Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Patriotic Crochet Bracelet

I've recently been crocheting up a storm. I figured I could give my fingers a rest from crocheting for a little while and share with you how you can create your own patriotic bracelet for this coming 4th of July.



I started off with an F/5 crochet hook (3.75mm) and I chose crochet thread in red, white, blue and a sort of antique white.


To use all 4 of these colors, I simply lined up the threads and used them as if they were a single thread and started my chain as normal.



















I then created a chain of 10 stitches.







From there, I stitched a double crochet in the third chain in from the hook. 







I continued with double crochet stitches until I had a total of 8 double crochet stitches. If you're following along, this should bring you back to the beginning of your original chain of 10. From there, I created a chain of 3 stitches so that I could turn and continue stitching.


Here's where it gets a little confusing. Skip 2 stitches and double crochet in the third stitch in from the chain that you just created.

Now you're going to double crochet in the second stitch that you skipped. This should be the stitch directly to the right of the double crochet you just created. It'll be located underneath the chain of 3 that you used to turn around with. You're basically going to be double crocheting around the first double crochet you created.


Can you see it? See how the new double crochet stitch looks like it's wrapped around the first double crochet stitch? Bear with me here because this is the basis for the rest of the bracelet, so if you don't understand this stitch, your bracelet won't look like mine did. If you need further guidance on how to create this stitch I found a YouTube video that might help you. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OctEmV2tjRc


Next you will create these same stitches two more times. You will skip one stitch, double crochet in the next stitch. Then you double back and double crochet in the stitch right before the one you just completed. It sounds a lot more confusing that it actually is. Once you get the hang of it the rest of the bracelet will be easy.

When you get to the end of the row, you will double crochet in the last available stitch (picture on the right).















From there you will chain 3, turn and then repeat until you have a bracelet the length you desire. My wrist is about 6.5" so I stitched until I was close to that length.


When you reach the length that you desire, chain once and then slip stitch in the first 3 available double crochet stitches. Then chain 7 to create a loop that you will use to secure your bracelet onto your wrist. Skip 2 double crochet stitches and slip stitch in the remaining double crochet stitches until you reach the end of the row. I used a chain of 7 because I knew what size button I would be using and I knew that 7 stitches would create a nice loop. If you are using a larger button, make sure that you make a chain long enough to reach around your button.


Now the only crocheting you have left to do is to secure your ends and hide them.


To secure your button you may choose to sew it on. I was lazy so I used a large jewelry jump ring to secure it onto the bracelet.
















I love the little red, white and blue anchor. I think it is just perfect for this bracelet.

















You can easily tweak this pattern to create all kinds of different bracelets in a wide array of colors. I'm even working on a belt using this same concept. You can create a wider or smaller bracelet just by adding or removing stitches.

I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial enough to go out and try your hand at creating your own bracelet. I'd love to see what beautiful creations you come up with.

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3 comments:

  1. Super cute! I have found my new watch band :)

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  2. 4th next week need to get busy, thanks for the pattern.
    Janet

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