Granny Stitch Poncho

I bought the yarn for this a little over a year ago! It's the Premier Puzzle yarn in their crossword color. At the time, I wasn't sure what project I would use it in, just that I loved the variegation of colors in the yarn. I thought this yarn could make a pretty shawl, sweater, or other project, so I ended up getting several skeins! For this particular project, I ended up using exactly 2 skeins for the body, and a little more for the fringe at the bottom. I absolutely love how this poncho turned out!

Materials:

• Premier Puzzle yarn (Crossword color), I used almost 3 skeins to make this poncho

• 7 mm crochet hook

• Scissors

Instructions:

Chain 66. If you’re working with thinner yarn, you may have to make a longer chain. Join the chain with a slip stitch to form a loop. 

Round 1: 

Chain 2, then make a half double crochet (HDC) in the 1st stitch available on the left.

Continue like this working a HDC in each stitch all the way around. When you get to the end of the round, join your yarn with a slip stitch at the top of the 1st chain 2. 

Round 2: 

Chain 3 (acts as your first double crochet), then work 2 double crochet (DC) in the same space. This forms your first DC cluster. 

Skip 2 stitches, then 3 DC in the following stitch to make another DC cluster. 

Repeat from “skip 2 stitches” until you have 6 DC clusters. 

To form the shoulder - after you have made your 6 DC clusters, chain 3 and work 3 DC in that same space to make a corner. Then continue with the pattern: skip 2 stitches, work 3 DC in the next stitch, etc…

Now that we've formed one shoulder, we need to continue making the DC clusters until we get to the same point on the other side where we will work the second shoulder.

Figure out where your second shoulder will go by folding your circle in half with the shoulder you just made at one end - the second shoulder will need to go at the exact other end, and you could put a stitch marker there so you know when you get to it.

After you have worked the second shoulder/corner, keep going with your DC clusters until you get back to the beginning. Close the round by joining your yarn to the top of your 1st chain 3 with a slip stitch.

Your poncho should look like more of a granny eye than a granny square as we only have the two corners at this point.

Rounds 3 – 21: 

Continue working the DC clusters, same as round 2, working the shoulder/corners when you arrive at the chain 3 space at the tip of the shoulder/corner from the previous round.

Round 22: 

Finish with a final round of HDC - 1 in every stitch and 1 in both chain 3 corner spaces. 

*To make the back gap smaller:

Start 3 stitches up from the bottom of the upside down triangle gap in the back of the neck hole.

Chain 2. Connect with a slip stitch.

Chain 1. DC 3. Chain 1. Connect with slip stitch.

Adding the fringe:

Cut a length of yarn about 10" or 25 cm long. Fold it in half and use your crochet hook to slip the loop through one of the HDC stitches at the poncho's border. 

Feed the tail through the loop and pull to secure the fringe.

Continue adding lengths of fringe to every single stitch all the way around, and then give them a little trim if you have any longer stragglers, or if you want to neaten the ends.

Finally, take your yarn needle (or a hook) and weave in all your loose yarn ends to finish.