 2 dc at each end to keep your sides straight.)
• Turn.

Row 5:

• Chain 3. (counts as 1 dc.)
• Work 3 dc into first space.
• *Work 3 dc into next space along.
• Repeat from * to end of row.
• When you get to the end of the row, insert your hook into the top of the turning chain from the previous row.

• Work 1 dc.
• Fasten off if you wish to change colors again.
• Repeat rows 4 and 5 until your work has reached the required length. For a single bed this should be around 200 cm. (78.7 ins.)

Finishing a Granny Stripe Crochet

Now you must weave in your ends, and crochet a border all the way around your blanket. If you want to have a really simple border, just crochet a few rounds of single crochet all the way around. You can do it all in one border color or change colors each round!

A simple picot border also looks good on this type of blanket. But you may want to choose something more elaborate!

Color choices for Granny Stripe

It is a good idea to plan your colors carefully before you start, and space them out evenly throughout the project. While my instructions are shown using 2 rows of each color, you can make your stripes as wide or as narrow as you like! Just be sure you have enough of each color to complete your blanket!

This blanket can easily be made with leftover scraps of yarn, in which case you will simply change color once you run out of yarn. This will give you a much more random, eclectic effect.

You can choose to use bright, contrasting colors, or go for an ombre effect by working shades of one color, from light to dark, or vice versa. You can choose pastel shades to make a delicate baby blanket.

For those of you who are not fans of a striped effect, the granny stripe blanket can also be made in a single color. The method is exactly the same, you just won't be having the ‘stripes’. Perhaps it can just be called a granny blanket in that case?

My personal favorite granny stripe effect is to alternate colors with white, cream, black, or any other neutral shade. So you would work 2 rows of neutral, 2 rows of color, 2 rows of neutral, 2 rows of color, and on.

What to Use the Granny Stripe For

This pattern is really easy and flexible. As mentioned earlier, it is not limited to blankets only. You can make cushion covers, tote bags, scarves, cowls, baby blankets, even a blanket for a king-size bed! You can make garments with this pattern, too. Create the correctly shaped pieces of the garment by increasing or decreasing where necessary. Use any simple garment pattern and follow the instructions for shaping, while just creating your ’fabric’ out of granny stripes. With the cardigan pictured above, I only used 1 row of color, then 1 row of neutral cream. But it is still very effective, and draws compliments on any drab, cold, winters day!

Granny Stripe Blanket Pattern

You can use the above method to crochet a granny stripe blanket pattern. A blanket is just a rectangle!

• Chain your desired blanket width. There are some suggested widths below.
• Double crochet in clusters as outlined in the granny stripe tutorial above until you reach your desired length.
• Stitch a single crochet border all the way around.

Here are some suggested sizes for your granny stripe blanket pattern:

SIZE	WIDTH	LENGTH
Single (Twin)	65" (165cm)	90" (229cm)
Double	80" (203cm)	90" (229cm)
Queen	90" (229cm)	90" (229cm)
King	110" (279cm)	90" (229cm)

Alternative Granny Stripe Crochet Method

An alternative way to make granny stripes is to crochet in a rectangle, changing colors every row or few rows. Learn how to crochet a rectangle.

Granny Stripe - In Conclusion

All you need to do is to organize some yarn and a suitable hook, turn on a podcast or audiobook, or even a favorite TV program, and spend a calm and contented time getting busy with your granny stripes! Relax and enjoy it, and don’t let that unfinished housework bother you one jot!