Bean Stitch Purse Crochet Pattern: A Textured Mini Bag in 7 Steps

Some stitches are flat and polite; the bean stitch is neither. This bean stitch purse crochet pattern packs round after round of plump, tilted beans into a small everyday bag — the kind of texture strangers reach out to touch. It starts with a sturdy oval single-crochet base, rises in bean stitch rounds holding exactly 26 beans each, and finishes with a top band, magnetic snap and gold chain strap. Finished size is about 8 × 7 inches (20 × 18 cm) — room for a phone, card wallet, keys, lip balm and sunglasses, yet small enough to wear crossbody all day.

Every base round ends with its total, and the bean rounds cannot drift — each new bean sits in the eye of the bean below. Working it through is a gentle way to master this bean stitch purse crochet pattern.

About This Purse

Why it works:

• The bean stitch builds its own padding. Every bean is a tiny pillow of yarn, so the fabric is thick and cushioned.
• The base is a real base. Four increase rounds make a flat oval floor, so the purse stands up on a table.
• The count locks in. Once the first bean round is set, every round has 26 beans in the same places.
• Hardware makes it feel bought, not made. A snap that clicks shut and a chain strap lift it out of “craft project” territory.

More small structured bags live in our roundup of 10 crochet bag patterns, and the elegant crochet handbag pattern is this purse’s bigger, bamboo-handled sister. If you love textured bags, this bean stitch purse crochet pattern deserves a place in your queue.

Materials and Gauge

This bean stitch purse crochet pattern is written for worsted cotton, which holds the bean texture crisply and never stretches.

• Worsted weight (#4) cotton yarn, approx. 230 yd (210 m) — about two 100 g balls, same dye lot. If yarn weights are new to you, the Craft Yarn Council’s standard yarn weight system explains the “#4” on the ball band.
• 5.0 mm (US H-8) crochet hook
• One sew-in magnetic snap closure, about 18 mm
• One ready-made purse chain strap, approx. 47 in (120 cm), with lobster clasps
• Two D-rings, approx. 15 mm (⅝ in)
• Stitch markers, yarn needle, sewing needle and matching thread, scissors, tape measure
• Optional: a 9 × 7 in (23 × 18 cm) piece of lining fabric

Gauge: 13 sc and 15 rows = 4 in (10 cm) in single crochet; each bean round measures about ⅔ in (1.7 cm) tall. Swatch first (Step 1); change hook size if your count is off.

Finished size: about 8 in (20 cm) wide × 7 in (18 cm) tall, excluding the strap; base approx. 7½ × 3¼ in (19 × 8 cm). Those dimensions are exactly what make this bean stitch purse crochet pattern such a practical everyday bag.

Useful Materials from Amazon

A firm worsted cotton is non-negotiable for beans: it keeps every bean plump and separate, where soft acrylic slumps.

Bean stitch means three pull-ups in every stitch — a soft-grip 5 mm hook is the difference between a finished purse and an abandoned one.

A ready-made chain strap with lobster clasps clips straight onto the D-rings and wears crossbody.

The 18 mm sew-in size is strong enough for this bag and opens with one hand.

Abbreviations (US Terms)

• ch = chain
• sc = single crochet
• sl st = slip stitch
• st(s) = stitch(es)
• BLO = back loop only
• rep = repeat
• Bean st (bean stitch) = insert hook in the stitch or space indicated, yarn over and pull up a loop; yarn over, insert hook in the same place, yarn over and pull up a loop; repeat once more — 3 pull-ups in total, 6 loops on the hook — then yarn over and pull through all 6 loops, and ch 1 to close the bean. The closing ch-1 forms a small hole on top of the bean called its eye.

The Bean Stitch Purse Crochet Pattern, Step by Step

Round numbers run continuously from the base (Round 1) to the top edge (Round 18). Follow them in order to complete this bean stitch purse crochet pattern without guesswork.

Step 1 — Materials and Gauge

Swatch first: ch 15 and work about 18 rows of sc. Measure the middle — 13 stitches and 15 rows should sit inside 4 inches. Too many stitches means tight work: move up to a 5.5 mm hook. Too few, drop to 4.5 mm. Then practise one bean on the swatch, as defined above — three pull-ups, six loops, pull through, ch 1. A good bean sits like a plump pillow, about ⅝ in (1.5 cm) wide; pull each loop up to the height of the work. A tidy swatch is the best first step in this bean stitch purse crochet pattern.

Step 2 — The Base

The base is an oval worked in sc rounds around a foundation chain, growing by 6 stitches per round at the curved ends. With your main colour, ch 17.

• Round 1: 3 sc in the 2nd ch from the hook, sc in each of the next 14 ch, 3 sc in the last ch. Turn and work along the underside of the same chains: sc in each of the next 14 ch. Join with a sl st to the first sc. (34 sc)
• Round 2: Ch 1, 2 sc in each of the first 3 sts (first end, 6 sts), sc in each of the next 14 sts, 2 sc in each of the next 3 sts (second end, 6 sts), sc in each of the last 14 sts. Join. (40 sc)
• Round 3: Ch 1, (sc in the next st, 2 sc in the next st) 3 times over the first end (9 sts), sc in each of the next 14 sts, repeat over the second end (9 sts), sc in each of the last 14 sts. Join. (46 sc)
• Round 4: Ch 1, (sc in each of the next 2 sts, 2 sc in the next st) 3 times over the first end (12 sts), sc in each of the next 14 sts, repeat over the second end (12 sts), sc in each of the last 14 sts. Join. (52 sc)

Lay the oval flat: about 7½ × 3¼ in (19 × 8 cm), no ruffle or cup. End counts must run 34, 40, 46, 52 — if a round is off, rework it now.

• Round 5 (turn-up round): Ch 1, sc in the back loop only of every st around. Join. (52 sc) This round folds the fabric upward at a crisp right angle.

Step 3 — Setting Up the Bean Stitch

A bean takes the room of roughly two single crochets, so the first bean round works a bean into every other stitch of Round 5 — landing on a tidy 26.

• Round 6 (Bean Round 1): Ch 1. Bean st in the first st, skip the next st, *bean st in the next st, skip the next st; rep from * around. Join with a sl st to the top of the first bean. (26 beans)

Count them: 26, each over two stitches of Round 5, the skipped stitch tucked behind it. Look at a bean closely — the closing ch-1 leaves a small hole, the eye, at its top. That eye is the target for every bean in the next round — exactly one right place for each bean in this bean stitch purse crochet pattern. Push the beans so they all lean the same way, and mark the first bean’s eye.

Step 4 — Body Rounds

Every body round from here is identical:

• Rounds 7–14 (Bean Rounds 2–9): Sl st into the eye of the first bean. *Bean st in the eye of the next bean; rep from * around. Join with a sl st to the top of the first bean. (26 beans in every round)

Why the count can never change in this bean stitch purse crochet pattern: each bean below has exactly one eye, each eye receives exactly one bean, and each bean you make creates exactly one new eye — 26 in, 26 out. If you ever count 25 or 27, an eye was skipped or doubled; unpick that round only. Keep pull-up heights consistent for an even, woven look. After Round 14 the body measures about 6 in (15 cm) of bean texture above the base.

Step 5 — Top Band

A transition round rebuilds the full 52-stitch edge, then two sc rounds and a corded finish close the top:

• Round 15 (transition): Ch 1. *Sc in the eye of the next bean, sc in the top of the same bean (work into the stitch just beside its eye); rep from * around. Join. (52 sc) — 26 eyes plus 26 bean tops give back the base count.
• Rounds 16–17: Ch 1, sc in every st around. Join after each round. (52 sc per round)
• Round 18 (reverse sc edge): Ch 1, and working from left to right instead of right to left, work one reverse sc (crab stitch) in every st around. Join, fasten off and weave in the end. (52 sts)

The band stands about 1 in (2.5 cm) tall. The corded rim stops the top edge stretching under the strap’s pull and gives the snap a firm seat. Mark the centre front and centre back now (13 sts in from each side point) — the snap halves go there next. The same band finishes our crochet Christmas bag pattern.

Step 6 — Closure: The Magnetic Snap

A sew-in magnetic snap is the right closure here: invisible from outside, firm, and openable with one hand. Each half is a flat disc with sewing holes around its edge; either half can go at the front.

1. Position the first half on the inside of the front band, centred on your marker, its top about ½ in (1.3 cm) below the reverse-sc edge. Pin it.
2. With a sewing needle and doubled matching thread, stitch through every hole around the disc, passing through the band fabric each time, with stitches kept inside the band. Knot securely inside and trim.
3. Close the empty purse, press the band together, and mark where it meets on the inside back band. Sew the second half there the same way.
4. Test: the snap should click shut with the band meeting evenly. If it sits crooked, unpick and shift one half a stitch or two.

Optional lining: for daily use, sew the snap halves through a simple fabric lining and the band together — more closure ideas live in our crochet handbag patterns collection.

Step 7 — Strap and Finishing

The chain strap hangs from two small crocheted tabs, each folded over a D-ring.

Make 2 tabs: Ch 5. Row 1: sc in the 2nd ch from the hook and in each ch across. (4 sc) Rows 2–8: ch 1, turn, sc in every st across. (4 sc) Fasten off, leaving a 10 in (25 cm) tail. Each tab measures about 1¼ × 2¼ in (3 × 5.5 cm).

Placement: the side points of the rim sit 13 sts in from each centre marker (sts 13 and 39 around from the front marker); the tabs sit exactly on those side folds.

Attaching: slip a tab through one D-ring and fold it in half over the ring. Pin the folded end inside the purse against the top band at the side point, and whipstitch firmly across both tab layers and the band with the tail — two passes, sunk into the band stitches so nothing shows outside. Repeat on the other side, then tug each tab hard — it carries the purse’s full weight.

Clip the chain strap onto the two D-rings. Prefer a crocheted strap? Work a slip-stitch cord instead: ch 130, sl st in the 2nd ch from the hook and in every ch across, fasten off, and sew the ends to the D-rings. The chain makes it read as an accessory rather than a pouch — like our floral crochet daisy bag. Weave in all ends. That finishing touch is what completes this bean stitch purse crochet pattern.

Tips

• Pull every loop to the same height. Short pull-ups make small, tight beans that pucker the fabric.
• Work into the eye, not the bean. Splitting yarn means you are in the body of the bean below, not its closing-chain hole.
• Keep the closing ch-1 snug. It locks the bean and shapes the eye; a loose chain makes wobbly beans.
• Count beans, not stitches. A quick “26” at the end of every body round catches errors while they are one round deep.
• Practise on a swatch. Ten beans on scrap cotton teach the rhythm — the same approach as our braid stitch slippers.

Common Mistakes and How to Fix Them

• Beans look like flat popcorn. Pull-ups were too short, or the closing ch-1 was skipped — count the loops before pulling through: there must be 6.
• The body flares or narrows. A bean landed outside an eye, or an eye was skipped. The count is your alarm: 26, every round.
• A spiral seam creeps around the bag. Beans were worked into the wrong eye at the join. Keep your marker in each round’s first bean eye.
• The base ruffles. An increase round drifted — end counts must run 34, 40, 46, 52. A ruffled base never flattens under the body; rework it now.
• The snap halves miss each other. The second half was placed by eye. Mark the back position by pressing the closed purse together before sewing.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is this bean stitch purse crochet pattern suitable for beginners?

For a confident beginner, yes. The base and band are plain single crochet, and the bean is one repeated move spelled out above. Master ten practise beans first; if they match in size, you are ready.

How much yarn does the purse actually use?

About 230 yards (210 m) of worsted cotton — roughly two 100 g balls. Bean stitch is yarn-hungry by design (three pull-ups per stitch), so do not try to stretch one ball.

Can I make the purse bigger or smaller?

Yes. Smaller: stop the base after Round 2 (40 sts) and work 20 beans per round for 6 bean rounds, for a coin purse. Bigger: add one base round — (sc in each of the next 3 sts, 2 sc in the next st) 3 times at each end — to reach 58 sts, then work 29 beans per round and add bean rounds to your height. The transition round always returns the full base count, so the band never changes.

How do I wash the finished purse?

Unclip the strap first. Hand wash cool, or machine wash gentle in a laundry bag; reshape and dry flat. With that care, this bean stitch purse crochet pattern will stay looking boutique-bought for years.

Final Thoughts

This bean stitch purse crochet pattern is a small project with an outsized payoff: an evening of base and band, a few evenings of meditative bean rounds, and a bag that looks boutique-bought. Make one in dusty pink — expect requests in sage, cream and black soon after.