Raffia market bag crochet pattern

Materials and terms

Use raffia yarn intended for crochet, a hook that gives a firm but workable single-crochet fabric, a locking marker, a tapestry needle and scissors. Start with your yarn's recommended hook, then swatch. Paper-based raffia yarn and natural raffia are not interchangeable in handling or care. Follow your own label; do not assume a raffia bag can go in the washing machine.

This pattern uses US terms: ch means chain, sc means single crochet (UK double crochet), and sl st means slip stitch. A turning ch-1 does not count as a stitch. Work through both loops unless told otherwise. The body uses continuous rounds, with no join or turning chain between rounds.

The design is a plain rectangular base with a single-crochet body and two chain handles. It is an original alternative, not a copy of Jenny & Teddy's shell-stitch bag. If you came looking for that designer's work, her Holiday Raffia Bag pattern is available at its current address. Keep that credit when sharing her design.

Swatch, size and yarn planning

Make a swatch in single crochet, using the yarn and hook you plan to use. Measure without stretching it. For a round-based project, also check your round gauge after the first few body rounds. Some makers work more tightly in rounds than in rows.

At an example gauge of 12 sc and 14 rows in 4 inches, the 30-stitch base is about 10 inches wide and its 12 rows are about 3.4 inches deep. The 84-stitch body has an unstretched circumference of about 28 inches, or about 14 inches across when laid flat. Twenty-eight body rounds add about 8 inches in height before the handles. These are calculated examples, not measured finished-bag dimensions. Your gauge decides the result.

Plan yarn from a swatch rather than relying on a fixed roll count. This design contains 3,176 sc stitches, including the 36 alignment stitches before the handles, plus foundation and handle chains and the final joining slip stitch. Weigh a swatch of a known stitch count, divide its weight by that count and multiply by 3,176. Add yarn for chains, tails, your swatch and a margin for tension changes. For example, a 168-stitch swatch weighing 5 grams suggests about 94.5 grams for the sc fabric alone. This is an estimate; keep extra matching yarn and weigh your progress before starting the handles.

The stitch counts below have been checked mathematically. This design has not been physically sample-tested, so make a small practice version first if the yarn is costly. No load rating or tested carrying capacity is claimed.

Base: 30 stitches by 12 rows

Foundation: Ch 31.

Row 1: Sc in the second chain from the hook, then sc in each remaining chain. Count 30 sc.

Rows 2–12: Ch 1, turn, sc in each of the 30 stitches. Count 30 sc after each row. At the end of row 12, do not fasten off. The base contains 12 rows of 30 sc, or 360 sc in total.

Keep the short sides even. The next step works one stitch into each row end, so mark the row ends now if they are hard to see. The skipped foundation chain is a turning chain, not a 31st base stitch; do not add a stitch into it when working around the base.

Turn the rectangle into the bag body

Setup round: Ch 1 and turn. Sc across all 30 stitches of the last row. Rotate the rectangle a quarter-turn and work 12 sc along the first short side, one in each row end. Rotate again and work 30 sc into the unused underside loops of the foundation chain. Rotate once more and work 12 sc along the second short side. Do not add extra corner stitches. Count 84 sc: 30 + 12 + 30 + 12.

Place the marker in the first sc of that setup round. At the first corner, after working the 30th top-row stitch, make the first side sc into a side-edge loop at the end of row 12. Work the next 11 side sc into the ends of rows 11 through 1. These side-edge placements are separate from the top stitches; do not work another sc into the top of the corner stitch. The setup round goes around all four edges, not back and forth as a 13th base row. Keep the edge relaxed enough that it does not pull the base into a hard cup.

Body rounds 1–28: Sc in every stitch around, moving the marker to the first stitch of each new round. Keep 84 sc in every round. Do not increase and do not turn. The setup round is separate from these 28 rounds.

Stop and count if the sides narrow or flare. A skipped stitch makes the next rounds narrower; an accidental extra stitch makes them wider. Undo to the error rather than adding a correction somewhere else. Some rounding at the base corners is normal; a row-end pickup need not have the same spacing as a top stitch.

Make two centered handles

After body round 28, the marker is at the corner where a 30-stitch long side begins. Sc across those 30 stitches, then sc 6 more stitches along the next short side: 36 alignment stitches. Move the start marker to the next stitch. You are now at the middle of a 12-stitch short side, which becomes one side fold when the bag is laid flat. Keep 84 stitches around the rim; these 36 stitches change the starting position, not the stitch count.

Lay the bag flat with its long sides forming the front and back. Divide the rim into two groups of 42 stitches, counting from the new start. Place markers after stitches 14, 28, 56 and 70. Those markers identify the two 14-stitch openings, centered on the front and back faces. Each half includes 6 short-side stitches, 30 long-side stitches and 6 short-side stitches.

Handle round: Sc in the next 14 stitches; ch 20 and skip 14 stitches; sc in the next 28 stitches; ch 20 and skip 14 stitches; sc in the last 14 stitches. Count 96 stitch positions around the new rim: 56 sc plus 40 chains. Each half has 14 sc, an opening, then 14 sc. The middle 28 sc pass across the opposite side fold.

Reinforcement round 1: Sc in each sc and each individual chain around. Work 20 sc into the chain stitches of each handle, not 20 sc loosely around the whole chain arch. Count 96 sc.

Reinforcement rounds 2–3: Sc in each stitch around. Keep 96 sc per round. Sl st in the next stitch, fasten off and weave in the tail through several stitches. Weave in the foundation tail too. These are short carry handles, not shoulder straps. Handle length depends on your chain gauge; check both arches before reinforcing them.

Finishing, changes and care

Inspect the joins at the four handle roots. Tug them gently and secure any loose tail. Start with light contents and check for stretching or strain; the bag is not a tested heavy-grocery carrier. A sewn fabric lining can help keep small items inside, but does not establish a safe load rating.

To make the bag taller, add full 84-stitch body rounds before the handles. To make it shorter, omit full rounds. Keep the base and handle counts unchanged for this version. A wider base needs a new rim count and recalculated handle spacing; simply adding stitches to the base while keeping this handle round will not work.

Do not wet-block or steam the bag unless the yarn maker allows it. Store it dry and reshape it gently after use. For a small first crochet project, try our flower coaster pattern. The craft glossary covers stitch terms.