Mosaic Crochet in the Round Tutorial
Work in the round for a cowl or bag
In the Round, As A Tube
On Ravelry, they list “worked in the round” as one of the available attributes for patterns. A closer look at that description says, “Worked in a continuous around and around fashion. Can be flat (like a circular shawl started from the center) or tubular (like a sock or sleeve).”
This tutorial is worked tubular. I call in working in the round and I call a flat piece worked in the round “center-out” instead.
Overlay Mosaic Crochet
This tutorial uses the overlay mosaic crochet technique. The sample in the video is Tumbling Curls. This pattern shows the interlocking mesh dots in the mosaic crochet version of the pattern (but Tumbling Curls also comes with an adjusted, solid mosaic crochet option).
For more information on these dots and adjusted charts, see https://ashleeslint.com/tutorials/interlocking-and-mosaic-crochet/
No Cut Ends
One of my favorite things about working in the round is that there are no cut ends to worry about!
If you’re familiar with the overlay mosaic crochet techniqe, you’ll know that we cut the yarn at the end of each row. These cut ends need to be enclosed in an envelope border, used as fringe, or woven in.
When we work in the round we can carry the yarn!
Ashlee Brotzell Designs on YouTube
I have quite a few tutorials and walk-thrus on YouTube. Some are done live and some were done years ago and are poor quality. I am constantly increasing my skills and I’m happy to say I’m getting better all the time!
This video was created with the sole purpose of showing the method I use for joining the rounds when creating a tube using the overlay mosaic crochet technique.
I hope you’ll watch from the beginning if you are new to the idea.
But, there are time stamps to help you focus in on whatever part you’re having trouble with if you’ve got a good handle on it all but just need to see something specific.
Bag Straps
I’ve also included a quick overview of making bag straps at the end of the video. There are LOTS of other ways to make bag straps.
And if you’re not making a bag you won’t find that part of the video very useful.
Video Support on doing Overlay Mosaic Crochet in the Round
Written Explanation
The video tutorial above is best, in my opinion. But I’ve written a quick summary here as well.
Pattern Choice
When you decide that you want to work in the round and create a cowl or a bag or pillow or something, you have to know that not all patterns will work easily for this process.
A lot of my designs are single images (think Book Dragon) and you would not easily find a section of that pattern to use as a small bag or cowl – the chart is just too large!
Tumbling Curls works because the repeatable section of the chart is only 50 stitches wide. I’ve also used this joining method in the round to create a bag using two of my large squares (they start with 81 stitches).
Making it Work
Most of my designs are not written to be done in the round, however they can easily be adjusted!
When you use the written pattern, just skip the Joining Stitch (JS) and the End Stitch (ES). These stitches are not shown on the charts, so if you use the charts you are good to go!
You have a lot of width options when you use a repeatable design. If you choose a design with a fixed width you may be limited in what projects you can create. Choosing the right yarn weight can help give you more options back!
A lighter weight yarn will create a smaller project whereas a thicker yarn creates a larger final piece. With a repeatable design you may wish to use a fingering weight yarn and more repeats to get a larger finished size.
There are lots of options!
My Repeatable Designs:
Large Squares into Bags
Although I have only officially written up my November Cat Face & Butt squares into a bag, you can use any of the large squares to create a nicely sized bag!
I recommend using a fingering weight cotton yarn unless you want a ginormous tote bag.
For a list of all my large squares: https://ashleeslint.com/large-squares/
Joining in the Round
I have tried a few ways of joining in the round and this is my preferred method.
When using the mosaic crochet technique in the round we do not cut the yarn at the end of each row, we just carry it up along the inside of our project.
You will want to make sure your joins are pulled quite tight or they will show!
Remember to skip the JS and ES.
When you finish the final stitch of the round you will insert your hook into the back loop of the first stitch of that round.
This is when you will grab the other color and pull a loop up.
Now you work the next round as normal. If your first stitch is a sc in the BLO you will use the SAME SPOT you just used for joining.
I do not recommend doing a chain stitch before doing your first stitch of the round.
If your first stitch is a dropped double crochet then you must remember that the stitch you are skipping behind that stitch is the one that has just been used for the join. You do not want to accidentally skip an extra stitch because then your row will become slanted.
Ravelry Project Pages
I’ve used Tumbling Curls for a few projects in the round.
For more details on each project, check out my Ravelry Project Pages by clicking on the photos here.
