Don't Get Pinched! Free Wearable Crochet Patterns for St. Paddy's Day

My preferred method of getting a little green in my wardrobe for St. Patrick's Day is, of course, something crocheted. To that end, I've put together a little collection of wearable crochet items to keep you in good luck on St. Paddy's. All of the following patterns are FREE and simple to make.

First up, I have to share my pattern for this Lucky Clover Headband, which I've had lots of fun wearing over the years. It features four clovers across the band, three with three leaves and just one that's a lucky four-leaf clover. The headband has a wide band with a tapered bottom for a more comfortable fit. Crochet kits including yarn and a printed pattern are available in my shop as well.




The Celtic Knot Bracelet by Jennifer E. Ryan is a super simple crochet pattern, just two long sc cords, woven together to create something magical. It looks like a lot of fun to wear!



These St. Patty’s Easy Crochet Boot Cuffs with Poms by Mama in a Stitch are a fun accessory for St. Paddy's or for any day, because you really can never have too many pom poms.




For those who like to go all out with their St. Paddy's outfit, there's the St. Patrick's Day Chapeau by Sharon Mann, available from Red Heart. It's an easy pattern and uses Super Saver yarn, so it's very affordable too. 



Because the little ones in your life need some green as well, there are these St. Patrick's Day Shamrock Baby Booties by Hopeful Honey. These cute and simple little stash busters will work up in a jiffy.



Another pair of patterns that are just as nice for everyday wear as to get your green on St. Paddy's are the Irish Inspired Beret and Beanie by Naztazia. These patterns even include a video tutorial.



Have fun crocheting some Irish into your wardrobe!

Irish Flag Koozie

As promised, a brand new pattern using the shamrock embellishment I wrote about recently. A drink koozie that declares your Irish heritage—whether you celebrate it all year round or just vicariously on St. Paddy’s Day. The stripes mimic the colors of the Irish flag, and of course there is the necessary shamrock for good luck. Best of all, it's FREE!!!

The pattern is also available as a pdf download from my Ravelry Store and as a finished item in my Etsy shop: Irish flag koozie

Onto the pattern.

Irish Flag Koozie

Materials

• Worsted weight yarn of your choice in green, white, and orange. Lighter green worsted yarn for shamrock. Koozie pictured is made with Lion Brand Vanna’s Choice in Kelly Green, White, and Terra Cotta. Shamrock is made with Caron Simply Soft in Limelight
• US H (5 mm) hook, or size needed to obtain gauge
• Tapestry or Large eye blunt needle
• Sewing pins    

Notes

• Turning chains do not count as the first stitch of rows.
• Repeat directions following * to end of round.

Abbreviations

st : stitch

ch: chain

hdc: half-double crochet

tc: treble crochet

sl: slipstitch

inc: increase (crochet two stitches in one space)

Gauge

14 sts and 11 rows = 4 inches in hdc

Koozie

1:  With Kelly Green, hdc 8 in a magic ring. Sl to join this and all succeeding rounds. Do not turn.  (8)

2:  Ch 1, *hdc inc.  (16)

3:  Ch 1, *hdc, hdc inc.  (24)

4:  Ch 1, *hdc 5, hdc inc.  (28)

5-8:  Ch 1, *hdc.

9-12: With White, Ch 1, *hdc.

13-15: With Terra Cotta, Ch 1, *hdc.

16: Ch 1, *sc. Tie off. Weave in ends.

Note:  When changing colors, switch yarns in the last yarn over of the last dc of the previous round. This makes for the most seamless transition.

In the last yarn over of the last green stitch, pull up a loop of white.

Sl to join, and continue with white.

Shamrock

With Limelight, working into a magic ring, Ch 3, tc, hdc, tc, ch 3, sl back into ring. Repeat 2 more times. Pull ring tight. For stem, ch 5, sl in second ch from hook and remaining chains. Tie off, leaving long tail (+/- 15”) to sew to koozie.

Finishing

Pin the shamrock into place in the desired position. I center mine opposite of the seam in the white section, with just the edges coming out into the other colors. Stitch around the edge of the shamrock, catching the yarn just under the shamrock edge. Tie off and weave in ends.

You're done! Time to celebrate!

Shamrocks and Clovers

In my last post, I shared the pattern for my  Lucky Clover Headband, which includes directions for how to make small three- and four-leaf clovers. This week I'm in the process of putting together a new, super secret (for now) St. Paddy's Day project which will have a shamrock embellishment rather than clovers. So, what's the difference?

The truth is "botanists don't agree on the exact species" and "Irish literature makes no distinction" so I think it's fair to generalize that a shamrock is a type of clover that has three heart-shaped leaves rather than three or four rounded ones and leave it at that.

Shamrock

Clover

 

 

 

 

For the pattern I'm working on, I wanted more of a traditional Irish shamrock, so I needed to make a slight change to my clover design to get that distinctive shape.

 Here's the pattern for my clover embellishment:

Clover

 1: In a magic loop, ch 3, tc 2, ch 3, sl back into loop

    Repeat 2-3 more times, for 3 or 4 leaf clover

2: Ch 5-7 (depending how long you want the stem). Sl in second ch from hook, and each succeeding ch. Tie off, leaving long tail if it will be used as an applique. Pull magic loop tight and weave in end. 

 

And the finished product: 

 

Look at all that luck

To make the leaves more heart-shaped and shamrocky, I simply added an hdc between the two tc stitches in each leaf.

Shamrock

1: In a magic loop, ch 3, tc, hdc, tc, ch 3, sl back into loop

    Repeat 2 more times.

2: Ch 5-7 (depending how long you want the stem). Sl in second ch from hook, and each succeeding ch. Tie off, leaving long tail if it will be used as an applique. Pull magic loop tight and weave in end.

 

Ta Daa!

Shamrocks or clovers could be used to embellish any number of items or backed with felt and made into a pin. I'll show you what I've done with mine some time before St. Paddy's!