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How to Crochet a Granny Beach Bag

May 14, 2017March 14, 2026crochet, free pattern41 Comments

Crochet Beach Bag

At the very beginning of April, I had an email from Hobbycraft asking if I’d be interested in designing a crochet project for them. It was really exciting to be asked and really exciting to learn that I could pick any materials from the stuff they sold in their stores!

Caron Cakes took my fancy, it’s self-striping yarn, which is an acrylic/wool mix aran. In self-striping yarn, all the colour changes are done for me! Yay! The brief was “Summer”, and what’s more summery than a crochet beach bag?!

This satisfying crochet pattern pretty much uses two entire yarn “cakes,” including yarn for the pompoms. Honestly, it’s a super easy crochet beach bag and pretty fast to work up, too.

Hobbycraft is asking lots of IGers to come up with crochet patterns at the moment. I think it’s a lovely idea to include crafters who are already connecting in a virtual community. There are some fabulous patterns available, and they’ve all been designed by us, the crochet community!

If you are new to crochet, it might be helpful to know that I put together a video tutorial for a small, kid’s crochet granny bag that starts in the same way. I chat more about the differences between this large crochet beach bag and the small granny stripe bag HERE.

Beach Bag Crochet Pattern

What You Need To Crochet a Beach Bag

Caron Cakes, aran, 350m/383yds/200g. 2 cakes in Rainbow Sprinkles.
4.5mm (US 7) crochet hook
Pompom maker/s – optional

How Big Is This Crochet Beach Bag? The Measurements

Bag Width: 33cm / 13 inches
Bag Height: 33cm / 13 inches
Strap Length: 55cm / 21.5 inches

Beach Bag Pattern Notes

This crochet pattern is written in UK terms.
The pompoms are made first (in two sizes). Pull yarn from the centre and outside of both cakes because, if you’re lucky, this gives more of a mix of different colours.
I also made the handles first so I could manipulate/wangle the mix of colours in them.
Tension isn’t critical for this project, but a bigger hook size might mean you go over the required yarn amount.
The beach bag is crocheted from the bottom and worked up. The handles and pompoms are made separately and stitched on at the end.

Written Crochet Pattern For a Granny Beach Bag

Main Bag Section

Ch4 and join with a sl st to form a circle.
Round 1: Ch4 (counts as 1tr and 1ch). *1tr into ring, ch1; rep from * 11 times, join with sl st to the 3rd ch of initial 4ch, sl st into ch sp. [12 spokes]
Round 2: Ch3 (counts as a tr here & throughout), 2tr into ch sp, ch1, *3tr in next ch sp, ch1; rep from * around, join with sl st to top of ch3, sl st across next 2tr and into ch sp. [12 clusters of 3tr]
Round 3: Repeat Round 2.
Round 4: Ch3, 3tr into ch sp, ch1, *4tr in ch sp, ch1; rep from * around, join with a sl st to the top of initial ch3, ss in next tr and in middle of first 4tr cluster (between 2nd and 3rd tr sts). [12 clusters of 4tr]
Round 5: Ch3, 2tr in middle of 4tr cluster, 3 tr in next ch sp, *3tr in middle of cluster, 3tr in ch sp; rep from * around, join with a sl st to top of ch3, sl st across next 2tr and into ch sp. [24 clusters of 3]
Round 6: Ch3, 2tr, *3tr in next sp between clusters; rep from * around, join with a sl st to top of initial ch3, sl st across next 2tr and into sp.
Round 7: Repeat Round 2
Rounds 8 – 9: Repeat Round 4
Round 10: Repeat Round 5 [48 clusters]
Rounds 11 – 36: Repeat Round 6
Round 37: Ch3, 1tr in each st around. Fasten off and sew in ends.

Bag Handles (Make 2)

Chain 101
Row 1: 1dc in 2nd ch from hook (for a neater finish, work through the back “bumps” of the chain), turn. [100 sts]
Row 2: Ch3, 1tr in same st, miss 2 sts, *3tr in next, miss 2 st; rep from * to last st, 2tr in last st, turn.
Row 3: Ch3, *3tr between clusters; rep from * to last st, 1tr in top of 3ch, turn.
Row 4: Ch1, dc to end. Fasten off and sew in ends.

How to attach the bag handles: Lay the beach bag out flat and measure across the top (approx 58cm – don’t worry too much if a couple of cm out).
Mark 12cm in from each side, and pin handles to the inside of the bag (on both sides).
Sew to the main body of the bag using plenty of stitches.

Once you have finished your crochet beach bag, attach pompoms! A few simple stitches will do. I use a darning needle and just weave the pompom ties in and out around the handles.

Whilst I think the Caron Cakes yarn looks fab in this crochet granny stripe beach bag, I would love to try making a bag in cotton yarn too. I am a huge fan of cotton for bags. It’s strong, sturdy and doesn’t warp or stretch too much. Let me know if you try it!

Seeing as this project came about because of the Instagram community, don’t forget to get in touch with me there: @zeensandroger

And don’t forget to explore my blog a bit more! You’ll find more free crochet patterns, and I have a few posts all about the best crochet tips and tricks. Cheers! x

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The Crochet Elephant Ripple Blanket

May 2, 2017March 14, 2026blanket, crochet, free pattern26 Comments

At the beginning of April, a friend got in touch with me and asked very nicely if I would crochet a baby blanket for another friend. I liked the ideas she had and fancied having a go at something different. It was nice that I could crochet a brainless ripple, but there was also going to be something interesting in the mix as well.

Cute Crochet Elephants

I know that the baby in question is having a safari-themed nursery, and because grey was to feature in the blanket’s colour palette, elephants sprang to mind. I did a quick search online and came up with these cuties. The elephant crochet pattern is from Repeat Crafter Me, and it’s exactly the sort of thing I wanted.

I like how the secret elephants are hidden inside when it’s folded up. You might think it’s a boring blanket. But tumble it open and the cuteness is revealed!

All the crochet elephants go from trunk to tail across the bottom of the blanket. Really rather pleased with that idea!

For attaching the elephants to the blanket, I paid lots of attention, ensuring the sewing stitches didn’t show on the other side. It meant inserting the needle through the fibres of the yarn rather than poking all the way through. The idea of safety eyes was dismissed for the same reason (they’d poke right through to the other side).

I forgot to take pics of the other (wrong) side to prove that there’s nothing on show. Watch my latest crochet vlog, the evidence is there!

The yarn used is Stylecraft Special dk as it’s perfect for baby blankets. I ordered the yarn at the same time as the release of the new shades, so I knew Buttermilk had to be part of it. It’s like someone has added mayonnaise to the Mustard. They go very nicely together. Also in the mix are Teal, Sage and Grey.

And let’s not forget the ubiquitous Neat Ripple! I have no idea how many times I’ve made Attic 24’s Neat Ripple! So many! I did 8 pattern repeats and 64 rows before adding the grey. At each end, I added a ripply row of grey and then a straightening row.

Then it was just a case of making a couple of rounds of UK trebles before going back to Attic24 for the edging, which was pilfered from Lucy’s original Granny Stripe. Phew! What do you think? I like it! Anything with grey and mustard floats my boat, though. Grellow, they call it.

Anyway, I’m late for an evening walk that I must do. I’ve been very lazy recently and have done no proper exercise. And I need to go to the shop for bread and milk…

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Crochet Triangle Infinity Scarf

January 19, 2017March 4, 2026crochet, free pattern18 Comments

Geometric Crochet Love

My love for crochet triangles all started when I was playing around with geometric patterns for crochet. It became a conscious thing last summer when I made my C2C crochet cushion. Since then, I’ve seen triangles all over the place. I now absolutely love geometric patterns in crochet!

Crochet Cowl Inspiration

I’m on a mission to make the perfect crochet cowl. I know exactly what sort of design I want, but have struggled with translating it into crochet. Basically, if you take a look at my pattern Pinterest board, you’ll get the idea.

I’d love to intersperse different colours amongst the triangles for my cowl idea. So far, I’ve resisted just doing colour changes for random single triangles, as it could potentially compromise the structural integrity. I might have to try it though, just to find out how safe and secure it would be… Hmm, anyway, I’m glad to say that I’ve found the ideal cowl/scarf pattern to play with.

crochet-cowl-monochrome-triangle-infinity-scarf

Crochet Triangle Infinity Scarf

The best crochet cowl pattern I’ve recently come across is called the Triangle Crocheted Infinity Scarf from Friendly Nettle. I totally love this pattern, it’s utterly fabulous, and I know lots of other people feel the same way because my Instagram mates have gone nuts for it too!

Triangle Cowl Pattern

The pattern is very simple and Rasa, the designer, has made things super helpful by providing loads of pictures, a video tutorial and pattern diagrams. As I’m I can’t help myself, I did change a few elements to the original pattern.

My first two cowls were made with Paintbox Yarns Simply Aran, so I didn’t need as many triangles in my starting row. I think the tri-colour version of the infinity scarf (cowl) has thirty triangles, and the monochrome one was twenty six. Each cowl has fifteen rounds for the main body (plus the first and last rounds of UK htr stitches).

When working the crochet triangles, I made 1dc (UK), 1htr), 1tr and 1dtr. This sequence is different to the original pattern (I messed around with a few different stitch sequence experiments. I was curious to see what would happen to the shape of the triangles). You’ll need to see the original pattern to work out where these stitches go! I wouldn’t want to give away too much of the original pattern as it isn’t mine.

My edging was also added to, but nothing particularly fancy.

Self Striping Yarn

The final triangle cowl I made was this crazy rainbow job. It’s a double knit, self striping yarn from Rhapsodye Yarns, which I was really intrigued by. The number of triangles in the starter row was increased by a couple more to make the cowl a good size. Double knit yarn is finer than aran weight yarn, so adding more triangles was necessary for a good fit. I pretty much used the whole 100-gram skein.

I was on the lookout for something that had both colourful brights and a plain base. In my imagination, there was more grey and less colour. I didn’t really think about how the colours would be laid out on the skein, and I blame my lack of education regarding hand-dyed yarn rather than anything else. Still, I think the effect is pretty good. Just not what I was after in this case.

I bought the rainbow dyed yarn from a UK dyer, Rhapsodye Yarns. It’s a superwash merino, and it’s just lovely!
See the running rainbow? I’d like only two, maybe three colours, each long enough to make a triangle, with grey in between each shade. Do you think I need to take up yarn dying as a hobby next?! I’m tempted to contact the dyer and make a special request instead. Seriously, I do not need any more hobbies right now.

For such a simple pattern, the crochet triangle design is so impactful. It is definitely worth trying this pattern if you haven’t already.

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Speedy Crochet Bracelet. A Free Pattern.

December 21, 2016March 3, 2026crochet, free pattern8 Comments

A Really Quick Crochet Idea

I was working out the design for my recent crochet wrist warmers pattern, playing with different methods and whatnot, when this idea popped up. A very simple crochet bracelet. It’s basically front post and back post stitches, which ended up being too bulky for the mitts, but still had something I liked.

It is such an easy crochet pattern; it only takes fifteen/twenty minutes from start to finish. Who doesn’t love super speedy crochet ideas!?

If you’ve not tried crochet post stitches before, this crochet bracelet is a great pattern for practising. These stitches are so easy. They’re the same as normal US double / Uk treble stitches; it’s just where you put your hook that counts. There are countless YouTube videos out there that demonstrate beautifully. I use the technique in some chunky crochet mittens, here.

I’m not sure if this is a crochet cuff, bracelet or other thing, but whatever it is, (seeing as it’s Christmas) here’s a lovely little free crochet pattern for them!

A Quick and Easy Crochet Bracelet

Pattern Notes:

I’ve used Paintbox Aran with a 4.5mm hook.
I’ve used UK terms with US terms in brackets.
In Row 2, I work under the bumps of the foundation chain. This makes a neater finish, but it does mean it looks twisty when you come to slip stitch together. Ignore the twist and join anyway; it won’t be noticed in the final piece. Just double-check that you’ve not got a twist in the stitches you’re going to work into next.
Crochet over the ends as you go to allow for minimal stitching at the end.
I have wrists like twigs; you may need to go up to 26 or 28 stitches

super-easy-crochet-cuff-bracelet-free-crochet-pattern

Crochet Bracelet Pattern

Chain 24, join with a slip stitch.
Round 1: Ch1 (does not count as a st), dc (US sc) in each st around, join with a slip stitch to the first st. Fasten off. [24 sts]
Rnd 2: Attach new colour to any stitch. Ch3 (counts as a st), 1tr (US dc) in each st around, join to the top of the initial ch3. [24]
Rnds 3 – 5: Ch2 (does not count as a st), *FPtr, BPtr; repeat from* to the end, sl st to the top of the first st. Fasten off after Rnd 5. [24]
Rnd 6: Attach new colour to any st. Ch1 (does not count as a st), 1dc (US sc) in each st around. Join with a slip stitch to the first st. Fasten off and sew in any ends. [24]

And there you have it. Easy peasy! The quickest crochet bracelet to make! Now go and crochet loads of cuffs, bracelets, sweat bands, whatever they are!

Happy Christmas! See you in the New Year. 2017 is going to be amazing!! X

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The Autumn Vintage Crochet Collection

December 14, 2016March 3, 2026crochet13 Comments

Autumn Vintage Crochet Accessories

I’ve done it! All finished. Woot!! I’m so pleased with it. Truly, I love this cosy crochet accessories set. It’s taken a while because I’ve been busy with other things too. The more I get into crochet design the quicker I’m surely going to get.

It’s technically still autumn too, so it didn’t take six months afterall! Please pop over to Ravelry to buy your PDF copy.

No silly faces like my last blog post! I have very serious, yet… what? wistful? expressions for the real deal. It took a million pictures to get these. I scrutinise every last one to make sure I don’t look like too much of a freak and that the pompom is showing or I’ve got my hand in the right place. It’s possible I need a helper.

I took loads of pictures of all these vintage-inspired crochet accessories. I wanted them to be informative as well as good looking. In the crochet patterns themselves, there are step-by-step photos for any tricky bits.

I’ve focused on the making of the crochet mitts as they have elements where more detail is needed. But there aren’t many tricky bits because the patterns are super easy and quick to make, because they’re all aran weight yarn.

Please do let me know what you think. I’d absolutely love to hear if anyone makes a set. At some point, I’ll do some different colour combinations too. I think there are loads of options where the colours will make it look completely different.

Winter is Coming: Get Crochet Ready.

October 5, 2016March 2, 2026crochet, free pattern33 Comments

Crochet For Autumn & Winter

It’s properly autumn now; the urge to crochet woolly warm things is upon me. I’m starting with accessories for me (this will come as no surprise to those who know me)! Then I have lots of things waiting which will become wintery outerwear for others.

Crochet hat? Crochet scarf? Crochet gloves? I hope so! Sorry, everyone, it’s another handmade Christmas!

Basic Tunisian Crochet

I ordered more Tunisian crochet hooks quite soon after I first tried it a couple of weeks ago. I very quickly spotted a gorgeous looking Tunisian crochet cowl from BHooked. It says it’s the perfect beginner project, and it’s true! I knew it was something I could do with my new skill.

I ordered the same brand of wool used in the original pattern (Lion Brand Wool Ease in Barley and Mustard), and I have to say that it’s perfectly nice. I’ve got no problems with it, and it’ll be lovely and warm because of the wool content. And there is no itch, which is very important when smooshing against a neck.

Tunisian crochet has quite a curl to it. This won’t be an issue once it’s finished. To get a good idea of my progress, I have to hold it flat. My progress is slow; I’ve found that chunky yarn is not something that can be worked on for long stretches. Achy fingers are a bit of an issue. Also, I hold a Tunisian crochet hook differently, which will hopefully improve with practise.

A New Puff Stitch Hat

To go with my new crochet cowl, I’m making a hat, which is just normal crochet. I’m picking this up when I put down the other. I’m two balls into a three-ball hat. I’ve guessed at three, I think it should just do it, but there probably won’t be much slouch when I’ve finished.

I’m using aran weight yarn; Big Merino by Drops (love Drops!). It’s dense but super soft. I like it and know it’ll be lovely and warm. The pattern for this is sort of made up, but before I started, I looked around on Pinterest and found that there are several patterns that essentially make this hat. Here is my crochet hat board for Pinterest, try the Urban Slouch Beanie.

There had better be enough yarn left so I can make a pompom…

Block Colour Crochet Ripple blanket.

July 12, 2016March 2, 2026crochet19 Comments

block colour crochet blanket. drapey drapey.

Colour Block Ripple Blanket

Excuse me whilst I saturate one single blog post with several pictures of the same thing: a crochet ripple blanket! I took many photographs and enjoyed doing so. I’m spreading my joy. There also might be a “reward” at the end of this post, in the shape of different things.

This ripple stitch baby blanket will be on Etsy by the end of the week (I tell myself), along with many others. I need to stop hoarding crochet blankets!

This was such a quick and easy blanket to crochet. It was one of those where you don’t have to think, just crochet. Love those mindful crochet projects. The only fretful moment was when I ran half a row short of the shrimp. Luckily, I had a small walnut sized ball left from previous adventures, so I didn’t have to buy a new ball of yarn just for the sake of a few metres.

I’m now wondering what other colour combinations will work well. For many years, I would make all sorts of blankets, in all sorts of colour combinations but I’ve recently begun to notice a pattern emerging. I think I might be developing some sort of crochet style. It might not be a good style, but I suspect there’s one there nevertheless.

Taking repeated pictures of the same thing is confusing; I hope I’m not posting the same pictures twice.

Stash Busting Crochet Blanket

This is still me using up the significant yarn stash I have. I’ve been really good recently. I don’t think I’ve bought any yarn since May. (I’m not including the stuff I bought at the Bovey Craft Festival. Special circumstances!

Here are the details: It’s Stylecraft Special dk in Denim, Shrimp, Navy, Mustard and Sage. I used Attic 24’s Neat Ripple and I think I chained 115 to begin, just right for a baby blanket. The border is Parchment and I used it to fill in the ripples and make a sort of picot edging.

These are some other blankets that I’m planning on Etsyifying this week. I’ve bagged them up and weighed them. Looking at Royal Mail yesterday was exhausting. The pricing schemes are baffling. In the past, I’ve made the mistake of not charging enough for p&p, and I want to avoid doing that again. It’s blinkin’ expensive no matter which way you do it, and I worry it’ll put people off. But! I shall stop looking for excuses and just give it a go.

And on a different note, I’ve put up a picture on my Facebook page to show my summer fete stall. Feel free to go and have a look. It was a very hot and sunny day, which was great (I feared rain). I had no idea what to expect, hmm, it was OK. Having shared the fete blog post locally, I had a few visitors who came over especially to see me, which was lovely. But overall, I don’t think I had stuff that made people spontaneously decide to splurge. Eeh, I don’t know! It was a learning experience, and I’ve even had interest off the back of it, so that’s good. Exposure innit!? I hadn’t considered that that could happen.

Ottery Pixies

And in the interests of sharing all that I do (not just the stuff that makes me feel pleased with myself), here are some cheeky pixies!

Er, yep, I made these cheeky, embroidered pixies!

I have no idea what was going on in my brain. A bit cutesy, aren’t they?! At least they make me laugh, and that can only be a good thing! What you must do is go and look up Pixie Day in Ottery (try wikipedia too). It’s another tradition here, in town, alongside the more famous Tar Barrels. The local kids from scouts, guides, beavers, etc., run around the town dressed up as pixies for Midsummer. It’s a long story, but a fun one.

Anyway, I’m off to do some stitching now. The sewing machine is calling me this week. This morning I drove to Exmouth to go to a closing-down sale at a fabric shop. I spent so long choosing that I didn’t have time to go to the other fabric shop (probably a good thing; I’ve spent all my pocket money).

I’ve linked up to…