This cute little knit basket is worked from the bottom up in the round, starting in Stockinette and working up to a Basketweave body. The handle is I-cord worked from a few body stitches after the rest are bound off.
The only finishing you have to do is sewing the handle to the other side and weaving in the ends. This is a project you can probably finish in a day or a couple of evenings.
This wee basket would be great for holding chocolate eggs, fuzzy chicks or any other cute little tiny things you need to hold. It certainly doesn't have to be limited to Easter decor, either; try it in your bathroom holding cotton balls or on your sewing table full of little spools of thread.
And of course you could make a bigger basket by knitting 4 more rounds and increasing again any amount you want -- increasing in every stitch would give you a pretty big basket with 96 stitches, but you can increase by any amount so long as you do in evenly around the project and end up with a multiple of 8 stitches for the basketweave to work.
Materials:
- about 35 yards of Red Heart Eco-Cotton yarn (I used Rose) or medium-weight cotton yarn of your choice
- set of 4 size 7 US (4.5 mm) double-pointed knitting needles
- tape measure, scissors and yarn needle
Gauge:
Gauge is not critical so long as your knit fabric is stable, but I got about 4 stitches and 7 rounds per inch in the basketweave pattern, worked in the round.
Size:
Finished bag is about 2.5 inches across the bottom and 3 inches tall without handle.
Knitting the Basket:
- Cast on 6 stitches. Divide onto 3 needles and join in the round.
- Knit 1 round. Knit in the front and back of each stitch. 12 stitches.
- Knit 2 rounds. Kfb in each stitch. 24 stitches.
- Knit 3 rounds. Kfb in each stitch. 48 stitches.
- Purl 1 round.
- Work in Basketweave Pattern as follows until piece measures about 3 inches tall. Work knit 4, purl 4 around for 4 rounds, then work purl 4, knit 4 around for 4 rounds. Repeat these two pattern sections. End at the end of either 4-round section (I did 5 sections total).
- Bind off until 4 stitches remain.
- Work on these 4 stitches in I-cord for about 7 inches or to length of your choice.
- Bind off remaining stitches. Cut yarn, leaving a long tail.
- Sew the end of the handle to the other side of the basket. Weave in ends.
