Summer project! Decorate a beach bag with crochet hearts

So, you've found the perfect swimsuit, and snapped up the season's must-have sandals - but what about a laid-back Ibiza style raffia beach bag to carry all your beach essentials? Give a used wicker bag a new life and glam it up with some hearts and a pretty crochet finish. Then you can use it non-stop until Labour Day. With a few simple decorations you can turn a thrift store wicker or raffia bag into a real must-have. The crochet work will be finished in no time and this project is fun to do together with some friends or children. In any case, it's great for some Summer vibes, no matter what time of the year it is!

Level: easy

Free pattern for crochet hearts

With this free pattern for crocheting a heart, you‘ll practice with different basic stitches. We have included the stitches in a crochet diagram, so you can practice with this. It takes some getting used to working with a crochet diagram instead of text, but we are a big fan of using a crochet diagram because it offers a visual overview. Note for US readers: the pattern text is in UK English, so make sure to keep a conversion table close by!

What you need:

• Some Zpagetti or RibbonXL leftovers in your favourite colours.
• 10 mm crochet hook (US size 15)
  

Step 1: Crochet several hearts

Make several crochet hearts with this easy-to-do pattern:

Chain 4 and close the ring with a ss.

R1: Chain 2 and then 3 dtr, 3 tr. Chain 1, followed by 1 dtr. Chain 1 followed by 3tr and then 3dtr. Chain 2 and close it with a ss in the ring. Make sure to fixate the yarn with a tight knot. Done. Repeat making hearts until you have enough to make a nice decoration. In our case we've made 5 as we chose to only decorate the front side of the bag.

Step 2: Glam up your bag

Position the hearts and sew or glue them onto the bag. Our old (and worn out) raffia beach bag was a bit scuffled at the top row and we crocheted one row of dc around the top.