'A Little Bit of Happiness' Crochet Project

'A Little Bit of Happiness' Crochet Project - To Chase Away the Winter Blues

Every year I really struggle during January and February with season affective disorder and tend to lose my crojo, which usually brings me so much comfort and joy. Starting big new projects feels impossible and continuing with previous abandoned wips just does not appeal. 

I have tried many different tricks over the years to get through these dark, dreary winter months and have tried to find crochet projects that work for me during this time when I feel unmotivated and generally a bit down about everything. 

I have found that small projects with quick outcomes work well at bringing some joy, and have made things such as wristwarmers, a winter hat, or even some small mandalas in past years at this time. However choosing yarn, patterns, and even making simple colour decisions can feel rather overwhelming. So this year I am trying something a little different. I have a square pattern that I designed a few years ago now but never did anything with, and I have a whole bunch of little yarn balls in a lovely range of happy bright colours that I've been wondering what to do with, so I thought why not combine the two with the addition of a little surprise each day to make one 6 round granny square a day throughout January and February.

My plan

I have chosen 16 colours from my stash of cotton blend DK yarn (I'm using Knitcraft Tiny Friends) and put them in a bag. Each day I'll reach into the bag and pull out 4 random balls, without looking. I'll then crochet the granny square pattern, in the colours I've picked out, in the order they are drawn from the bag. This will take away the decision making that I find so difficult, and give me a little fun surprise each day for how the square will turn out. To make sure all the squares have a common connection with each other, I'm going to do the first round and last round of the square in white. Also, to make sure I get a complete and even selection of all the colours, once I've pulled them out of the bag I'll keep them to one side until the bag is empty then I'll add them all back in, give them a good mix and then start the process all over again. By the end of February I should have 60 squares to make a blanket or perhaps a scarf or snood. I'll worry about that part later once the days become brighter and my mood and decisions become easier. 

Watch this space to see how the project goes and if my plan works. I'll post my progress on my Instagram stories and I'll put a copy of my square pattern below and add photos of the resulting squares as I go along - if you'd like to join in too you are very welcome.

A Little Bit of Happiness Square Pattern

- Written in UK crochet terms -

Abbreviations:

ch = chain

htr = half treble crochet

tr = treble crochet

dtr = double treble crochet

fptr = front post treble crochet

fpdtr = front post double treble crochet

sl st = slip stitch

ch2-sp = chain two space

st(s) = stitch(es)

beg = beginning

Rnd 1: In white, make a magic circle and working into circle, ch3, 2tr, (ch2, 3tr) 3 times, ch2, sl st into top of beg ch3 to join and tighten circle to close, fasten off. 

Rnd 2: attach first chosen colour in any ch2-sp, ch3, (1tr, ch2, 2tr) in same ch2-sp, *working along side of square 1tr, 1fptr, 1tr, (2tr, ch2, 2tr) in next ch2-sp**, repeat from *to** 2 more times, 1tr, 1fptr, 1tr, sl st into top of beg ch3 to to join, fasten off.

Rnd 3: attach next chosen colour in any ch2-sp, ch3, (1tr, ch2, 2tr) in same ch2-sp, *working along side of square 3tr, 1fptr, 3tr, (2tr, ch2, 2tr) in next corner space**, repeat from *to** 2 more times, 3tr, 1fptr, 3tr, sl st into top of beg ch3 to join, fasten off.

Rnd 4: attach next chosen colour in any ch2-sp, ch1, *working along side of square 2dc, 1htr, 1tr, 1dtr, (1fpdtr, ch2, 1fpdtr) around fptr of previous round, 1dtr, 1tr, 1htr, 2dc, sl st into ch2-sp**, repeat from *to** 3 more times but on the very last sl st slip into the beginning ch1 to join, fasten off yarn. 

Rnd 5: attach next chosen colour in any ch2-sp, ch4, (1dtr, ch2, 2dtr) in same ch2-sp, *working in sts along side of square 3tr, 2htr, 3dc, 2htr, 3tr, (2dtr, ch2, 2dtr) in next ch2-sp**, repeat from *to** 2 more times, working in sts along the last side of square 3tr, 2htr, 3dc, 2htr, 3tr, sl st into top of beg ch4 to join, fasten off.

Rnd 6: attach white in any ch2-sp, ch2, (1htr, ch2, 2htr) in same ch2-sp, *1htr in each st along the side of the square, (2htr, ch2, 2htr) in next ch2-sp*, repeat from *to** 2 more times, 1htr in each st along the last side of the square, sl st into top of beg ch2 to join, fasten off.

Week 1 Squares 1st Jan - 7th Jan