SaveA crochet bauble is either a cover worked over a shop-bought ball or a solid stuffed sphere. Covers are faster, hold a perfect round, and survive being dropped. Solid ones are softer, safer around small children, and take about twice as long.
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Both start the same way: a magic ring, then increases to the widest point, straight through the middle, then decreases to close. If you can make an amigurumi ball you can make every pattern on this list.
Standard baubles are 60 mm or 80 mm. Measure yours before starting, because the round where you stop increasing decides the whole thing, and a cover that is too big slides off no matter how neatly it is worked.
Plain single crochet cover
Beginner40 min
The starting point. Tight single crochet in one colour over a 60 mm ball. Master this and the other fourteen are variations.
Two-colour spiral
Beginner50 min
Alternate two colours every three stitches and let the spiral form itself. No pattern to follow, and it looks deliberate.
Granny bauble
Easy1 hour
Six small granny squares seamed into a cube-ish sphere over a ball. Uses more scraps than anything else here.
Lace overlay
Intermediate1 hour
An open shell pattern in white thread over a coloured ball, so the colour shows through the gaps. Best on a glossy ball rather than a matte one.
Bobble texture
Easy55 min
Bobbles every fourth stitch on alternate rounds. Chunky, tactile, and it hides uneven tension completely.
Nordic snowflake
Intermediate1 hour 15
A two-colour tapestry pattern with a snowflake motif on two sides. The only one here that needs a chart.
Striped horizontal
Beginner45 min
Three rounds per colour. Because the rounds narrow toward the poles, the stripes look uneven unless you count, so count.
Solid stuffed ball
Beginner50 min
No glass inside. Stuff firmly as you go and close the last round with a needle rather than a hook for a neater finish.
Puff stitch
Easy1 hour
Puffs on every round give a dense cloudy surface. Uses noticeably more yarn than plain single crochet, so allow for it.
Gold thread accent
Easy50 min
Plain cover worked holding a strand of metallic thread alongside the main yarn. One skein of metallic covers a whole tree.
Colour block halves
Beginner45 min
One colour for the top half, another for the bottom, changing exactly at the widest round. Simple and it photographs well.
Cabled bauble
Intermediate1 hour 20
Front post double crochet worked into a travelling cable. Fiddly on a curved surface and worth it once.
Mini bauble garland
Beginner1 hour 30
Six 40 mm covers strung on twine. Small balls work up in fifteen minutes each.
Frosted white
Beginner45 min
White cotton over a silver ball so the metal glints through the stitch gaps. Do not make the fabric too tight or the effect disappears.
Rainbow scrap ball
Beginner50 min
One round per colour, whatever comes to hand next. The least planned and usually the favourite.
Getting the cover to fit
The cover is worked as a sphere slightly smaller than the ball so it stretches on. Numbers below are for worsted cotton on a 3.5 mm hook and assume tight single crochet.
| Ball size | Start | Stop increasing at | Rounds straight |
|---|---|---|---|
| 40 mm | 6 stitches | 24 stitches | 4 |
| 60 mm | 6 stitches | 36 stitches | 6 |
| 80 mm | 6 stitches | 48 stitches | 8 |
Put the ball in when the opening is still about a third of the way open. Leave it later and you will be forcing glass through a hole that does not want to give, which is how baubles get broken and hands get cut.
Questions
Do I need a plastic ball inside?
No, but it holds a better shape and takes half the time. Solid stuffed versions are safer around small children and toddlers.
What size crochet hook for baubles?
About 1.5 mm smaller than the yarn band says. For worsted cotton that is 3.0 to 3.5 mm. The fabric should feel too stiff in your hands.
How much yarn does one bauble take?
Around 15 grams for a 60 mm cover in cotton, so a 50 gram ball makes three.
Why does my cover slide off the ball?
You increased too far. Stop increasing about two rounds earlier so the finished sphere is slightly smaller than the ball and grips it.
Can I wash them?
Cotton covers over plastic balls, yes, by hand. Never with glass balls inside, and never in the machine.
How do I stop the colour change showing as a step?
Change colour in the last yarn over of the previous stitch rather than at the start of the new one. The step disappears entirely.