How to Crochet Slippers in an Afternoon

By Marlene Vidibor
Published on December 21, 2010
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PHOTO: MOTHER EARTH NEWS STAFF
Learn how to customize a quick pattern and crochet slippers in just a couple of hours.

You can crochet slippers in one afternoon, and the results will keep your feet toasty warm as you pad across cold hardwood floors or frigid linoleum.

What’s more, you can easily make the bootees ankle height by picking up stitches around the upper edge and add­ing crocheted rows, much as you’d do when forming a sweater sleeve. If you start adding these rows at the back seam, you’ll wind up with pull-on bootees. . . and if you add them beginning at the front seam, you’ll get a slipper with an open seam that can be overlapped and fas­tened . You can even make enough extra “sock” above the ankle so that you can turn down or cuff the foot coverers.

In designing this slipper pattern, I’ve used a technique that helps to shape the bootee, but you can eliminate this step, if you wish, without causing any noticeable harm to the item’s appearance.

Details, Details

Materials: Three ounces each of two col­ors of worsted-weight yarn. (I used two strands of yarn twisted together as one to obtain a tweedy effect, which helps to hide spots and dirt. If you feel intimidat­ed by the idea of crocheting with a double thread, substitute some heavyweight or rug yarn.) You’ll also need a size K cro­chet hook, a tape measure, and a large-­eyed tapestry needle.

Sizing: This particular pattern fits an “average” adult woman. You can vary the width and length to yield a bootee suitable for a typical man or child. Before crocheting, you’ll need to measure one of the feet to be shod from its heel to the tip of its big toe. Jot down that figure for fu­ture reference.

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