Crochet Ribbed Leg Warmers with a Double Strand

These leg warmers are thick and squishy, and the trick is in the yarn: Elise holds two strands of a light 5-ply cotton together and works them as one. That doubles the thickness, so the ribbing comes out chunky and the project grows quickly. Each leg warmer is a single rectangle of back-loop double crochet, seamed up the side.

The video is one of the shorter ones on her lilthings channel, and a good project to try holding yarn double for the first time.

Video tutorial by Elise on her YouTube channel, lilthings: watch "how to crochet leg warmer BEGINNER tutorial | crochet Pinterest ideas for beginners" on YouTube.

Written from the video.

Materials

• About 400 g (8 balls) of 5-ply milk cotton for the pair, held double, or a 10-ply (worsted / aran) yarn used single
• 4.5 mm hook
• A tape measure, stitch markers, a darning needle and scissors

Holding two strands

Take the yarn end from two balls and treat them as one strand: make the slip knot with both, and catch both on every yarn over. If one strand keeps slipping off the hook, it's being held more loosely than the other: run both strands through your fingers in the same way.

Want to know what the doubled yarn is equal to? The yarn held together calculator estimates the combined weight.

Pattern (make 2)

The rectangle is worked sideways: the foundation chain is the height of the leg warmer and the rows go around your leg.

1. Chain until the chain measures 28 cm (longer if you want to fold the top over), then chain 2 more.
2. Row 1: starting in the 3rd chain from the hook, work 1 dc in each chain. Count the stitches and mark the first and last.
3. Rows 2 to 19: chain 2, turn, and work 1 dc in the back loop only of each stitch, except the last one: work that under both loops. This keeps the top and bottom edges firm.
4. Keep going until the rectangle stretches comfortably around your calf. Elise's took 19 rows.

Seam

Cut a tail twice as long as the leg warmer is tall. Fold the rectangle in half and whipstitch the foundation row to the last row with a darning needle. Turn right side out.

Tips

• Check the fit stretched. Ribbing pulls in a lot. Wrap it around your calf, slightly stretched: that's how it will sit when you wear it.
• The last stitch under both loops stops the ends of the ribs from sagging over time.
• Weigh your first leg warmer. Then you know whether you have enough yarn for the second before you start.

Frequently asked questions