BEST YARNS for Granny Squares [2023] – PUT TO THE TEST!
There are so many different yarns available that it can be hard to choose the best yarns for granny squares. Read more to find my recommendations!
I am deeply in love with granny squares.
I think it goes back to my early days as a child and I loved the 1970s TV show, Little House on the Prairie.
Although there’s no evidence to suggest that Ma, Laura and Mary crocheted, you will see gorgeous quilts adorning their humble beds. Many years ago I tried my hand at quilting and let’s just say it didn’t go as planned.
To me, granny squares feel like a quilt made with yarn and they are just as beautiful (and much easier to make in my opinion).
And if you’re just getting started with granny squares you may be overwhelmed with all the different options you have for yarns. Or maybe you’re just bored with the yarns you’ve been using for years.
Here you will find my personal favorites. Plus, I will share you a little guidance when shopping for yarn for those of you who are new to granny squares.
On top of all that we are also going to talk about a new app that I found for those of us who enjoy playing around with colors when coming up with new granny square blankets!
Best Yarns for Granny Squares
To make it onto My Favorite Yarns for Granny Squares list it needs to be:
- Available in lots of different colors
- Affordable
- Easy to find
- Strong
- Washable
This post contains affiliates links and at no cost to you I may earn a teeny tiny commission if you choose to purchase them. Please know that I only recommend products I use and love! Thank you for supporting Le Petit Saint Crochet! You can read my full (and slightly boring) full disclosure here.
Premier Yarns MiniKins
First let’s talk about the yarn that I am currently using to make an adorable granny square table cloth.
When Premier Yarns sent me a big box full of their brand new Minikins, I actually gasped when I opened the lid.
It was like opening up a box and finding a rainbow inside. These colors are everything I want in a granny square.
There are so many different shades and hues. You’ll find bright, bold colors. But you’ll also find soft, neutrals as well.
Minikins Yarn Specs:
- 158 yards & 1.75 oz
- 50% cotton & 50% acrylic
- #2 Fine Weight
- Comes in 42 different colors
- $2.99 per skein (full price)
Pros
This is such a soft yarn, but it looks like it’s 100% cotton. The addition of the acrylic gives it that little bit of stretch that I like so that it doesn’t make my hands sore when I’m using it.
The stitch definition is absolutely beautiful. And the finished granny squares so gorgeous.
You can machine wash this yarn in warm water, but you’ll want to lay it flat to dry.
Cons
There really aren’t any cons to this yarn but I did want you to be aware of one thing.
Because this is a #2, Fine weight yarn, it makes small, delicate granny squares. If you’re looking for a yarn that will work up quickly, you will want to find a heavier weight yarn.
Find the Premier Yarns Minikins Here
Vintage Style Crochet Projects
The granny square I’m making is from the Vintage Style Crochet Projects book. This is my go-to book when I need a little granny inspiration.
It’s full of the most beautiful patterns and projects to make with granny squares.
Find the Vintage Style Crochet Projects Book Here
Skillshare
Let’s take a moment to talk about today’s sponsor, Skillshare.
Skillshare is an online learning platform for creative people. They have thousands of amazing classes in so many different areas, like knitting, crocheting, photography, and painting just to name a few.
What’s great is that all of the Skillshare classes are online, you can learn from the comforts of your own home and they are ALL ad free!
One of my favorite Skillshare classes is Modern Crochet: Essentials for Getting Started by Toni Lipsey of TL Yarn Crafts. This is a fantastic class for total crochet beginners. But it’s also great for those of us who want to polish up our existing skills.
This class contains 14 different lessons which will help you to feel more confident with your crochet skills. One of my favorite lessons is all about blocking basics and aftercare. I get so many questions about blocking and this explains not only how to do it, but why it’s important.
And what’s even better is that the first 1000 people to click the button below will get a one month FREE trail of Skillshare.
Make sure to check out all the other crochet and knitting classes as well. There’s something for everyone.
Impeccable Yarn
Recently I made a granny square blanket for my brand new nephew.
It was inpsired by the gorgeous granny square blanket that Justin Bieber wore to a sushi restaurant with his wife.
You heard that right, he wore a granny square blanket out in public. He’s been doing that more frequently these days and I must say it’s a little weird, but I like it.
He was also recently spotted with another crocheted blanket out in public. He wore the Persian Tiles blanket designed by Janie Crow. It’s a gorgeous combination of colors and textures.
But the blanket I made was just a basic granny square.
I also created a FREE pattern and video tutorial if you would like to make one yourself.
Find the Justin Bieber Granny Square Blanket Tutorial Here
For this blanket I used the Impeccable Yarn from Michaels.
Impeccable Yarns Specs:
- 285 yards & 4.5 oz
- 100% acrylic
- #4 Medium Weight
- Comes in 61 different colors
- $4.99 per skein (full price)
Pros
This is a great yarn for granny squares because it’s a medium weight yarn which helps to make crocheting granny squares go quickly.
This is a yarn that you can pop in the washing machine and the dryer without worrying about shrinking or color fastness.
Cons
I really can’t think of any cons for this yarn. The only thing you may want to know is that there’s not a tremendous amount of stitch definition.
I didn’t mind that because it was a blanket that needed to be able to washed and dried frequently.
Stylecraft Special DK
The next yarn is Stylecraft Special DK and it’s easy to see why this a favorite among many granny square loving crocheters like:
I’ve made two different blankets from this yarn:
Stylecraft Special DK Specs:
- 322 yards & 3.5 oz
- 100% acrylic
- #3 Light Weight
- Comes in 89 different colors
- $3.99 per skein (full price)
Pros
This is one of my favorite yarns I’ve ever used for crocheting granny squares.
First, it comes in so many amazing colors.
Next, it is incredibly soft and feels so good in your hands.
It also has nice stitch definition.
Cons
I really don’t have any criticism for this yarn. It’s wonderful to work with.
Find the Stylecraft Special DK Here
DMC Natura Just Cotton
I’ve made one blanket with the Natura Just Cotton yarn.
Every project in the Vintage Style Crochet Projects book recommends using Natura Just Cotton.
Natura Just Cotton Specs:
- 170 yards & 1.8 oz
- 100% Cotton
- #1 Superfine weight
- Comes in 40 different colors
- $5.99 per skein (full price)
Pros
This yarn has a gorgeous drape. It’s incredibly soft and the colors are magnificent.
It’s a combed cotton that has a matte finish that I absolutely adore.
It is machine washable, but you will need to lay it flat to dry.
It has gorgeous stitch definition.
Cons
The big con for this yarn is that it is splits a lot. There are seven very fine plies that are twisted together. The plies actually feel more like thread than yarn.
The splittiness of the yarn took some time to get used to, but the pros outweighed the cons for me.
Find the DMC Natura Just Cotton Here
Paintbox Cotton DK
I’m a big fan of the entire line of Paintbox yarns from LoveCrafts.
I made a super sweet decorative square from the Paintbox Cotton DK.
Paintbox Cotton DK Specs:
- 137 yards & 1.8 oz
- 100% Cotton
- #3 Light weight
- Comes in 63 colors
- $3.25 per skein full price
Pros
One of my favorite things about this yarn is the matte finish. I love that look.
The colors are all really beautiful. Another pro is that it’s a very soft cotton yarn.
It also has beautiful stitch definition. You can also throw this yarn in the washing machine, but you will need to lay it flat to dry.
Cons
My only con is that I don’t really use 100% cotton yarns very often because they cause a lot of pain in my hands, wrists, elbow and even my shoulders.
Because cotton has less stretch than other fibers, it can cause pain for those of us who have sensitive joints or inflammation.
Find the Paintbox Cotton DK Here
Best Yarns for Granny Squares
These are the best yarns for granny squares based on my experience. If you’re looking for more information about granny squares, including FREE patterns check out these posts:
Crochet Studio App
My friend Danyelle over on Co 4 Stitchery on Instagram told me about this amazing app, Crochet Studio.
This app was created by Anita from Made by Anita and her son Matt.
The core feature of the app is the yarn palette maker tool. Imagine having thousands of yarn pegs in your pocket! It allows you to choose from real yarn images and arrange them into palettes. This is really useful if you are unfamiliar with the yarn colours and want to see how they will work together. It’s not always easy to choose yarns from a sea of swatches on a website. Being able to see your colour choices together will help to eliminate yarn doubt when buying online.
Made by Anita
It also has a collage maker which allows you to pair your yarn color palette with an inspirational image or with a photo of one of your own projects to remind you of what colors you used.
You can also share that image on social media to share with others!
AI Yarn Suggestions
If you need some help choosing colours, you can use the AI tool. Add an image from your camera roll and the app will suggest yarn colours to match it. The suggestions can be filtered down to only your preferred yarns. Think of it as a starting point. You can add more yarns or remove any that you don’t like, making the palette completely your own.
Made by Anita
Color Inspiration Library
One of the best features is for those of us who just want someone to give us a gorgeous color palette without having to come up with it ourselves.
You’ll find different color palettes based on the season, mood or design:
- Warm
- Cool
- Deep
- Bright
- Rainbow
- Pastel
- Vintage
- Vintage Pastel
- Ombre
- Soft
- Nursery
- Neutral
- Spring
- Summer
- Autumn
- Winter
- Christmas
Each subcategory contains multiple different color palette options.
Pattern Generator
One of the coolest features of this app is the pattern generator.
You can make your granny square blanket in any colors you would like. You are also able to change:
- how many rounds per square
- number of squares wide
- number of squares long
Discover
Discover is our dynamic crochet magazine. It’s a carefully curated list of palettes, patterns, and interviews with crafters from around the world.
Made by Anita
Yarns Listed
In the Filter Yarns tab you will find a list of some of the most popular yarns listed so that you can choose the exact colors you would like to use.
Three of my favorite yarns are listed in this section:
- Stylecraft Special DK
- Paintbox Cotton DK
- DMC Natura Just Cotton
But you’ll also find other granny square favorites like:
- Wool Ease Thick & Quick
- Caron Simply Soft
- Vanna’s Choice
Find the Crochet Studio App Here
Best Yarns for Granny Squares Pin
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