Are you a type of person who likes to wear bright and extraordinary jewelry? To be honest I am not so brave. But I will definitely wear this African Mandala Necklace often this spring and summer. We need to do something about our inner fears, right? And we should not be afraid of looking bright and happy! This pattern is FREE and you can check more pictures of finished necklace HERE.
You will need:
- Leftovers of Fingering/Sport cotton yarn in different shades. I used Catona by Scheepjes in shades 208, 395, 282, 388, 157, 162 with a tiny accent of 245.
- Crochet hook Clover Soft Touch* 2.5mm (C)
- Scissors and tapestry needle to weave yarn tails in.
Level. Beginner
Size. The size of finished mandalas will depend on yarn and hook you choose and also on your personal gauge. My mandalas are approx. 5cm (2in) and 7cm (3in) large.
Stitch guide and Abbreviations
US standard abbreviations are used in this pattern. But if you are used to other terms, please check this Crochet Translation Project which might be helpful in translation to your native language.
st(s) - stitch(es)
ch - chain
sp(s) - space(s)
yo - yarn over
*…* *crochet following directions* as many times as indicated
sl st (slip stitch) – insert hook in indicated st, yo, draw yarn up and pull 2nd lp through the 1st lp on hook.
sc (single crochet) – insert hook in indicated stitch, yo, draw up a lp, yo and pull through both lps on hook.
dc (double crochet) – yo, insert hook in indicated st, yo, draw up a lp, *yo, pull through 2 lps* twice.
dc2tog (double crochet 2 together) - *yo, insert hook in indicated st, yo, draw up a lp, yo, pull through 2 lps* twice in same st, yo, pull through all 3 lps on hook.
dc3tog (double crochet 3 together) - *yo, insert hook in indicated st, yo, draw up a lp, yo, pull through 2 lps* 3 times, yo, pull through all 4 lps on hook.
NJ - "needle join" (or invisible join). See tutorial HERE.
Copyright LillaBjornCrochet 2016. All rights reserved. This pattern is for unlimited personal use only. Do not reproduce or sell the pattern. The pattern may not be copied in any way (print or digitally), in part or in full. Items may be sold that are made from this pattern as long as the designer is credited. Shop owners, if you wish to make a kit with yarn using this pattern, please request permission and copyright details from me before offering any kits for sale. Please, read Copyright page for more information.
Instructions
Add this Pattern to your Ravelry QueueColour key: C1 - shade 395, C2 - shade 282, C3 - shade 208, C4 - shade 388, C5 - shade 157
Small Mandala - front part
Rnd 1. Start with C1. Make magic ring. Ch1 (doesn't count as 1st sc), 8sc into ring, join with sl st in 1st sc after ch1. Don't fasten off. (8 sc)
Rnd 2. Continue with yarn C1. Ch5 (counts as 1st dc and ch2), *1dc in next st, ch2* 7 times; join with sl st in 3rd ch, fasten off. (8 dc + 8 ch2-sps)
Rnd 3. Change to yarn C2. Attach yarn by pulling a loop in any ch2-sp. Note: 1st dc3tog is ch2+dc2tog. While making every dc3tog: work 1st leg in same ch2-sp, work 2nd leg in next dc, work 3rd leg in next ch2-sp.
Ch2 and dc2tog (make 1st leg in next dc, make 2nd leg in next ch2-sp), ch3, *dc3tog, ch3* 7 times; join with sl st in 1st dc2tog, fasten off. (8 dc3tog's + 8 ch3-sps) Weave tails in.
Small Mandala - back part
Rnd 1. With yarn C3. Make magic ring. Ch1 (doesn't count as 1st sc), 8sc into ring, join with sl st in 1st sc after ch1. Don't fasten off. (8 sc)
Rnd 2. Ch2 (doesn't count as 1st dc), *2dc in next st* 8 times, join with sl st in 1st dc after ch2. (16 dc)
Rnd 3. Ch2 (doesn't count as 1st dc), *2dc in next st* 16 times, join with sl st in 1st dc after ch2. Don't fasten off! (32 dc)
Small Mandala - joining
Place front and back parts of mandala facing with wrong sides together. *Insert the hook in any dc3tog on front part and in 1st sc after a loop on the back part, 1sc, (sc, 2sc in next st, sc) on back part only; repeat from * 6 more times. Make (sl st, ch4, sl st) in next dc3tog (through both layers), (sc, 2sc in next st, sc) in back part only. Join with sl st in 1st sc of the rnd. Fasten off. Weave tails in.
One small mandala is now finished! Make another one using C4 and C1 for front and C2 for back.
Large mandala - front part
Rnd 1. Start with C3. Make magic ring. Ch1 (doesn't count as 1st sc), 8sc into ring, join with sl st in 1st sc after ch1. Don't fasten off. (8 sc)
Rnd 2. Continue with yarn C3. Note: 1st dc2tog is ch2 + dc in next st. Both legs of the rest dc2tog's are made in same st.
*dc2tog in next st, ch2* 8 times; join with sl st in 1st dc2tog, fasten off. (8 dc2tog's + 8 ch2-sps)
Rnd 3. Change to yarn C5. Attach yarn by pulling a loop through any dc2tog.
ch4 (counts as dc+ch2), dc2tog in next ch2-sp, ch2, *dc in next dc2tog, ch2, dc2tog in next ch2-sp, ch2* 7 times; join with sl st in 2nd ch of ch4 in the beginning of the rnd, fasten off. (8 dc + 8 dc2tog + 16 ch2-sps)
Rnd 4. Change to yarn C4. Attach yarn by pulling a loop through any dc2tog.
ch4 (count as sl st+ch3), sk ch2-sp, sl st in next st, *ch3, sk ch2-sp, sl st in next st*15 times; last sl st is made in same st where yarn was attached, fasten off. (16 sl sts + 16 ch2-sps) Weave tails in.
Large mandala - back part
Rnds 1-3. With yarn C1. Repeat rnds 1-3 for the back of small mandala. Don't fasten off.
Rnd 4. Ch2 (doesn't count as 1st dc), *dc in next st, 2dc in next st* 16 times, NJ in 2nd dc after ch2. Fasten off! (48 dc)
Large Mandala - joining
Pull a loop of yarn C2 through any st of back part on the wrong side, make ch1 (counts as 1st sc). Place front and back parts of mandala facing with wrong sides together.
1dc in any ch2-sp of front part, *sk 1 st on back part, 1sc in each of 2 next sts on back part, 1dc in next ch2-sp on front part* 15 times, sk 1 st on back part, (sl st, ch4, sl st) in next st on back part. NJ in 1st dc of the rnd. Fasten off. Weave tails in.
Colorful circles
Make as many colorful circles as you wish. I made 26 small circles and 14 large circles in total.Small circle: Make magic ring. Ch1 (counts as 1st sc), 7sc into ring, NJ in 1st sc after ch1. Fasten off. (8 sc)
Large circle: Make magic ring. Ch2 (counts as 1st dc), 15dc into ring, NJ in 1st dc after ch2. Fasten off. (16 dc)
Weave all yarn tails in.
Putting Necklace Together
First attach central large madnala to the cord through a loop. Then pull both tails of the cord through 1 small bead, add 1 more small bead to each tail separately.
On each tail put: 11 small circles of different colors, 1 small bead, 1 small mandala (secure it with a knot as pictured below), 1 big bead, 7 large colorful circles, 2 small colorful circles, 1 big bead. Make a knot. 
Congratulations!! Your new Mandala necklace in African style is now finished! (I hope you like it and will be happy to see the pictures of your necklace in my official Ravelry group HERE!)
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Thank you so much for celebrating (Inter)NatCroMo 2016 so generously with this beautiful necklace design! I love your color work. I hope you get to visit Iceland soon!
ReplyDeleteThis is beautiful! Thank you.
ReplyDeleteI'm South African born and love how your necklace captures the African look. I'm going to try this (one day!) when my 7 other projects are completed. Thank you. Sharin S. (Australia)
ReplyDeleteThis is so fun and colorful. Thank you so much for sharing.
ReplyDeleteAfrican Mandala Necklace: FREE pattern looks interesting, and I love the way you have this informative post about these patterns. We can use these ideas to make the patterns on our own.
ReplyDelete