Join the trend taking the crochet world by storm! The Playful Puff Stitch Footbag is your ticket to outdoor fun this season. “Footbag” is the general term for what are commonly called hacky sacks, small round bags filled with beads or other fillers. The object of play with footbags is to keep them in the air using feet, knees, or other body parts (just not the hands). This footbag design features simple single crochets and puff stitches dotted throughout, giving crocheters practice with this stitch, and footbag enthusiasts may enjoy the added texture as well! It’s the perfect gift for the kids in the neighborhood and maybe their nostalgic parents, too.

Time: 1 Hour Pattern

Skill Level: Easy

Size: 2.5” diameter, weighing about 50g

Gauge: First 5 rounds in patt = 2”

Materials

Queensland Coastal Cotton Weight 4 Medium Yarn (100% cotton; 185 yd [169 m]/3.5 oz [100 g]): 1020 Watermelon (1 ball), 1006 Goldenrod (1 ball), 1062 Egg Nog (1 ball)

Hook: US size E/4 3.5 mm

Notions: 1 removable stitch marker, 40g of pony beads per footbag or about 150 beads per footbag, tapestry needle for weaving in ends

Abbreviations

Pm: place marker

Special Stitches

Puff: Yo, insert your hook into the designated st, pull up a loop. You should have 3 loops on your hook. Yo, insert your hook into the same st, pull up a loop. You should have 5 loops on your hook. Yo, insert your hook into the same st, pull up a loop. You should have 7 loops on your hook. Yo and pull through all 7 loops. Texture should push to the outside of the footbag as you work.

Pattern Notes

Pattern is worked from the bottom up, continuously in rounds and not joined. Move the stitch marker to the first st in each round to locate where the next round begins each time.

Footbag should be filled about 70-80% full with pony beads so it is still “squishy” enough for many tricks. If it is totally stuffed, it will bounce off the foot instead of catching and landing on it for certain tricks.

Regulation footbags should weigh between 20-70g. Pony beads will make your footbag weigh about 45g. For a heavier footbag, consider mixing in metal or glass pellets.

For added security, you could enclose the beads in an old nylon before filling the footbag.

Regulation footbags should also be between 1” and 2.5” in diameter. At the halfway point, check that your footbag meets gauge and is no wider than 2.5” if you’d like it to follow the rules. 😉

Pattern

Ch 2.

Rnd 1: Sc in second ch from hook, always pm in the first st of each rnd, work 7 more sc in same st. (8 sc)

Rnd 2: Work 2 sc in each st around. (16 sc)

Rnd 3: *Sc in the next st, puff in the next st; rep from * around. (8 sc, 8 puffs)

Rnd 4: *Sc in the next st, work 2 sc in the next st; rep from * around. (24 sc)

Weave in starting tail on inside of footbag, covering the small hole at the bottom so beads won’t fall out later. See Note about additional optional measures to take to prevent beads from escaping with use.

Rnd 5: *Sc in the next st, puff in the next st; rep from * around. (12 sc, 12 puffs)

Rnd 6: *Sc in the next 3 sts, work 2 sc in the next st; rep from * around. (30 scs)

Rnd 7: *Sc in the next st, puff in the next st; rep from * around. (15 sc, 15 puffs)

Rnd 8: Sc in each st around. (30 sc)

Rnd 9: *Sc in the next st, puff in the next st; rep from * around. (15 sc, 15 puffs)

Rnd 10: *Sc in the next 3 sts, sc2tog; rep from * across. (18 sc, 6 sc2tog)

Rnd 11: *Sc in the next st, puff in the next st; rep from * around. (12 sc, 12 puffs)

Rnd 12: *Sc in the next st, sc2tog in the next st; rep from * around. (8 sc, 8 sc2tog)

Rnd 13: *Sc in the next st, puff in the next st; rep from * around. (8 sc, 8 puffs)

Fill the footbag 70-80% full with pony beads or other filling, see notes.

Rnd 14: Sc2tog around. (8 sc2tog)

Finishing

Sew hole shut with tapestry needle, tie off, and bury yarn tail. For a visual, I like this short video: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/7TpmuHFsRC0

Your footbag is ready for play!