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    Home » A Crocheted Simplicity

    Free Crochet Pattern - Cool Stripes Bag

    Jul 11, 2017 by Jennifer Renaud

    13274 shares

    Do you love to use striped or variegated yarns in your crochet, or are you more like me and tend to stick with solids, heathers, and tweeds? 

    As much as I love the beautifully colored yarns (there's plenty of proof of this in my yarn stash;) ), I have always had a hard time finding just the right design for them. I was beginning to believe that these yarns with shorter color changes were designed by the yarn companies for knitters, not crocheters! 

    I recently received an e-mail from Red Heart Yarns asking if they could send me a skein of their newest yarns to play with and Red Heart Super Saver Stripes was one of them. Who am I to turn down free yarn??? But then the anxiety set in... "What on earth am I going to make with this? STRIPES?!?!?! The color changes aren't long enough for crochet. Am I going to disappoint them?" Eek!

    Then the box came and I was super excited that the colorways they sent were hues of blue...my favorite!!! I laid them on a table where they could stare at me for a few days until they finally told me what they wanted to become (no, I wasn't expecting the yarn to talk...I haven't lost my marbles 😉 ). Then one day it hit me...of course it was when I was on a 10 hour drive back from my daughter's and I couldn't crochet. So I did the next best thing. The next time I stopped for gas I drew a quick sketch and a note with my idea so I wouldn't forget. The very next day, the Cool Stripes Bag was born and the rest is history! I hope you enjoy this free crochet pattern!

    Moral of the story (as you'll see), self-striping yarn is also made for crocheters. 😉

    In this article

        •  
        • > Click HERE to sign-up to receive our newsletter <
      • > Don’t lose it, add It To Your Ravelry Favorites or Queue <
      • > Don’t forget to Pin It too <
      • *Purchase an ad-free PDF on Ravelry that includes the Mattress Stitch Seam Tutorial*
      • Materials
      • Gauge
      • Difficulty Level
      • Finished Size
      • Stitch Abbreviations 
      • Special Stitches
      • Notes
      • Custom Sizing Instructions
    • Cool Stripes Bag Instructions
      • Forming the Bag
      • Strap Instructions
      • Attaching the Strap
      • Find all of my FREE crochet patterns HERE
        •  
      • Happy Crocheting!

     

    > Click HERE to sign-up to receive our newsletter <

     

    Free Crochet Pattern - Cool Stripes Bag by A Crocheted Simplicity

    > Don’t lose it, add It To Your Ravelry Favorites or Queue <

    > Don’t forget to Pin It too <

    *Purchase an ad-free PDF on Ravelry that includes the Mattress Stitch Seam Tutorial*

     

    This post contains affiliate links.

    Materials

    • Yarn: Red Heart Yarns Super Saver Stripes  (stripes 5 oz / 141 g / 236 yds / 215 m / 100% acrylic)  (If you’re making your bag the size shown, you’ll need only 1 skein.) Colorway shown: Cool Stripe
    • Crochet Hook: I/9/5.50mm, H/8/5.00mm (My favorite crochet hooks are the Clover Amour Hooks, I’ve never had an ache in my hand since switching)
    • Scissors
    • Yarn Needle
    • Locking Stitch Marker
    • D-Rings (2) 1.5" (optional)

     

    Many of these materials are available for purchase through our affiliates below:

     

    Gauge

    • In herringbone hdc: 11.25 sts X 9.5 rows = 3"

     

    Difficulty Level

    • Easy

     

    Finished Size

    • One Size: 10.5" W x 10.5" H (does not include strap)

       

    Stitch Abbreviations 

    • ch: chain
    • sl st: slip stitch
    • sc: single crochet
    • Hhdc: Herringbone Half Double Crochet Stitch (click here for photo & video tutorial)
    • yo: yarn over
    • st(s): stitch(es)
    • RS: right side
    • WS: wrong side
    • SM: stitch marker

     

    Special Stitches

    • Herringbone Half Double Crochet (Hhdc): Yo, insert hook into stitch indicated, yo, pull up a loop and pull it thru 1 loop on hook, yo, pull thru remaining loops. Click HERE for video tutorial & 2 quick tips for working this stitch more quickly!

     

    Notes

    • I tend to crochet on the tighter side. You may need to go down a hook size (or two) to meet gauge if you crochet on the looser side.
    • The first stitch of each row is worked in the same stitch as the turning chain, unless stated otherwise.
    • Beginning chains are not counted as a stitch.
    • Custom Sizing Instructions are included if you'd like to make a smaller or larger bag. If you choose to make a larger bag, you'll need 2 skeins of Red Heart Super Saver Stripes.

     


    Custom Sizing Instructions

    Would you like to make a smaller or larger bag? If your answer is 'yes', then follow these simple instructions!

    Step One: Simply increase or decrease the number of chains in your foundation chain in multiples of 2.

    Step Two: Follow Row 1 of the Bag Instructions using your new stitch count.

    Step Three: Repeat Row 2 in multiples of 2 until the length of your rectangle measures 3 times its' width.

    • For example, Row 1 as originally written is 8" wide so you would repeat Row 2 until it measures 24" in length.

     

    Cool Stripes Bag Instructions

    Row 1 (RS): Using a 5.5mm crochet hook, ch 29, switch to a 5mm crochet hook, Hhdc in the 2nd ch from your hook and in each ch across. Turn. (28 sts)

    Rows 2 - 74: Ch 1, Hhdc in each st across. Turn.

    Fasten off. Weave in all ends. Continue on to Forming the Bag.

     

    Forming the Bag

    Free Crochet Pattern - Cool Stripes Bag by A Crocheted Simplicity

    Photo A: Lay your bag out in front of you as shown in the photo.

    Photo B: Bring the bottom left corner up to meet the upper long edge (as shown in the photo). Bring the upper right corner down to meet the lower long edge (as shown in the photo).

    Free Crochet Pattern - Cool Stripes Bag by A Crocheted Simplicity

    Photos C & D: Bring the lower edge up to meet the edge created in photo B. See pink arrows.

    Free Crochet Pattern - Cool Stripes Bag by A Crocheted Simplicity

    Photo E: After completing photo D, make sure that your rows are lined up. Next, use a stitch marker to hold the pieces together.

    Now it's time to seam your bag! Use the Mattress Stitch Seam to seam your bag. Click HERE for my Mattress Stitch Seam Tutorial.

    Repeat the seam for the opposite side of the bag, then continue on to the Strap Instructions below.

     

    Strap Instructions

    Row 1 (RS): Using a 5.5mm crochet hook, ch 6, switch to a 5mm crochet hook, Hhdc in the 2nd ch from your hook and in each ch across. Turn. (5 sts)

    Rows 2 - 88: Ch 1, Hhdc in each st across. Turn. *To customize the length of your strap simply increase or decrease the number of rows you work, by multiples of 2. Remember that yarn straps will stretch over time so make it shorter than you'd like it to be.

    Fasten off. Weave in all ends. Continue on to Attaching the Strap.

    Attaching the Strap

    Free Crochet Pattern - Cool Stripes Bag by A Crocheted Simplicity

    First, attach one D-ring to each of the two upper corners of the bag. Place the D-ring near the corner, fold the corner over approximately 1-¼" and through the center of the D-ring, then secure it by sewing with a yarn needle and 8" length of yarn. Weave in ends. Repeat for the second side.

    Next, attach the strap by inserting one end of the strap through the D-ring (from outside to inside). Insert it just far enough through so that it folds around the D-ring. Using a yarn needle and 8" length of yarn, sew the short end of the strap to the strap to secure it. Weave in ends. Repeat for the second side.

    Note: If you've chosen not to use D-rings, simply sew one short edge of your strap to each side of your bag.

     

    Find all of my FREE crochet patterns HERE

     


    Are you intimidated by crocheted cables? Would you love to learn more? Take an Annies Video Class with me and let me ease your fears of crocheted cables! Click on the photo below to watch a free preview. You can also see the other 2 classes I have available! (affiliate link)

    Modern Classic Cabled Afghan Online Video Class with Instructor Jennifer Pionk of A Crocheted Simplicity


    Please share your finished ACS projects with me in the A Crocheted Simplicity Crochet Community Group on Facebook!

    Happy Crocheting!

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    13274 shares

    © Copyright 2023 Jennifer Renaud aka A Crocheted Simplicity. All Rights Reserved. All designs, posts, videos and images are property of Jennifer Renaud and are my own original work. No parts may be reproduced, altered, or distributed in any form, or by any means, without express written permission from Jennifer Renaud. If you want to share this information with someone, share the link to this post. If you want to share on your own blog / website, then you may use the first photo in this post and link back to this post. You may not give away printed copies of this post. Thank you.

    This post may contain affiliate links/ads. If you purchase something from a link in this post, I may be compensated.

    Reader Interactions

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    1. Sonya

      May 16, 2018 at 8:11 pm

      Cute bag!!!

      Reply
    2. Willow

      June 05, 2018 at 10:58 pm

      I just finished mine and I love it. Thanks soooooooooo much for the free patterns!!!

      Reply
      • Jennifer Pionk

        June 06, 2018 at 8:52 am

        I'm so glad you love it!! 🙂

        Reply
    3. Theresa

      February 08, 2022 at 4:11 pm

      It is such a cute bag, I dropped everything to start it. I'm still crocheting but it seems as if I'm going to run out of yarn. Do you have an approximate length after you complete the last row (#74)?
      Thank you

      Reply

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