Natural Kids: How to Make a Cool Crocheted Purse

For many months my daughter was begging me to teach her how to crochet. We finally learned how to do it with the help of some great books from the local library. Maybe you can see, if your library has Crocheting For Fun by Lisa Bullard. It has many simple crochet projects that little girls will love! Our first project was a crocheted purse. The technique used is quite simple, and you don't need much in terms of materials to start with.

Materials:

Size G crochet hook

worsted weight yarn in your favorite color

a large needle

Scissors

ruler

Here are the 9 easy steps of how to make it.

When starting your foundation chain leave a 15 inch tail of yarn at the beginning. You will need it for sewing the sides of your purse together!
Make a chain of 25 stitches.
Single crochet in the second chain from the hook and in each chain all the way across. Then chain one and turn your project over.
Go back and forth across the row of stitches until your piece measures about 12 inches. You basically want a tall rectangle that can be folded in half.
End on the opposite side from where you started the project. You will need another tail diagonally from the first one. Stop and pull the yarn through leaving a tail that is the same length as the first one.
Fold the rectangle in half and sew together around edges on the sides. Leave the top open.
Make a strap for your purse by making another chain. Leave tails on each end of the tail. You can customize your strap. Have your child hold it up and measure, how long she would need it to comfortably reach into the purse. We made ours about hip length - 3 feet long.
Sew the purse strap on by weaving the tails from your chain through the sides or the purse.
Put your favorite toy, money, or lip balm in your purse and enjoy! We added a little button and loop on the top to keep our stuff from falling out when running! =)