Coral-pink crocheted baskets in various sizes displayed on wood and hung on wooden rod for home storage.

Coral Shell Hanging Basket Crochet Pattern

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This hanging basket adds soft color and open lace to a bathroom wall, entryway or craft corner. Each basket has:

  • a firm, rounded-rectangle base
  • lacy walls made from tiers of five-double-crochet shells
  • a rolled crab-stitch rim
  • a long, flat strap that forms a neat triangle when you hang the basket from a peg

The design uses one color, a warm coral-salmon peach, so the shell texture stands out. The pattern makes a matching pair of baskets. Hang them side by side to hold lotion bottles, cotton swabs, rolled washcloths or hair ties.

All instructions use US crochet terms. Each finished basket measures about 8.75 in (22.2 cm) long, 2.75 in (7.0 cm) deep and 4 in (10.2 cm) tall. With the strap attached, the peak sits about 4.75 in (12.1 cm) above the rim.

Here is how the basket is built. You work the base in joined rounds around a foundation chain. Next, a back-loop round turns the wall up, and you keep working straight up into the shell rounds. A three-round border finishes the rim. You make the strap separately and sew it inside the two short ends.

Finished Size and Construction

  • Finished size (one basket): 8.75 in (22.2 cm) long x 2.75 in (7.0 cm) deep x 4 in (10.2 cm) tall
  • Height with strap: about 8.75 in (22.2 cm) from base to peak
  • Skill level: Intermediate
  • Terminology: US
  • Yarn weight: Worsted (#4), 100% cotton
  • Hook: 4.5 mm (US 7)
  • Number of pieces: 4 (2 basket bodies, 2 straps)
  • Layout: 2 separate baskets, each with its own strap; the baskets are not joined to each other
  • Base size: 8.75 x 2.75 in (22.2 x 7.0 cm)
  • Wall height before border: 3.5 in (8.9 cm)
  • Border depth: 0.5 in (1.3 cm), 3 rounds

Materials

Choose a smooth, firm worsted-weight cotton or cotton blend. Cotton holds the basket’s shape, copes with a humid bathroom and shows the shells clearly. Avoid soft acrylic, because the walls will sag.

  • Coral-salmon peach worsted cotton: 250 g, about 385 m (421 yd), for the pair
  • Each basket body uses about 95 g (146 m); each strap uses about 15 g (23 m)
  • 4.5 mm (US 7) crochet hook
  • 4 stitch markers
  • Tapestry needle
  • Scissors
  • Measuring tape
  • A small box or folded towel for shaping
  • Optional: fabric stiffener or starch spray

The yarn amounts include a margin of about 15 percent for your gauge swatch and differences in tension.

Abbreviations (US Terms)

  • ch – chain
  • sl st – slip stitch
  • sc – single crochet
  • dc – double crochet
  • BLO – back loop only
  • sp – space
  • st(s) – stitch(es)
  • rnd – round
  • rev sc – reverse single crochet (crab stitch)

Shell: 5 dc worked in the same stitch.

Reverse sc (crab stitch): Work from left to right (right to left if you are left-handed). Insert the hook into the next stitch to the right, yarn over and pull up a loop, then yarn over and pull through both loops. This makes the rolled, cord-like rim.

Gauge and Checkpoints

Gauge: 16 sc and 18 rnds = 4 in (10.2 cm), in sc worked in joined rounds.

Make one basket body first, and check it at each checkpoint before you start the second basket. Gauge matters here because the base must end at exactly 84 stitches to fit 14 shell repeats.

  • After Rnd 6 (base): 8.75 x 2.75 in (22.2 x 7.0 cm), lying flat
  • After Rnd 10: walls 1.5 in (3.8 cm) tall
  • After Rnd 14: walls 3.5 in (8.9 cm) tall
  • After Rnd 17: basket 4 in (10.2 cm) tall
  • Strap: 15 in (38.1 cm) long, 0.5 in (1.3 cm) wide

If your base is too big, go down to a 4 mm hook. If it is too small, go up to a 5 mm hook. Don’t add or remove stitches; the shells only fit if the count stays at 84.

Coral-pink crocheted cord with dimensional textured stitches against a soft, blurred brown background.

Basket Body

Base

Join each round with a sl st to the first sc. The ch 1 at the start of a round does not count as a stitch.

Ch 27.

Rnd 1: Sc in 2nd ch from hook and in next 24 ch, 3 sc in last ch. Rotate the work and continue along the other side of the chain: sc in next 24 ch, 2 sc in the same ch as the first sc. Join. (54 sts)

The base now has two straight sides of 24 sts and two curved ends of 3 sts each.

Rnd 2: Ch 1, 2 sc in first st, sc in next 24, 2 sc in each of next 3, sc in next 24, 2 sc in each of last 2. Join. (60 sts)

Rnd 3: Ch 1, 2 sc in first st, sc in next st, sc in next 24, [2 sc in next st, sc in next st] 3 times, sc in next 24, [2 sc in next st, sc in next st] 2 times. Join. (66 sts)

Rnd 4: Ch 1, 2 sc in first st, sc in next 2, sc in next 24, [2 sc in next st, sc in next 2] 3 times, sc in next 24, [2 sc in next st, sc in next 2] 2 times. Join. (72 sts)

Rnd 5: Ch 1, 2 sc in first st, sc in next 3, sc in next 24, [2 sc in next st, sc in next 3] 3 times, sc in next 24, [2 sc in next st, sc in next 3] 2 times. Join. (78 sts)

Rnd 6: Ch 1, 2 sc in first st, sc in next 4, sc in next 24, [2 sc in next st, sc in next 4] 3 times, sc in next 24, [2 sc in next st, sc in next 4] 2 times. Join. (84 sts)

Each round adds exactly 6 sts, all in the curved ends. The 84 sts make two long sides of 24 sts and two ends of 18 sts (24 + 24 + 18 + 18 = 84). Measure the base now.

Walls

Rnd 7 (turning round): Ch 1, sc in BLO of each st around. Join. (84 sts)

The unused front loops form a crisp ridge on the outside, and the walls begin to stand up.

Rnd 8: Ch 1, sc in both loops of each st around. Join. (84 sts)

Rnd 9 (shell round): Ch 1, sc in first st, skip 2 sts, shell in next st, skip 2 sts, sc in next st, skip 2 sts, shell in next st, skip 2 sts; repeat from * 12 more times. Join to first sc. (14 shells, 14 sc = 84 sts)*

Each repeat uses 6 sts of the round below, so 14 repeats x 6 = 84.

Rnd 10 (mesh round): Ch 5 (counts as dc + ch 2), sc in center (3rd) dc of next shell, ch 2, dc in next sc, ch 2, sc in center dc of next shell, ch 2; repeat from * 12 more times. Join to 3rd ch of beginning ch-5. (14 dc, 14 sc, 28 ch-2 sps = 84 sts including chains)*

These chain spaces make the open triangular windows between the shell tiers.

Rnd 11 (offset shell round): Ch 3 (counts as dc), 4 dc in same st (first shell made), skip ch-2 sp, sc in next sc, skip ch-2 sp, shell in next dc, skip ch-2 sp, sc in next sc, skip ch-2 sp; repeat from * 12 more times. Join to top of beginning ch-3. (14 shells, 14 sc = 84 sts)*

The new shells sit above the gaps in Rnd 9, which gives the staggered fan look.

Rnd 12 (mesh round): Sl st in next 2 dc to reach the center dc of the first shell. Ch 1, sc in same center dc, ch 2, dc in next sc, ch 2, sc in center dc of next shell, ch 2, dc in next sc, ch 2; repeat from * 12 more times. Join to first sc. (14 sc, 14 dc, 28 ch-2 sps = 84 sts including chains)*

Rnd 13 (shell round): Ch 1, sc in first sc, skip ch-2 sp, shell in next dc, skip ch-2 sp, sc in next sc, skip ch-2 sp, shell in next dc, skip ch-2 sp; repeat from * 12 more times. Join to first sc. (14 shells, 14 sc = 84 sts)*

These shells line up with the Rnd 9 shells.

Rnd 14 (mesh round): Work as Rnd 10. (14 dc, 14 sc, 28 ch-2 sps = 84 sts including chains)

The walls should now be 3.5 in (8.9 cm) tall, measured from the Rnd 7 ridge.

Make All Pieces

Repeat the basket body, and make the strap below, until you have:

  • Basket bodies: 2, coral-salmon peach, about 95 g (146 m) each
  • Straps: 2, coral-salmon peach, about 15 g (23 m) each

Layout as hung (front view):

Peg 1         Peg 2
  |             |
Basket 1      Basket 2

Each basket hangs from its own peg. Space the pegs about 10 in (25.4 cm) apart, center to center.

Strap

Ch 61.

Rnd 1: Sc in 2nd ch from hook and in next 58 ch, 3 sc in last ch. Rotate the work and continue along the other side: sc in next 58 ch, 2 sc in the same ch as the first sc. Join. (122 sts: 59 + 3 + 58 + 2)

Rnd 2: Ch 1, sl st in each st around. Join. (122 sl sts)

The slip-stitch round firms up the edge so the strap won’t stretch under a full basket. Fasten off, leaving a 12 in (30.5 cm) tail. The strap should measure 15 in (38.1 cm) x 0.5 in (1.3 cm).

Joining

Finish the border (next section) first, then attach the strap to the inside of the basket’s two short ends.

  1. Find the center of each 18-st end by counting 9 sts in from where the end meets a long side.
  2. Lay one end of the strap inside the basket, centered on that point, so 1 in (2.5 cm) of strap overlaps the wall below the rim.
  3. Using the tail and the tapestry needle, whipstitch around all edges of the overlap. Catch the backs of the Rnd 15 and Rnd 16 sts and the solid tops of the shells below them.
  4. Check that the strap isn’t twisted, then sew the other end the same way with a separate length of yarn.

Keep the stitches snug but not tight. Pulling too hard puckers the rim, and sewing too loosely lets the strap pull away when the basket is full.

Size checkpoint: With 1 in (2.5 cm) overlapped at each end, 13 in (33.0 cm) of strap stays visible, about 6.5 in (16.5 cm) on each slanted side. When hung, the peak should rise about 4.75 in (12.1 cm) above the rim.

Border

Border gauge: same as the base, 16 sc = 4 in (10.2 cm).

Rnd 15 (conversion round): Ch 1, sc in each sc and dc, 2 sc in each ch-2 sp. Join. (28 sc worked 1 per st + 56 sc worked in the 28 ch-2 sps = 84 sts)

That gives 24 sts on each long side and 18 sts on each end, the same as the base.

Rnd 16: Ch 1, sc in each st around. Join. (84 sts: 24 + 18 + 24 + 18)

Rnd 17: Ch 1, rev sc in each st around. Join. Fasten off and weave in the ends. (84 rev sc)

Why the math works: Every wall round counts 84 sts once you include the chains. The conversion round turns each 6-st repeat (1 sc, 1 dc and two ch-2 sps) back into exactly 6 sc. The rim therefore matches the base perimeter: 84 sts / 4 sts per in = 21 in (53.3 cm). That’s why the walls rise straight instead of flaring out or pulling in.

Final Blocking

  1. Soak the basket in cool water and squeeze it gently. Don’t wring it.
  2. Roll it in a towel to remove extra water.
  3. Fill the basket with a small box or folded towel about 8.75 x 2.75 in (22.2 x 7.0 cm) so the walls stand straight.
  4. Spread each shell open with your fingers so the fans are even and the windows are clear.
  5. Shape the rim into a smooth, rounded rectangle.
  6. Straighten the strap so it lies flat with no twists.
  7. Optional: mist with fabric stiffener for extra structure.
  8. Let the basket dry completely, about 24 hours, before you hang it.

Final Quality-Control Checklist

  • The base measures 8.75 x 2.75 in (22.2 x 7.0 cm) and lies flat
  • The Rnd 7 ridge runs evenly around the bottom edge
  • Rnds 9, 11 and 13 each have 14 shells
  • Rnd 11 shells sit between the Rnd 9 shells, and Rnd 13 shells line up with Rnd 9
  • The rim has 84 sts and rolls evenly
  • The basket is 4 in (10.2 cm) tall
  • The strap is 15 in (38.1 cm) long, untwisted and centered on both ends
  • Both baskets match in size and peak height

Troubleshooting

The base cups like a bowl: You missed some increases. Count each round; each one must grow by exactly 6.

The base ruffles: Your tension is loose in the curves. Go down one hook size for the base only.

The shells don’t fit: The Rnd 8 count is off. Recount to 84 before starting Rnd 9.

The walls lean outward: Check Rnd 15. Working 3 sc into any ch-2 sp adds stitches and makes the rim flare.

The basket tilts when hung: The strap ends aren’t centered. Re-sew both ends at the 9th st of each end.

Care

Hand wash in cool water with mild soap. Dry flat, reshaping over a small box, and re-block with stiffener if the walls soften over time.

Two coral crochet hanging baskets mounted on wood hold bath essentials in a bright, plant-filled bathroom.

Final Notes

Here is the measurement chain from start to finish:

  • At 16 sc per 4 in (10.2 cm), the 84-st base measures 8.75 x 2.75 in (22.2 x 7.0 cm).
  • The 84-st walls rise straight to 3.5 in (8.9 cm).
  • The 3-round border adds 0.5 in (1.3 cm), for a 4 in (10.2 cm) basket.
  • A 15 in (38.1 cm) strap with 1 in (2.5 cm) overlaps makes a peak 4.75 in (12.1 cm) high.

Check each stage, and your two baskets will match.

Happy crocheting!

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