The Merry Mermaid Infant Cocoon free pattern!
Mermaids. They are everywhere!! And I mean EVERYWHERE! Crocheters around the world are swimming in these projects. (<---See what I did there?) So, it's only natural for me to jump on the boat. (<--- See what I kinda did there, too?)
I'm a texture freak, and I really do love the texture to this one. All the different stitches makes it very texture happy. I have found myself caressing it on more than one occasion. But we won't go into that now...
How about we just jump to the pattern.
Introducing the Merry Mermaid Infant Cocoon!
US
Terms
Materials
Used:
- Caron Simply Soft Paints – approximately 4 skeins
- J hook
- Yarn needle for weaving in ends
Stitches
Used:
- Slip Stitch (sl st)
- Single Crochet (SC)
- Half-Double Crochet (HDC)
- Half-Double Crochet Third Loop (HDC3rd)
- HDC3rd decrease
- Double Crochet (DC)
- Shell Stitch (5 DC in same stitch)
- Crocodile Stitch (using Front Post Half-Double Crochet – FPHDC)
- V-Stitch (DC, Ch 1, DC in same stitch)
- Whip Stitch
Gauge:
12DC
in 6 Rows = 4 inches x 3.5 inches
Notes:
- This is made using joined rounds using 2 strands of yarn held together.
- Chains at the beginning of a row do NOT count as a stitch, other than in the shells where chains DO count as your first stitch..
- If you crochet tightly, you may want to go up a hook size.
- Caron Simply Soft is a #4 Worsted Weight Yarn, but it seems to be on the lighter side compared to other #4 yarns. If using a yarn like Red Heart or ILTY, take that into consideration as it may affect your gauge.
- For this pattern the Crocodile stitches will be made with Half-Double Crochet, but if you prefer Double Crochet Crocodile stitches, that is fine. The HDC makes it a little less bulky. Either way works and looks beautiful.
- The decreases in the fin are Half-Double 3rd loop decreases, these are done the same way as a regular HDC decrease, only you do them in the 3rd loop instead of the regular loops.
- Final dimensions of the cocoon (minus the fin) is 17 inches long x 8.5 inches wide (at the top.)
Pattern:
With
2 strands of yarn held together, Chain 13.
Round
1.) Double Crochet (DC) in 2nd chain from hook and in remaining
chains. Continue crocheting around the other side of the chains. Slip
Stitch (Sl st) to join. (24 DC)
Round
2.) Ch 2, DC in each stitch around. SS to 1st to join. (24DC)
Round
3.) Ch 2, *2DC, 1DC in next 3 stitches. Repeat from * around. Sl st
to join. (30DC)
Round
4.) Ch 2, DC in each stitch around. Sl st to join. (30DC)
Round
5.) Ch 2, *2DC, 1DC in next 4 stitches. Repeat from * around. Sl st
to join. (36DC)
Round
6.) Ch 2, DC in each stitch around. Sl st to join. (36DC)
Round
7.) Ch 2, *2DC, 1DC in next 5 stitches. Repeat from * around. Sl st
to join. (42DC)
Round
8.) Ch 2, DC in each stitch around. Sl st to join. (42DC)
Round
9.) Ch 2, *2DC, 1DC in next 6 stitches. Repeat from * around. Sl st
to join. (48DC)
Round
10.) Ch 2, DC in each stitch around. Sl st to join. (48DC)
Round
11.) Ch 2, *2DC, 1DC in next 7 stitches. Repeat from * around. Sl st
to join. (54DC)
Round
12.) Ch 2, *2DC, 1DC in next 8 stitches. Repeat from * around. Sl st
to join. (60DC)
Round
13.) Ch 1, Single Crochet (SC) in same stitch, *Skip 2 stitches, 1
Shell stitch (5DC) in next stitch, Skip 2 stitches, SC in next.
Repeat from * around, ending with
a shell stitch. Sl st in 1st SC to join. (10 Shells)
Round
14.) Ch 3 (counts as DC), 2DC in same stitch, *Skip 2 stitches, SC in
next (middle of shell from previous row), Skip 2 stitches, Shell
stitch in next (SC from previous row). Repeat from * around until you
get back to the beginning stitches. In the same stitch as the Ch 3
and 2 DC, add 2 more DC to finish that shell. Sl st to the top of the
Ch3 to join. (10 Shells)
Rounds
15-30.) Repeat rounds 13 then 14 until you have 18 rows of shells.
You can add more or less rows if you wish, but make sure your last
row is a repeat of round 14. (10 shells each row)
Round
31.) Ch 1, *SC in next (1st SC in same as Ch 1), HDC in next, DC in
next, HDC in next, SC in next, Slip Stitch (SS) in next, Repeat from
* around, slip stitching in to the Ch 1 at the end of the row. (60
stitches)
Round
32.) Ch 4 (=DC + Ch 1), DC in same stitch, Skip 1 stitch, *DC + Ch 1
in next, Skip 1 stitch,V Stitch (DC, Ch 1, DC) in next, Skip 1
stitch, Repeat from * around, ending with a DC + Ch 1, slip stitch
into Ch 4 to join.
Round
33.) *5 Front Post Half-Double Crochets (FPHDC) around the first half
of the V Stitch from the previous row working from the top to the
bottom of the stitch, Ch 2, work 5 more FPHDC stitches on the second
half of the V Stitch working from the bottom up (you may need to
rotate your work a little to make it easier), Sl st to the next
stitch, Repeat from * around. Sl st to the first stitch in the row to
join. (15 Crocodile Stitches)
Round
34.) Ch 4 (=DC + Ch 1), DC in same stitch, *DC + Ch 1 in the center
of the Crocodile stitch from the previous row, V Stitch in the space
between the two crocodile stitches, Repeat from * around, ending with
a DC + Ch 1, slip stitch to the Ch 4 to join.
Round
35.) Repeat round 33.
Fasten
off, weave in ends.
{Mermaid
Fin}
Leave
a long tail when starting and ending your fin. The tails will be used
to sew the fin onto the rest of the blanket.
Ch
31
Round
1.) HDC in the second chain from hook and in each chain across. Ch 2
and turn. (30 Stitches)
Round
2.) Half-Double Crochet in the 3rd loop (HDC3rd) 28 times, HDC3rd
decrease, Ch 2 and turn. (29 Stitches)
Round
4.) HDC3rd 26 times, HDC3rd decrease, Ch 2 and turn. (27 Stitches)
Round
5.) HDC3rd decrease, 1 HDC3rd in remaing stitches across, Ch 2 and
turn. (26 stitches)
Round
6.) HDC3rd 24 times, HDC3rd decrease, Ch 2 and turn. (25 Stitches)
Round
7.) HDC3rd decrease, 1 HDC3rd in remaing stitches across, Ch 2 and
turn. (24 stitches)
Round
8.) HDC3rd 22 times, HDC3rd decrease, Ch 2 and turn. (23 Stitches)
Round
9.) HDC3rd decrease, 1 HDC3rd in remaing stitches across, Ch 2 and
turn. (22 stitches)
Round
10.) HDC3rd 20 times, HDC3rd decrease, Ch 2 and turn. (21 Stitches)
Round
11.) HDC3rd decrease, 1 HDC3rd in remaing stitches across, Ch 2 and
turn. (20 stitches)
Round
12.) HDC3rd 19 times, 2 HDC3rd in last stitch, Ch 2 and turn. (21
stitches)
Round
13.) 2 HDC3rd in first stitch, 1 HDC3rd in each remaining stitch
across. Ch 2 and turn. (22 stitches)
Round
14.) HDC3rd 21 times, 2 HDC3rd in last stitch, Ch 2 and turn. (23
stitches)
Round
15.) 2 HDC3rd in first stitch, 1 HDC3rd in each remaining stitch
across. Ch 2 and turn. (24 stitches)
Round
16.) HDC3rd 23 times, 2 HDC3rd in last stitch, Ch 2 and turn. (25
stitches)
Round
17.) 2 HDC3rd in first stitch, HDC3rd in each remaining stitch
across. Ch 2 and turn. (26 stitches)
Round
18.) HDC3rd 25 times, 2 HDC3rd in last stitch, Ch 2 and turn. (27
stitches)
Round
19.) 2 HDC3rd in first stitch, HDC3rd in each remaining stitch
across. Ch 2 and turn. (28 stitches)
Round
20.) HDC3rd 27 times, 2 HDC3rd in last stitch, Ch 2 and turn. (29
stitches)
Round
21.) 2 HDC3rd in first stitch, HDC3rd in each remaining stitch
across. Ch 1 and turn. (30 stitches)
You
will now finish the edges of the fin by doing a SC border. SC in each
stitch across (in both loops, no more 3rd loop!), in the corners add
2 SCs, then SC across the bottom of fin, back up the other sideand
across the top. Once you are done going around the entire fin, finish
off, leaving another long tail making sure to leave the long tail you
started with intact. Both of the tails should be at the top of your
making sure to leave the long tail you started with intact. Both of
the tails should be at the top of your fin. You need them for the
next step.
{Sewing
it all together}
Lay
the tail out flat. Take the top corner of one side and fold it toward
the center, you want the outside corner of the fin to meet the middle
top of the fin. Use the long tail on that side and whip stitch the
top on that side together. Do the same for the other side as well.
Once
your fin is whipped stitched together it's time to sew it on to the
rest of the blanket. The top of the fin should be about the same
width as the bottom of the body. Now, simply use the long tails you
used in the last step and sew/whip stitch it to the body. Then fasten
off and weave in all your ends.
That's it! You now have a cute little
Mermaid Cocoon! I hope you enjoy making this one. I'd LOVE to see what you come up with. So make sure to head on over to my Facebook page (HERE!) and share a photo or two of your tail!
And, as always, you are more than welcome to sell any finished product made from my patterns. Just please, credit me (link back to www.MapleGroveCreative.com) when you do.
If you wish to purchase an inexpensive PDF of this pattern, you can do so in my Etsy shop by clicking HERE or by going to www.maplegrovecreative.etsy.com
Happy Hooking!
Nice pattern. I hope you will size it up for adults.
ReplyDeleteHi there,
DeleteI'm glad you liked the pattern. At this time I'm not planning on converting it to an adult size, but it's possible I will in the future. Keep checking back! :)
Vix
Love thank you. I'm going to have to try this pattern!
ReplyDeleteThis is so beautiful I can't wait to make it. Thank you for sharing it for free. I am a little confused when it says *2DC, 1DC in next 3, does that mean do 2dc in next st, & 1dc in the next stitch after where the 2dc is put? and Round 2 says it ends with 24DC and Round 3 ends with 30DC, stitches. Are the stitch counts wrong? I think I'm just confused. If you could explain please I really can't wait to start this.
ReplyDeleteHi there,
DeleteI'm so glad you like the pattern!
For the 2DC, 1DC in next 3 stitches, that means you do 2 double crochets in one stitch and then in the next three stitches you do 1 double crochet in each stitch. So it will be 2DC in first, 1DC in next, 1DC in next, 1DC in next. Then repeat the 2DC, 1DC in next 3 stitches sequence. By doing 2DCs in the one stitch you are increasing the stitch count for that row, therefore the stitch count is correct. You will be increasing in every other row. So when the pattern says 2DC, 1DC in next 4,5,6,7,or 8 stitches, you will work 2DC in the first and then 1DC in each of the number of stitches stated for that particular row.
I hope that helps! :)
Vix
That's great help. Thank you for responding so quickly
DeleteThat's great help. Thanks and thank you for responding so quickly
DeleteUp to what age will this fit? I have 2 and 4 year old granddaughters and I'm hoping it will fit both of them.
ReplyDeleteHi there,
DeleteThis is an infant cocoon and is fairly small. It was designed with babies 0-3 months in mind. Final dimensions of the cocoon (minus the fin) is 17 inches long x 8.5 inches wide (at the top.) It may work for a small toddler to put just their legs in, but most likely would be too small for a larger child. However, it may work if you used
two strands of bulky yarn and a large hook (like a P or Q hook) instead of what the pattern suggests.
I hope that helps! :)
Vix
Would the size of the cocoon be the right size for a 5-6 month old as a mermaid TAIL?
ReplyDeleteDo you think this would fit a 5-6 month old as a mermaid tail instead of using g it as a cocoon?
ReplyDelete