Textured Bow Tie

Hope you aren’t sick of bow ties, because I have one more for you.

It is just crocheted blocks sewed together. Pretty easy and do-able even for the most beginner of crocheters. When you sew your pieces together, mistakes or inconsistencies become a little less visible so it’s a good first project!

I am not going to go to the very very basics of crochet, but here is what I did…

First hook size. This is what I used. I don’t think it matters too much. Just keep in mind that the smaller the hook the tighter the stitches will be and vice versa.

And now for the pattern…

Yarn: I used 4 ply worsted weight yarn in cotton and in acrylic. You can use a thinner weight if you want but you made need to increase the number of stitches to get the length you want.

First for the main bow tie piece…

Row 1: chain 34
Row 2: turn, and in the second stitch from the needle single crochet to the end {33 stitches}
Row 3: turn, chain 2, double crochet to the end {32 stitches – the 2 chain counts as one to equal 33}
Row 4: turn, chain 2, half double crochet to the end {32 stitches – the 2 chain counts as one to equal 33}
Row 5: turn, chain 2, double crochet to the end {32 stitches – the 2 chain counts as one to equal 33}
Row 6:  turn, chain 2, single crochet to the end {32 stitches – the 2 chain counts as one to equal 33}

Tie off and weave in loose ends with a yarn needle. Whip stitch the two ends together by hand to form a loop.

Now for the remaining pieces.

First, the neck band.

Measure your intended wearers neck. Chain the length of that person’s neck circumference.

Turn, and in second chain from the needle double crochet to the end. Tie off and weave in ends with a yarn needle.

Note: I made mine too long. When you add the second row it stretches it a little. So chain just short of the neck circumference and you should be fine.

Now for the little piece that brings it all together.

#1: chain 13 stitches. Just enough so that it can squeeze over the bow tie and cinch everything nice and tight.

#2: Then turn, and single crochet in the second stitch from the needle to the end. {12 stitches}
Chain 2, single crochet to the end. {11 stitches not including the chain 2}
Repeat to desired width. I ended up with 4 rows.

#3: Tie off and weave loose ends in with a yarn needle. Then whip stitch the two ends together by hand.

Now turn sewn pieces right side out so you have two nice neat loops. Slide the smaller loop over the bow tie piece.

Before you slide the neck band through little loop too, hand stitch a cute little button to one end.

You don’t have to make a button hole on the other end because there are a plethora of crocheted holes already there. It makes sizing a cinch!

Just slide the button into any hole. That is why we used a double crochet stitch!

And I have to say I love the look of this teddy bear button, but in all honesty it is not that practical when it comes to actually buttoning it up. It works, but not very well. 🙂

You can really make the bow tie as long or as wide as you want. Play around with the rows and stitches. My pattern is just to give you an idea of what I did.   And it’s my first attempt at a crochet pattern so if you see any errors, please let me know!

I personally like how nicely the texture pops out.

And I love Owen’s dorky smile here. I just love this kid.

I made a couple more. This time switching colors to make stripes.

It was fun playing around with the possibilities, but I think the solid color looks best.

Don’t you love that Kelly green cotton yarn though? I do. I was just telling someone how I hate Kelly green and then of course I saw this yarn and fell in love with the richness of its color. Whenever I form an opinion on something it often changes! 🙂

So that’s it! Three pieces, about 30 minutes to an hour {depending on how fast you can crochet}, and you have a spiffy, textured bow tie.

It’s actually starting to warm up here so I didn’t add any layers to his outfit, but I think the texture would pop nicely paired with a sweater or vest on top.