Do you ever feel like a project was meant to be? I’m sharing the pattern for this color block crochet basket today, and I must say, finishing a basket feels like the planets aligning. You might have seen a preview on Instagram the other day too!
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Big basket complete! Not quite 13 inches tall but close. And I used up a bunch of scrap yarn too. #iwinagoldstar #crochet #lmcalibaby
1. We were (are) drowning in toys and I feel like the guy pushing the rock up the hill in hell, where he pushes it up and it comes crashing down every night. I clean up the toys every night and the kids just drag them out again every morning. I can even clean up during the day, but the baby is right behind me, pulling the toys back out. It’s a losing battle, I suppose, but I wanted some way to harness all the random little pieces.
MY LATEST VIDEOSSide note: Why do all kids’ toys have to come in SO MANY PIECES?! Legos, blocks, puzzles. How does anyone expect to keep track of everything?
2. I had my Ikea Kallax shelf in my craft room, but have moved it out to our dining space to use as a bookshelf and a buffet. It had a few extra compartments empty, which were perfect for some baskets.
3. Moving made me really realize how much yarn I have. Holy cow. I had a lot of scraps from when I made a bunch of scarves and hats for a craft fair I attended a few years ago. They were all bulky weight yarn, which is hard to use for lollipop ghosts and baby shoes, so I had to figure out a larger project to work on.
Enter the basket. A basket sized to fit my Kallax shelf. A basket to hide all the random toy pieces scattered about the living room. A basket to turn that bin of scrap bulky yarn into something functional and beautiful. And a reason to sit back with a lapful of yarn and crochet the evening away…
This pattern (as forgiving as it is) is for personal use only. Please do not claim this pattern as your own, or sell or distribute it. If you would like to share this pattern, please link to this site and do not repost the pattern on your site. You can sell finished items made from this pattern, but please link back and give credit to One Dog Woof. Thanks!
Supplies:
4 to 5 skeins of bulky weight yarn. I used mainly Lion Brand Wool-Ease Thick and Quick although there were scraps of Bernat Softee Chunky and Loops and Threads Cozy Wool mixed in.
N / 10.00 mm hook
scissors
stitch marker
embroidery needle
ruler
Abbreviations:
sc: single crochet
hdc: half double crochet
Color Block Crochet Basket Pattern
In order to make this basket super thick and sturdy, it was made using two skeins of bulky yarn held together.
Start with a magic circle.
Round 1. Work 8 sc into magic circle. Do not join – work in continuous rounds. (8)
Round 2. Work 2 hdc in each stitch around. (16)
Round 3. *Work 1 hdc in next stitch, then 2 hdc in next stitch.* Repeat from * around. (24)
Round 4. *Work 1 hdc in next 2 stitches, then 2 hdc in next stitch.* Repeat from * around. (32)
Round 5. *Work 1 hdc in next 3 stitches, then 2 hdc in next stitch.* Repeat from * around. (40)
Round 6. *Work 1 hdc in next 4 stitches, then 2 hdc in next stitch.* Repeat from * around. (48)
Round 7. *Work 1 hdc in next 5 stitches, then 2 hdc in next stitch.* Repeat from * around. (56)
Round 8. *Work 1 hdc in next 6 stitches, then 2 hdc in next stitch.* Repeat from * around. UNWORK the last stitch in this round. You should have 63 stitches in the round. (63)
Round 9. In back loops only, work 1 sc in each stitch around. (63)
Round 10. *In the next stitch, work 1 sc in both loops. In the next stitch, insert your hook below the sc from the previous round and complete a single crochet.* Repeat from * around. All of these stitches are technically single crochet stitches, but every other one is double the height because they are worked below the sc of the previous round.
Round 11. From here on, just continue the pattern of “1 sc + 1 extra long sc” around and around until you reach the desired height.
At some point about 2/3 of the way up to your desired height, you’ll want to change yarn colors, then keep working the same “1 sc + 1 extra long sc” around. The way you change yarn colors will determine your color pattern. I staggered my yarn changes, mostly because they were scraps and were all different lengths. I tied a new color yarn to the old yarn with a square knot because I didn’t want to have to weave in all of these scraps ends, and I just tucked in the little knots as I went along.
The green basket was my first attempt. It is 13″ in diameter and I actually put 65 stitches in the final round. It came out a bit floppy.
I adjusted the pattern a bit for the blue basket, and only used 63 stitches in the final round, which worked much better at keeping the sides stiff. The final measurements are 13″ in diameter and 13″ high, just right to fit in the Kallax shelf.
Will these actually contain all the toys? Maybe. Maybe not. But they’re pretty to look at!
ChiWei
I created One Dog Woof as a place for me to share tidbits of inspiration for anyone with a do-it-yourself attitude, filled with colorful crochet patterns and creative ideas for joyful living.
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dodie says
October 31, 2015 at 9:54 AMYou might consider cutting some plastic shopping bags to make plarn and use that to double up yarns to add
some stiffness to the body and bottom
Maria says
November 28, 2015 at 7:51 AMMe parecen fantásticas estas canastas y deseo hacer las mías, será posible publicar el diagrama de la puntada, no entiendo bien la explicación. Gracias y felicitaciones
madeline says
November 28, 2015 at 10:23 AMThis basket is not only useful, but with the shade gradations at the top, echo of Southwest basketry and pottery. I’ve just ordered my yards, and will make mine from wheat (which has stray black hair incorporated into it), heather grey, oxford grey, and black. Can’t wait for the yard to arrive! Very excited for this pattern. Thanks!
Adrians says
December 30, 2015 at 6:14 PMThe baskets require bulky weight yarn. Can I use worsted weight double strand. It will be cheaper
Danielle says
June 7, 2016 at 11:03 AMI was thinking the same thing. I did a basket a while back that I used 4 strands of Red heart. I was thinking about doing that.
Cade says
January 7, 2018 at 5:37 PMThe pattern actually uses a double-strand of super bulky (I know this just ’cause I grabbed the same yarn the pattern uses, and Thick&Quick is only super bulky), so you might need more than 2 strands of a smaller yarn to make it. Otherwise, it might be a little smaller or less sturdy than the original basket. Another commenter said that they had made a smaller version of this basket using a thinner yarn, and it worked well for them, just wasn’t as big.
Georgiann says
January 25, 2016 at 9:10 AMMy first-time seen this . I like the app.
LindaP says
May 16, 2016 at 5:49 AMThx for the inspiration of your beautiful basket. Mine isn’t as pretty. I made mine into a foot rest/yarn holder. And used up a lot of scrap yarn.
Miriam says
June 17, 2016 at 10:01 PMGreat pattern! Thanks! I didn’t have any bulky yarn, so I used two size 4 yarn weights together. I am at round 10 and its working up nicely! Great way to use the extra year that is in a colour I don’t normally use!
Kathryn Huihui says
July 9, 2016 at 2:17 AMAloha!!! I’ve made several baskets and this pattern is awesome!!! I’ve foubf that using 2 strands of cotton yarn extremely sturdy…. Just wanted to pass that along!! Have an amazing weekend!!!
vay says
July 17, 2016 at 6:31 AMhi, i’m new at this just a few questio. aftrr finish the row10 when you start the sc+long sc when you move to row 11 mean the stich have increase right? when i start to do row 12 the round is curl up like flower .. is this normal? mine at this stage look more like a matt.. flat round shape. did i missed out any steps??
ChiWei says
July 27, 2016 at 8:49 AMYour project may curl but it’ll even out by the end!
Dhivya says
August 20, 2016 at 2:13 PMHello ChiWei,
I was absolutely inspired by your basket and have started to crochet for the very first time. I’m 6 rows into the side of the basket and can’t see it raising in height, it seems to open up like a huge bowl! Heeelllllppppp!!!
Dhivya
ChiWei says
October 18, 2016 at 8:59 AMHi Dhivya, make sure to check that you have the same number of stitches in each round as the round before – I’ve had that problem before. Also, sometimes it takes a while for the rows to start looking like height. You can also tighten your stitches if they’re flopping too much. Hope that helps!
Paola says
January 10, 2017 at 10:42 AMThis pattern is awesome, thank you!!! I’ve already made 2 and I plan to make more:) I use them put my workout stuff in, my weights, yoga block.
unblocked vevo says
June 26, 2018 at 5:39 AMI don’t know whether it’s just me or if everybody else experiencing problems with your website.
It appears as if some of the written text within your posts are running off the screen. Can somebody else please comment and let me know if this is happening to them as
well? This might be a problem with my internet browser because I’ve had
this happen before. Cheers
Christi says
May 11, 2019 at 9:40 PMin the first few steps it says to make the magic ring, after that are we supposed to chain any before we start working in the magic circle?