Christmas tree tapestry crochet pillow

How to make it

Yarn and hook

Start with worsted weight yarn (medium, 4) and a 4 mm (US G-6) or 4.5 mm (US 7) hook. A hook one or two sizes smaller than the yarn label suggests makes a denser fabric that hides the carried strands. Swatch in two colors and measure: if you get more than 4 stitches per inch, go up a hook size; if you get fewer, go down.

Reading the chart

Each box in the chart is one single crochet stitch. The boxes are drawn a little wider than they are tall, so the chart matches the pillow's proportions. For a 16-inch (40 cm) square, aim for 16 stitches and about 18.5 rows in 4 inches (10 cm).

• Row 1 is at the bottom.
• Read odd rows (right side) from right to left and even rows (wrong side) from left to right.
• Row numbers sit on the side where that row starts; stitch numbers count from the right.
• Left-handed? Read every row the other way, on the chart and in the rows written out, and the picture still comes out as charted.

New to charts? How to read a tapestry crochet chart shows which way each row goes on a small sailboat.

Chain 65 in the first color for row 1. Starting in the second chain from the hook, work row 1 for a total of 64 stitches. Chain 1 and turn between rows. In the rows written out, each row's colors are listed in the order you work them.

Carrying the colors

Lay the unused colors along the top of the row below and crochet over them, so they ride inside the stitches. Change color on the final pull-through of the stitch before the new color begins: with two loops on the hook, pull the new color through both. Keep the carried strands relaxed so the fabric does not pucker. When you will not use a color for several rows, cut it, leave a tail, and join it again where it next appears.

The back

Crochet a second panel of 64 stitches by 74 rows in one color, and check it against the front: plain single crochet can come out a different size, so change the hook or the number of rows until the two match. Or sew on a fabric back cut to the front's size plus seam allowance; for an envelope back, use two hemmed pieces that overlap.

Assembling the pillow

Weave in the tails, then gently block the front to 16 inches (40 cm) square, following the care instructions on the yarn label. Put the panels wrong sides together and join three sides with single crochet or whip stitch through both edges. Push in a 16-inch (40 cm) pillow insert (a cushion pad in the UK) and close the fourth side the same way.