Category: Crochet

Crochet Drawstring Pouch

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This is a quick little project just for fun 🙂

Lately, I have been looking for quick, easy, beginner crochet patterns and after a bit of searching, I decided to make a few myself. This was a lot of fun. It’s a good introduction to changing colors.

You do need to know how to do the following:

  • Chain
  • Single Crochet
  • Double Crochet
  • Slip Stitch

The pouch is constructed mostly of double crochet and can easily be altered by changing colors.

It would be great for gifts, holiday treats, and surprises for Halloween, Christmas, and Easter. I made these for Halloween.

Then, I couldn’t resist making more…and of course with Christmas around the corner, I couldn’t pass up the chance to make one with red and green.

Tutorial (Right-Handed):

Tutorial (Left-Handed):

Pattern:

Drawstring Pouch Crochet PatternDownload

Refer to the video tutorial as needed

Use a 4.0 – 4.5mm crochet hook and worsted-weight yarn.

Start with the 1st Color. This will be the bottom of the bag. Leave a long tail to start.

Chain 27. Slst into the first chain to make a ring. Make sure the Vs of the chain are on the outside of the ring and the back bumps are on the inside of the ring. Take care to make sure it doesn’t get twisted.

Round 1 – 3: Chain 3 (counts as the first double crochet), 26 dc, slst into the 3rd chain from the beginning of the round (27) (3 rounds)

Change to 2nd color

Round 4 – 7: Chain 3 (counts as the first double crochet), 26 dc, slst into the 3rd chain from the beginning of the round (27) (4 rounds)

Change to 3rd color

Round 8 – 9: Chain 3 (this counts as the first double crochet), 26 dc, slst into the 3rd chain from the beginning of the round (27) (2 rounds)

Round 10: Chain 3 (counts as first dc), Ch 1, skip 1 stitch, (1 dc, chain 1, skip 1 stitch)*repeat 5 times, 3 dc, (ch 1, skip 1 stitch, dc)*repeat 6 times, slip stitch into the 3rd chain from the beginning of the round (27)

Round 11: V stitch around. ch1, (1sc, ch 2, 1 sc) all in the first stitch, [skip 1 stitch,  (1sc, ch 2, 1 sc) all in the next stitch] repeat 12 times, slst into the first sc of the round. FO. 

Whipstitch the bottom of the bag closed using the long starting tail. Weave in any tails.

Drawstring: Chain 80 or to the desired length.

Weave the drawstring through row 10. The 3 dc together is the center front. Insert along one side of the 3 double crochet then weave in and out exiting on the other side of the dc. Note: There are 2 dc together at the center back, pass over or under those together.

Changing Size:

You can increase or decrease the size of the bag slightly by using a different-sized hook.

You can also change the size by adding or subtracting rows and changing the size of the starting chain. To adjust the size of the initial chain, do so in increments of 4. So to increase the size you could go from 27 to 31, 35, 39, 43, etc. To decrease the size you could go from 27 to 23 or 19. This helps ensure that the ties still end up together on the front.

Have fun crocheting!

Easy Crochet Headband

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I made this project for my students and really enjoyed it, so I thought I would share. I can make three headbands with one skein of yarn and I can often make one in one sitting.

It is a great easy project to do when you just want to make something quick.

I use this headband as an ear warmer, so they are great for winter and also great for gifts!

One of the things I love best about crochet is how portable it is. Crochet takes very few tools and supplies. As a result, it is easy to take on the go. You really only need a few things to get started, yarn, scissors, stitch markers (you can also use scraps of yarn in varying colors), and a blunt-tip yarn needle. Since so few tools are needed, it is also very affordable to start the hobby. For $10 or less, you can be ready to crochet!

This project only requires a few stitches, chaining, single crochet, and half double crochet.

Supplies:

  • Approximately 1/3 skein (80 yards) of worsted-weight yarn
  • 4.5mm crochet hook

Pattern:

  • Chain 15
  • Row 1: 3sc, 8hdc, 3 sc (14) Starting in the second chain from the hook
  • Row 2: Chain 1, turn, BLO 3sc, 8hdc, 3sc (14)
  • Repeat row 2 until the desired length. (Around 60 – 70 rows for an adult)
  • Whip stitch the two short ends together

RIGHT-HANDED VIDEO:

LEFT-HANDED VIDEO:

Have fun crocheting!

Magic Circle

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HOW I CONQUERED THE MAGIC CIRCLE!

I mentioned in a previous post that I recently started crocheting again, and it has been a blast! I am loving it. One of the things I really wanted to start crocheting was amigurumi (crocheted stuffed animals).

If you’ve ever seen any amigurumi patterns you know that the foundation for most of them is the Magic Circle.

I was determined. I thought to myself…I’ve crocheted before. I’ve got some skills. It won’t be that hard. HA! I had more confidence than I should have. I tried, tried, and tried again with no luck. Either my magic circle wasn’t right, or I didn’t end up with the right amount of stitches, after dozens of tries it was driving me CRAZY! I watched video after video until finally I figured it out. But it took what felt like FOREVER to figure out why my magic circle didn’t look like all of the perfect ones I saw in the videos and what to do about it.

As a result, I decided to take a short break from my usual sewing videos (which I will get back to shortly, don’t worry!) to help all of those poor struggling souls who are having just as hard of a time with the magic circle as I did.

I hope as I share what I have learned it will make conquering the magic circle just a little easier for you.

To help I am going to break it down. We are going to start with the single crochet, reviewing the steps. Then, we’ll single crochet around the ring, and finally around our magic ring.

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From beginning to end I was baffled by the magic circle. Some videos started with the single crochet, some used half double, some double….I just wanted to know how to make the magic circle! All the different types of examples really through me off until I was able to connect the stitch they were showing me with the basic stitches and from there identify what was the magic circle and what was the stitch. So we will look at how a single crochet is made.

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Then we will look at single crochet around a ring or a loop. This feels and looks a lot different then simply crocheting in rows, so it is helpful to be familiar with this before you attempt the magic circle. So, if you are just starting, grab a hair tie, milk carton ring, or key chain and practice crocheting around the circle.

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After that we will actually make the magic circle. I’ll show you how I hold the yarn, what I had a hard time with, and what helped me finally make it work.



I hope this helps you!

RIGHT HANDED:

LEFT HANDED:

Here is the video flipped, which I hope will be useful to all of those left-handed crafters out there!