Crochet Basket Tutorial

What you'll need:Cotton Yarn (most weights should work)An appropriate size hook for your yarn

Yarn needleSpray Starch (to stiften the basket)

Difficulty:Easy -  ★☆☆

Crochet Terms:This pattern is written in UK terms. 

American terms are given below in green.British (American)

sp - Spacess - Slip Stitch (Slip Stitch)

ch - Chain (Chain)dc - Double (Single)

htr - Half Treble (Half Double)tr - Treble (Double)

dtr - Double Treble (Treble)

Basket BaseBegin with a magic ring.  If you're not sure how to make a magic ring, check out the

beginning of my Mix and Match Flowers Tutorial to see what to do.ROUND ONE

Chain 2

Then make a half-treble crochet into the ring.  That's the one where you yarn over, put your hook through the ring, yarn over and pull through, then yarn ove one last

time and pull through all 3 loops on the hook.

Make 10 more of these half-trebles into the ring.Then pull the end of the yarn to bring the circle together.

Make a slip stitch into the second of the two chains at the very start of this round. This should give you 12 stitches altogether.

ROUND TWOChain 2

Now make a half-treble into the same stitch that you just made your slip stitch into.Then, into the next stitch of the round, make two more half-treble crochets.

Work your way around the circle, making two half-trebles into each stitch of the round below, until you get right round to the beginning.  Then make a slip stitch into

the top chain of the starting chain of two.  You should have 24 stitches now.ROUND THREE

Chain 2 to start.

Like we did last time, make a half-treble into the same stitch that the slip stitch went into.

Then, into the next stitch, this time we're going to only make one half-treble crochet.

Then, into the next stitch you'll need to make two half-treble crochets.And into the stitch after that, just one half-treble.

So, continue around the circle in the same way, repeating the same thing: 2 half-trebles into one stitch and then 1 half-treble into the next stitch.  Once you get round

to the beginning, make a slip stitch into the top of the beginning chain of 2.ROUND FOUR

Begin the the same way again, chaining 2 and then making a half-treble (htr) into the same stitch.

Make one htr into the next stitch and then another htr into the stitch after that.Then into the next stitch you'll need to make two half-trebles.

Then you'll need to make one half-treble into each of the next two stitches.Continue round the circle in the same way, making 2 htr's into the next stitch and

then 1 htr into the next two stitches after that.  Once you get round to the beginning, make a slip stitch into the top of the starting chain to finish the round.

So hopefully you're starting to see how the pattern is going to work.  All you need to do now is carry on in this same pattern until the base of the basket is the size that

you want.So, ROUND FIVE would look like this:  Chain 2, make a htr into the same stitch, 1 htr

into the next 3 stitches,  repeat the same thing around the circle, 2 htr into next stitch and 1 htr into the next 3 stitches until you reach the beginning, then slip stitch

into the top of the chain to end the round.For each round after this, you'll need to increase the pink number by 1.  

So ROUND SIX would have 4 single htr's

ROUND SEVEN would have 5 single htr'sROUND EIGHT would have 6 and so on and so on...

You can stop with as few or as many rounds as you'd like to make you basket the right size.

Basket SIdesROUND ONE

Chain 2Now, for this round I worked into only the back loop of the stitches in the row below. You can see in the picture (above right) that I only have picked up one loop on my

hook, and it's the loop that's furthest away from me, out of the two loops that make up the stitch.

In all honesty, you don't really need to worry too much about working into the back loop.  (You'll see why at the end of this tutorial.)  So if you're struggling with the back

loop part, just ignore it!

All we're going to do for this round, is make one half-treble in each stitch (or back loop) of the round below.

Carry on with this until you get right round to the beginning.Then make a slip stitch into the top of the starting chain of 2 to finnish the round.

ROUND TWOI decided to make my basket stripy, so if you want to do that to, you'll need to break

off the old yarn colour and add a new one at the start of this round.Chain 2 and then make a half-treble into each stitch of the round below.

Once you are round to the beginning, make a slip stitch into the top of the starting chain of 2 to finish.

ROUND THREE (and subsequent rounds)Again, if you want stripes, you can change yarn colour before you start the next

round.  Then chain 2, make one half-treble into each stitch around the basket and then make a slip stitch into the top of the starting chain of 2 to finish the round.Make as many rounds like this as you want, to get the height of basket that you

need.  Remembering to keep changing your yarn if you wants stripes.

EdgingOnce your basket is the height you want, you can just leave it like that, or if you

prefer, you could add an edging.Join yarn and chain 1.

Make a double crochet into the same stitch as the chain.

Then make one double crochet into each stitch of the round below until you are back to the beginning.

Then make a slip stitch into the first double crochet of the round.

Then, to finish the edging, I did a round of crab stitch, or 'backwards dc's'.So to start, make one chain and make a dc into the same stitch.

Then, instead of making a double crochet (dc) into the next stitch as usual, we're actually going to make it into the stitch behind!   See where my crochet hook is in the

picture (above left).

So pull the loop on your crochet hook out slightly so it will stretch back to the stitch on the right-hand side of the dc you've already made and put your hook into the

stitch. 

Yarn over and pull through the stitch, then yarn over and pull through the two loops on the hook, as you normally would to complete the stitch.  (above left)

Then work you way around the basket doing the same thing, each time working into the stitch to the RIGHT of your current stitch.  Once you've done a few, you'll start to

see how it's going to look.

Once you've got right back round to the beginning and made a 'backwards' dc into every stitch, cut your yarn and pull the end through the stitch.  We'll use a needle to

give us a neat finish.

Take the yarn to the inside of the basket and using a yarn needle, thread it through the bottom of the first double crochet of the round.  This will pull the last stich into

place.Then, thread back through to the basket inside and weave it in to finish.

FinishingSo now you have your basic basket.  You can leave it at that, or decorate with ribbon,

flowers, felt, buttons,  any number things really.