This is the biggest of our free patterns and the most useful. A watermelon slice, 36 cm across, with the front and back joined so the whole thing works as a deep pocket. It hangs from a strap and swallows hair clips, pens, remote controls, or the small things that accumulate on a craft table.
It is all single crochet. There is a lot of it, but none of it is hard.
What you need
- 100% cotton DK weight yarn — red 100 g, dark green 100 g, light green 100 g, white 100 g, black 100 g
- 4 mm and 5 mm crochet hooks
- Thin wire (it goes into the top edge to hold the shape)
- Stitch marker, yarn needle
Finished size: front 20 cm high, back 23 cm high, 36 cm wide, with an 84 cm strap.
Gauge: 10 sc × 12 rows = 5 cm × 5 cm. Worth checking on this one — it is big enough that a loose tension adds up. Here is how to measure gauge properly.
A note on terms: this pattern is written in US crochet terms. If you are used to UK terms, our US to UK conversion chart will save you a lot of confusion.
Abbreviations
- R — round / row st — stitch
- ch — chain sl st — slip stitch
- sc — single crochet
- inc — increase (2 sc in the same stitch)
- T — total stitch count
- R yarn red DG dark green LG light green W white B black
Front part
4 mm hook, red yarn. Every row starts with a turn and ch 1. You are working back and forth to build a half-circle, not in the round.
- R1: magic ring, 7 sc.
- R2: turn, ch 1, sc, inc in the next 5 st, sc. T = 12
- R3: (sc, inc) repeat. T = 18
- R4–5: sc in each st. T = 18
- R6: (2 sc, inc) repeat. T = 24
- R7–8: sc in each st. T = 24
- R9: (3 sc, inc) repeat. T = 30
- R10–11: sc in each st. T = 30
- R12: (4 sc, inc) repeat. T = 36
- R13–14: sc in each st. T = 36
- R15: (5 sc, inc) repeat. T = 42
- R16–17: sc in each st. T = 42
- R18: (3 sc, inc) repeat, then 2 sc in the last 2 st. T = 52
- R19–20: sc in each st. T = 52
- R21: (4 sc, inc) repeat, then 2 sc in the last 2 st. T = 62
- R22–23: sc in each st. T = 62
- R24: (5 sc, inc) repeat, then 2 sc in the last 2 st. T = 72
- R25–26: sc in each st. T = 72
- R27–28: (11 sc, inc) repeat. T = 78
- R29: (18 sc, inc) repeat, then 2 sc in the last 2 st. T = 82
- R30–33: sc in each st. T = 82
- R34: inc, inc, sc to the end, then inc, inc in the last 2 st. T = 86
A note on the numbering: the original pattern skips from R28 to two rounds both labelled R30. We have renumbered them R29 and R30–33. The stitch counts and the order of the rounds are unchanged.
Now work 2 rows of sc along the straight top edge, and lay the thin wire into the second row as you work over it. That wire is what stops the top edge sagging once the pocket has things in it.
The rind
- R35: join white yarn at one corner. Ch 3, turn, skip the chain, 2 sc, 2 sc into the upper 2 rows, sc in each st, 2 sc into the upper row, and at the end ch 3, turn, skip 1 ch, 2 sc, sl st. T = 94
- R36: light green, sc in each st. T = 94
- R37: (5 sc, inc) repeat. T = 109
- R38: sc in each st. T = 109
- R39–40: dark green, sc in each st. T = 109
Finally, embroider seeds onto the red with black yarn and a needle, scattered at random. Do not space them evenly — real watermelon seeds are not tidy, and evenly spaced ones look wrong in a way that is hard to put your finger on.
Back part
- R1–34: red yarn, exactly as the front. T = 86
- R35–36: sc in each st. T = 86
- R37: inc, 27 sc, inc, repeat, inc. T = 89
- R38: sc in each st. T = 89
Work 10 rows along the top edge (1 row = 1 sc), and put the wire into the last row the same way you did on the front. The back is taller than the front on purpose — that extra height is what gives the pocket a lip to hang from.
- R39–40: dark green — 10 sc across those 10 rows, sc in each st along, then 10 sc across the 10 rows at the other end. T = 109
Joining and the strap
Hold the front and back together and join them with sc all the way around the curve, leaving the straight top edge open. That opening is the pocket.
For the strap, take two strands of two colours — four strands in total — and chain with all four held together until it is 84 cm long. Sew each end securely to the top corners with a yarn needle. A four-strand chain is thick enough to take the weight without stretching, which a single strand will not.
Prefer a printable copy?
The whole pattern is on this page, free, and always will be. If you would rather have a tidy PDF to print or keep on your phone — with the step photos alongside the instructions — you can download it here. It is free too. No account, no waiting.
Want more storage? The scalloped round basket is also free, and there is more in our home decor collection. All the free patterns live here.