Isn’t it wonderful to be able to ‘fix’ things with crochet? This easy crochet handle is one of the things that make me love crocheting.
So what’s the story behind the waterbottle?
When our older son first started school, we got him a water bottle. We soon discovered many things wrong with it. It looked nice, but it was also a haven for germs to grow. There were those tiny places we couldn’t reach while washing it, and then the straw was getting coloured on the inside, water kept spilling out of it, it also took extra effort for him to drink through the straw. So, it had to go.
The second water bottle got broken the first day he took it to school. That about sums it up.
The third water bottle, pictured here had been in our home for a few years. I just felt it was not ‘nice’ looking for him to take to school and was bigger that the previous two he took to school. But this water bottle is sturdy, it has served us well on many trips. It was also easy to clean and drink from, no spills or stories. haha.
So he started taking it to school, and began to chew the handle out of habit. The handle unravelled gradually till it was just a mess. There was no way I was going to get a third (new) water bottle for him, especially since the previous was still functional. That was when it occured to me I could crochet a new handle.
Just like I made the Crochet Wrist Watch Strap the last time.
This post does not really need a tutorial. I am only sharing it to inspire someone, anyone. There might be something you can actually fix with your crochet skills and save (a little) money instead.
A Couple of things to consider
- The yarn you use should be sturdy, a really soft one may have too much stretch to it. Or you could use a thing rope as well (you do know you can crochet with a rope, right?), so long as it can pass through the handle bars.
- Use a hook two sizes smaller than recommended for the yarn. If using a rope, test your hooks to know which works best for it.
- You may also wonder how sturdy this will be. Well, I will make an update on this post after a month to let you know. Hopefully he doesn’t chew the handle this time. But I am confident with the tightness of the stitches, this handle will hold strong.
You’ll need:
- appropriate yarn to pass through the space for the handles. I started making the handles with cotton yarn but soon realised it stretched too much, so changed to acrylic yarn.
- appropriate hook to match yarn. You need to use a hook that will give tighter stitches.
Stitch Used
The Single Crochet stitch was used all through. If you are new to crochet, a quick search on Pinterest or the www om ‘How to Single Crochet’ will yield many results.
I decided to use the water bottle colours just for a bit more nice aesthetic. The orange yarn was used in the middle tapestry crochet style, as a contrast to the yellow.
Make the handle as wide as it will pass through the handle bars and as long as you prefer. For this handle:
Row 1: Chain 6, SC in second cahin from hook and in next 4 chains. Chain 1, turn.
Rows 2- preferred length: SC across. Ch 1, turn.
Using a second colour also helped with finishing off. I tied the tails of each colour together at the end before snipping off.
And there’s it. Is there something in your home you can fix with crochet? Do it! and share with us too on our private Facebook page. Thank you.
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