Bags

Here is my collection of free crochet bag patterns, including purses and other totes that you can use every day. Make them for yourself or give them as gifts to your friends and family. Not only do they make for great gifts, but you can actually use them as gift bags as well! How cool is that?

There is something here for everyone! Whether you’re looking for a purse, a tote, beach bag or a market bag, this collection has got you covered!

One of my favorites is the Blossom Crochet Beach Bag. It is a simple pattern with a bit of an open stitch, making it perfect for all your beach items on hot summer days. And if you’re looking for something textured, I love the Bouncy Bubbly Tote, which is versatile and easy to customize.

There’s something here for every skill level too, including beginners! Two ideal crochet projects for beginners are the Single Crochet Bag and the Moss Stitch Beginner Crochet Bag. Not only are they beginner-friendly, but they are nice enough for everyone to enjoy!

Some of these crochet totes feature an open stitch pattern. An excellent use of these is to use them as market bags for fresh produce as they allow the produce to breathe until you get home. They are great if you make a lot of lengthy trips to the farmers market or even the grocery store. It’s a great way to help save the environment as you’re not always resorting to the plastic bags that tend to end up in landfills.

Customize Your Crochet Bag Pattern

Regardless of the bag pattern you choose, you can customize your bag with stripes using any of your favorite colors that you like. The possibilities of stripes are endless, as you can add a single stripe along the top, or bottom, or even just a few stripes in the middle to make it stand out.

Size is also easy to adjust for many of these. I like to start my bags at the bottom with a long chain. I then crochet into both sides of the starting chains to make a rectangle. Then I increase at the four corners in each round until I have the size that I want for the bag. It’s super easy to adjust the size, but just remember that when making changes to the bottom of the bag, that you need to end up with the stitch multiple that is needed for body of the bag.

As for the handles, they can be adjusted for any size bag! Here is a tutorial on how to make bag handles, along with a formula to help you calculate your stitch placements.

Lining Your Bag

Last, but not least, you can add a sturdy lining to make the bag strong and durable for use as an everyday handbag or purse. You don’t need to be a sewing expert, but knowing how to work a machine can help to speed up the process. With that said, you don’t need a machine, as you can, with patience, sew the lining by hand.

When choosing the fabric for your bag liner, you have the option to choose something that matches or is contrasting to your yarn.

Here is a tutorial on how to line a bag with or without a zipper. The tutorial also shows how to add small pockets on the inside to hold your keys, phone and other accessories.

What is the Best Yarn for Crochet Bags?

It depends on what you want to use it for. Do you want to use it as a market bag, or as a beach bag? Then in that case, you’d want to use a strong and durable cotton yarn. Or, any other strong material that you like and works out with the gauge/stitch pattern.

Although there are many to choose from, Bernat Handicrafter Cotton and Lily Sugar ‘N Cream are two good cotton yarns that work well for bags.

Acrylic yarn can also be used, but it tends to stretch a lot, and is not near as strong as cotton. BUT, if you choose a strong inner lining, you can get away with an acrylic or any other worsted weight yarn, as the bag liner will be the main strength for the bag.

Choosing Your Crochet Hook

Your best option is to use the recommended hook size that is given in the pattern. That way you know that the size will come out as planned. But, if you choose a smaller hook than the recommendations, you will end up with a tighter and stronger material. Just remember that you’ll need to make adjustments for the size as it’ll come out smaller if the pattern gauge changes.