The Harris Sisters: Granny Mandala Ottoman Cover

Seems like it's been a while since we've checked in with you guys. We've been taking down Christmas decorations and clearing clutter just like everybody else! But now that things are starting to get back to normal, I wanted to share a quick crochet project with you. It's actually one that I had put on my craft wish list last year, but then I decided to devote all of my extra crafting time to crocheting afghans for charity. So I back burnered all of the crafting items on my wish list so that I could devote more time to that project.

Hopefully, I'll be able to get to a few more of my back burnered craft projects this year!

This is the first one and I'm so happy with how it came out. It's a crochet granny mandala ottoman cover. I love it for two reasons. First, I was able to upcycle a very old ottoman that I had squirreled away in Jaxon's room. He used it as a step stool to reach things when he was younger, but this is actually MUCH older than Jaxon. (HINT: The hunter green color should be giving off a strong 1990s vibe - I purchased this when I was in college.) Here it is in all its pleather-y glory. Soak it in, it's just too good:

Second, it's always fun to crochet a quick and colorful project during the dreary days of January. This colorful ottoman is going to brighten up our sunroom.

What Is a Mandala?

For those of you not familiar with the term mandala, it's basically a doily with a few minor differences. While they're both circular, mandalas are usually colorful and they're usually made out of yarn instead of thread. But if you find a vintage doily pattern that you like, you could probably convert it into a mandala pattern easily.

Pattern, Hook, and Modifications

For this project, I started with a free crochet granny mandala pattern and then I worked the pattern as written through row 12 with a size K crochet hook, which gave me a flat circle the same size as the top of my ottoman. Then, I switched to a size J hook and stopped increasing while continuing rounds until I had enough rounds to cover the sides of the ottoman. I switched crochet hook sizes to make sure that the cover would fit snugly to the ottoman.

If I were to do this project again, I might try not increasing on row 12 and then working the entire pattern with one size hook. You will need to adjust the pattern for your size ottoman specifically, trying the work on your ottoman periodically to ensure it fits correctly.

Yarn Choices

The yarns and colorways that I used were as follows:

Red Heart Super Saver Bright Yellow
Red Heart Super Saver Pretty 'N Pink
Red Heart Super Saver Pale Plum
Big Twist Damson Purple
Red Heart Super Saver Light Blue
Red Heart Super Saver Light Periwinkle
Red Heart Super Saver Royal (from Captain America Hat and Spiderman Afghan)
Red Heart Super Saver Pumpkin
Bernat Super Value True Red (from Captain America Afghan)
Red Heart Super Saver Shocking Pink
Big Twist Light Teal
Big Twist Medium Teal
Caron Simply Soft Limelight
Caron Simply Soft Watermelon
Red Heart Super Saver Aruba Sea
Big Twist Buttercup
Loops & Threads Impeccable Orange
Vanna's Choice Radiant Lime (from Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary Baby Blanket)
Vanna's Choice Fern (from Mary, Mary, Quite Contrary Baby Blanket)

As you can see, it's Smitty approved!

Notes:

This really was a simple project, so if you have a little ottoman or even a stool that doesn't match your current decor or that's seen better days, maybe consider giving yours a makeover too. It's really like making a very large hat for it!

My best tip for any project that uses a lot of different colors of yarn is to weave in your ends as you go. Weaving in ends is my least favorite part of any crochet project, but with 35 different pairs of yarn ends to weave in, leaving them ALL to the end of the project was not a good option. Weaving in two ends of yarn after each row made it into a manageable task that really seemed like no trouble at all.

I did not stretch it around the bottom and attach it (it's hanging freely), but you could easily do that if you'd like a more fitted look for yours!

If you like the look of colorful crochet projects, check out these past projects for a burst of rainbow inspiration!