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Wednesday, November 2, 2011

Inspiration: Granny Octagon

TODAY!  3:00 EST I'll be on with other guests on Fave Crafts Radio on the Blog Talk Radio System. Here's the link!  Listen in just as you would with our other favorite Blog Talk Radio Shows.

 What was I thinking?

The Granny Octagon is one of the Beginner projects in the book, Go Crochet! Afghan Design Workbook (which is at a really low price today, by the way...)
I was thinking that I needed a beginner project. Generally beginners learn granny squares with the square that is the inspiration for this octagon. It is defined by the three double crochet grouped sides.  When the term 'granny square' is used THAT is what I think of. Everything else, in my mind, is a motif.  To me, a granny square is that one specific pattern, though most people use 'granny square' to mean any unit made in the round. I think, with this octagon, that beginners who have learned the quintessential granny square, will look at this octagon and recognize that they have the skills to make it.  Octagons tile well with squares, so the quintessential granny square could match up with this octagon for a project (though I didn't put that basic pattern in my book, because it's not mine and it's been covered thousands of times over throughout crochet history). 
I chose green because I wanted to do a gradation of dark to light and that's the only color that I had a satisfactory selection of values of the same color family. Yep, sometimes decisions get made based on what you have.  I like it that way, it makes me feel connected to our pioneer ancestors who made beautiful scrap quilts and afghans based on what they had :)

After reading this post, and hearing me on the radio today at 3:00, if you still want to talk more crochet, meet me in my Ravelry group for a live chat tonight at 9:00pm EST.  Here is the Ravelry link

2 comments:

Haley said...

I wonder how it would look to pair this granny octogon with granny squares in the opposite color gradation? Hmmm, something to consider for a future project :o)

Mary Sarah said...

This is a great design! So many color possibilities!