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https://www.jspcreate.com/easy-breezy-crochet-tote-bag-with-granny-squares/
How To Make The Easy Breezy Crochet Tote Bag
#crochettotebag #easybreezycrochet #howtomake
OTHER RESOURCES FROM VIDEO
Easy Breezy Square Tutorial
https://www.jspcreate.com/the-easy-breezy-multicolour-crochet-square/
Single Crochet Join https://www.jspcreate.com/single-crochet-seam-join-your-squares-easily/
How To Crochet The Single Foundation Stitch
https://youtu.be/jHDK-sWZsS0
Full Pattern in My Shop
https://www.jspcreate.com/patterns/
Blog Post with More Bag Info - *** COMING SOON ***
contains affiliate links at no cost to you
Find more Classes from me over on Skillshare https://www.skillshare.com/en/r/user/jspcreate?gr_tch_ref=on
Website
https://www.jspcreate.com
Pattern Shop
https://www.jspcreate.com/patterns/
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https://www.pinterest.ca/jspcreate/
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https://youtube.com/@jspcreate
Ravelry
https://www.ravelry.com/designers/jane-snedden-peever
Thanks for dropping by and Enjoy,
Jane
Chapters:
00:00 - Intro
01:00 - What You Need
01:37 - Bag Sizing
02:15 - Square Layout
03:55 - Whip Stitch Join Method
06:35 - Folding Animation
07:30 - Folding Our Bag
08:16 - Sew Remaining Squares
11:10 - Shoulder Strap
13:58 - Second Half of Strap
Show More Show Less View Video Transcript
0:00
Hey gang, Jane back with another fun crochet tutorial
0:06
Today I'm going to let you come along with me while I assemble a large version of my
0:10
easy breezy crochet tote. These crochet totes are so useful for so many things
0:16
They make great carryalls when you're out about the town, shopping or just visiting
0:21
the beach. The pattern for this bag comes in two sizes, so the small bag can be used as a crossbody
0:26
purse and the large tote for shopping or carrying your current crochet project
0:30
They're quick and easy to make, they're awesome stash busters and they're perfect on the go
0:34
portable projects. And they make great gifts. So what I want to do in this tutorial is to give you a little over the shoulder look while
0:41
I assemble one of my large size bags. With a few little animated diagrams to help you follow along
0:48
This bag was made using my easy breezy crochet tote bag pattern which is available over on
0:52
my shop. It includes a 21 page printable pdf with lots of diagrams, written instructions, charts
0:58
and colorway layouts. So this bag is made using, of course, my easy breezy square and I'll drop a link to the
1:04
free tutorial for that in the description below. I made this bag using worsted weight yarn
1:09
It doesn't take much, in fact the entire small bag takes 150 grams of yarn and the large
1:14
bag takes a total of 250 grams of yarn. I suggest having a full 50 grams of your main color or a full ball of it and then small
1:22
amounts of your contrast colors. I'll also be using a 5mm hook for the shoulder strap which is the same size as I used to
1:29
make the squares and you'll need a pair of scissors and a darning needle as well
1:34
You can use these assembly directions with any square of your choosing
1:37
Just be aware that the bag size will be different if the square size varies from the original
1:42
With the square I'm using, the square sides are 3.5 by 3.5 and the finished size of my
1:47
large bag is 15 inches by 17.5 inches. You can find more info about the square sizes and the finished bag sizes over on my blog
1:56
Now of course before we can get to assembling our bag, we first have to have squares in
2:01
order to do that. So this large bag requires 32 squares and once you've completed those squares, join
2:07
me in the next section and we'll start to assemble our bag
2:12
Now once we have the 32 squares, we can start laying them out and assembling them
2:17
The large bag diagram has the following layout. The squares that I'm using are my Ocean View colorway and I'll use this to represent the assembly
2:26
So let's first discuss what the layout is going to look like. For the large bag, we have 32 squares
2:32
So this diagram has a layout with all 32 squares numbered. The first thing I do is lay out my squares and see if I like the way that they look beside each other
2:41
And if you have my pattern in your following mat, it will tell you where to place each square
2:46
Once I'm happy with the layout, I'll start to join the individual squares
2:50
First I join the squares in strips. And then I join the strips together to create one large piece
3:01
Now you're probably going to ask, how do you suggest I join these squares, Jane? Well, there are many great methods you can use and I've tried a few different ones and
3:08
the result actually gives a little extra interest to your finished product
3:12
My Sandbanks colorway small tote uses the single crochet method to join the squares
3:17
and adds lots of fun color to each of the seams. So for today's assembly, I'm going to show you a simple whip stitch method
3:24
So keeping in mind the layout and the method of first joining the squares into strips and
3:29
then joining the strips, we're going to start joining our squares. You're going to want to take two of the squares and you'll need a darning needle and a piece
3:38
of yarn about 10 inches long. As a rule of thumb, I try to use three times the length of the edge I'm sewing, so this
3:44
gives me lots to play with. Place the two squares face up beside each other
3:49
Start by inserting your needle underneath the bottom corner, which in this case is a
3:53
chain three space, of the left square and bring it through and up
3:59
Then back down into the bottom corner of the right square. Then back up one more time on the left, same bottom corner as before
4:14
Then to secure our yarn, take your needle under the loop you just created and pull it through
4:20
Give it a little snug pull, but not too tight. Now working our way up the squares, insert the needle down into the next stitch front
4:29
to back on the right square. Making sure you go under both loops of the edge stitch
4:36
Then back up through the corresponding stitch on the left square. Again under both loops
4:42
Pull secure, but not too tight. Then repeat this again for each stitch as you work your way up the edges
4:52
This seam creates a nice secure join, but no extra bulk. I like to work it in the main color for a seamless appearance, but you can jazz it up
5:00
by doing each seam in a different color. You can also try other joining methods to give even more interest to your bags
5:07
Continue until you reach the opposite corner, at which point you'll stitch through the chain
5:12
3 corner spaces as before, and then secure your yarn by going underneath the last loop
5:18
and give a little tug, just like when we started. Using your layout as a guide, continue to join your squares into strips, and once all
5:26
your strips are done, then join your strips in the same manner working from one end to
5:31
the other. I like to lay my squares out on the floor as I join them so I don't lose track of where
5:36
they are in the layout. I also like seeing it come together piece by piece
5:41
If you don't have the room to do this, however, because of kids, pets, or just life, you can
5:46
pin numbers to each of your squares so that you keep track of where they belong in the
5:51
layout without having to lie them all over your floor. This is also handy if you're working on this project on the go and only have your crochet
5:59
bag to keep everything in. It's always good to lay out the squares occasionally as it is an odd shape and you want to make
6:06
sure you're staying on track and not joining any edges that don't belong together
6:11
When you've finished this step, you will have one solid piece and will be ready for the
6:15
next step. So once we have all the squares joined together and we look just like the layout that we originally
6:21
started with, the next step is going to be folding our bag so that we can continue to
6:26
join the rest of the squares to complete the bag itself. This animation helps you understand where to fold your piece
6:33
I'll use the square numbers from the original layout to identify what squares you're folding on
6:39
First, we'll fold it in half on squares 17 and 21. This edge will be the bottom of your bag
6:46
Then we fold the sides of our bags. First side along squares 19, 13, and 7
6:55
And then the second side squares are 6, 3, and 1. To do the next set of joining, I'll have to flip my bag over to the opposite side
7:11
Now once I have it flipped, I can join the remaining seams as indicated by the solid
7:16
red lines on both sides. Once you've sewn those seams, the main section of the bag is complete
7:26
Now let's try to use this technique to fold the actual bag
7:30
I'm going to stay quiet and just let you watch me fold this
7:50
Now we're really seeing the bag come together
8:11
We're almost there. The next step is to finish sewing the remaining squares to give our bag its three-dimensional shape
8:19
So I've gone ahead here on one side and sewn some of the seams using the same whip stitch technique
8:25
The squares fit neatly into each other. So now I'll show you some on the opposite edge of the bag
8:32
These squares fold in half to fit neatly into this space like a puzzle piece
8:37
It can get tricky here to make sure you're sewing the proper edges together, so check
8:41
and recheck your work to make sure the square is in the right place
8:45
Now I'll show you here how I actually sew one of these into place. I'm going to be quiet for a minute and just let you watch me sew these sections together
10:18
And at the top we fold this one in half and sew it down as well
10:49
Once you have all your square seams finished, this is what your bag will look like
10:53
Every square is secured in its proper place. It gives a nice subtle rounded edge at the bottom corners and it flows nicely from one
11:00
side to the other with no apparent side seam. Feels kind of good to see all those squares take the shape of an actual functional bag
11:07
doesn't it? So what's next? Well, now we have to add our shoulder strap
11:11
This bag is only going to have the one strap. It'll be long enough you can either wear the bag as a crossbody bag or over one shoulder
11:19
The strap will be worked in two halves. We'll start with the front half and then we'll repeat the process for the back half
11:26
In the written pattern for the bag, we start with a regular chain foundation, but in this
11:30
tutorial I'm going to show you an alternative and faster way by using the single crochet
11:34
foundation stitch method. I'll drop a link for the tutorial for this technique below
11:38
I like to use the main color of my bag for the strap as well, but this is a personal preference
11:44
Now the length of the strap is determined by the number of chains you start with for
11:47
your strap. I like my straps to be on the longer side so the bag sits around my hip area, but shorter
11:54
straps work well for smaller bags if you want to wear up under your arm
11:58
I usually suggest anywhere between 75 and 100 chains to get about a 25 to 30 inch strap
12:04
You can check your strap length by laying down your foundation chain, giving it a slight
12:09
stretch as it will stretch a bit when you wear it with the weight of the bag, and then
12:13
measure that. Once you have your foundation chain finished, we'll start working along the top edge of
12:18
our bag. We start by working a single crochet in the top corner chain 3 space, and then continue
12:25
working single crochets into each square edge stitch and chain 3 corner spaces until we
12:31
reach the center V shape of our bag. At this point we want to work a single crochet decrease over the next three chain 3 spaces
12:41
This is to keep our edge lying flat and even without any puckering at the V
12:45
We work this single crochet decrease by pulling up a loop in each of the three chain 3 spaces
12:50
and then pulling a loop through all three of the loops on the hook to create one stitch
12:56
Once we've worked this decrease, we will continue to work up the next edge as we did before
13:01
Single crochet into each stitch and chain 3 space until we reach the top corner, working
13:07
our last single crochet in the chain 3 space. Now if you did a single crochet foundation like I did, we'll be finished our first round here
13:17
If you're following the pattern and did a regular chain foundation, then just continue
13:21
to work single crochet stitches along the chains to complete the round at the opposite corner
13:27
Once your first round is complete, we just need to work two more rounds of single crochet
13:32
making sure we do a single crochet decrease the same way at the center V by working over
13:37
the center three stitches. You can work three rounds or four rounds or as many rounds as you'd like depending
13:43
on how wide you want your strap to be. Once you're finished the number of rounds that you want, you can fasten off your yarn
13:50
Now we want to repeat this for the second half of the strap on the opposite side of
13:54
the bag. So starting at the top corner of the bag, join your yarn and work as for the first half
14:01
remembering to decrease at the center V and when you get to the strap on your first round
14:06
at the opposite corner, work into the bottom loops of the foundation chain
14:11
This creates a single strap. Once you've worked the three rounds of single crochet, you can fasten off and your strap
14:18
is complete. And finally, you can finish it off with a closure if you want to
14:23
I've put a tassel on mine. You can use big buttons or you can leave it without a closure at all
14:28
And if you want to, you can go ahead and line it. So now you have the basics of how to put together my Easy Breezy Crochet Tote Bag
14:35
So I hope this tutorial has given you some ideas on how to create your own crochet tote bag
14:40
You can find more info on techniques I use in this tutorial below and the full pattern
14:43
for this bag is available over in my shop. The pattern itself contains 21 pages of detailed directions for both the small and large bag
14:52
stitch charts, assembly diagrams, and four different bag layouts and square colorways
14:58
Thanks again for joining me in this tutorial. If you enjoyed this video, please give it a thumbs up and remember to subscribe to my
15:03
channel so you can catch all the new tutorials as they come out
15:07
I'll see you soon. Happy crocheting
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