The Pop Fidget Square is a 12 inch granny square pattern designed for this year’s Moogly Afghan Crochet Along. The center is textured like a pop fidget toy and the rest of the square is a peaceful crochet project. The Pop Fidget Square is like two types of stress relief in one pattern!
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One of my favorite crochet events of the year is the annual Moogly Crochet Along! Tamara brings together a great group of designers each year, and you get to watch her version grow every two weeks. If you’re looking for 12 inch granny square patterns to round out your collection, the Moogly CAL is the place to be!
You can find my squares from previous years of the Moogly CAL here:
And, if you still are looking for 12 inch granny square patterns made in medium weight yarn, you can find some more that I have designed here:
- Bumpy Ride Square (and 11 more squares available in 6″ and 12″ sizes, plus a blanket planner sheet, for the You’ve Got Options CAL here)
- Stop and Smell the Flowers Square
- Berrylicious Square
- Raised Bunchberry Square 12″ Version
- Great Star Coral Square
12 inch granny squares take a bit longer to make, but once you are finished, the blanket comes together very quickly. I love the calm and cool colors Tamara chose for her version.
You can see Tamara’s notes on her version of the Pop Fidget Square here, and follow this year’s Moogly Crochet Along here. Scroll down for the pattern for the Pop Fidget Square.
If you make your own Pop Fidget Square, I’d love to see it! Share your progress and questions by tagging me on Facebook as @Underground Crafter on on Instagram as @ucrafter. You can also share a picture in the Underground Crafters Facebook group. Sign up for my weekly newsletter and get a coupon code for your choice of one of my premium patterns and private access to my vault of subscriber goodies. Plus, you’ll never miss one of my free patterns again!
Add the Pop Fidget Square to your favorites or queue, or buy the ad-free PDF on Ravelry.
Pop Fidget Square
12 Inch Granny Square Crochet Pattern by Underground Crafter
This 12 inch granny square pattern has a textured center like a pop fidget toy. This pattern was designed for the 2023 Moogly Crochet Along.
Finished Size
- 12” (30.5 cm) square.
Materials
- Red Heart With Love yarn (100% acrylic, 7 oz/198 g/370 yd/338 m) – 1 skein each in 1502 Iced Blue (CA) and 1623 Mallard (CB), or approximately 120 yd (110 m) each in CA CB in any medium weight yarn.
- US Size J-10/6 mm crochet hook, or size needed to obtain gauge.
- Bent tip yarn needle.
Gauge
- Through Round 9 = 6” (15 cm) square in pattern. Exact gauge is not critical for this pattern.
Abbreviations Used in This Pattern
- BL – back loop – Moogly has a helpful video tutorial for identifying the back loop here.
- bob – 5-repeat bobble – [Yo, insert hook in st, yo and draw up a loop, yo and draw through 2 loops] 5 times in same st, yo and draw through all 5 loops on hook. A helpful video tutorial for this stitch is available below.
- If you can’t see the video above demonstrating the bobble stitch, click HERE to watch it on Instagram.
- CA – Color A
- CB – Color B
- ch – chain
- dc – double crochet
- hdc – half double crochet
- rep – repeat
- RS – right (front) side
- sc – single crochet
- sl st – slip stitch
- sp – space
- st(s) – stitch(es)
- WS – wrong (back) side
- yo – yarn over
- * Repeat instructions after asterisk as indicated.
- () Work stitches between parentheses into same stitch or space.
- [] Repeat instructions between brackets as indicated.
Pattern Notes
- Ch 1 at start of and sl st at end of Rounds do NOT count as stitches.
- There are several ways to crochet into chain spaces. This pattern uses the first method shown in the video below.
- If you can’t see the video above demonstrating how to crochet into chain spaces, click HERE to watch it on YouTube.
- You can crochet over most of the yarn tails as you work. A helpful video tutorial demonstrating how to do this is available below.
- If you can’t see the video above demonstrating how to crochet over yarn tails, click HERE to watch it on Facebook.
- If you are new to blocking, you can find helpful descriptions and tutorials here.
Pattern Instructions
Motif
- With CA, ch 4, skip 3 ch, join with sl st to next ch to form ring.
- Round 1: (RS) Ch 1, 6 sc in ring, join with sl st to first sc. (6 sts)
- Round 2: (RS) Ch 1, sc in same st, ch 1, [sc in next st, ch 1] around, join with sl st to first sc. (6 sc + 6 ch-1 sp)
- Round 3: Turn to WS, ch 1, [bob in next ch-1 sp, 2 sc in next sc) around, join with sl st to first bob, fasten off CA. (18 sts/6 bob + 12 sc)
- Round 4: Join CB with sl st on RS to any bob, ch 1, starting in same bob [sc in bob, 2 sc in next st, sc in next st] around, join with sl st to first bob. (24 sts/6 bob + 18 sc)
- Round 5: (RS) Ch 1, starting in first st [2 dc in next st, dc in next st] around, with CA join with sl st to first dc. Do not fasten off CB, drop CB to WS. (36 sts)
- Round 6: Turn to WS, ch 1, starting in same st [sc in next 2 sts, bob in next st, 2 sc in next st, sc in next 2 sts] around, with CB sl st to first sc, fasten off CA. (42 sts/6 bob + 36 sc)
- Round 7: Turn to RS, ch 1, starting in first st [2 sc in next st, sc in next 6 sts] around, join with sl st to first sc. (48 sts)
- Round 8: (RS) Ch 1, starting in first st [2 dc in next st, dc in next 3 sts] around, join CA with sl st to first dc, fasten off CB. (60 sts)
- Round 9: (RS) Ch 1, 2 dc in first st, *dc in next 2 sts, hdc in next 3 sts, sc in next 4 sts, hdc in next 3 sts, dc in next 2 sts,** (2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc) in next st; rep from * around, ending last rep at **, 2 dc in first st, ch 2, join with sl st to first dc, fasten off CA. (18 sts/side + 4 ch-2 sp)
- Round 10: Join CB with sl st on RS to any ch-2 sp, ch 1, 2 dc in same ch-2 sp, *[dc in next st, sc in next st] across to ch-2 sp,** (2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc) in ch-2 sp; rep from * around, ending last rep at **, 2 dc in first ch-2 sp, ch 1, join with sc (counts as second ch in ch-2 sp) to first dc. (22 sts/side + 4 ch-2 sp)
- Round 11: (RS) Ch 1, dc in same ch-2 sp, *[sc in next st, dc in next st] across to ch-2 sp,** (dc, ch 2, dc) in ch-2 sp; rep from * around, ending last rep at **, dc in first ch-2 sp, ch 2, join with sl st to first dc, fasten off CB. (24 sts/side + 4 ch-2 sp)
- Round 12: Join CA with sl st on RS to any ch-2 sp, ch 1, sc in same ch-2 sp, *scBL in next 24 sts,** (sc, ch 2, sc) in ch-2 sp; rep from * around, ending last rep at **, sc in first ch-2 sp, ch 1, join with sc (counts as second ch in ch-2 sp) to first sc. (26 sts/side + 4 ch-2 sp)
- Round 13: (RS) Ch 1, 2 dc in same ch-2 sp, *dcBL in next 26 sts,** (2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc) in ch-2 sp; rep from * around, ending last rep at **, 2 dc in first ch-2 sp, ch 1, join with scBL (counts as second ch in ch-2 sp) to first dc. (30 sts/side + 4 ch-2 sp)
- Round 14: (RS) Ch 1, sc in same ch-2 sp, *scBL in next 30 sts,** (ch 2, sc) in next ch-2 sp; rep from * around, ending last rep at **, ch 2, join with sl st to first sc, fasten off CA. (31 sts/side + 4 ch-2 sp)
- Round 15: Join CB with sl st on RS to any ch-2 sp, ch 1, 2 dc in same ch-2 sp, *[ch 1, skip next st, dc in next st] across to last st before ch-2 sp, ch 1, skip next st,** (2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc) in ch-2 sp; rep from * around, ending last rep at **, 2 dc in first ch-2 sp, ch 2, join with sl st to first dc, fasten off CB. (35 sts/side + 4 ch-2 sp)
- Round 16: Turn to WS, join CA with sl st on WS to any ch-2 sp, ch 1, sc in same ch-2 sp, *sc in first 2 sts,[working over ch-1 sp into next skipped st on Round 14, dc in next st bringing st to same height as previous sc on Round 16, sc in next st] across to last st before ch-2 sp, sc in next st,** (sc, ch 2, sc) in next ch-2 sp; rep from * around, ending last rep at **, sc in first ch-2 sp, ch 2, join with sl st to first sc, fasten off CA. (37 sts/side + 4 ch-2 sp)
- Round 17: Turn to RS, join CB with sl st on RS to any ch-2 sp, ch 1, sc in same ch-2 sp, *scBL in next 37 sts,** (sc, ch 2, sc) in ch-2 sp; rep from * around, ending last rep at **, sc in first ch-2 sp, ch 1, join with scBL (counts as second ch in ch-2 sp) to first sc. (39 sts/side + 4 ch-2 sp)
- Round 18: (RS) Ch 1, sc in same ch-2 sp, *scBL in next 39 sts,** (sc, ch 2, sc) in ch-2 sp; rep from * around, ending last rep at **, sc in first ch-2 sp, ch 2, join CA with slstBL to first sc, fasten off CB. (41 sts/side + 4 ch-2 sp)
- Round 19: (RS) Ch 1, dcBL in same ch-2 sp, *dcBL in next 41 sts,** (dc, ch 2, dc) in ch-2 sp; rep from * around, ending last rep at **, dc in first ch-2 sp, ch 1, join with scBL (counts as second ch in ch-2 sp) to first dc. (43 sts/side + 4 ch-2 sp)
- If your square is smaller than 12” (30.5 cm) after Round 19, work additional rounds as follows until square reaches 12” (30.5 cm):
- (RS) Ch 1, sc in same ch-2 sp, *scBL in each st across to corner ch-2 sp,** (sc, ch 2, sc) in ch-2 sp; rep from * around, ending last rep at **, sc in first ch-2 sp, ch 1, join with scBL (counts as ch 1) to top of first sc. (Increases by 2 sts on each side with each repeat)
- Fasten off.
- With yarn needle, weave in yarn tails on WS.
- Wet or spray block (see Pattern Notes).