Everything You Need to Know about Buffalo Plaid Crochet

crochet buffalo plaid

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Learn all about buffalo plaid crochet and find fun patterns to try.

When I was in high school I had this amazing buffalo plaid wool sweater. I think I bought it at a garage sale. It was classic red and black, super scratchy, but I LOVED it.

I still miss it.

One day I will re-create that boxy, classic sweater (this time in a much cozier yarn) but another plaid craft I’m really interested in is Buffalo Plaid Crochet.

crochet buffalo plaid

I will fully admit to not being a skilled crocheter. I’m not great at keeping an even stitch count across a project, and anything fancier than a treble crochet kind of blows my mind.

But the great thing is that crocheting plaid actually isn’t that hard, and once you understand what’s happening it’s actually pretty easy.

When you look at it, crocheted plaid (the way I did it, anyway) looks like a three-colored checkerboard.

Supplies for Buffalo Plaid Crochet

You don’t need any special equipment to crochet buffalo plaid. You just need three (or more) colors of yarn and a corresponding crochet hook.

It’s traditional to use a dark color, a light color and something in between. You’ll often see black and red with a lighter tone of red as the mid-range color for classic buffalo check.

buffalo check plaid crochet

I used red, black and grey on my sample (the red and black are Lion Brand Heartland, in colors Redwood and Black Canyon, respectively. The gray is a leftover from my stash, but try Mount Rainer for a similar look).

You can also use contrasting colors for a non-traditional look that is still a lot of fun.

For my sample I used a classic Boye crochet hook in size I.

Crochet Plaid Tutorials

I found this tutorial from DIY Everywhere for crocheted plaid, and while I didn’t quite follow it (because I had three colors instead of four) it is a good basic overview of the technique.

I like this technique because you’re basically making gaps in the row you are working that will be filled in on the next row with the next color, so it looks like there are two colors in each row but you only work with one color at a time when working back and forth in rows. And it’s just double crochet, which is my favorite crochet stitch. (Need some practice? Try my Quick Crochet Scarf before you tackle this technique.)

buffalo plaid crochet

Once I got started I couldn’t quite stop. I only meant to make a swatch. I ended up making a scarf. Oops.

Whistle and Ivy has a great tutorial for buffalo plaid crochet, and she also has a lengthy video tutorial if you would rather learn that way. She works two colors across the row at a time, which is a little trickier getting started but is definitely the way to go if you’re comfortable changing colors mid-row and carrying colors across the work. I’ll try this version next time.

Of course you have to work in this manner if you are working in the round, such as on a hat. Another tutorial showing this method is found in the pattern for a sweet plaid crochet hat from Make & Do Crew.

Buffalo Plaid Crochet Patterns

Practice your newfound buffalo plaid crochet technique on some adorable crocheted mini Christmas stockings from Whistle and Ivy (make a whole advent calendar full and you’ll have the technique down). I also love her bulky buffalo check throw, which I definitely want to make really soon.

crochet plaid patterns

Yarnspirations has a cute plaid beanie for kids, worked in three colors in the round with a cool spiral effect.

Hooked on Homemade Happiness has a great buffalo check cowl worked in three colors where the colors are carried across the row. It looks super cozy! Another great cowl pattern can be found at Crochet 365 Knit Too.

Daisy Farm Crafts uses a technique like the one I learned to make a crocheted buffalo plaid scarf, and she left yarn ends whenever she changed colors, which adds an interesting fringe to the sides of the project (I carried my colors along as I went and will do a crocheted border to hid them a little when I’m totally done).

carrying colors in crocheted plaid

Stitching Together has a baby blanket with buffalo plaid edgings, which are worked in single crochet, making it an even easier technique. And because the body of the blankie is solid colored, this will work up faster than a project that’s completely buffalo check.

It’s a different technique but I also really love the Crochet Crowd’s buffalo plaid blanket. It’s such a fun, bold project that would look great at the end of a bed!

Have you ever worked crochet buffalo plaid before? I think I might be addicted! What do you think of the technique?

how to crochet buffalo plaid tutorial

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