Whit's Knits: Crocheted Stash Basket
It doesn't take many years of knitting before one day you wake up to realize you have a lot of yarn. So you embark on a striped project campaign hoping to pare down, but end up buying more and more yarn because you don't have exactly the right colors, and finally you face one of knitting's truths: stashes are unbustable.
And where there's a stash, there's a storage problem. Instead of heading over to the dreaded Container Store, I decided that I would crochet my own storage unit. I imagined something with the feeling of a handmade basket; I wanted it to be nubbly, beachy and beautiful, and so, I turned to Hand Jive's Rustic Silk. One hundred percent Tussah Silk, handspun and handdyed, it is a really special yarn. It is splendidly earthy and fascinatingly varied, like Mother Nature herself created it.
I love my new basket for yarn, but now I'm wondering if I'll need another one for afternoons in the park, days at the beach, and weekends in the country. Ahhh...more yarn...!
Materials
- 2 skeins of Hand Jive's Rustic Silk, 100 % tussah silk. This color is Buttermilk.
- A size "I" crochet hook
- A removable stitch marker (or safety pin)
Pattern
Gauge
3 single crochets = 1 inch
Finished Size
Approximately 13 inches in diameter and 9 inches high
The Bottom
Chain 6 and slip stitch into the first chain to form a ring.
Round 1: Make 12 single crochets (sc) into the ring.
Note: Mark the first stitch of the next round with a removable marker. Reposition the marker at the beginning of each round to mark the new first stitch.
Round 2: *1 sc into next stitch, 2 sc into next stitch, repeat from * to end of round. (18 stitches)
Round 3: *1 sc into next 2 stitches, 2 sc into next stitch, repeat from * to end of round. (24 stitches)
Round 4: *1 sc into next 3 stitches, 2 sc into next stitch, repeat from * to end of round. (30 stitches)
Continue to work in this pattern, each round adding one stitch between the increases until there are 17 stitches between the increases. (114 stitches)
The Sides
Preparation Rounds: Make 1 sc into each stitch for 5 rounds.
Round 1: 1 double crochet (dc) into each stitch.
Round 2: 1 sc into each stitch.
Round 3: * Chain 5, skip 5 stitches, 1 sc into next stitch...
...repeat from * to end of round. (Make the last sc into the last stitch of the previous round.)
Round 4: *5 sc into the 5 chain arch, 1 sc into the top of the sc of the previous round...
...repeat from * to end of round.
Repeat Rounds 1-4 four more times. (Make sure as you work that the "holes" line up. If you've missed a stitch or added one, it's easy to get back on track in Round 3. Just be careful to work the sc directly above the sc from the previous repeat.)
Next Round: *1 dc into next 18 stitches, skip a stitch, repeat from * to end of round. (108 stitches)
Next Round: *1 sc into next 17 stitches, skip a stitch, repeat from * to end of round. (102 stitches)
Next Round: Slip stitch into each stitch.
Handles
Continuing from the last round, chain 1 and sc into the next 4 stitches.
*Turn the work, chain 1, 1 sc into next 4 stitches, repeat from * until handle measures 10 inches.
To keep the edges of the handle straight, make the first sc of each row into the stitch marked by the arrow...
... and make the final sc of each row into the chain of the previous row.
Finish the handle with a right side row.
Fold the handle over so that the right sides are facing each other, and the inside corners of the handle are 3 1/2 inches apart.
Insert the hook into the slip stitch at the top of the bag and make a sc.
Continue to attach the handle to the bag by pulling a loop through both the next stitch of the handle and the next slip stitch of the bag, and then making a single crochet.
Continue to the end of the row.
Cut the yarn and pull the tail through the last stitch.
Fold the bag in half in order to place the second handle directly across from the first handle. With the right side facing you, start the new handle at its far right corner by inserting the hook into the slip stitch of the bag.
Pull a stitch through and make a chain. Make 1 sc into the next 4 stitches.
Make a 10 inch handle identical to the first. Finish with a right side row, and attach the handle to the bag the same way you did with the first handle, although this time you'll attach the left end of the handle instead of the right.
Weave in the ends and fill your basket up!
June 13, 2009
Reader Comments (53)
Thank you !
(I love your pattern called "Mary Jane Slippers", I already have made 2 pairs and I'm knitting the third one !)
Thank you.
Thanks for sharing.
Janet
There are two techniques (at least!) for crocheting in the round. One is what you describe and is basically making concentric circles.
The technique I use (just because I think it's easier, but opinions differ...) is a spiral. This method involves the use of a removable stitch marker that indicates the first stitch of the spiral. Each time you come around to it, you remove the marker and put it onto that new stitch. You don't have to make any chains; you just keep going with your stitch pattern. The beginning of John's Favorite Bucket Hat has a couple of photos illustrating the placement of the stitch marker, which you may find helpful.
Thanks for the great question - I struggled with the same one when I started crocheting!
Good luck -
Whitney
Also, I tried it alternating the holes halfway from the previous row - does that make sense? (Just for a different look.)
This is a great way to use some things I already have - thanks again.
anyway, thank you. I think i'm going to make those little organizing purses next, and i'm looking forward to going through the archives. :)
And yes, after only four months of knitting, my stash seems unbustable already. I keep trying to pare it down, but alas. It continues to grow!
Thanks.
Thanks for your comment. We don't have a knitting version of this pattern- but we do have great books if you'd like to learn how to crochet:
http://www.purlsoho.com/purl/products/booklist/knitting_subject,4
It's really fun and easy! Thanks again-
- Molly
I just finished making this for my mum, it's gorgeous and really fun and easy. I'm going to have to make one for myself now too.
Kimberly
Jania
each row is a different yarn, with fringe at each end. all sc.[I used the navajo design for interest] and it all matches. also if longer basket can be a place for laundry hanging from end of crib.
my mind is going fast for all the baskets I can do, christmas is 9 mo away!
patei
Annabelle
Hmmmm....I gotta get my yarns out and try this.
I like how you filled the bag with yarns...what a nice idea for gift-giving.
Yes, the bag is standing up because it's stuffed, otherwise it slouches, which has its own charm. When my Stash Basket's not full of yarn, I use it as a tote!
Thanks for your question!
Whitney
Here is a link to our Chunky yarns, any of which would be good replacements: http://www.purlsoho.com/purl/products/3-knitting-crochet-yarn?filters[]=7 . I would look especially at Lorna's Laces Revelation and Manos's Handspuns! (Also, you will need about 300 yards of whatever you decide.)
Thanks for your question!
Whitney
so i'm kinda wondering what's the math for the number of stitches for the sides?
thanks!
The stitch pattern for the sides is any multiple of 6. If you follow the bottom pattern, you should be all set because it increases by multiples of 6, even if you stop early or continue longer.
I hope this helps and good luck!
Whitney
What I mean by "continue to work in this pattern" is to each round add one stitch between the increases. So the next round isn't Round 4 or any of the rounds you have worked so far; it is *1 sc into next 4 stitches, 2 sc into next stitch, repeat from * . Then the round after that will be *1 sc into next 5 stitches, 2 sc into next stitch, repeat from * , then 1 sc into the next 6 sc, then into the next 7, etc. until there are 17 single crochets between the increases.
I hope this clarifies the pattern for you. Please let us know if you need more help!
Thank you!
Whitney
I used craft cotton (may be called something different in the states to the UK but it's the stuff you make dishcloths from) for the placemats and have a fair bit left so thought I might try to make one of these from it, since it's quite sturdy and stiff yarn. It's also relatively inexpensive (about £4-£5 GBP for 300 metres) and although it obviously wouldn't be as tactile as silk, it would be more in my budget!
However, it's only a DK weight yarn so obviously it would come up smaller unless I make it bigger - my question is whether you would need to use a hook that is smaller than usual to make it stiffer? Or would you maybe double the yarn, in which case what size hook what you use for this? I still don't have my head around hook sizes yet!
Quite annoyed though as I seem to have acquired an extra stitch somewhere - when doing the row of chains split by single crotchets, I ended a stitch early and when I counted I had 115. Grrr! I was so careful too. This means that one lot of gaps will be split by 2 SCs instead of 1 - usually I would go back and correct it as this would drive me crazy, but as I intend to do more of these I will leave it!
Next i will try one with the craft cotton doubled but only going up to a 5.5mm hook for slightly more bulk - mine looks like it might be a but floppy, but not as much as I expected!
(Also, it might be worth updating your crochet tips as the SC misses a step - the current instructions are for a slip stitch as it misses the second yarn wrap, before pulling through the 2 loops. It nearly have me a heart attack yesterday - I get confused as I learnt with UK terms so k went to check and thought the whole base was wrong. Luckily I checked before unravelling it all!)
The smaller the hook relative to the size of the yarn the stiffer your finished fabric will be. I don't know exactly what size hook you would use if you doubled the yarn - it depends on a few things: the size of the yarn doubled, your tension as you crochet, and what you're going for. But I would guess that a DK weight doubled would be good with somewhere around a J hook maybe.
Thanks for asking!
Whitney