Since we have a new niece arriving next month and because I find crocheting relaxing, I recently made this little baby blanket. It is one big granny square. I got tired of doing it all the same so I tried switching off which hook I was using. I made a fairly large square with a J hook and then switched for the next few rows to a bigger hook (I think it was like M or N, my big plastic ones don't say on them what they are). I ended up doing two sections of big rows alternating with small rows. It made it a little more interesting. I like granny squares because the pattern is repetitive (I don't like having to keep looking over a pattern or counting stitches and rows).
Here's how to make a granny square.
chain 4, slip stitch the end to the beginning to make a circle. chain 3 (that counts as the first double crochet. going through the middle of the circle, make two more double crochets then chain one, make three double crochets then chain one, make three more double crochets then chain one, finally make three more double crochets and chain one then slip stitch into the top of the chain three to finish off the row. Slip stitch through the two double crochets until you get to the chain one space. Chain 3(for the first double crochet) then do two double crochet in the space (just like you did in the circle at the beginning), chain 2 then do three more double crochet in the same space (it should make a nice corner). chain 1 and then in the next space make three double crochet, chain 2 and three more double crochet, then chain 1 and repeat in each remaining space until you get back around to where you started. slip stitch to close it off and slip stitch to get yourself to the corner again. repeat what you did on the last row, only this time there will be spaces in between the corners. In those spaces, just do three double crochets and continue on with a chain 1 in between the shells (those three double crochets). You can make as many rows as you like.
