This hanging holder stores three spare toilet paper rolls in a neat column of sage-green baskets. Each basket has a raised cream seashell on the front, framed by two small coral sprigs, so it brings a calm beach look to a small bathroom.
The baskets and straps are worked in a soft sage or seafoam green and the appliqués in warm cream. The basket walls use lemon peel stitch, an easy alternating sc/dc texture that looks pebbly and holds its shape well. The rims finish with reverse single crochet for a firm rope edge.
The pattern uses US crochet terms. The finished holder is about 6 in (15.2 cm) wide and 21 in (53.3 cm) long from the top of the dowel to the strap ends. Each basket is 5.5 in (14.0 cm) wide, 5 in (12.7 cm) deep and 3 in (7.6 cm) tall.
You will crochet three baskets from the bottom up, starting each one with a flat base. Then you make two straight straps, nine small appliqués, and sew everything together. Last of all, you fold the straps over a wooden dowel.
Finished Size and Construction
- Finished size: 6 in (15.2 cm) wide × 21 in (53.3 cm) long, hanging
- Skill level: Intermediate (front and back post stitches, reverse sc)
- Terminology: US
- Yarn weight: Worsted (#4)
- Hooks: 5.0 mm (H-8) for baskets and straps; 4.0 mm (G-6) for appliqués
- Number of pieces: 14 (3 baskets, 2 straps, 3 shells, 6 coral sprigs)
- Layout: 1 column of 3 baskets between 2 vertical straps
- Basket size: 5.5 in (14.0 cm) wide × 5 in (12.7 cm) deep × 3 in (7.6 cm) tall
- Wall height before rim border: 2.5 in (6.4 cm)
- Rim border depth: 0.5 in (1.3 cm), 2 rounds
Materials
Choose a smooth worsted-weight cotton or cotton blend of about 183 m per 100 g (200 yd per 3.5 oz). Cotton keeps the basket walls firm and handles bathroom humidity well.
- Color A – Sage green: 150 g / 275 m (baskets, straps, assembly)
- Color B – Cream: 30 g / 55 m (shells, coral sprigs, sewing on appliqués)
These quantities include a margin of about 25% over the measured use.
Tools:
– 5.0 mm (H-8) and 4.0 mm (G-6) crochet hooks
– Wooden dowel, 12 in (30.5 cm) long, 0.75 in (1.9 cm) diameter
– Tapestry needle
– 6–8 locking stitch markers
– Rustproof pins
– Measuring tape
– Spray bottle and blocking mat
Abbreviations (US Terms)
- ch – chain
- sl st – slip stitch
- sc – single crochet
- dc – double crochet
- sc2tog – single crochet 2 together
- BLO – back loop only
- FPdc – front post double crochet
- BPdc – back post double crochet
- rev sc – reverse single crochet (crab stitch)
- st(s) – stitch(es)
- rnd(s) – round(s)
- RS / WS – right side / wrong side
Lemon peel stitch (in rounds): On odd rounds, work (sc, dc) all the way around. On even rounds, work a dc into each sc and an sc into each dc. Each round keeps the same stitch count.
Reverse sc: Work from left to right. Insert the hook into the next stitch to the right, yarn over, pull up a loop, yarn over, and pull through both loops.
Gauge and Checkpoints
Gauge (5.0 mm hook): 16 sts × 16 rows/rnds = 4 in (10.2 cm) in sc, and the same in lemon peel stitch.
Make one complete basket before you start the others. It works as your gauge swatch because you can test it with a real roll.
Checkpoints:
– Base after Row 20: 5.5 in (14.0 cm) × 5 in (12.7 cm)
– Perimeter after Rnd 1: 21 in (53.3 cm)
– Wall after Rnd 7: 1.5 in (3.8 cm) above the fold line
– Wall after Rnd 11: 2.5 in (6.4 cm)
– Finished basket after Rnd 13: 3 in (7.6 cm) tall
– Shell: 2.75 in (7.0 cm) wide × 2.25 in (5.7 cm) tall
If your base is too big, switch to a hook 0.5 mm smaller. If it is too small, go up 0.5 mm. A standard roll is about 4.25–4.5 in (10.8–11.4 cm) across, so if your base is smaller than 5 in (12.7 cm) in either direction, the roll will not fit. Fix the base before you work the walls.
Basket (Make 3)
Use Color A and the 5.0 mm hook.
Base
Foundation: Ch 23.
Row 1: Sc in 2nd ch from hook and in each ch across. Turn. (22 sts)
Rows 2–20: Ch 1 (does not count as a stitch here or anywhere else in the pattern), sc in each st across. Turn. (22 sts)
Check: 5.5 in (14.0 cm) × 5 in (12.7 cm). Do not fasten off.
Walls
Rnd 1: Ch 1, then rotate to work along the row ends. Work 20 sc down the side (1 per row end), 22 sc across the foundation chain, 20 sc up the other side (1 per row end), and 22 sc across the tops of Row 20. Join with sl st to the first sc. (84 sts: 22 + 20 + 22 + 20)
The foundation-chain edge is the front and the Row 20 edge is the back. There are no extra corner stitches. The corners fall between stitches, so the walls rise straight up.
Rnd 2: Ch 1, working in BLO, sc in each st around. Join. (84 sts) This makes the crisp fold line at the base.
Rnd 3: Ch 1, *sc in next st, dc in next st; repeat from * around. Join to the first sc. (84 sts: 42 sc + 42 dc)
Rnd 4: Ch 2 (does not count), *dc in next sc, sc in next dc; repeat from * around. Join to the first dc. (84 sts)
Rnds 5–11: Repeat Rnds 3 and 4 three more times, then work Rnd 3 once more. (84 sts each round)
Check: the wall is 2.5 in (6.4 cm) above the fold line. Go straight on to the Rim Border section below, then come back to the straps.
Straps (Make 2)
Use Color A and the 5.0 mm hook.
Foundation: Ch 6.
Row 1: Sc in 2nd ch from hook and in each ch across. Turn. (5 sts)
Rows 2–96: Ch 1, sc in each st across. Turn. (5 sts)
Fasten off. Each strap is 1.25 in (3.2 cm) wide × 24 in (61.0 cm) long.
Place markers at the end of Rows 4, 16, 26, 38, 48, 60 and 84. They mark the strap zones shown in the layout below.
Shell Appliqué (Make 3)
Use Color B and the 4.0 mm hook.
Row 1 (RS): Make a magic ring. Ch 3 (counts as dc), work 6 dc in the ring. Pull the ring closed. Turn. (7 sts)
Row 2 (WS): Ch 3 (counts as dc), dc in the same st, then work 2 dc in each remaining st, finishing in the top of the turning ch. Turn. (14 sts)
Row 3 (RS): Ch 2 (does not count), *FPdc around next st, 2 dc in next st; repeat from * 6 more times. Turn. (21 sts: 7 FPdc + 14 dc)
Row 4 (WS): Ch 2 (does not count), *dc in next st, 2 dc in next st, BPdc around next FPdc; repeat from * 6 more times. Turn. (28 sts: 7 BPdc + 21 dc)
The BPdc stitches pop forward on the RS, so the ribs continue in a straight line.
Row 5 (RS, scallops): Ch 1, *sc around the post of the next rib stitch, skip 1 st, 5 dc in next st, skip 1 st; repeat from * 6 more times. (7 scallops: 7 sc + 35 dc)
Each repeat uses 4 stitches. Seven repeats use all 28 stitches, so the ribs fall between the scallops.
Hinge: Turn the shell so the magic ring is at the top. Join Color B at the right end of the straight edge. Work 2 sc into the side of Row 1, 1 sc into the ring, and 2 sc into the other side of Row 1. (5 sts) Ch 1, turn, sc2tog, sc in next st, sc2tog. (3 sts) Fasten off, leaving a 16 in (40.6 cm) tail for sewing.
Check: 2.75 in (7.0 cm) wide × 2.25 in (5.7 cm) tall, including the hinge.
Coral Sprig (Make 6)
Use Color B and the 4.0 mm hook.
- Ch 9. Sl st in 2nd ch from hook and in the next ch.
- Branch 1: Ch 3, sl st in 2nd and 3rd ch from hook. Sl st in the next 2 ch of the main stem.
- Branch 2: Ch 4, sl st in 2nd–4th ch from hook. Sl st in the next 2 ch of the main stem.
- Branch 3: Ch 3, sl st in 2nd and 3rd ch from hook. Sl st in the last 2 ch of the stem.
That makes 8 stem chains worked and 3 branches. Fasten off, leaving a 10 in (25.4 cm) tail. Each sprig is about 1.75 in (4.4 cm) tall.
Make All Pieces
- Color A: 3 baskets, 2 straps
- Color B: 3 shells, 6 coral sprigs
Layout (front view, hanging):
===== dowel =====
|S| |S| strap loop, Rows 85–96
|S| |S| hanging zone, Rows 61–84
|S| [Basket 3]|S| Rows 49–60
|S| |S| gap, Rows 39–48
|S| [Basket 2]|S| Rows 27–38
|S| |S| gap, Rows 17–26
|S| [Basket 1]|S| Rows 5–16
|S| |S| tail, Rows 1–4
Zone lengths: tail 1 in (2.5 cm), each basket 3 in (7.6 cm), each gap 2.5 in (6.4 cm), hanging zone 6 in (15.2 cm), loop 3 in (7.6 cm). Together that is 24 in (61.0 cm), which matches 96 rows ÷ 4 rows per inch.
Joining
Appliqués first. Sew them on while the baskets are still loose, because it is much easier. Center a shell on the front wall, with the hinge 0.5 in (1.3 cm) above the fold line. The shell covers about the middle 11 of the 22 front stitches. Whipstitch around the outer edge, catching only the front layer of the wall.
Place one coral sprig on each side of the shell, leaning outward. Flip one sprig over so the pair mirrors each other. Tack the stem and each branch tip in place.
Straps to baskets. Each strap lies flat on a basket’s 20-stitch side wall, over the middle stitches 8–12. Line up the strap’s 12 rows for that basket with the basket’s 12 wall rounds (Rnds 2–13), one row to one round.
Use Color A to whipstitch both long edges of the strap to the wall, one stitch per row. Then tack the strap’s bottom row to the fold line. Keep the stitches snug but not tight. The wall should stay flat and not pucker.
Attach Basket 1 to Rows 5–16, Basket 2 to Rows 27–38, and Basket 3 to Rows 49–60. Use the same rows on both straps so the baskets hang level.
Dowel loops. Fold Rows 85–96 to the back around the dowel. Whipstitch Row 96 across the back of Row 84, stitch to stitch (5 to 5).
Size check: 21 in (53.3 cm) from the top of the dowel to the strap ends. The holder is 6 in (15.2 cm) wide: 5.5 in (14.0 cm) of basket plus about 0.25 in (0.6 cm) of strap on each side.
Rim Border
Work the border on each basket, continuing straight on from Rnd 11. Use Color A and the 5.0 mm hook. Border gauge is the same as the body: 4 sc per inch.
Rnd 12: Ch 1, sc in each st around. Join. (84 sts: 22 front + 20 side + 22 back + 20 side)
Rnd 13: Ch 1, rev sc in each st around. Join and fasten off. (84 sts: 22 + 20 + 22 + 20)
Why the math works: The base gives 22 stitches on each long side and 20 on each short side, which adds up to 84. Every wall and rim round keeps exactly 84 stitches with no corner increases, so the rim measures 21 in (53.3 cm) around, the same as the base. Each side count already includes the stitches at its corners, so nothing is counted twice.
The strap seams are sewn on top of the finished walls. They do not add any stitches to the rim rounds. Each basket is now 3 in (7.6 cm) tall.
Final Blocking
- Weave in all ends and hide them inside the walls.
- Lightly mist each basket and appliqué with water.
- Push a toilet roll, or a box cut to 5.5 × 5 in (14.0 × 12.7 cm), into each basket to square the walls.
- Press the shell ribs flat with your fingertips and pin the scallops open.
- Lay the straps flat and smooth them to 1.25 in (3.2 cm) wide.
- Let everything dry completely, then remove the forms.
Final Quality-Control Checklist
- Every basket has 84 stitches in Rnds 1–13.
- The bases measure 5.5 × 5 in (14.0 × 12.7 cm).
- The walls are 3 in (7.6 cm) tall and stand upright.
- Each shell has 7 ribs and 7 scallops.
- The coral sprigs mirror each other on every basket.
- Both straps have 96 rows and line up at the same rows.
- The gaps are 2.5 in (6.4 cm) and the baskets hang level.
- The dowel loops are secure and the dowel slides through smoothly.
Troubleshooting
- Walls flare outward: Your tension is loose. Use a smaller hook for Rnds 2–13.
- Walls cave inward: Check that each round has 84 stitches and that you didn’t skip the first stitch after the ch 1.
- Ribs don’t line up: In Row 4, make sure you work the BPdc around each FPdc, not into the dc next to it.
- Shell cups or curls: Block it flat. If it still cups, add 1 extra dc to each Row 5 scallop.
- Holder hangs crooked: Count the strap rows between markers and re-sew any basket that is off by a row.
- Roll is too tight: Remake the base with 24 sts and 22 rows. Rnd 1 then has 92 sts (24 + 22 + 24 + 22). That is still an even number, so lemon peel stitch still works.
Care
Hand wash in cool water with mild soap and lay flat to dry, reshaping each basket over a roll. Remove the dowel before washing.
Final Notes
The whole holder depends on one chain of measurements:
- A gauge of 16 stitches per 4 in (10.2 cm) gives a base of 5.5 × 5 in (14.0 × 12.7 cm).
- That base gives an 84-stitch wall that rises 3 in (7.6 cm).
- The 3 baskets fit along a 96-row strap that hangs 21 in (53.3 cm).
If you check each stage as you go, the finished holder will hang straight and hold standard rolls without strain.
Happy crocheting!