Small Project Tote

This bag was inspired by a paper gift bag that I had been using to hold my current crochet project. When the bag became worn, I decided to duplicate it in crochet.

Now I can just grab the tote bag and run if I want to take my crocheting along with me.

Small Project Tote
Lynn Messner


Materials needed:
Worsted weight 100% wool yarn, about 7 to 8 oz.
Size G crochet hook
Safety pins
Yarn needle

Approximate finished size
12 x 10 x 6-1/2 inches before felting, excluding handles
10 x 8 x 4-1/2 inches after felting, excluding handles

Front and Back (Make two)
Row 1: Ch 31. Sc in second ch from hook, sc in each chain across. ch 1, turn (30)
Row 2: *Sc in first sc, dc in next sc*. Repeat across row. Ch 1, turn. (30)
Row 3: Sc in each dc and dc in each sc across. Ch 1, turn. (30)

Repeat row 3 until piece is 12 inches long. Ch1, turn. Sc across.

Handles:
Working across top of front or back piece, join yarn.
Row 1: Ch 1, sc across. Ch 1, turn.
Row 2: Sc in the first 7 stitches. Chain 16. Skip 16 stitches. Sc in last 7 stitches. Ch 1, turn.
Row 3: Sc across. Finish off.
Repeat for other piece.

Bottom
Ch 31.
Row 1: Sc across. Ch 1, turn. (30)
Repeat row one until piece is 6-1/2 inches long.
Finish off.

Sides (Make two)
Ch 19.
Row 1: Sc across. (18)
Row 2: *Sc 1, dc 1*. Repeat across row. Ch 1, turn. (18)
Row 3: Sc in each dc and dc in each sc, as for front and back. ch 1, turn. (18)
Repeat row 3 until piece measures 12 inches.
Ch 1, turn. Sc across for one row.
Finish off.

Weave in ends on all pieces.

To assemble
Hold the front and one of the sides together. Working through both layers, join yarn, ch 1 and sc across the long edge of the pieces. Finish off yarn.
Repeat this with the back and the other side piece. Then, holding the font/side and back/side together, work two more side seams. Finish off, weave in ends.

To join the bottom, work bottom seam the same way as the side seams. It helps to hold everything in place if you use a safety pin to hold each corner together while you work. With the front of the bag facing you, join yarn in corner and ch 1. Working through both layers, sc around bottom of bag. SS to first sc to join. Finish off. Weave in ends.

Top trim
Join yarn at any top corner of bag. Sc around top of bag, including handle. Sc around inside handle and top of bag. If you ss across top and bottom of handle instead of sc, the handle will be stronger and less stretchy. Finish off, weave in ends.

Felting Instructions
This works best with a top-loading washer, as you can control the amount of time the bag is in the hot water and thus the amount of felting and shrinkage.

Set washer at lowest water level on hot wash, cold rinse cycle. Add small amount of laundry soap, place bag in washer along with a couple of T-shirts or pairs of jeans to aid in agitation. Don’t use towels, as they shed lint and your bag will end up looking old and dull. Run washer through cycle, checking bag after five minutes. Continue to check every five minutes until it is the size you want. You may have to run bag through another cycle if it has not felted as much as you want.

Stop wash cycle if it hasn’t come to the end to avoid further shrinkage. Run through rinse and spin. Remove bag from washer. Gently stretch bag into shape. Fill bag with plastic grocery bags to keep its shape while drying. Remove plastic bags when dry and enjoy!

Holiday Square

This is the same square about 2/3 done, with the yarn used.


Lynn’s Poinsettia in the Snow Holiday Square
Both 6” and 7” versions.

This square is so pretty and sparkly for Christmas! It can be used in an afghan, table runner, etc.

Difficulty: Easy.
Materials:
Red Heart Holiday yarn (light worsted weight yarn with silver thread running through it for sparkle) or any other Christmas yarn.
One skein each: White/silver, Red/silver, and Green/silver (One skein of each will make about 14-15 squares).
Crochet hook size G

Pattern notes:
Cluster stitch: Yo, insert hook in st, yo, draw up a loop, yo, draw thru 2 loops on hook, *yo, insert hook in same st, yo, draw up a loop, yo, draw thru 2 loops on hook* 2 times. Yo, draw thru all loops on hook.

Beginning corner:
Ch3, 2 dc in same space, ch2, 3dc in same space.

Corner:
3 dc, ch2, 3dc in same space.

Instructions:
With red, ch 4. Sl st into first chain to form a circle.

Round 1: Ch 4, *dc, ch1* into circle 11 times (12dc and 12 ch1 spaces). Sl st to ch4.

Round 2: Sl st in next ch1 space. Ch3, insert hook in same ch1 space, yo, draw up a loop, yo, draw through 2 loops on hook, yo, insert hook in same st, yo, draw up a loop, yo, draw through all loops on hook, ch2. *Work cluster stitch, ch2* in each ch1 space around. Sl st to ch3. Finish off red.

Round 3: Attach green. Sl st to next ch2 space. Work beginning corner. *Ch1, three dc in next ch2 sp* twice. Ch1, work corner. *ch1, 3dc in next ch 2 space* twice. Ch1, work corner. *ch1, 3dc in next ch 2 space* twice. Ch1, work corner. *ch1, 3dc in next ch 2 space* twice. Ch1, sl st to beg ch3

Round 4: Work as for round three, working 3 dc in each ch1 space and working corners. Finish off green.

Round 5: Attach white. Work as for rounds 3 & 4, adding 3 dc in each ch1 space and working corners. Stop here if you want a 6” square.

Round 6: (For 7 “ square only) Sl st to corner, Ch2, 2 hdc in same space, ch2, 3 hdc in same sp, ch1, *3 hdc in each ch1 space to corner, 3 hdc in corner sp, ch2, 3 hdc in same space, ch1* 3 times. Sl st to beg ch2.

Finish off white, weave in and trim all ends.

For a 7” square, if you crochet tightly, you may need to do a dc round for Rd 6. If you crochet loosely (like I do), you will need to work the last round in hdc.

Felted Mittens

Lynn’s Feltable Mittens
One mitten finished, one with just the cuff done.

Both mittens after felting.

Felting instructions are at the end of the pattern.

Materials needed
2 - 50g balls of 4 ply knitting worsted. I used Lion wool. If you plan to felt the mittens, you will need to buy 100% wool yarn. Check the label to make sure it isn’t superwash wool, as this type won’t felt. Crocheting this pattern as printed will yield mittens the right size for an 8-12 year-old child. Adjust as instructed for larger or smaller sizes.

Hook – G if you crochet loose, H if you crochet tight.

This pattern is designed so the mitten will fit either hand.
All stitches on the cuff are through the back loops only.

Ch. 14 to begin.

ROW 1 - 1 sc in 3rd ch from hook, 1 sc in next 11 chains, ch 1, turn. (12 sc)

ROW 2 - 1 sc in next 12 sc (remember, through the back loops of stitches only), ch 1, turn. (12 sc) (If you are making larger mittens, add 2-3 more rows here - for smaller mittens, subtract a couple rows.)

ROWS 3 to 26 - Same as Row 2.

ROW 27 - Joining row, ss to corresponding chainss in Row 1, turn inside out (this is the right side). CONTINUE AS FOLLOWS FOR THE REST OF THE MITTEN (all sts through both loops)

ROW 1 - With right side of work towards you, ch 1, 1 sc in the end of each row of ribbing. Join with ch 1. (27 sc, - this st count will be different on all rows if you are making smaller or larger mittens.)

ROW 2 - *Sc around Mark rows with a safety pin. Do not turn. The rest of the mitten is worked in a spiral). (30 sc)

ROW 3-8 - Sc around.

ROW 9 - 1 sc in next st, ch 5, skip next 5 sts (this is for the thumb opening), 1 sc in the next 24 sts. (make a smaller thumb opening for smaller mittens, larger thumb opening for larger mittens. For mittens that are going to be felted, I used 7 sts for the thumb for an 8-10 year old child)

ROW 10-20 - Repeat Row 2 (work the 5 chains for thumb opening as if they were regular sts. Add a few more rows for larger mittens, subtract rows for smaller mittens.)

ROW 21 - 1 sc in first st, decrease over the next 4 sts by crocheting 2 sc tog twice, 1 sc in next 11 sts, dec over next 4 sts by crocheting 2 sc tog twice, 1 sc in next 10 sts. (26 sc)

ROW 22 – Sc around.

ROW 23 - 1 sc in the first st, dec over next 4 sts by crocheting 2 sc tog twice, 1 sc in next 9 sts, dec over next 4 sts by crocheting 2 sc tog twice, 1 sc in next 8 sts. (22 sc)

ROW 24 – Sc around, ss to join. ROW 25 - 1 sc in first st, dec over next 4 sts by crocheting 2 sc tog twice, 1 sc in next 7 sts, dec over next 4 sts by crocheting 2 sc tog twice, 1 sc in next 6 sts. (18 sc)

ROW 26 – Sc around, ss to join.ROW 27 - 1 sc in first st, dec over next 4 sts by crocheting 2 sc tog twice, 1 sc in next 5 sts, dec over next 4 sts by crocheting 2 sc tog twice, 1 sc in next 4 sts. (14 sc)

ROW 28 - 2 sc, * 2 sc tog, 1 sc in next st *, Repeat from * to * 3 more times, ss to join. Cut yarn leaving about an 8 to 10 inch tail, pull yarn through the last ch1. Using a yarn needle, weave yarn through the 14 sts of last Row, pull tight to close up the end of the mitten, weave in yarn to secure closing and fasten off.

Thumb row 1 - Join yarn, ch 1 and 1 sc in the first st of thumb opening, 1 sc in the next 4 sts, pick up 7 sts around the remaining thumb opening, ss to join to first sc. (12 sc - more or less if you are making smaller or larger mittens.)

ROW 2-6 – Sc around. Continue working in a spiral as you did with the rest of the mitten. Add a few more rows for larger (longer) thumb, subtract rows for smaller (shoerter) thumb.

ROW 7 - 1 sc in next 4 sc, 2 sc tog, 1 sc in next 4 sc, 2 sc tog. (10 sc)

ROW 8 – Sc around, ss to join. Cut yarn leaving about an 8 to 10 inch tail, pull yarn through the last ch1. Using a yarn needle, weave yarn through the 10 sts of the last row, pull tight to close up the end of the thumb, weave in yarn to secure closing and fasten off. Weave in the tail end at the beginning of the cuff.

Felting Instructions
This works best with a top-loading washer, as you can control the amount of time the mittens are in the hot water and thus the amount of felting and shrinkage.

Set washer at lowest water level on hot wash, cold rinse cycle. Add small amount of laundry soap, place mittens in washer along with a couple of T-shirts or pairs of jeans to aid in agitation. Don’t use towels, as they shed lint and your mittens will end up looking old and dull. Run washer through cycle, checking mittens after five minutes. Continue to check them every five minutes until they are the size you want.

Stop wash cycle if it hasn’t come to the end to avoid further shrinkage. Run through rinse and spin. Remove mittens from washer, gently reshape and let dry on a folded towel.

These mittens will be the warmest you will ever wear!

Abbreviations used in this pattern
sc = single crochet
st = stitch
ss = slip stitch
sc tog = single crochet together
ch = chain
dec = decrease by crocheting two stitches together