USA Tote Bag or Plain Medium Size Tote Bag

Pattern Created by Sandi Marshall

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This is a medium size tote bag with an optional cross-stitch of the letters USA added to the front. If you wish to add these letters, as shown in the example, the free chart for the letters USA can be printed from http://crochet.about.com/library/bl1usa.htm ... I added a straight stitch outline around the letters after doing the cross-stitch and then filled in some portions along the edges with straight stitches to further embellish the letters.

Materials used In The Example: Worsted weight yarn (you can substitute any brand), I used Color A - Red Heart Super Saver color White, Color B - Red Heart Super Saver color 0319 Cherry Red, Color C - Red Heart Super Saver color 0886 Blue, Color D - Red Heart Super Saver color Delft Blue

Make the Back Piece first and set it aside to be joined to the Front Piece when it is time for the Joining Row.
Back Piece: (Make 1) Work rows 1 - 28 of the directions and continue with Outside Rows 1 - 9 of the directions. End off. Weave in ends.

Back Piece and Front Piece Directions -
Center Piece Starting Chain: With color C (blue in the example), chain 15.
Row 1: With color C, sc in 2nd ch from hook, sc in ea ch across. (14 sc)
Rows 2 - 4: With color C, ch 1 to turn, sc in first sc, sc in ea sc across. End off color C. Attach color A (white in the example).
Rows 5 - 24: With color A, ch 1 to turn, sc in first sc, sc in ea sc across. End off color A. Attach color B (red in the example).
Rows 25 - 28: With color B, ch 1 to turn, sc in first sc, sc in ea sc across. At end of row 28, do not end off yet.
Outside Row 1 (worked along 3 sides of the outside edge): Continuing with color B, ch 1, then working down the side of the piece, sc in the end of each row along this edge, 3 sc in the corner stitch, sc in ea stitch along the bottom edge, 3 sc in the next corner stitch, sc in the end of each row along the other edge. End off color B. To first sc worked on Outside Row 1, attach color C (blue in the example).
Outside Row 2 (worked along 3 sides of the outside edge): With color C, ch 1, sc in ea sc along this edge until you reach the corner stitch, 3 sc in the corner stitch, sc in ea sc along the bottom edge until you reach the next corner stitch, 3 sc in the next corner stitch, sc in ea sc along the other edge. End off color C. To first sc worked on Outside Row 2, attach color B (white in the example).
Front Piece only - If you are adding a cross-stitch design to the Front Piece, do the cross-stitch now on the Center Piece before continuing with the Outside Rows.
Outside Row 3 (worked along 3 sides of the outside edge): With color B, ch 1, sc in ea sc along this edge until you reach the corner stitch, 3 sc in the corner stitch, sc in ea sc along the bottom edge until you reach the next corner stitch, 3 sc in the next corner stitch, sc in ea sc along the other edge.
Outside Rows 4 - 9 (worked along 3 sides of the outside edge): Continuing with color B, ch 1 to turn, sc in the back loop only of ea sc along this edge until you reach the sc before the corner stitch, 2 sc in the back loop only of ea of the next 2 sc, sc in the back loop only of ea sc along the bottom edge until you reach the sc before the next corner stitch, 2 sc in the back loop only of ea of the next 2 sc, sc in the back loop only of ea sc along the other edge.
If you are working on the Back Piece, it stops here. Front Piece continues with Outside Row 10.
Front Piece Outside Row 10 (worked along 3 sides of the outside edge): Front Piece - End off color B. To first sc worked on Outside Row 9, attach color D (delft blue in the example). Work in both loops of ea sc for this row. ch 1, sc in ea sc around the three sides (with no extra stitches in the corners).
Front Piece Outside Rows 11 - 15 (worked along 3 sides of the outside edge): Work in both loops of ea sc for these rows. ch 1 to turn, sc in ea sc around the three sides (with no extra stitches in the corners). At the end of Row 15, do not end off but continue with the Joining.
Front Piece Joining: Hold the Back and Front pieces with the right sides together, lining up the edges. Working through the stitches of both the Front and Back piece at the same time, slip stitch through one loop only of an sc on the Front piece and one loop only of the corresponding sc on the Back piece, to join the two pieces. In this manner, sl st all the way around the 3 sides. End off. Weave in ends. Turn bag right side out.
Top Edge Round: Attach color D in the end stitch on the left-hand side of Outside Row 2 (on the Front of the bag, at the top edge of the bag). ch 1, sc in same stitch where yarn was joined. sc in the end stitch of each row around. sl st in first sc of this round.
You will now work in short rows to form the straps. These directions result in a strap that is about 12 inches (when folded in half in the joining - before joining, strap is 24 inches long). If you wish to have a shorter or longer strap work less rows or more rows when doing the Strap Rows 8 - 77 portion of the directions.
Strap Row 1: (do not turn) ch 1, sc in first sc, sc in ea of the next 19 sc (ending in the stitch above the right-hand side edge of Outside Row 2 on the Back Piece).
Used in the next row - How to sc decrease, see: http://crochet.about.com/library/bl_decrease.htm
Strap Row 2: ch 1, turn. sc decrease over first 2 sc, sc in ea sc until 2 sc remain, sc decrease over last 2 sc. (18 sc)
Strap Rows 3 - 7: ch 1, turn. sc decrease over first 2 sc, sc in ea sc until 2 sc remain, sc decrease over last 2 sc.
Strap Rows 8 - 77: ch 1, turn. sc in ea sc.
Strap Row 78: ch 1, turn. 2 sc in first sc, sc in ea sc until 1 sc remains, 2 sc in last sc.
Strap Rows 79 - 85: Repeat Strap Row 78.
Joining Strap End To Bag: Holding right sides together, line up the strap end with the side of the bag (the side that has no strap attached yet), having the stitch on one edge of Strap Row 85 lined up directly above the end of Outside Row 2 of the Front and the other edge lined up above the end of Outside Row 2 of the Back. To join the strap to the bag, sl st through both loops of an sc on the strap piece and at tht same time, through both loops of the corresponding sc on the Bag piece, to join the two pieces. In this manner, sl st across each sc of the strap. End off. Weave in ends. Unfold the strap so the right side is outward.

Pattern instructions by Sandi Marshall, copyright 2006 by Sandi Marshall, licensed to About.com, Inc. Free for your own personal (not-for-profit) use only. If others would like to have the pattern, please give them the URL for this page, so that they may come here for themselves. Thank you. I appreciate it. Copyright Myths Explained - www.templetons.com/brad/copymyths.html ... U.S. Government Copyright Office - http://www.loc.gov/copyright ... Copyright Law Awareness: Patterns that a designer chooses to place on the Internet as free patterns are protected by the same copyright laws as patterns that are purchased. It is illegal to sell or even give away for free reproduced copies of any copyrighted pattern without the written permission of the copyright-holder (methods of making reproduced copies are by scans, photocopies, putting it on another web site, emailing and any other method of reproducing, reprinting and distributing without the copyright-holder's permission).
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