Mar
okay so the basic towel topper thing
So you start with a button at the top because thats how it hangs over your oven handle or whatever. I made like five of these back in spring 2022 when I was basically living at my sisters place helping her with the new baby and her kitchen towels kept falling on the floor every five seconds and it was driving both of us insane.
The pattern is stupidly simple but here’s what annoyed me – everyone acts like you need this perfect button placement and if you’re off by even a little bit the whole thing hangs crooked. Which yeah it does but also who cares? Its a kitchen towel not a wedding dress.
what you actually need
Get yourself some cotton yarn because acrylic is gonna be weird with kitchen stuff. I used Lily Sugar’n Cream most of the time – the solid colors not those ombre ones that look nice in the store but then your towel topper looks like a rainbow threw up on it. I think I used the yellow one called Sunny or something? And a sage green that I cant remember the actual name. Peaches & Creme works too, same thing basically different brand name.
You need a G hook or H hook depending on how tight you crochet. I use G because I crochet kinda loose naturally but my sister uses H and hers come out the same size so whatever works. And obviously you need a kitchen towel and a button.
The button should be like 3/4 inch or 1 inch across. Not those tiny shirt buttons, needs to actually hold the weight of a towel. I raided my moms button jar and used these basic tan ones she had like a million of.
the actual pattern part
Chain 6 and slip stitch to make a ring. This is your button hole basically.
Round 1: Chain 2 (doesn’t count as stitch), make 10 half double crochet into the ring. Join with slip stitch. You should have 10 stitches.
Round 2: Chain 2, hdc in same stitch, then 2 hdc in each stitch around. You’re gonna have 20 stitches now. Join with slip stitch.
Round 3: Chain 2, hdc in same stitch, hdc in next stitch, then *2 hdc in next stitch, hdc in next stitch* repeat around. Should be 30 stitches. This is where it starts actually looking like something instead of just a weird circle.
Round 4: Chain 2, hdc in same stitch, hdc in next 2 stitches, then *2 hdc in next stitch, hdc in next 2 stitches* repeat around. 40 stitches total.
Now here’s where people do different things but I just keep going with one more increase round because I like them a bit bigger. So Round 5 would be: Chain 2, hdc in same stitch, hdc in next 3 stitches, then *2 hdc in next stitch, hdc in next 3 stitches* repeat. That gives you 50 stitches.
Then I do like 2 or 3 rounds of just straight hdc no increases. Just chain 2 and hdc in each stitch around. This makes the edge lay flatter when you attach the towel.
attaching the towel part
So this is where it gets a little weird because you’re basically crocheting through two layers – your crocheted circle and the towel fabric. Take your kitchen towel and fold over about 1/2 inch of the top edge. Pin it if you’re fancy but I never do.
Put your crocheted circle on top of the folded edge. The button hole should be at the top center obviously. Now you’re gonna single crochet through BOTH the crochet edge and the towel fabric at the same time.
I usually do it like this: insert hook through a stitch on your circle, then push it through the towel fabric (might need to wiggle it a bit), yarn over and pull through both layers, then complete the single crochet normal. Keep going all the way around the bottom edge of your circle.
My cat knocked over my coffee mug while I was doing this part on one of them and I had to restart the whole towel attachment because coffee got on the white towel I was using and yeah that was fun.
the button placement issue I mentioned
Okay so you need to sew the button onto your towel but where exactly? This drove me crazy the first two times I made these. If you put it too high up the towel hangs weird. Too low and the crocheted part flops forward.
What finally worked for me: measure about 4 inches down from where your crocheted circle ends on the towel. Mark it with a pin or fabric pen. Sew your button there using regular needle and thread – go through the button holes like six times so its really secure because this is holding the whole weight of a wet towel potentially.
Actually test it before you cut your thread. Loop the button hole over the button and see if it hangs right. If the crocheted part is all bunched up the button needs to go lower. If there’s too much loose fabric between the circle and button it needs to go higher.
yarn amounts and colors
One towel topper uses maybe 30-40 yards of yarn? So like barely anything. You can definitely make several from one ball of Lily Sugar’n Cream. I made all five of my sisters toppers from two balls – one yellow and one green – and had tons leftover.
Color wise I think solid colors look better than variegated but thats just me. The variegated ones can look kinda busy especially if your towel already has a pattern. I did make one with the Hot Pink color and it was actually pretty cute on a white towel.
You could also do stripes if you change colors every round or two but then you have all those ends to weave in and honestly who has time for that with something this small.
different variations people do
Some people add a border round at the end with like picots or shell stitches to make it fancier. I tried this once and it just looked… I dont know, too much? For a kitchen towel topper? But if you’re making them as gifts maybe people like that kind of thing.
You can also make the circle part smaller or bigger depending on your preference. I’ve seen people do them with only 3 increase rounds instead of 5, makes a more delicate looking topper. Or you can go bigger and do 6-7 increase rounds for like a statement piece I guess.
Oh and the stitch choice – most patterns use half double crochet like I described but you could do double crochet for a lacier look or single crochet for something really dense and sturdy. Single crochet takes forever though so I wouldn’t recommend unless you’re watching TV or something. I made one while binging that show about the chess player, what was it called… anyway it took like three episodes for one topper with single crochet.
problems you might run into
If your circle is ruffling up instead of laying flat you’re increasing too much. Skip an increase round or spread your increases out more.
If its cupping up like a bowl you need more increases. Add another increase round before you do the straight rounds.
The button hole might be too small or too big depending on your button size. Too small and you’re gonna stretch it out every time you use it. Too big and it won’t stay on the button. For the starting ring you can chain more or less than 6 – I’ve done chain 4 for smaller buttons and chain 8 for bigger ones.
When you’re crocheting through the towel and it feels like you’re gonna break your hook – use a hook with a better grip or get a sharper hook. Those Clover Amour hooks with the rubber grip are actually worth it for this kind of thing. Or you can pre-punch holes with a yarn needle first but that seems like extra work.
washing and care stuff
Since its cotton yarn and a kitchen towel the whole thing is machine washable which is the entire point right? I’ve washed the ones I made for my sister probably fifty times by now and they’re holding up fine. The button has never come loose and the crochet part hasn’t stretched out weird or anything.
Do NOT use Red Heart Super Saver or other acrylic yarn for this even though its cheaper. It gets gross feeling after a few washes and also acrylic and kitchen towels just feels wrong together. Spring for the cotton, its like $2 a ball anyway.
If you used a wooden button make sure it doesn’t go in the dryer on high heat. Learned that one the hard way – the button cracked right down the middle. Plastic buttons are fine though.
timing and skill level
The actual crocheting part takes maybe 30-45 minutes if you’re going at a normal pace. Attaching the towel adds another 15-20 minutes. Sewing on the button is like 5 minutes. So you could realistically make one in an hour start to finish.
Skill wise you only need to know chain, slip stitch, half double crochet, and single crochet. If you can make a granny square you can definitely make this. Actually this is easier than a granny square because there’s no spaces or chain stitches to keep track of.
I taught my sister how to make these and she had only crocheted like one scarf before that and she figured it out in one afternoon. The hardest part for her was crocheting through the towel fabric because she was afraid of messing up the towel but once she did it a few times she got over it.
gift giving thoughts
These make decent gifts if you pair them with like a nice kitchen towel. Don’t use a cheap thin towel – get the flour sack towels or the nice thick cotton ones. Target has good ones and sometimes Williams Sonoma has them on sale.
I made a set of three (different colors) with matching towels for my mom for Christmas and she actually uses them which is saying something because usually handmade gifts end up in a drawer somewhere. She’s got one on the oven handle, one on the dishwasher handle, and one on the handle of her pantry door.
You could also make them for craft fairs if you’re into that. Price them at like $8-12 depending on the towel quality. I’ve never sold them but my friend does craft fairs and she said kitchen stuff sells better than like scarves or blankets because people actually use it.
other uses beyond kitchen
Technically you could use the same pattern for bathroom hand towels but then you’d probably want to make it prettier with a fancy border or use a nicer stitch pattern. Kitchen towels are utilitarian so simple is fine but bathroom stuff people want to look decorative I think.
You could make them for dish towels in an RV or camper where you really need towels to stay put. Or in a dorm room kitchen area. Basically anywhere you have a towel and a handle and gravity working against you.
Some people have used them on drawer pulls but that seems weird to me because then the towel is just hanging there in front of the drawer. But whatever works for your space I guess.
final random tips
Keep your tension consistent especially on the increase rounds or your circle will be lopsided. Mine usually are a little bit lopsided and it doesn’t really matter once its hanging up.
If you mess up an increase just frog it back to that round and redo it. Don’t try to fudge it by adding an extra increase later because that makes it worse.
The starting chain 6 ring can be replaced with a magic ring if you know how to do that but honestly the chain ring works fine and is easier.
You don’t have to use half double crochet for the whole thing – you could do the first few rounds in single crochet and then switch to hdc for the rest if you want the center to be more solid.
Mark your rounds with a stitch marker or piece of yarn in a different color so you know where each round starts and ends. I never do this and then I lose track of my stitch count but you’re probably more organized than me.
If you’re making multiple toppers production line style its faster to crochet all the circles first, then attach all the towels, then sew all the buttons. Rather than finishing one completely before starting the next.
