My oldest daughter has been asking me to make her a simple crochet poncho for a while now. And recently, while crocheting a couple of my newest patterns, the Centaur Mandala Afghan and Chimera Scarf, I realized that a combination of the simple crochet stitches I was using would be perfect for a poncho. This is how the Wasilla Poncho came to be!
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Ponchos are great to wear for seasonal transition pieces. They’re also great for late night bonfires when the air gets chilly. Dress them up, dress them down. You really can’t go wrong with a poncho to help keep the chill off!
The Yarn
For this crochet poncho, I chose Lion Brand Yarns Mandala Sparkle, which is a DK weight, self-striping yarn. All of the colorwork was done for me which made this a perfect crochet project for binge watching my favorite TV shows. And I don’t know about you, but my favorite part about this yarn is that I wasn’t left with a bunch of ends to weave in!
If you’ve been following my most recent new releases, you’ll already know that I previously purchased several cakes of Lion Brand Yarns, Mandala, and I’ve been trying to use them for various projects. I’m normally a solid color girl when it comes to most everything in life, especially yarn. But there’s just something about these gorgeous cakes of yarn… I hear them calling my name every time I walk down the yarn aisle! While I love them all, I am ashamed to admit that I’ve been hoarding more cakes than I’ve been using.
THE COLORWAYS I’VE USED SO FAR ARE:
- Gnome: Girls Butterfly Mandala Vest and matching 18″ doll 5 piece set
- Genie: Water’s Edge Shawl
- Griffin: Griffin Shawl & Triangular Scarf
- Centaur: Centaur Mandala Afghan & Wasilla Poncho for Women
- Chimera: Chimera Triangular Scarf
- Aquarius (Mandala Sparkle): Wasilla Poncho for Girls (scroll down for the free crochet poncho pattern)
Photography Credit: Frozen Moments Photography
The Wasilla Poncho is my free crochet poncho pattern contribution to the 2019 Celebrate Mom Blog Hop, hosted by Maria from Pattern Paradise. For this event I designed both a women’s and a girls’ version of the Wasilla Poncho. You can find the Wasilla Poncho for Women, here.
Fond (and funny) Childhood Memory
I have many fond memories of myself as a young girl watching my mom use her hands to create something beautiful. She mostly loved to bake and sew, but occasionally I would watch her hand embroider.
I would watch in awe as she would transform simple round, square and rectangular cakes into breathtaking works of art for someone’s special day. One day there was an odd shaped cake hiding in the microwave. It was a rectangular cake with two bumps she had built up with cupcakes and cake scraps. It just had its crumb coating on so there were no obvious signs to let me know what it was going to be. When I asked my mom, her response was, “It’s a frog for a little boy’s birthday.” I thought that was neat and couldn’t wait to see the finished cake. Well, I never did get to see the cake as she told me they had to pick it up while I was at school. Several years later I was thumbing through photographs of all of the cakes she had made over the years and I came across a cake that I had never seen before. I quickly realized that the cake she had told me was a frog when I was a young girl, was in fact NOT a frog… it was for a bachelor party… I don’t think I need to tell you what those big bumps were. 😉
When she wasn’t making cakes to help support our family, she would spend days making our clothing. I used to spend hours sitting next to her as she sewed new dresses for us both for church and special occasions. I didn’t have a baby sister until I was almost 10 years old so she used to make the matching dresses for herself and I. This is what lead me to design a crochet poncho for both women and girls for the blog hop. Although you may not realize it when you’re a young girl, it is lots of fun to match your mom. 🙂
WASILLA PONCHO for Girls – FREE CROCHET PONCHO PATTERN
The free pattern is below, but if you love to work offline, I’ve got a great option for you.
Purchase the ad-free, printable PDF, including all photo tutorials, on Ravelry here.
- This ad-free, printable PDF includes BOTH the women’s and girls poncho patterns.
Purchase the kit here! Lion Brand also has a full kit of the Wasilla Poncho for Girls, available on their website. The kit includes your choice of 4 colorways and a printed copy of the pattern below.
Pin it for later here.
This post contains affiliate links.
Materials
- Yarn: DK Weight / 3 / Yarn, 640 yards (Lion Brand Yarns, Mandala Sparkle, in Aquarius was used for the sample in the photos) (100 g / 3.5oz / 328 yards / 300 meters / 94% acrylic / 6% polyester) per cake – You’ll need 2 cakes for a girls poncho, or 640 yards.
- Crochet Hook: J/10/6.00mm (My favorite crochet hooks are the Clover Amour Hooks, I’ve never had an ache in my hand since switching)
- Scissors
- Yarn Needle
Many of these materials are available for purchase through our affiliates below:
Gauge
- In sc: 11 sts = 3″ + 5 rows = 1.25″
Finished Size
- Child Size: 21″ (neck opening) x 13″ L (at sides) x 19″ L (at center point)
- Adult Size – Click HERE for the free crochet poncho pattern
Abbreviations (US Terms)
- ch(s): chain(s)
- sl st: slip stitch
- st(s): stitch(es)
- sc: single crochet
- dc: double crochet
- puff st: see special stitches below
- RS: right side
- yo: yarn over
- rep: repeat
- sp: space
- 2 dc-cl: 2 double crochet cluster (click HERE for tutorial)
- Alt-dc-cl: alternate double crochet cluster (click HERE for tutorial)
Pattern 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.
- Turning chains are not included in stitch count.
- Yarn: Yarn used for the sample shown here is Lion Brand Yarns, Mandala Sparkle, in Aquarius, 3 / DK Weight Yarn (100 g / 3.5oz / 328 yards / 300 meters / 94% acrylic / 6% polyester). You’ll need 2 cakes for a girls’ size poncho, or approximately 640 yards.
- Yarns similar in fiber content and weight can be substituted.
- Chains (for chain spaces) are included in stitch count. When reading the instructions, skipped stitches can be chains or stitches.
- Poncho is worked from the neck opening down.
- Adjusting the Length: You can easily adjust the length of your poncho. The measurements given above are the length of my poncho shown in the photos in this post. If you choose to lengthen or shorten your poncho, I suggest ending with 2 – 4 repeats of round 3.
Special Stitches
- Single Crochet Puff Stitch (puff st): Yo, insert your hook into the indicated stitch/space, yo and pull up a long loop, (yo, insert your hook into the same stitch/space, yo, and pull up a long loop) 4 more times, yo, pull through all 11 loops on your hook. Note: You typically close a puff stitch with a ch 1, but for this design, it is written to ch-1 after the stitch. This ch-1 is used to close the puff stitch and create the next ch-1 space in the design. So only work one ch 1 after each puff stitch, not 2 like you may be used to.
- Alternate Double Crochet – Double Crochet Cluster (alt-dc-cl): After turning your work, do not ch, instead, insert your hook into the first st, yo, pull up a loop, yo, pull thru both loops, insert your hook between the legs of the st just made, yo, pull up a loop, yo, insert your hook into the same stitch/space, yo, pull up a loop, yo, pull thru 2 loops, yo, pull thru remaining loops. Click HERE for a complete tutorial.
- 2 Double Crochet Cluster (2 dc-cl): Yo, insert hook where indicated, yo, pull up a loop, yo, pull thru 2 loops, yo, insert hook in same st, yo, pull up a loop, yo, pull thru 2 loops, yo, pull thru remaining loops. Click HERE for a complete tutorial.
Wasilla Poncho Instructions
Set-Up: Using a 6.00mm crochet hook, 84, being careful not to twist the chain, join w/ a sl st to the 1st ch.
Rnd 1 (RS): Ch 1, working into the back hump of the chain, sc in each ch around. Join. (84 sts)
Rnd 2 (RS): Ch 1, sc in the first st, ch 1, skip the next st, (sc in the next st, ch 1, skip the next st) 9 times, (sc, ch 2, sc) into the next st, ch 1, skip the next st, (sc in the next st, ch 1, skip the next st) 20 times, (sc, ch 2, sc) into the next st, ch 1, skip the next st, (sc in the next st, ch 1, skip the next st) 10 times. Join. Turn. (90 sts) *Chains (not including turning chains) are counted as stitches.
Rnd 3 (WS): Sc in the 1st ch-1 sp, ch 1, skip the next st, [ (sc in the next ch-1 sp, ch 1, skip the next st) rep around to the next ch-2 sp, (sc, ch 2, sc) in the next ch-2 sp, ch 1, skip the next st ] work from [ to ] twice, then (sc in the next ch-1 sp, ch 1, skip the next st) rep around to the end. Join. Turn. *Stitch count increases by 6.
Rnds 4 – 6: Repeat Round 3.
Rnd 7: Alt-dc-cl in the first ch-1 sp, ch 1, skip the next st, [ (dc-cl in the next ch-1 sp, ch 1, skip the next st) rep around to the next ch-2 sp, (dc-cl, ch 2, dc-cl) in the next ch-2 sp, ch 1, skip the next st] work from [ to ] twice, then (dc-cl in the next ch-1 sp, ch 1, skip the next st) rep around to the end. Join. Turn. *Stitch count increases by 6.
Rnds 8 – 10: Repeat Rnd 3.
Rnd 11: Ch 1, puff st in the 1st ch-1 sp, ch 1, skip the next st, [ (puff st in the next ch-1 sp, ch 1, skip the next st) rep from
( to ) around to the next ch-2 sp, (puff st, ch 2, puff st) in the next ch-2 sp, ch 1, skip the next st ] work from [ to ] twice, then work (puff st in the next ch-1 sp, ch 1, skip the next st) rep around to the end of the rnd. Join. Turn. *Stitch count increases by 6.
Rnds 12 – 14: Repeat Rnd 3.
Repeat Rnds 7 – 14 until your poncho is the desired length. I ended mine when it measured 19″ along the center point and 13″ at the sides. *See my note above about adjusting the length of your poncho.
Fasten off. Weave in ends. Block, if desired (see link below).
Blocking Your Crochet Wearables
- Blocking isn’t mandatory, but it does add a nice finished look to crochet wearables!
- Click HERE for my Blocking Tutorial & Learn 3 Different Ways to Block!
MORE FREE CROCHET PATTERNS FROM A CROCHETED SIMPLICITY
If you enjoy crocheting for your kids and grandkids, you may enjoy these other projects as well. And if you just want to browse, you can find all of our free crochet patterns HERE.
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- Sunny Days Beach Cover-Up
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- Kids Linen Stitch Sunhat
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- Unicorn Earbud Holder
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- “Winter Poms” 18″ Doll Hat
Are you intimidated by knit-look crochet? Would you love to learn my tips & tricks? Take an Annies Video Class with me and let me ease your fears and help you increase your skills! Click on the photo below to watch a free preview. You can also see the other 4 video classes I have available!
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