How to Quickly Crochet a Clutch or Wristlet Purse

Here are my two finished purses. I crocheted both of these pretty quickly. The clutch is for my daughter and the wristlet is mine! I love the vintage look of it.

First, how to crochet a quick clutch purse:

1. Crochet a rectangle that is about twice as long as you want your finished purse to be (because you will fold it in half) and as wide as you want it. I think smaller ones are better since they aren't super stable. I use Double or Single Crochet because this purse isn't lined and I didn't want big gaps in it. Once you reach they height you need, it's time to make the flap. There is no need to cut off your yarn.

2. To make the flap, with your working yarn, make a row of single or double crochet (whatever you're using) in the BACK LOOPS across your rectangle, then proceed to make single crochet rows (or decorative stitching) once again in the front loops for your subsequent rows until the flap is as long as you want it. There should just be one row of crochet in the back loops. This will make a crease that lets it fold over nicely.

 3. Fold up the bottom of your rectangle having the edge sitting just about an inch or two below your back loop row (the beginning of your flap). Whip stitch the sides together.

4. (Optional) You can add a decorative edge to the top of your folded over piece to make it look prettier. You can also add decorative stitches or a fun edge to the flap. I put a button that my daughter picked out on mine to hold it closed.

 The Granny Square Wristlet:

This project will be as easy or as hard as you want to make it. You don't even have to use granny squares. The picture to the left is a mirror image because I took it on my webcam :-)

1. Make two rectangles of equal size for the walls of your purse. If you want to use granny squares like I did, make your two granny squares (one for each side) the same size then add rows on either side to make it a rectangle. I used a different granny square on each side. One has a 3-D flower on it. The pattern for this 3-D flower square can be found here. I added another row around mine in the dark blue because I wanted it a bit bigger. On the other side I wanted another flower but I wanted it flat. I made a "daisy" square. You can find the pattern for the Daisy square here.  I used a "crossed double crochet" for the rows on the sides of my squares because I like the texture.

2. Whip stitch or crochet your two rectangles together on the two short sides and one long side.

3. Attach a wrist strap to one of the top (open) corners. I don't like to use just a chain because it stretches too much so I made my strap about an inch think and used both of my colors on it.

4. Make a zippered pouch.  This is a really good tutorial on how to make a zippered pouch. This can be tricky even if you know how to sew, but zippers are so convenient! If you don't like to sew you can buy a pouch to put in it or make an open pouch that can be closed with snaps, magnets, buttons....whatever. Granny squares tend to have lots of holes in them so for functional purposes this bag needs a liner.

5. Place your pouch in the purse and sew around the top to secure the two together. I also sewed the bottom corners of my pouch to the corners of my crocheted purse so that the lining is more stabilized.

The Easiest Crocheted Baby Hat Ever Tutorial

Don't tell me you can't make your baby silly hats. As a matter of fact, this is the easiest baby hat I have ever crocheted. Of course I made it more difficult than I had to by mixing up the stripes, but you don't have to do that. This hat is just a crocheted rectangle.

 1. Crochet a rectangle that measures the length from one temple to the other around your child's head. Make it as tall as the length from your child's chin to the crown of their head. You can use any crochet stitch you like, any hook, any guage...that's up to you. (I bet you could make this out of fleece too if you aren't much of a yarn person)

2. Fold it in half as pictured.

3. Sew the top seam closed. You can crochet it closed as well, but I prefer to whip stitch.

4. Add a decorative stitch to the front edge (if you want) and add the ties to go under the chin. I attach my yarn at the corner then chain down the length I want them to be and then single crochet back up to the hat to make them a little thicker.

5. Try it on your child and take pictures. I love the point in the back on this one!

Old Projects: Crocheted Christmas Ornaments

 I made some Christmas ornaments this year while on a crochet-kick and ended up with these guys.  First I made these simple tear-drop shaped ones and decorated them with buttons.  This pattern was one I found on craftstylish.com.  The bells were my next projects.  These were both really simple to make!  I found the pattern for the bells here.  I love trying out tutorials I find on the Internet and sharing my results, so I know these are out of season now, but still, here they are.  I actually think the tear-drop shaped ones would make cute decorative gift tags and that the bells could be wedding favors/decorations if done in the right colors.

Mug Cozies and Baby Cocoons.

This is a late posting, but I made a large group of Ninja Turtle mug cozies for Christmas gifts, and forgot to take a picture.  I made my husband one as well though, and for his I added an "angry mouth" as per his request.  This is Donatello.  The idea for this is the same as any mug cozy, you just make the tie a different color to create the eye-mask.  I added the eyes and mouth later.  If you are too lazy to make one of these, or just not a crocheter, you can buy one from this nice lady on Etsy who makes better ones than I do.  I didn't use a pattern for this because I didn't have one, but the idea itself wasn't mine originally.

I made all the turtles but still need to make myself one.  I'm a Leonardo girl, but I've been sort of feeling like making a pink Ninja Turtle just to be weird and calling her Georgia O'Keefe or something.

I did make myself this cozy though.  I added a few rows of shell stitching to the top because I wanted it to have a scalloped edge.  I will share the pattern for this one since I created it out of my own head and it fits a standard coffee mug.

Bethany's Scalloped Mug Cozy:

SC = Single Crochet
DC = Double Crochet
Made with hook size J, Red Heart Super Saver yarn.

(If you want to alternate colors after each row like I did, feel free to do so)

Chain 4, then slip stitch to form loop.

Row 1:  DC 10 times in this loop to make your foundation circle then connect with a slip stitch.

Row 2: Chain 3.  * DC twice in next stitch, then make one chain. * Repeat around the ring, connecting with a slip stitch.

Row 3: Chain 3. *DC twice in each DC from the previous row, and once in each chain. *Repeat around the ring, connecting with a slip stitch.

Row 4: Chain 3.  DC around entire ring, connect with slip stitch.  (This row has no increases since you are now forming the body of the mug)

Row 5: Chain 3.  DC around entire ring, stopping then you have two stitches left to complete the row.  This gap is where the base of your mug handle will go.

Row 6-9: Chain 3 and turn work. Do 2 DC in the base of your chain.  * Skip 2 stitches and SC, skip 2 stitches and DC 5 times in same stitch. * Repeat this to the end of the row.

After finishing row 9, chain then length of your desired button loop (approx. 5-10 chains depending on the button size you are using and how far from the handle you want to place the buttons).  Connect this chain with a SC to one side of the middle of the length of the gap for the mug handle.  The chain the same length for the next button hole and connect it with a SC to the same side of the gap at the base.  You should now have two button loops.

Now you can sew on your buttons (or tie them on with yarn).  I went back later and added another button loop to the top of my cozy to connect over the top of my handle to the top button, just to really secure the cozy and keep it from sliding down.  This is totally optional.

If my tutorial is too hard to understand since I'm not very good at writing them, here are a few basic mug cozy tutorials I've found on the web:

Diyods Mug Cozy
Debbie Jeans Mug Cozy
Mimi's Mug Cozy

I also wanted to post pictures of the "baby cocoon" I made for my son yesterday.  I found this pattern here.  I pretty much followed it exactly, except that I added a decorative edge to the top using back-post double crochets and front-post double crochets to give it a ribbed look, and topped it off with one row of blue single crochet.

So, I'm having a baby, and it's a BOY!!!

 I crocheted my still-in-utero son these baby booties the night I found out that my baby bump contained a beautiful boy.  I used a pattern I found online at coatsandclark.com.  I used this same pattern before but I did a better job this time!  I haven't added cute little bows to them yet or anything, but might do that after Christmas.  For now they are wrapped snugly in a little box as a first-ever Christmas present for my son.  I bought this yarn especially for the project because I loved the subtlety to the variation and the almost denim-color of it, besides how very very soft it is.  I am very excited to have a little boy to add to my little girl and can't wait to discover some fun boy sewing projects after doing so many with ruffles!

Eleanor's Crocheted Butterfly Beanie

 I actually made this hat a couple weeks ago and my daughter really loves it.  This was a simple concept that began as a plain old yellow beanie.  For instructions on how to make a simple crocheted beanie, I found this link to be pretty good:  How to Crochet a Beanie

It was too boring so I added a couple rows of seed stitching to the bottom in hot pink.  I use a lot of seed stitching in my projects to add decorative texture to things.  The seed stitch is a very simple stitch since it is just basic stitches being alternated. You simply single crochet, then double crochet, then single crochet, etc...  When you reach the end of the row you turn it around and double crochet on the single crochets and single crochet on the double crochets from the previous row.  You could also do triple/treble crochets instead of double crochets for even more texture.

Here is a great page I've bookmarked on how to do a variety of fun stitches: Crochet Stitches and How to Make Them  (Although seed stitch isn't on this list, which is why I explained that one!)


Even with the pink border I thought this hat was too boring for my little girl, which is when I had this vision of it covered in colorful butterflies.  So I went on the hunt for a simple butterfly pattern and found this one: Crocheted Sass-Butterfly Pattern

These butterflies were quick and easy to make so I made several and just tied them on the hat with yarn.  I can see myself making lots of other butterflies in the future for various projects to use as embellishments.

Eleanor's Ridiculously Pointed Winter Hat!

 I decided to make my daughter a completely ridiculous looking hat.  I didn't use a pattern for this or write down what I was doing, but if you can crochet in the round you can make this!  I just started at the top and kept slowly increasing each row until it fit my daughter's head.  I did add a few rows of seed-stitching for a textured element and then added ear flaps to make it more functional.  I topped it off with tassels on the top point.  Very elf-like I guess!  My daughter really loves it.  It is mostly done in single crochet and was made with a size J hook (my favorite size).  It actually fits my head pretty well too but I wasn't about to post of picture of me in this hat because my husband almost fell off the couch laughing at me when I put it on!!!

If you like to crochet and would like a huge collection of free crochet patterns, check out this directory at Crochet Pattern Central.  I adore this website and use it all the time.  Sometimes just seeing the images gives me ideas for my own creations, like ridiculously pointed snow hats.

Bethany's Fingerless Mittens--My First Crochet Pattern

 In my recent drive to crochet I decided it was time to actually pay attention to what I was doing and write it down so that I might post my first ever Bethany Sew-&-Sew created crochet pattern!  This is for fingerless mittens or "arm-warmers" if you prefer.  I got this idea from a different pattern but it was too detailed for simple ol' me and I pretty much only work with Red Heart Super Saver yarn (worsted Medium 4--ya know, the stuff you can get cheap just about anywhere).  In this case I chose a dark pink.  I used a size J crochet hook.  This pattern is an easy pattern using only a few basic stitches and is designed to fit an average woman's hand/arm.




So here's my pattern: Bethany's Fingerless Mittens

Feel free to use it as you like but please give credit to www.bethanysewandsew.com if you link it or mention it elsewhere on the Internet!  Thanks!

Stitches used and their abbreviations:
Chain - Ch
Slip Stitch - Sl St
Single Crochet - Sc
Double Crochet - Dc  (If you crochet really tight, or are using a smaller hook, Dc's can be changed to Treble Crochets)
Double Crochet Decrease - Dc Dec 


Foundation Chain: Ch 30 (or however many you need to fit your arm snugly), join with Sl St to form a ring being careful not to twist the chain.
Rows 1-9: Ch 3, Dc around ring, join with Sl St at end of each row.
Row 10: Ch 3, Dc about halfway around ring, do 3 sets of Dc Dec (To see how to do this, click here for a video tutorial), finish with Dc around ring, join with Sl St.
Rows 11-13: Follow instructions for Rows 1-9
Row 14: Follow instructions for Row 10
Rows 15-16: Follow instructions for Rows 1-9
Row 17: Ch 3, Dc about halfway around ring, Dc twice in one stitch, then again in the next (2 Dc Increases), finish with Dc around the ring, join with Sl St.  (this is to widen it for the base of your hand after narrowing it to fit your wrist with the Dc Dec above)
Row 18: Ch 3 *, 2 Dc in next 2 stitches, Ch 5, skip the next 5 Dc (this is to make the thumb-hole) Then Dc the rest of the way around the ring.   * When making the mitten for the opposite hand, Ch 3, then TURN your project so that the thumb hole will be on the opposite side before following the rest of the Row 18 instructions.
Rows 19-21: Follow instructions for Rows 1-9

The Thumb-hole
Attach yarn to base of thumb-hole opening.  Do 1 row of Sc all the way around it, join with Sl St, Ch 1, then Sc around it again, joining with a Sl St (2 rows of Sc).  Then Ch 3, do 1 row of Dc around it, join with Sl St, Ch 3, then Dc around it again, joining with a Sl St (2 rows of Dc). 


Feel free to leave a comment or email me if you have any questions or see any problems in this pattern.  It is my first one ever to post on the Internet!

More Crocheting--Baby Booties and my Finished Baby Blanket

I made my first ever pair of baby booties this week.  The pattern I used can be found here.  These things worked up super quick.  I don't know if I would call this a "beginner's" project but it is certainly an easy one if you're familiar with crochet terms and not afraid of reading patterns.  Now I have to make a blue pair since I don't know the gender of my baby yet!  I still want to weave a ribbon around the ankle so I can tie a bow.  My three-year-old daughter wants a pair so I'll probably have to do the math to grow this pattern out for a child's size!


 I officially completed my in-utero baby's baby blanket.  I posted the link for the pattern in my last post.  I just added a ruffle border around the edge to make it look more finished.

Bethany Crochet-&-Crochet?

Here is the baby blanket I'm making for the bun currently in my oven.  I don't know the gender yet, so I chose neutral colors.  The pattern I used is the alternating V shell afghan.  I like it!  I learned to crochet from my mother and my 5th grade teacher Mrs. Jurgens.  I tend to do more crocheting in the fall and winter since I can do it huddled under a blanket.  This has also been a good project to work on while being in the first trimester morning (and evening!) sickness blues.

 I love crocheted beanie hats and after seeing some at a craft festival last year I decided it was time I learned how to make them.  The black hat has a detachable flower so that I can change it depending on what color I want to wear.  The green and blue one is warmer though and is my personal favorite.

 I featured my Mario/Boo pillow as my first entry on this blog with a tutorial which you can find here.  I made this for my husband for Christmas last year.  This project took several hours/days to complete, but was tons of fun to make!

Super Mario Crocheted Pillow Tutorial

In honor of Planet Comicon this weekend, my first tutorial will take you deep into the world of nerds.  I made this pillow for my husband for Christmas this past year.  I was inspired by other "nerd-projects," including a granny square Mario rug.  I didn't want to commit the time that such a large project would take, so I developed my own smaller project using the same idea.
My Mario/Boo pillow is pictured below.  To complete this project you need 8 yarn colors (I used gray, red, blue, brown, cream, yellow, black, and white), a mid-sized crochet hook (I used a size J), and scissors.  For the internal pillow you will need thread and about 3/4 yard of fabric for the pillow case (I used black behind Mario and white behind Boo) and 1 package of stuffing.







Skills involved: single and double crochet stitches, and a basic granny square.  For this project I did very small granny squares (only going around 1 time) measuring about 1.5" by 1.5", as pictured below.  If you can single and double crochet you can make a granny square! 




I will be focusing this tutorial on Mario (and will not be using white yarn).  To complete Boo, simply adjust these instructions.

To determine the number of squares and what colors I needed, I found pictures of the subject matter and then used a Paint program to break them down into "pixels" or little squares.  The picture I used was missing Mario's back hand, which is why that one is drawn on!  Images of this character, as well as lots of others, can be found online in this pixel format.  I simply used the Paint program to put a dot on each one to make them easier to count.  If the character you want to do isn't "pixelated" for you, you can put the picture under a grid to "pixelate" it yourself :-)




From here I simply counted the squares and began making my granny squares.  I don't remember how many I made, but it was a lot.  Fortunately I chose to make very small squares, and as you get going, you become much faster. 

Once the squares were made, I then simply used the image above to put them together.  I "sewed" them using the same color yarn.

You could at this point decide how big you want your pillow to be and then make squares out of your background color to complete the pillow entirely out of granny squares.  I chose to fill in around Mario using double crochet to fill in all the gaps and to form the image into a square.  I wasn't particularly "professional" about this.  I crocheted both up and down and across depending on which direction was easiest for the given space and involved less yarn cutting. I used gray, and afterwards, using single crochet, randomly placed black lines to make the background look like bricks from one of Bowser's castles.




If you choose to do an image on the other side, make sure you form that square to the same size as your original.  If you are leaving the back alone, just crochet a square the same size as the front.  Sew these two squares together on three of the four sides using yarn.

At this point you can cut two squares of fabric to make the internal pillow.  You shouldn't sew and stuff the pillow without a liner because the openness of crocheting will allow your stuffing to leak out!  I measured my fabric squares to be slightly larger then my crocheted ones so that I could stuff it really well.  I made my pillow half black and half white because I wanted black fabric behind Mario and white fabric behind Boo.  The fabric will show slightly through the crochet work, so pick a fabric that will blend well with the yarn colors you're using.

Sew your fabric squares right-sides together all the way around leaving about a 5" gap to turn it right-side-out and stuff it. The more stuffing the firmer it will be.  I used an entire package of stuffing.  After it is stuffed, sew up the gap to seal it all in and insert your pillow into your crocheted square.

Finish it up by sewing together the 4th side of your crocheted pillow.  I then chose to add a ruffled border around the edge to make the edges look more finished.  Learn how to make a ruffled border here.




This also makes a great pillow for your cat to sleep on!