How to Crochet a Basket, Part Two.
*If you would like to make these baskets but do not need the entire tutorial,click here for the plain pattern!
So in part one we learned how to increase to make a circle, which is daunting but doable, right? If anyone has any questions at all please e-mail me at ohthecuteness@hotmail.com and I will do my best to answer and amend the tutorial in any way I need to.
Anywho... the rest of the basket is really easy because thanks to the miracles of crochet geometry, all you have to do now is do one double crochet in every stitch. Here's the breakdown:
For rounds 8 and 9, chain 2 and then do one double crochet in every stitch all the way around. Be sure NOT to do one in the base of the beginning chin this time, as we are done increasing (I have done this on accident many a time, being a space-cadet). After these two rows, you will notice that the sides are curving upward nicely and it is starting to resemble a basket more than a trivet. Of course, if you got bored already you can stop at round 7 and have a trivet, lol. In that case skip to the part about weaving in the ends.
If it doesn't seem to be curving upward, you may need to tear some stitches out and re-do them tighter. Also, be sure to count and make sure you still have only 84 stitches.
And now for the fun part... We are going to switch colors and make a little stripe in the center of the side of the basket:
After you have done your accent yarn stripe for round 10, you will want to use the natural yarn to crochet 4 more rows, one double crochet per stitch. Join the round like all the others, and that's it! Now all you have to do is weave in the very last end and fold the edge of the basket over!
Here is how to weave in that last end (this is a small-scale demonstration, lol):
Grab the short end of the yarn and pull it through the loop. It really doesn't matter which loops you use to weave in, just make sure they are tight ones so they secure the tail.
Well there you go! Hopefully you should have a nice little handmade basket to store some crafty bits and bobs in now! If you would like to make a set of nesting baskets, for a smaller one only increase to round 5 in part one, then and just crochet one double crochet around for the rest of the rows. And for a bigger one, use the standard increase pattern I showed you in part one and add two more increase rows, then finish it as usual!
And now, just for fun, I will share probably the most mundane-yet-useful-thing I ever learned during my employment at ArtFibers: the weaver's knot.
Most people try to tie two pieces of string together with a granny knot or a square knot (kind of like the knot you start with when you tie your shoe), but it won't stay in the long term. This knot works on even the most slippery fibers. I admit I didn't know about this for the first 20-ish years of my life, and I don't know how I got along without it.
If you want to use scraps of yarn and tie them all together to make a super-colorful and eco-friendly basket (since the scraps would probably otherwise go in the trash), use this know to tie the yarn bits together or they may not stay if they are different weights.
Just encase those ends as you go and no one will see the knot!
Alrighty then, I think I have imparted enough wisdom for today, lol. That took waaaaay longer than I thought it would, but if it helps even one person to learn to crochet then it was all worth it. See you tomorrow with pics of the big prizes for the blogiversary giveaway! You still have until 9 p.m. pacific time on the 31st to post a comment and be entered for your chance to win!
If you have found this or any of my other free patterns useful and would like to help me keep creating them I accept PayPal donations!
What a simple and sweet little project! I can easily see a nice pile of fruits in one of these, arranged decoratively on the kitchen counter. :)
ReplyDeleteUgh, I'm afraid the only baskets I'll ever create will be with reeds and not with yarn. But still it's something to ponder. I vow to someday crochet something... just not yet, and just not this, but thanks for the inspiration. It's nice to see different materials put to diverse purposes.
ReplyDeleteThanks Hannah!
ReplyDeleteAnd Valence;
Maybe if I post a normal how-to-crochet tutorial you would try it? But heck, it's awesome you can weave real baskets! I really want to learn how to do that someday!
Thank you! This tutorial was really, really helpful - a month ago I couldn't crochet, and got so frustrated trying to work out patterns that I just gave up, but now I've made this and I get it. I've made other things since and I'm ridiculously pleased with myself - but really it's thanks to your excellent descriptions & photos... Keep it up!
ReplyDelete-kate-
I'm not much of a crocheter, but wanted to make some pots and pans for a niece for her play kitchen. I've tried several sites for instructions on how to do this, but they just didn't look right. Thinking it was me, I was about to give up. Your instructions are unique enough that my first attempt turned out so much more elegant than the others. After some practice, I think they will be just what I had in mind. Do you by any chance have equally inspiring instructions for a square or rectangle? I'm thinking play bakeware. Again, thank you.
ReplyDeleteI already know how to crochet but your tutorials are helping with so many of the "little" details that make the difference between art and craft. Thank you SO MUCH.
ReplyDeleteThanks guys - I am so glad you are getting some use out of my work, it makes me so happy! Way to go everyone!
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for this!! I was able to make something besides the "dish rag" squares with your help!!
ReplyDeleteQuick question, if i wanted to turn one of the baskets into a "ball" shape would i just keep going but decrease backwards? Or should i make to then join together? I hope that makes since to you. :) thank you so much
Heather W
As far as making a ball goes, the way you start to increase in the 2nd and 3rd rows is a little different. You start the same with the magic loop, and crochet 6 into the loop and pull it tight. Then you'd increase every round by adding six stitches. So for the 2nd round, you'd do 1sc, then 2sc in the next stitch all the way around, ending up with 12 stitches. Round 3 you'd do 1 sc in the next 2 stitches, then 2 sc in the 3rd, all the way around and end up with 18. Do 2 sc in the 4th stitch on the 4th round, etc. Depending on how large you want your ball, keep increasing like this. If you want, say, a ball that will fit in the palm of your hand, you can stop increasing at row 6. When you're done increasing, you need to work some rows without increasing, just 1 sc in each sc around. Usually you can work the same number of rows as you increased. If you increased for 6 rows, then work straight for 6, etc. And when you're done working straight you decrease the same way you increased. I hope that makes sense! Let me know if you have any more questions!
ReplyDeleteHi, I made my first bowl thanks to your instructions. BUT I don't think I really know what is meant by the first stitch. Eg, for the basket you say double crochet in the first stitch. Does this mean the dc I just did for the stitch next to it?
ReplyDeleteI would love a close up of going into the first stitch.
I am not a new crocheter, but I always appreciate a good tutorial. For some reason, chrochet tutotials NEED the little arrows on the pictures to show where to stitch into. Thanks for taking the time to make this.
ReplyDelete