How to Crochet a Child's Skirt in One Night

Making garments is a skill that seems to frighten many novice crocheters. However, it is much easier than it seems, especially if you do not use a pattern. That's right, it's easier to do it free-hand! If you can make a hat, you can make any sort of garment you desire. Heck, if you can make a scarf, you can make most garments.

This is a tutorial that will help you make a simple crocheted skirt for your toddler. (The same techniques may be used to make a skirt for a child of any age, or even for you!) As I go along, I will assume you understand basic crochet concepts such as changing colors, joining rounds, and also basic crochet terminology such as yarn over. You will also need to make use of an advanced technique known as chainless single crochet, of which I will provide a brief explanation. There will be links to what are, in my opinion, the best how-to sites on the internet to help you if you are a complete beginner to crocheting.

Please note that this is a tutorial, not a pattern. I will not use abbreviations. I will use a certain stitch pattern, but please do not feel limited by it; you may use anything you want that has the correct multiple.

For this project you will need:

A skirt that fits your child well

A tape measure.

Three successive sizes of crochet hooks (I'll be using 4mm, 4.24mm, and 4.5mm, but you may use whatever you wish so long as it works well with your yarn)

Small amounts (no more than half a skein for a size 3T) of yarn in three different colors, in the same yarn weight. (You may, of course, use two colors, or four, or only one.) I'll be using Caron's Simply Soft and Simply Soft Brites for the example.

A stitch marker, such as a bobby pin or even scrap yarn

A yarn needle to weave in the ends

Chainless single crochet: Chain two. Work one single crochet in the second chain from the hook. Subsequent single crochets are worked as follows: Turn the stitch to the side, and look at the bottom of the stitch. Pass the hook under the two bars of yarn you see there. (This will look like the top of a stitch once you have your hook in it.) Make a single crochet as normal with your stitch anchored there.

First off, make a gauge swatch, using the smallest hook. It can be much smaller than the normal four inch square, as you only need it to calculate when to change hook sizes, so height is the only important measurement. Make it as follows: Make 10 or 12 chainless single crochets, then top it with several rows of double crochet (if you are using worsted weight yarn, you will only need five or six rows). Measure the height of the swatch, using only the double crochets. Count how many rows you need to get an inch's height. (For me, that's two rows.)

Next, measure the length of the skirt. Mine is 9.5 inches. I am assuming here that you want to make a skirt the same length as the one you have already, but feel free to add or subtract a couple of inches. Now you get to do some math, yay! Simply multiply the number of rows you have in an inch by the number of inches in the length of the skirt. So, 2 x 9.5, or 19. I'll need 19 rows. But where to put the increases? Simple. Divide the number you've just arrived at by three. This gives me 6, with a remainder of 1. Which means that two of my sections will need six rounds, but the third will have to have seven. Where to put this extra round is a matter of preference, but I'll put mine in the final section. (Please note that your base row of chainless single crochets doesn't count as a row for the purposes of this, it's so short that it's an extra.)

You're finally ready to start the skirt. Take whatever yarn you want on the top, and the smallest hook, and make enough chainless single crochets to go around the waistband. Being very careful not to twist your work, join it with a slip stitch to form a circle.

If you haven't been counting as you go along, count your stitches now. This will let you decide what stitch pattern to use. For the example, I have 62 stitches. I'll use the following stitch pattern, which is appropriate for any even number of stitches: Double crochet twice in one stitch, then skip the next stitch. You may use this pattern, another, or none at all, simply crocheting once in every stitch around.

Continue with this hook and yarn, in whatever stitch pattern you've decided on, for the number of rounds you determined you'll need for this first section. You may join your rounds with a slip stitch or merely continue working in spirals, which eliminates any gaps where the rounds join. If you do this, be sure to mark the last stitch with a marker of some sort, and move it up as you go, so that you don't lose track of where the rounds begin and end.

The second and third sections are done in the same fashion. Once you finish the last round of the section you're working on (six, for my example), switch to the next color and the next size larger hook. If you wish, you can change stitch patterns as well, for a sort of sampler look, but it's not necessary. Once the garment is completed, you can either just finish it off or end with your favorite edging pattern.

Now the only thing left to complete is the waistband. Once again using your smallest hook and the first yarn, flip the skirt over to work with the top. The chainless single crochet has left you with a perfect working surface. The waistband is very simple. Just join the yarn and work one single crochet followed by a chain (skip the next stitch) around, then join and finish off. Make a drawstring by crocheting a chain with twice the number of stitches you've been working with. Slip stitch back down the chain, finish it off, and weave through the eyelets you made with your chain spaces. Weave in all the ends where you changed colors (if you changed colors) and you're done!

With this same basic format, you can make any number of different skirts, no pattern necessary. Just remember the number of stitches you started out with, and build from there. Let your imagination run wild!