Mar
Making the Tree Skirt When You Actually Need It
So I made my first tree skirt in fall 2022 and honestly I started it because I was tired of that sad piece of red felt I’d been using for like five years. You know those ones from Target that fray after one season? Yeah. I figured crochet would last longer and I could actually make it the size I wanted instead of whatever they decided to manufacture.
The thing nobody tells you is that tree skirts eat yarn. Like so much yarn. I used Red Heart Super Saver in White and Cherry Red because it was cheap and I wasn’t about to drop $80 on fancy yarn for something that sits on the floor. Plus Red Heart holds up when you’re vacuuming pine needles off it every other day which is gonna happen no matter how careful you are.
Starting the Center Circle
You start with a magic ring which honestly took me forever to figure out when I first learned crochet but now it’s automatic. Chain 3 to count as your first double crochet then work like 11 more double crochets into the ring. Pull it tight. That’s your center.
The pattern I loosely followed said to increase every round for the first six rounds but I kind of just eyeballed it? You want it to lay flat not ruffle up like a doily your grandma made. If it starts cupping upward you’re not increasing enough. If it waves and ruffles you increased too much. I had to rip out round 4 twice because I wasn’t paying attention while watching The Crown and added too many stitches.
My cat Miso kept attacking the yarn ball while I worked on this. Super helpful.
The Increase Pattern That Actually Works
After your base ring do this:
- Round 2: 2 dc in each stitch around
- Round 3: dc in first stitch, 2 dc in next, repeat
- Round 4: dc in first 2 stitches, 2 dc in next, repeat
- Round 5: dc in first 3 stitches, 2 dc in next, repeat
You see the pattern. Keep going until your circle is about 8 or 9 inches across. Then you can slow down the increases because the circumference gets bigger naturally as you go.
Making It Big Enough
Here’s what annoyed me the most about this whole project – you don’t really know how big it needs to be until you try it under your actual tree. And most people don’t have their tree up in October when you’re making this. I guessed at like 45 inches diameter and it ended up being slightly too small for my tree which is a 7 footer. It works but I wish I’d gone to 50 or 52 inches.
Measure your tree stand and add at least 15 inches on all sides. Maybe 18 if you want it to look generous. You want it to cover all the ugly stand mechanics plus have room for presents to sit on it.
I worked in rounds forever. Like probably 35 rounds total? I lost count because I kept stopping to do other stuff. The nice thing about circles is you can try it under the tree at any point and decide if you wanna keep going. Just don’t bind off until you’re sure.
Switching Colors for Stripes
I did white for like 8 rounds then red for 4 rounds then white for 6 then red again. Totally random. You don’t have to carry the yarn up the side or anything complicated – just tie off one color and start the next. The back looks messy but nobody sees it.
When you switch colors do it on the last yarn over of the previous round. So if you’re finishing a white round and want to start red pull the red through for that last yarn over. It makes a cleaner transition.
I used Caron One Pound in Cream for some of the white sections too because I ran out of the Red Heart and the store didn’t have more. You can’t really tell the difference once it’s all together which is good because I was not starting over.
The Slit for Getting It Around the Tree
This is important – you gotta put a slit in it so you can wrap it around the tree trunk. Some patterns have you make it in two halves and seam them but that seemed like more work than just cutting a slit.
I worked the whole thing as a complete circle then used sharp scissors to cut from the outer edge straight to the center hole. Sounds scary but it’s fine. The yarn doesn’t unravel if you’re using acrylic. Then I single crocheted around both edges of the slit to finish them and make them sturdy.
You could add ties or ribbons to close the slit but I never bothered. It just overlaps and you can’t see it behind the tree.
The Center Hole Size
Make the center hole bigger than you think you need. I made mine maybe 4 inches across and it barely fit over my tree stand. Should’ve gone 6 inches. You can always bunch up extra fabric around a smaller trunk but you can’t squeeze a tree skirt over a stand that’s too big for the hole.
After round 6 or so I just worked even without increases in the center for like 2 rounds to make the hole bigger then continued increasing for the body. Does that make sense? You’re basically making a flat donut shape.
Edging Options
For the outer edge I did a round of single crochet then a round of this shell stitch thing – like 5 dc in one stitch, skip 2, single crochet, skip 2, repeat. It makes scallops. Very christmassy I guess.
You could also do:
- Picot edge which is fussier but looks fancy
- Just reverse single crochet for a simple rope edge
- Literally nothing just bind off the last round
- Pompoms if you hate yourself and want to make like 40 pompoms
I almost did pompoms but then I remembered I value my time.
Yarn Amounts Because Nobody Ever Lists This Clearly
I used approximately:
- 1200 yards of white/cream (like 4 skeins of Red Heart Super Saver)
- 600 yards of red (2 skeins)
This was for a finished skirt about 44 inches across. If you’re making it bigger add more. If you’re making it smaller… well it’s hard to make these too small honestly because what’s the point then.
Buy an extra skein of your main color. You’ll probably need it and if you don’t you can make a matching stocking or something.
How Long This Actually Takes
I’m not gonna lie to you it took me like three weeks of working on it most evenings. Maybe 25 hours total? The first rounds go fast but once you’re working rounds with 200+ stitches it slows way down. My hands got tired.
If you’re a faster crocheter than me (which is possible I’m not speed racer over here) maybe two weeks. Don’t start this on December 20th is what I’m saying.
I actually started a second one in summer 2024 for my mom and only got like halfway through before I got bored and started making granny square blankets instead. Still haven’t finished it. Oops. Maybe this year.
Washing and Storage
Throw it in the washing machine on cold gentle cycle. Lay flat to dry or it’ll stretch weird. The Red Heart holds up fine I’ve washed mine twice and it looks the same.
For storage I just fold it in quarters and stuff it in with the Christmas decorations. Takes up way less space than those fake fancy ones from Pottery Barn that cost $90 and come in a special box.
Variations If You Want to Get Weird With It
You could make it in like green and gold for a different color scheme. Or all white for that minimalist scandinavian thing people are into. Navy and silver would look nice too.
Some people add appliques like snowflakes or stars but that’s more work. You could surface crochet a design on top after it’s done if you really wanted.
I thought about adding jingle bells around the edge but decided that would be annoying every time someone walked past the tree or when the cat inevitably tried to eat them.
Actual Problems I Had
Besides the size thing I mentioned the other issue was keeping track of where the round started. I used a stitch marker but sometimes it would fall out and I’d lose my place. Not a huge deal with a circular pattern since you can usually tell by looking but it was annoying.
Also my tension got tighter as I worked which meant the outer rounds were slightly denser than the inner ones. You can’t really tell unless you’re looking for it but it bugs me when I notice. Try to stay consistent with your tension or take breaks when your hands get tired and you start crocheting tighter.
The other thing is that double crochet makes kind of a holey fabric so you can see the floor through it a little bit. If that bothers you use half double crochet instead for a denser fabric but it’ll take more yarn and more time.
Is It Worth Making Versus Buying
Honestly depends on whether you like crocheting. The yarn cost me maybe $25 total which is less than buying a decent one but then there’s all those hours of work. If you enjoy the process and want something custom sized then yeah make it. If you just need a tree skirt and don’t care about making it yourself the store bought ones are fine.
Mine feels more sturdy than the cheap ones and I can repair it if it gets damaged which is nice. Plus I can say I made it when people ask which happens sometimes.
The best part is actually that you can make it match your other decorations exactly. I have red and white stockings so the tree skirt coordinates. If your whole thing is like teal and silver you can do that. Can’t really find that in stores.
Pattern Adjustments for Different Skill Levels
If you’re newer to crochet maybe start with all one color so you don’t have to deal with color changes. And skip the fancy edging just do a round of single crochet and call it done.
If you’re more advanced you could do a granny square tree skirt instead which would be made of like 40 granny squares sewn together into a circle. More work but it looks really textured and interesting. Or try a different stitch pattern like moss stitch or something lacier.
You could also work it in rows instead of rounds if you prefer that but then you have to figure out increasing on rows which is its own thing.
Using Different Yarn Weights
I used worsted weight which is medium/size 4 yarn. You could use bulky weight and a bigger hook to make it work up faster but it’ll be thicker and heavier. Might be good if you want it really plush.
Don’t use thin yarn like fingering weight unless you have infinite patience. It would take forever and you’d need like 3000 yards.
Cotton yarn would work too but it’s heavier when wet so washing might be more annoying. Acrylic is honestly the practical choice here even if it’s not fancy.
What Hook Size
I used a 5.5mm hook with the worsted weight yarn. Some people might use 6mm for looser fabric. Depends on your tension really. Make a gauge swatch if you care about that sort of thing but for a tree skirt it doesn’t matter that much as long as the fabric looks decent.
Bigger hook makes it go faster but the fabric gets more holey. Smaller hook takes longer but looks tighter. Pick your preference.
