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When I wrote my post about crochet shorts patterns, I had actually never done it, so if you want to learn how to crochet shorts, let’s do it together.
Crochet Shorts Inspiration
When I decided I wanted to learn how to crochet shorts I was watching this video from it’s erin b, who uses a simple ribbed waistband and single crochet throughout.
What I didn’t love about these is how short they are, which is easy enough to fix. I also found it interesting that there was no shaping, which is probably OK if your waist and hips are around the same size, but if they’re not (or you just want a little more of a relaxed fit) you’re going to want to add some shaping. So that’s what I did.
Helpful Measurements
The great news about this crochet shorts tutorial is that you don’t really have to have any measurements before you start, but if you want a vague idea of the size you’re trying to hit, you can take some measurements before you start.
- Waist: measure where you want the waistband of the shorts to hit on your body. Subtract a couple of inches to account for stretch on the body.
- Hips: measure the widest part of your body that will be covered by the shorts. If you want to be super fancy you can also measure the distance between the waistband and the widest part of the body.
- Rise: measure the length on your body from where the waistband will hit to where your legs separate.
- Length: decide how much additional length you want the shorts to have after the leg separation.
You can also just start crocheting and try them on as you go, adjusting on the fly. That’s why this isn’t really a crochet shorts pattern, but you’ll definitely have a pair of shorts at the end!
How to Crochet Shorts
The easiest way to crochet shorts is to start with the waistband, work flat to your desired size, join it into a loop, then work the body in rounds until you get to the leg separation. Then each leg is worked separately to the desired length.
The choice of yarn and hook size is up to you. I used worsted/medium/size 4 weight yarn (Big Twist Value in light rose and soft grey) and a size 8/H/5 mm hook. You might choose a hook a little smaller than you normally would use for the yarn weight you’re using just for good coverage.
Likewise you can use whatever stitch you like for your crochet shorts. I chose single crochet throughout, again for good coverage.
For my shorts I started the same way Erin does on hers linked above. I made a chain of 11 to give me 10 stitches to work with.
Single crochet across the first row, then single crochet in the front loop only on the second row. Repeat these two rows to a length a couple of inches/cm smaller than your actual waist measurement where you want the shorts to sit on your body. (I actually made mine a little bigger than I should have, but they’re lounge shorts so I don’t care.)
When you have the length you need, decide which side of the band is the front and which end is the top. Have your waistband set up so that after you join the ends (from the back/inside) the part you want to be the top will be at the top. Work one more row if you need to for this to work right.
Slip stitch the short ends together. Waistband managed!
Increasing for Hip Shaping
Once you’ve got your loop, work single crochets in the bottom edge of the waistband all the way around. Mark the end of the round with a removable stitch marker. The end of the round lines up with the seam in the waistband.
Next we need to consider if we’d like more space for our hips and booty. My actual measurements are only about an inch different, but knowing that the waistband is narrower than the body and not wanting that much stretch over other body parts, I decided to do a little increasing.
I arbitrarily decided to increase 2 stitches every 6th round 3 times. I also worked all my increases on the back so they were at the beginning and end of the round. The way I did it was 1 sc, then 2 sc in the next stitch, sc around to last 2 stitches, work 2 sc in the next stitch, 1 sc in the last stitch.
If you need more than just a few increases, you can work them more often or do more in a single round if you need to rapidly increase the number of stitches. This is where having your measurements can help, or you can try them on frequently and see if you like the fit.
The good news is crochet shorts are pretty fast to make so even if you have to rip out and try again you’re not loosing a lot of time.
Dividing for the Legs
Once you’ve increased however many stitches you need, continue to work in single crochet or the stitch pattern of your choice until the shorts are as long as your body from where the waistband hits to where your legs begin. At this point you want to have an even number of stitches, so increase one more stitch somewhere if you need to.
Count your stitches and place a locking stitch marker halfway around from your end of round marker. Each half of the stitches will become a leg.
When you’re ready to divide for the leg, instead of starting to stitch, you’ll want to make a chain that divides the legs. With the shorts on you can measure the space between your legs that’s not already covered with fabric, or you can just chain a few inches. It seems like 15 stitches on worsted weight yarn is pretty standard; that’s what I used and it worked for me.
Work your chain, then connect it with a slip stitch to the center front/marked stitch on the other side of the shorts. From here you’ll work around one leg back to the chain, then work into one side of the chain to complete the round. Place a stitch marker at the end of the round.
I worked both legs at once because I wanted to use all my yarn, but you can do one at a time if you like. For the second leg join the yarn before the chain, work around and work into the other side of the chain to complete the round. Place a stitch marker at the end of the round.
Try the shorts on after you’ve worked a round or two on the leg(s) to make sure the fit is good. You can also work increases on the legs if you want.
Work to your desired length for the legs. I ran out of the pink yarn I was using and switched to gray for the end.
You can just stop crocheting when you’re to the length you want, or I did a little picot edging for extra cuteness.
If you didn’t work both legs at the same time, work the second leg the same way as the first.
And that’s how to crochet shorts! You can change these up by using a different stitch pattern, adding stripes, working a chain to weave into the waistband and use it as a tie (which I actually did right after I took these pictures)…whatever you want to do to make them yours.
