Free Crochet Patterns

Trusting Free Crochet Patterns

Most patterns you find on various sites on the Internet are fine. They are written by craft companies or dedicated crafters who have made the item and do their best to describe the steps in a way that will be clear and easy for you to follow.

But some free crochet patterns just don’t make any sense. They may be written by someone who doesn’t have a lot of experience writing patterns, so they end up skipping steps without realizing it, or they might just not be clear about exactly what you are supposed to do to get the desired result.

So the first tip, before downloading and using any free crochet patterns you find on the Internet, is to read the pattern first before you buy the supplies to complete the project. Does the pattern seem to make sense? Can you picture what the steps are trying to tell you and does it seem like all the steps are accounted for? Or, better yet, is the pattern illustrated? If the steps are shown as well as described in words, you will have a much better chance of deciphering the pattern.

If you’re a beginner and you’re unsure of any of the steps or techniques in a pattern, you might want to find something geared more toward beginners. Or look for free patterns from the yarn companies like Lion Brand and Coats and Clark. These patterns are tested and usually have pretty realistic skill levels. These sites also offer instruction pages, so if you aren’t clear on a technique, you can look it up.

Free Crochet Pattern Sites

There are many great sites on the Internet featuring free crochet patterns. Here is a rundown of a few of the biggest and best.

• Crochet Pattern Central offers a pattern of the week, crochet instruction pages, tips and tricks and a huge directory of patterns, ranging from basic squares to rugs, cases, finger puppets, lace, women’s clothing, coasters and much more. All of the patterns have pictures, making this a great site for people who need to know what a finished product is going to look like before they start. This site also features patterns that combine knitting and crochet, if you’re one of those people who loves both.

• Knitting-Crochet Speaking of knitting and crochet, this site is dedicated to both pursuits, and has a wonderful crochet section. Offering some different instructions, including for bikinis and pet clothing, this site also gives you a chance to swap blocks with people from around the world. It also features a good basic glossary of crochet stitches with pictures of what the finished stitch looks like.

• Smart Crochet features more than 300 fillet crochet patterns and charts. This is a free membership site that includes tutorials, links to other resources, a message board and a crochet store.

• Crochet N More is a great site for learning and inspiration. It offers a twice-monthly newsletter, more than 300 free patterns, as well as a collection of patterns for purchase, links to other sites about crochet and more. This is a Christian site.

• Cratftown is a slow-loading, rather ad-filled site, but it has a lot of patterns, many with pictures, for baby clothes, doilies, bazaar items, afghans, edgings, tablecloths and more. There don’t seem to be any skill rankings, so make sure you read and understand the instructions before you attempt a pattern.

The Internet truly offers you more patterns than you could ever possibly need, but it’s a great source for free crochet patterns, no matter what you are looking for, even if you just need inspiration. Happy hunting!

Saving Free Crochet Patterns

When you go to these sites, you will naturally find a lot of patterns that you want to keep. You may not be able to get to all of them right away, so you'll need a way to keep them organized.

The way I like to do it is to keep a three-ring binder with plastic sheet protectors for each craft I do. Each time I download a new pattern I print it out and store it in this binder. When I'm ready to make the project, I can just pull out that page and carry it around with me.

You might also organize your free crochet patterns in categories such as baby clothes, afghans, sweaters, etc. so the exact pattern you want is easy to find when you want it, and all your inspiration will always be at your fingertips.

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