Coral Shapes Patterns

How to make crochet coral pieces

Here are the basic instructions for crocheting the basic coral reef hyperbolic shapes.

Reef Crochet General Guidelines

Any basic crochet stitch - single, half double, double or triple - can be used in the patterns. Feel free to alternate stitches within a pattern. Feel free to change yarns as it strikes your fancy. Try using different hook sizes to achieve different looks. Work with a single strand of yarn or a combination of yarns worked together with a large hook. As long as you increase at a steady rate, you will achieve a hyperbolic form! Experiment with a variety of materials including: cut up old t-shirts, cassetter or video tape, cut up plastic bags, cut up old sweaters, use collected/discarded twine, or cut up plastic beverage bottles.

RUFFLE
Make a chain to any length. Crochet any stitch (single, half double, double or triple) back along chain increasing at a steady rate – increase one in every third stitch (stitch one in the first stitch, one in the second stitch and two in the third stitch and so on) or every fourth stitch or every ninth stitch. Increasing more frequently will make it a ruffle or “crenellate” faster, increasing less frequently will take a while for the piece to start to ruffle, but you can make a much larger piece.

Turn work at the end of the row. Make more rows as desired, changing yarns and stitches as desired, and working increased stitches as desired to shape piece.

Experimentation is encouraged!

CIRCLE
Chain about 4. Join chain with a slip stitch to form a ring. Work stitch of choice into the ring until it’s filled up. Join your last stitch to the first stitch with a slip stitch. End off, or make more rounds as desired. Make increases on subsequent rounds to shape piece. Increase at a steady rate of increase to see the piece ruffle faster.

CYLINDER
Make a chain to any length. Join chain with a slip stitch to form a ring. Work a stitch into each chain; join your last stitch to the first with a slip stitch. Continue to work in rounds, changing stitches and yarns as desired. You can alter the shape of the cylinder by occasionally working an increase (making 2 or more stitches into the same stitch) or a decrease (working 1 or more less stitches on a round).

CORKSCREW
Make a chain to any length. Crochet any stitch (single, half double, double or triple) back along chain - working 2 or more sets in each chain to make it curl. When you reach the beginning of the chain, chain again to same or different length and repeat to make additional corkscrews!

Experiment with different and multiple kinds of yarns.

Patterns provided by Institute for Figuring for Workshops held at
New York University Department of Art and Art Professions