In Stitches - Best Free Crochet Pattern Link Up Party Week #11

Find the top 5 best free crochet patterns in this week's link up party! There are some really fun and colorful projects this week! Be sure to check them out and scroll to the bottom to see what free crochet patterns are being submitted for next time!

Find all the links below for the top 5 best free crochet patterns!

1. Fruity Popsicle Blanket by Falling Spring Crochet
2.  Virus Bag by Krazy Kabbage
3.  Cotton Picnic Wrap by Posh Pooch Designs
4.  Baseball Dog Bandana by Posh Pooch Designs
5.  Colorado Strong Granny Square by Posh Pooch Designs

Keep Scrolling for more free patterns! Be sure to click on your favorites at the bottom!

Find more free crochet patterns in past week's link up parties here!

Every other Monday, you will find a round up of the Top 5 Best Free Crochet Patterns! Plus, we (the hosts) will be sharing our own latest free crochet patterns on our blog. Throughout the week, links will be added so be sure to keep an eye on what others have to share as well!

If you are a crochet blogger that has free patterns to share, this is a great party for you to get your work out there! Simply follow the instructions below to 'link up' your free crochet patterns each week. If you are in the top 5 (most clicked patterns), your pattern will be shared and promoted by all of the crochet bloggers hosting this party! You can find more details below.

I am hosting this link up party right here on Maria's Blue Crayon, as well as on, Nicki's Handmade Crafts, Naztazia, Salty Pearl Crochet and The Unraveled Mitten. We are really excited to start this link up party and hope you join along!

Find our most recent free crochet patterns on our blogs!

• Ruffle Cardigan by Maria's Blue Crayon
  
•  Rosebud Picture Frame by Nicki's Homemade Crafts 

• Crochet & Knit Flower Collection by Naztazia

•  Bay Breeze Cloche by Salty Pearl Crochet

• Callie Horse Hat by The Unraveled Mitten

Be sure to check out our social media pages and follow us for more crochet patterns and inspiration!

Ready to join In Stitches - The Best Free Crochet Pattern Party?

Want to add your link? Please remember to link to your actual project URL and not your homepage URL, and use the name of your project or post, not your own name. Just click the blue “Add Link” button below!

Please visit at least one other link, you just might find a new favorite project! AND – your clicks are how we determine which projects to feature each week! Feel free to leave a comment at the pattern link to provide feedback and show support.

No Etsy stores, Facebook pages, giveaways, or other link parties. Just blog posts to your actual crochet patterns that are accessible for FREE!

If your project gets featured as a top link, please do not submit that same project to future parties. We want to party fair! :)

Now let's get this party started! Please remember that the links below are shown in random order and are not shown according to when they were submitted or how many votes they received so far.

An InLinkz Link-up

Crochet Ruffle Cardigan for Spring/Summer - Free Pattern

Crochet the ruffle cardigan with the free pattern along with the video tutorial below! An ad-free PDF version is also available here on Ravelry. (Each sale helps me keep my free crochet patterns going, thank you!)

This cardigan is light weight, has capped sleeves and a little ruffle detail on the bottom, and is just perfect for warm months! 

After taking photos of this cardigan, I wore it for the rest of the day in high 70's weather and it was just the perfect cardigan! It's really light and it makes a simple outfit really cute and feminine! 

The best part? It's really easy to make! It's basically made up of 3 rectangles in double crochet, sewn together and add the ruffle!

Have you ever made a crochet ruffle detail? It's super simple! There's basically nothing to it.. just some increases and then it's smooth sailing from there!

If you love the look of this cardigan, I highly recommend you give it a try! This is an easy and mindless project to make!

I added a crochet I-Cord to weave between the rows before the ruffle to gather the fabric a bit more. Since I went with more of a subtle ruffle, the cord helps bring out the ruffles more!

I used Hobby Lobby's Baby Yarn Bee. It's one of my favorite yarns! It's light weight (category 3) and comes in so many pretty neutral shades! It's really hard for me to find neutral light weight yarns!

You can also use any other weight 3 yarn. Baby Yarn Bee is also acrylic, which I recommend because it's easily washable and drapes nicely.

Grab the ad-free for your convenience here on Ravelry!

Free Crochet Pattern

Materials

Baby Bee Sweet Delight Yarn in Flannel Marled (377 yds per skein)

Approxiate yards for small - 910 yds, medium - 991 yds, large - 1074yds, XL - 1164yds, 2X - 1200yds, 3X - 1200yds

H/5.00mm hook

Tapestry needle

Scissors

Pattern notes

The cardigan will be made in three pieces: back panel and two front panels. Once the panels are sewn together, the ruffle will be added onto the bottom edge.

The cardigan has a ‘regular’ fit. I suggest going down a size if you are between sizes unless you would like a looser fit.

In the cardigan modeled, I made the ruffle part only 15 rows long as I am only 4’11” and didn’t want it too long. The pattern is for an ‘average height’ person. You may make this ruffle part as long or short as you’d like.

Sizes:

Small - 32”-34” bust

Medium - 36” - 38” bust

Large - 40”- 42” bust

XLarge - 44” - 46” bust

2X - 48” - 50” bust

3X - 52” - 54” bust

Abbreviations (US terms):

Ch = chain, sc = single crochet, dc = double crochet, st = stitch(es)

Gauge: 4” x 4” ~ 13 stitches x 8 rows in double crochet 

Free Pattern

Back Panel

Row 1: Ch 62 (65, 68, 71, 71, 71), dc in 3rd ch from hook and across, turn

Row 2: Ch 2, dc across, turn

Repeat Row 2 until you have a total of 26, (28, 30, 32, 34, 34) rows

Fasten off

Front Panel

Row 1: Ch 31 (32, 34, 35, 35, 35), dc in 3rd ch from hook and across, turn

Row 2: Ch 2, dc across, turn

Repeat Row 2 until you have a total of 26 (28, 30, 32, 34, 34) rows

Fasten off. Make 2 front panels

We will now assemble the panels of the cardigan before we add on the ruffle bottom.

Lay the front panels on the back panel. Sew each front panel onto the back panel all the way across on the top.

Sew each panel down the side leaving 7 (7.5, 8, 8.5, 9, 9.5) inches for an arm hole.

Weave in all ends. Flip inside out, this will now be the ‘right side’ of your cardigan. You can place a stitch marker on the outside so you don’t loose track of what is the right/wrong side.

Ruffle

Attach your yarn to the bottom edge of the front panel of your cardigan and work the following:

Row 1 (of ruffle): Ch 2, *2dc, 2dc, dc, repeat from * all the way across, turn

Row 2: Ch 1, dc across, turn

Repeat 2 until you have a total of 19 rows

*You can make this as long or as short as you’d like by adding or subtracting rows.

Sleeves

Attach yarn to the arm hole and single crochet around evenly. Fasten off. Do this for each arm hole.

I-cord

Crochet an I-Cord the same measurement as the (bust) size you are making your cardigan. You may make this longer if you would like to use it as a tie in the front. I made mine long enough to just hang and have everything else lightly cinched together for a more gathered look.

If you are not comfortable crocheting an I-Cord, you may crochet a long chain and single crochet back onto the chain instead.

Weave the cord through every 2 double crochets on the row before the ruffle addition on the cardigan. 

In Stitches - Best Free Crochet Patterns Link Up Party Week #10

Looking for free crochet patterns to work up in the spring and summer? This week's round up from the link party has many amigurumi patterns and more - perfect summer and spring time crochet projects!

Find all the links below for the top 5 best free crochet patterns!

1. Easy Crochet Gift Bag by Falling Spring Crochet
2.  Yarn Scrap Dolls by Joy with Purpose
3.  Bunny Lovie by Sweet Softies
4.  Emma the Fox by Grace and Yarn
5.  Mighty the Alligator by Bsquare Crochet

Keep Scrolling for more free patterns!

Find more free crochet patterns in past week's link up parties here!

Every other Monday, you will find a round up of the Top 5 Best Free Crochet Patterns! Plus, we (the hosts) will be sharing our own latest free crochet patterns on our blog. Throughout the week, links will be added so be sure to keep an eye on what others have to share as well!

If you are a crochet blogger that has free patterns to share, this is a great party for you to get your work out there! Simply follow the instructions below to 'link up' your free crochet patterns each week. If you are in the top 5 (most clicked patterns), your pattern will be shared and promoted by all of the crochet bloggers hosting this party! You can find more details below.

I am hosting this link up party right here on Maria's Blue Crayon, as well as on, Nicki's Handmade Crafts, Naztazia, Salty Pearl Crochet and The Unraveled Mitten. We are really excited to start this link up party and hope you join along!

Find our most recent free crochet patterns on our blogs!

• Hippie Dippie Vest by Maria's Blue Crayon
  
•  Royal Granny Shawl by Nicki's Homemade Crafts 

• Crochet & Knit Flower Collection by Naztazia

• Berry Stitch Tutorial & Washcloth by Salty Pearl Crochet

• Easy Lace Scarf by The Unraveled Mitten

Be sure to check out our social media pages and follow us for more crochet patterns and inspiration!

Ready to join In Stitches - The Best Free Crochet Pattern Party?

Want to add your link? Please remember to link to your actual project URL and not your homepage URL, and use the name of your project or post, not your own name. Just click the blue “Add Link” button below!

Please visit at least one other link, you just might find a new favorite project! AND – your clicks are how we determine which projects to feature each week! Feel free to leave a comment at the pattern link to provide feedback and show support.

No Etsy stores, Facebook pages, giveaways, or other link parties. Just blog posts to your actual crochet patterns that are accessible for FREE!

If your project gets featured as a top link, please do not submit that same project to future parties. We want to party fair! :)

Now let's get this party started! Please remember that the links below are shown in random order and are not shown according to when they were submitted or how many votes they received so far.

An InLinkz Link-up

Hippie Dippie Vest - Free Crochet Pattern

The Hippie Dippie Crochet Vest is easy to make and perfect for spring and summer months! Read ahead to get the free pattern or purchase the PDF on Ravelry! (Every sale means so much to me and helps keep my blog running - thank you!)

I'm so excited that I got to work with Premier Yarns and one of their newest yarns - Luna! I choose the color "Mars", which has all the pretty neutrals in one ball!

All the Luna yarns are named after planets and there are very pretty colorways! You can find all the colors to choose from here.

When I got this yarn, I knew I wanted to make a garment that was nice and flowy for the warmer months. The yarn is a weight 3, which is perfect for light garments!

Personally, I can't find many weight 3 yarns so I was really happy to see that these pretty yarns were light weight!

I coupled double crochets and filets to make this vest super breathable and airy for spring and summer. This makes for a very easy crochet garment - especially since all it is is 3 rectangles and some sewing together!

I'm going to be honest, I never even wore a vest before. But after making this one, I love it! I love that I can just dress up a simple tee shirt and when it gets really warm, I can throw it over a tank top!

It's super light weight and it's longer and flowy in the front which makes it so fun! I love the texture this vest has to offer and this will definitely be a staple in my wardrobe this summer!

Grab your Luna Yarns and get this vest started!

Find the PDF version on Ravelry here.

Materials
Premier Yarns Luna (Mars)
XS-L 3 skeins
XL - 4X 4 skeins
H/5.00mm hook
Tapestry needle
Scissors

Pattern notes

This vest will be made in 3 pieces and sewn together at the sides and top.

Sizes are as follows:
XS/S 28” - 34" bust
M/L 36” - 42” bust
Xl/2X 44” - 50” bust
3X/4X 52” - 58” bust

*If you are petite like me (4’11”), I recommend starting with 79 chains in the beginning and follow the rest of the pattern as written. This will take off a few inches off the length.

Abbreviations (US terms):
Ch = chain, sc = single crochet, dc = double crochet, tr = treble crochet, sk = skip, st = stitch(es)

Gauge:
4" x 4" = 15 st x 6 rows in dc

Free Pattern

Row 1: Ch 85, dc into 3rd chain from hook and across, turn
Row 2: Ch 3 (counts as st), dc across, turn
Row 3: Ch 4 (counts as st plus ch), *sk 1, tr into next st, ch 1, repeat from * across, tr in turning ch turn
Row 4: Ch 3, *dc in ch 1 sp from previous row, dc in next st, repeat from * across, turn
Repeat Row 2-4 until you have 20 (23, 26, 29) rows
Repeat Row 2
Fasten off

This finished the back panel of the vest.

Next, we will make two of the front panels. Work the following for both panels:

Row 1: Ch 85, dc into 3rd chain from hook and across, turn
Row 2: Ch 3 (counts as st), dc across, turn
Row 3: Ch 4 (counts as st plus ch), *sk 1, tr into next st, ch 1, repeat from * across, tr in turning ch turn
Row 4: Ch 3, *dc in ch 1 sp from previous row, dc in next st, repeat from * across, turn
Repeat Row 2-4 until you have 17 (20, 23, 26) rows
Repeat Row 2
Fasten off

Assembly

Use the photo below as a guide to sew your 3 panels together.

Lay the back panel down first (pink rectangle in photo).
Lay down one front panel on top of the back panel lining up the outer right edge. (blue rectangle in photo)

Sew together the top right portion of the panels towards the middle over 4” (XS-L) or 6” (Xl-4X). This seam will sit on the shoulder.

Sew down the right hand side leaving an 7”(8”, 9”, 10”) armhole at the top.

The first panel is now sewn onto the back panel.

Sew the second panel on the other side of the back panel.

Weave in all ends  

I hope you enjoy this pattern and the Luna yarn as much as I have! Let me know what color you will make your Hippie Dippie Vest in! I'd love to see it too - share with me on Facebook and/or Instagram!

Crochet Dog Bowl Mat - Free Pattern and Knit Picks Dishie Yarn Review

With spring here and summer months coming ahead, cotton yarns are my go to for crocheting!  I wanted to try out the Dishie Yarn from Knit Picks, and to sum it up - it's great! Read ahead for the review as well as a free PDF pattern for a dog mat that I made for our new puppy.

When I decided to try the Dishie cotton yarn from Knit Picks, I wanted to make something that most people will use this yarn for - dish cloths.

I whipped up a super simple dish cloth that I could use for a few weeks and throw in the washer/dryer to get a good feel for how this yarn would hold up. I must say - it's fabulous!

Knit Picks Dishie Cotton Yarn Review

I'll first give you the details of this yarn:

• 100% cotton
• Worsted weight
• 190 yards/100 grams per skin
• 29 colors to choose from
• Machine washable
• $2.99 per skein on KnitPicks.com (you can often find sales on the site)

I can't say I've worked with too many cotton yarns in my day, but the two other cotton yarns I have worked with quite often are Lily's Sugar n' Cream and Hobby Lobby's I Love This Cotton!

I would say Knit Picks Dishie yarn is somewhere in the middle. It's not quite as thick as the Sugar n' Cream and it is a bit softer and more pleasing to work with. 

Compared to Hobby Lobby's I Love This Cotton!, it's not as soft and doesn't have that finished shine to it. It definitely has more of a 'raw cotton' feel to it. I would definitely choose I Love This Cotton! for a garment versus the Dishie yarn, but I think the dishie yarn is suppose to be more practical for dish cloths anyway - hence the name "dishie"!

One of my favorite things about this yarn is that it comes in vibrant colors (29 beautiful colors, to be exact!) and they don't bleed! I remember using a very vibrant, variegated Lily Sugar n' Cream and it stained my hands while working with it. It wasn't very nice to work with.

As you can see, I chose a vibrant teal color to try out and it did not bleed and held up well through the washer and dryer! 

I used this wash cloth for 3 weeks in my kitchen. Personally, I don't use it to wash my dishes. I use dish cloths to clean my counter tops and stove when I'm cleaning up in the kitchen every evening. I then wash it out in the sink and throw it in the laundry every time I am doing laundry (which is about every 3 days or so).

I have to say, through all the washing and cleaning, it's held up great! No fuzzing or pilling. Even the color has held up! A lot of my dish cloths I have made from other cotton yarns have faded in color after the first or second wash but the color on the Dishie yarn is really stickin' it out!

I give this yarn two thumbs up, especially for wash cloths. I definitely recommend trying out the Dishie Cotton yarn from Knit Picks! You can buy some here.

Free Dog Bowl Mat Crochet Pattern

If you haven't heard, we recently got a new puppy! I knew I wanted to make him something, so I made a cute little dog mat for his food and water bowls! (I also made a basket for his toys - you can find that free pattern here.)

This is a really easy pattern and you can easily adjust it to the size you need, if you need a larger mat! You could also make it larger and use it as a rug/door mat if you'd like!

DOWNLOAD THE FREE PDF PATTERN HERE

Materials:

Dishie Cotton Yarn in Kenai, Jalapeno, and Silver

H/5.00mm hook

J/6.00mm hook

Tapestry needle

Scissors

Notes:

Color A = Kenai (teal), Color B = Jalapeno (green), Color C = Silver

Abbreviations (US terms)

Ch = chain, sc = single crochet, hdc = half double crochet, dc = double crochet

Start with Color A and H/5.00mm hook

Row 1: Ch 44, hdc in 3rd chain from hook and across, turn

Row 2: Ch 1, hdc across, turn

Repeat Row 2, changing between Color A & B every 6 rows

Attach Color C and single crochet evenly around the edge, making 3 single crochet in each corner.

Fasten off and weave in ends.

Paw Applique

Using Color C and J/6.00mm hook

Magic ring, 10hdc in ring, join to first hdc

Ch 2, *dc, 2dc, repeat 3 more times

Fasten off and leave tail for sewing

That completes the main portion of the paw.

For the 4 little circles work the following with Color C and H/5.00mm hook:

Magic ring, 6sc, join to first sc

Fasten off and leave tail for sewing

Make 4 little circles.

Sew paw print onto mat in bottom right corner.

Llama and Cactus Granny Square Afghan - Free Crochet Pattern

Find the free crochet pattern for this Llama and Cactus Granny Square Blanket below or purchase the ad-free PDF printable on Ravelry. (Each and every sale helps me keep my blog running, thank you!)

This cute llama and cactus blanket took me much longer than I anticipated to finish, but I'm thrilled that it's complete! And it's one of my new favorites!

I first made the cactus and I had such a great response from everyone! I wasn't 100% sure where I was headed with the blanket, but when I added llamas it was definitely going in the right direction!

Everyone really loved the llamas - and for good reason! He's simple yet detailed (which is my typical MO) and the little rugs on the backs are a fun way to play with color!

Since I was making a small baby sized blanket, I didn't want to put too many different appliques on it like I did my Ocean Afghan because I really wanted the llamas to be the star of the afghan.

Once I had the llama and cactus theme going on, I wanted to make at least one more applique to tie it all together. I'm not sure why it was a lot harder than one may think to pick a third and final applique to complete the blanket.

After trying out a sun, sombrero, and played with a few other ideas in my head, I decided on a simple flower.

I envisioned the llama and cactus themes that you see everywhere and on everything in stores (it's such a popular theme these days!), so what better than a simple pretty flower.

I really tried to make a cohesive color theme, but I really used a little bit of everything when it came to details! Overall, the blanket gives such a fun and festive theme - so perfect for spring and summer!

I know this blanket is just a tad bit on the girly spectrum, but I think switching out the pink squares for a pretty blue would be so cute for a baby boy blanket!

Ready to make your own?

Get the ad-free PDF printable/downloadable here on Ravelry.

You can also find all the free patterns on my blog!

Llama applique and granny square

Cactus applique and granny square

Flower applique and granny square

Materials for granny squares (baby blanket size)

Impeccable Loops and Threads in White (2 skeins), Arbor Rose (1 skein), and Soft Fern (1 skein)

I made 15 white squares, 6 pink, 9 green, 6 llamas, 5 cacti, and 4 flowers. You can see the layout in the very first photo of how I arranged my squares.

Sew all the appliques onto white squares.

I joined them all together using this joining method.

Once all squares are together, I made a simple border around with J/6.00mm hook and Arbor Rose:

Round 1: Attach yarn to corner, ch 1, sc evenly around the border, making 3 sc in each corner, join to first sc
Round 2: Ch 1, *(sc, ch 3, sc) all in next st, sk 1, repeat from*

Fasten off and weave in any and all ends

Flower Granny Square - Free Applique and Granny Square Crochet Pattern

I'm loving this little crochet flower!

1. It's simple.

2. It's so fun to play around with different colors to get different looks.

3. It fits in perfectly for my llamas and cactus afghan!

I encourage you to play around with pairing different colors and just having fun with it! 

When I sewed my flowers on my squares, I sewed the centers down on the square making a 3D effect for the petals. I think it makes it more fun and gives some extra texture to the blanket!

As you can see, the flowers made a wonderful compliment to the llamas and cacti! You can find all the information you need to make the entire blanket here.

Materials:
Worsted weight yarn in two colors for petals
Worsted weight yarn in white for granny square and flower center
G/4.00 mm hook
J/6.00mm hook
Scissors
Tapestry Needle

Flower Pattern

Use G/4.00mm hook in one color (inner petals)

Round 1: Magic ring, ch 1, 10 sc in ring, join to first sc
Round 2: (Ch 3, dc, ch 2, 2 dc) in same space, *sk 1, sl st in next st, (Ch 3, dc, ch 2, 2dc) all in same space as last sl st, repeat from * around, join to bottom of beginning ch 3
Fasten off

Use J/6.00mm hook in second color (outer petals)

Round 1: Magic ring, ch 2, 12hdc in ring, join to first hdc
Round 2: (Ch 3, 2dc, ch 2, 3dc) in same space, *sk 1, sl st in next st, (Ch 3, 2dc, ch 2, 3dc) in same space as last sl st, repeat from * around, join to bottom of beginning ch 3
Fasten off

Sew smaller petals onto bigger petals.

Using white yarn, sew onto the center of the petals horizontally, vertically, and diagnoally both ways to make the center.

Granny Square Pattern

Using J/6.00mm hook

Round 1: Magic ring, ch 2, 12 dc in ring, join to first dc (12)

Round 2: Ch 2, 2dc in each st around, join to first dc (24)

Round 3: Ch 3 (counts as stitch), (dc, ch 3, 2dc) in same st as ch 3, dc, hdc, sc, hdc, dc, *(2dc, ch 3, 2dc) all in next st, dc, hdc, sc, hdc, dc, repeat from * around, join to beginning ch 3 (each side of square will have 9 st)

Round 4: Sl st to ch 3 space from previous row, Ch 3 (counts as st) (dc, ch 3, 2dc) all in same ch 3 space, dc across, *(2dc, ch 3, 2dc) all in ch 3 space from previous row, dc across, repeat from * around, join to beginning ch 3 (each side of square will have 13 st)

Round 5: Repeat Round 4 (each side of square will have 17 st)

Fasten off

Find the llama and cacti patterns as well as all the information you need to make the entire Llama and Cactus blanket here.