Crochet Star Making - A Tutorial.

Hello. I have been making crochet stars this week.  For no good reason really, just because they're fun to make.  So I thought some of you might like to have a bit of crafty fun too.  

These stars use up tiny amounts of wool, so get your scraps box out!

I used a mixture of hot colours....

.....and a nice mix of cool colours.

You need to make 10 star 'points' or diamonds ( 5for the front and 5 for the back).  You can do them in solid colours or use a varigated yarn or you could stripe them like I did by changing colours every 2 rows.

You can make your stars bigger or smaller by varying the number of rows or by changing the yarn weight and hook size you use. Just make 10 of the same size and you'll be fine!

(leave a long tail at the beginning so you can use it to sew up later)

BASIC DIAMOND PATTERN

Ch 2

row 1: 2sc into 2nd ch from hook, turn.

row 2: Ch1(turning chain) 1sc into first st, 2sc into 2nd st, turn.

row 3: Ch1, 1sc into 1st st, 1sc into 2nd st, 2sc into last st, turn.

row 4: Ch1, 1sc into 1st st, 1sc into each st across until last st, 2sc into last st, turn.

Repeat row 4 until you have 11 stitches. ( or as many stitches as you like, more stitches means a bigger diamond and finished star , less a tiny diamond and finished star)

Start decreasing.

The decrease pattern is as follows:

Ch1, sk1st st, sc into next st and each st across, turn.  (reduces by 1 st in each row)

Continue doing this to each row until you have 1 st left and fasten off.

Make 10 diamond shapes for each star.

Next, sew the bottom half of one diamond to the next diamond, right sides facing each other.  I found that by matching up the 'bumps and troughs' along the edge, I could sew in and out of these and it gave a nice neat, even join. (see where I have put the needle and pin through in the above photo, the pin is through a trough, and the needle is through the bump!) 

Anyway, it should look something like this when 2 are joined together......

......and something like this when it all 5 are sewn together.  Make 2 star pieces like this.

Next, push all the extra hanging threads in the inside and pin the 2 pieces together, wrong sides facing. 

Sewing your star together : I decided to crochet around my star pieces to join them, as I like the outlined effect this gives.

Take a smaller hook than the one you used for the diamonds, and choose a nice contrast colour yarn

(or complementary, what ever you like) and join your yarn to the top of a point and start sc through both layers of the star, all the way around until you have one side left open (see photo above), gently fill your star with stuffing, (try and get a bit into the pointy bits)...........

.......then continue single crocheting along the edge to close the opening and join with a slip stitch at the top to finish off. 

(see photo above). 

And there you have it, one completed, slightly puffy star!

You could sew a button in the middle if you want to hide the centre joins, but I like mine plain.

I think these would look lovely dangling en masse in a window or as a mobile for a baby, and I plan to make a heap for the Christmas tree this year!

I hope this tutorial makes sense, I never can tell when I am trying to explain things.

Happy star making!

( If you don't crochet but knit, there is a similar star that you can knit here)