Yes, I actually decided to make a sweater out of a granny square, something I never thought I’d do. All those ’70s granny square clothes drove me crazy.
Inspired by a Lily Chin Pattern
So what made me actually consider such a thing? No, the devil didn’t make me do it, A Lily Chin pattern that I found fiddling around on the ‘Net one day (it’s pattern # H003) did. It uses her Harlem LC Signature Collection yarn, and when I saw the vest, I knew I had to make it.
Chin combines two geometric shapes to create the vest back – a square, encompassing shoulders to mid back, and a circle, extending from the mid back to the bottom edge. I thought this was SO cool, and I wanted to see how she combined the two shapes. Best way to find out was to make it.
(Note: I’ve searched high and low for this pattern online, but can’t find it. I think I have a hard copy somewhere, but I made the vest so long ago, I’ll have to search for it. 2-17-17)
My First Stab at Lily’s Pattern
Ok, so I didn’t use her yarn. No offense, Lily. I hardly ever use the yarn a pattern calls for. I consider the first time I crochet a pattern an experiment to make sure I understand it. Sometimes I make it again, using the pattern yarn; sometimes I don’t. So maybe I should have used the Harlem yarn because the vest turned out a little … big, shall we say. I also added some rounds to make it longer. Then there’s the fact that the circular bottom makes my butt look wide — can’t have that!
Birth of the Granny Square Sweater
That’s where the idea for the Granny Square sweater came in. I decided to see if I could change the pattern so that the back is a full granny square. I also added sleeves … I mean, what good is something like this if your arms aren’t covered to keep you warm and comfy when you go to the movies and sit in the always-overly-air-conditioned theater, right?
So this is what I got. With this version, I used an “I” hook and a little over two skeins of trusty Red Heart Super Saver (7 oz skein); the pattern calls for a “J” hook, which leads me to believe that the Harlem yarn is at least worsted weight if not a little bulkier.
In any event, as you can see from the photo of the green vest, the bottom portion is way too long. I thought a smaller hook might prevent that. Well it did, but my sweater is just a little too small. So I’m gonna try it again, using a “J” hook. The stitch used throughout is treble crochet. It took me seven days to make it.
How Much Revision Is Needed to Call a Pattern Your Own?
I sure would like to call this sweater pattern my own, but I’m not too sure how much the original pattern needs to change before I can do that. One yarn company that I did a project for said that the pattern has to be at least 30% different from the original pattern. Anybody know about this?? I think the next version will have a more detailed granny square back.
There are more photos of the pattern alternation process at my Ravelry site (log in to view). And no, I don’t have the pattern for this sweater, but the photos at Ravelry will give you an idea of how I put it together.
11 comments On Granny Square Sweater
That is one good lookin’ sweater!
I like them both they are totally different styles to me. The aqua colored one looks very comfy and ready for movie night. The pink one looks very feminine, like I would want to wear a cute skirt with it! Very nice though I don’t know anything about designing but they look very different.
Hey Opal! Thanks! It was a fun project.
Btw, the Winwardites are planning a trip across (or should I say “through”) the mountains to MJ on a Thursday evening soon. Hope to see you there.
Hi Kena! Yes, they are different looks. The aqua vest looks good on my daughter (she’s tall and slim). I wore the sweater to the movies the other day (saw “Harold and Kumar Escape from GB”) and it kept me comfortable. The next one I make will be a gold color and hopefully a little longer with the “J” hook.
i like the simplicity of the granny square sweater…it looks really nice!
Thanks, Debbie!! I’ll make the next one soon. Decided to work on the Babette blanket for a while.
NICE! I think they’re both awesome. The vest would look lovely with a long skirt and a sleeveless shell and the sweater will look awesome with anything! And yes, I think you can call it your own since it seems like you did enough alterations. And BTW – I love your freeform entry, I’ve been out of the loop since I’ve been quilting and beading lately. Go figure.
Hey Claudia! Great to hear from you! Quilting? I will have to check out your blog to see what’s up.
Thanks for the positive feedback on the sweater. I have been anxious about publishing a pattern, so your comments are helping to relieve than anxiety. I’m just finishing up a gold one in a larger hook, so I should be finalizing the pattern soon.
And thanks for the positive feedback on my freeform entry. I’m amazed at how easy it was to do this time.
Beautiful sweater! And yes, your design has to diverge from the original at least 30%, preferably more.
Hey Sahara! Long time no see! I think by adding the sleeves and changing the bottom half of the original vest, I’ve gone over 30%. I was thinking of altering the granny square back as well but haven’t decided how yet. Thanks for the encouragement!
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