Crochet Ruffle Scrunchie Around a Hair Tie
A tube of double crochet worked right around an elastic hair tie, round after round, until it gathers into deep ruffles. Sew the ends together and it's done.
3 min read
A scrunchie is a tube of fabric with an elastic inside, and you can crochet the tube straight onto the elastic. You start with a small ring of chain around the hair tie, and then work round after round of double crochet. As the tube gets longer than the hair tie, you push it along, and it gathers into those full ruffles. Sew the two ends together and the elastic is hidden inside.
This is Elise's absolute-beginner scrunchie from her lilthings channel. It's very repetitive, which makes it perfect for practising double crochet.
Video tutorial by Elise on her YouTube channel, lilthings: watch "easy scrunchie crochet tutorial for absolute beginner | step by step crochet scrunchie hair tie" on YouTube.
Written from the video.
Materials
- 5-ply milk cotton
- 3.0 mm hook
- A plain elastic hair tie
- A stitch marker, scissors and a darning needle
Pattern
Around the elastic
Chain 16. Pass the chain around the hair tie and slip stitch into the first chain, so the ring of chain encloses the elastic.
Round 1: chain 2, then work 1 dc into each of the 16 chains, around the outside of the hair tie. Join with a tight slip stitch. (16)
The tube (rounds 2 to 47)
Chain 2 and work 16 dc per round. Keep going for 47 rounds.
From about round 10, the tube is longer than the hair tie. Push the finished rounds back along the elastic: they bunch up into pleats, which is the ruffle.
Closing
Cut a 30 cm tail and thread it on the darning needle. Line up the 16 stitches of round 47 with the 16 chains of round 1, and whipstitch them together stitch for stitch. The scrunchie is now a closed ring with no visible seam.
Tips
- Count to 16 every round for the first few rounds. After that, the tube shape makes mistakes easy to see.
- More ruffle? Work more rounds. Less? Work fewer. The number of rounds sets how full the scrunchie is.
- Tight elastic. Working over the elastic stretches it slightly. Choose a firm one, not one that's already loose.
- Velvet or chenille yarn makes a luxurious scrunchie, but its stitches are hard to see; practise in cotton first.
Frequently asked questions
Why 16 stitches?
That's enough to make a tube wide enough to cover the elastic and look full. With thicker yarn, use fewer; with thinner yarn, more.
Can I do it without the elastic inside?
You can make the tube first and thread elastic through it later, but working round the hair tie is easier and hides it better.
How do I keep the join neat?
Line up the stitches before you start sewing, and pull the yarn snug after each stitch. Turning the scrunchie as you go helps.
Questions & notes
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