These are my two new patterns for the Caribbean swap in Ravelry. I call the top one in green and cream The Chevron Square and the bottom one is my 5DC Granny.
These are both take offs of the original granny squares and are easy, easy, easy...and you can change the colors to change the looks. Of course, I do all my color changes in Air Crochet, and join with the invisible join rather than a slip stitch, but you don't have to. I'm giving the old fashion instructions.
Chevron- 9" square: ch 4, join
Row 1: Ch3, 2dc in circle, ch2; 3dc in circle, ch2. Repeat from * two more times, join. Change colors (If you don't Air Crochet, you may join the 2nd color by sc to a corner and ch2 or 3 according to how you join - 2 for an invisible join, 3 for a slip stitch) 12 dc
Row 2: 3dc, ch2, 3dc in each corner space. 24 dc.
Each row hereafter is the same - all corners have 3dc, ch2, 3dc. All of the others are treble crochets which reach down to the row below in the middle stitch. This elongates the stitch to join the same color, and also keeps it at even with the dc's in the corner. Each row you change colors so that the row you are on will reach into the same color stitches two rows below, working over the row right below.
If this is confusing let me know. You can make this as big or as little as you want. I ended with a last row of hdc. (also please pardon my not weaving in the ends on this one!)
The second square is just a basic Granny Square, but using 5DC (clusters) instead of 3dcs....it gives it a more sturdy feel and a rather rounder look to the stitches in the corner.
On the 5th row I do 2dc, ch2, 2dc in the corner, then one dc in each of the next 4 stitches - then do one dc in the next stitch, holding the last 2 stitches on the hook, do another dc in the between the next 2dc (between clusters), again keeping the last two stitches on the hook, then do it again one more time in the first dc of the next cluster, pulling the last yo through all loops on the hook. In using a different color this gives it a "chicken foot" look to it....I am decreasing two stitches this way to keep the square from getting wavy. Each side will have 3 of these decreases.
I just finished off the square with another row of dc and the last row in hdc to reach 9".
What do you think???????
ETA: One of the members of Ravelry told me that one of Patricia Hewitt's squares, Maze Granny, looks a lot like this one. I will post a link later - but her's uses a front post treble, so isn't as flat or as wide of a stitch so it is a different look...here 'granny' shows behind the posts while mine doesn't. Sure is pretty, though!
Here is another version in different colors and 12" instead of the 9"....
