A Brief Love Story
Today would have been the NCAA basketball national championship. It is difficult for me to put into words how sad this has made me. With all that is going on around us, it is just a drop in the bucket. However, I still felt the need to recognize this day, somehow. I made a basketball key chain to cheer myself up.
I have tried, multiple times, to pour my heart out to you through this keyboard, but I still can’t seem to put into reasonable words, how much basketball means to me, and my family.
People who say, “it’s just a game,” don’t understand how untrue that is for the people who love it. Basketball, for me, was never just a game. It was time spent with my dad, and memories made with my family. Love for basketball was a common bond that pulled my father and I together during a time in my teen years, when other things might have pulled us apart. Basketball was family vacations, road trips, the friends I met along the way, a childhood dream. This game was an education, in more ways than one.
Basketball taught me life lessons from how to recover from mistakes to how to work as a unit with my family. It taught me about different perspectives, and finding common ground among those you have core differences with.
Basketball was never just a game.
Crochet and Basketball
Somewhat ironically, crochet is where I turned for comfort when my college basketball career came to an abrupt end. I feel deeply for these athletes with no closure, who had their dreams literally cancelled, before their eyes. I sympathize with them because I never knew my last time on the court, was my last time on the court. I went from a little girl with a dream, to an adult who had no idea what to do with the rest of her life, in the blink of an eye.
Crochet is still a place of great comfort for me during difficult or uncertain times. It gives me a sense of peace as well as produtivity. Crochet challenges me to learn new things, and to improve my skills; something that only basketball had done previously.
When you make your own basketball key chain, I hope you will think of my love for this game. I hope you will remember those kids with big dreams. My hope is that this very simple pattern will bring someone you know, great joy; a reminder of a passion they once had, or a dream they once strived for.
You can purchase a printer-friendly PDF of this pattern from my Ravelry or Etsy shops to help support my business! Thank you!
Basketball Key Chain Pattern
Notes:
This is a very basic pattern, and works up quickly! It is made in continuous rnds with no joining. The increases are done in such a way as to disperse them evenly, so each row the pattern is slightly different. The black lines are sewn onto the ball with black yarn. All pattern process pictures can be found on the last page. Link to video instruction for the sewing of the lines is provided.
Materials:
The Hook Nook Main Squeeze Yarn (Worsted) – Marigold Fields
The Hook Nook Small Stuff Yarn (DK) – Tattoo Ink
Metal Pull Ring Rivets with Screws
Metal Lobster Claw Clasp and Split Key Rings
Fabri-Tac, Permanent Adhesive, Fabric Glue
Scissors
Terms and abbreviations to know:
magic ring
rnd, rnds – round, rounds
st, sts – stitch, stitches
sc – single crochet
inc – increase, 2 sc sts into the same st
invsc2tog – invisible single crochet 2 together, this is essentially a decrease, but done in such a way as to make the continuous stitching smoother, and the decrease not as noticeable.
- Insert hook into front loop only of next stitch, DO NOT yarn over.
- Insert hook into front loop of second st.
- Yarn over. Pull through 2 loops.
- Yarn over and pull through last 2 loops.
Pattern
Begin with magic ring.
Rnd 1: 6 sc in magic ring; 6 sts
Rnd 2: inc in each st around; 12 sts
Rnd 3: (inc, sc in next st)6x; 18 sts
Rnd 4: (sc in next 2 sts, inc)6x; 24 sts
Rnd 5: (inc, sc in next 3 sts)6x; 30 sts
Rnds 6-12: sc in each st around; 30 sts
Stop here to attach the metal pull rivet and screw. Put the screw through from the inside of the basketball, through the top, center of rnd 1. With the screw poking out of the top of the basketball, dab some of your Fabri-Tac onto the top of the screw. Then quickly screw the metal pull rivet to the screw. The glue helps to keep in from unscrewing during use!
Rnd 13: (invsc2tog, sc in next 3 sts)6x; 24 sts
Rnd 14: (sc in next 2 sts, invsc2tog)6x; 18 sts
Stuff firmly and continue to close.
Rnd 15: (invsc2tog, sc in next st)6x; 12 sts
Rnd 16: (sc in next st, invsc2tog)4x; 8 sts
*Note: I did not decrease down to 6 sts in the final rnd because they become too tight, and then protrude during closing, instead of a smooth, round finish. Use your needle and ending strand to sew the bottom closed. Weave in ends.
The lines of the basketball key chain are sewn on with the black yarn. You need approximately 2 yds of black yarn to cover over the ball. The lines go around from top, to the other side of the top, then across the middle. The curved parts are a bit trickier. They make an hour glass type shape, across the center of the ball. The video below will provide you with the knowledge to do it!
Here are some other basketball patterns you might enjoy!
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Basketball Stacking Rings
Basketball Hoop Backpack
