Introduction: Crocheted Spare Tire Cover

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This is one of my favorite crochet projects to date!

I made this spare tire cover as a gift for my mom who is a very proud Jeep owner. She's also a master crafter and a very skilled crocheter herself, so I thought this would be the perfect gift for her birthday.

At first glance, this appears as a very long Instructable, but you'll see it's mostly doing the same thing over and over again, just with slight increases or decreases. But for the most part, if you know how to crochet a row of granny stitches, then you should easily be able to make this tire cover.

Because I made this tire cover as a gift for someone who lives on the other side of the country, I didn't know exactly how big to make it at first. But I found a way around that. I asked my mom for the exact measurements of her spare tire (circumference, diameter, and depth) and I made a cardboard replica. This, of course, is not necessary, but you will see pictures of the progress of the tire cover sitting on top of a giant cardboard circular model of a spare tire, and you might ask yourself, "what is that thing?" Well, that's what that thing is.

Let's get to crocheting!

Step 1: Materials

You'll need:

  • Several different colors of acrylic yarn
  • Crochet hook, Size J/10 (6mm)
  • Large embroidery needle (for sewing in yarn ends)
  • 1 yard of 1/2" elastic
  • Safety pin
  • Needle and thread

Optional:

  • Pre-cut 1.5 yards of polyester fleece (54" x 60")
  • Additional yard of 1/2" elastic

Step 2: Let's Begin

We'll start with the *magic circle*.

First round: Into this magic circle make 3ch (counts as 1dc) 1dc, *ch1, 2dc* repeat ** until you have 6 2dc’s separated by 1ch each. Join with a slip stitch into the nearest stitch to close the round. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

Second round: Increasing. ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, ch1, 2dc into the SAME space, ch1, into the next space dc2, ch1, 2dc in the same space, repeat sequence until you go all the way around. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

Third round: Ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, ch2, 2dc into the next space, ch2, repeat sequence until all the way around. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space. If you want to switch colors for the next round, join the two different colored yarns now, before you slip stitch, so the knot gets hidden.

Step 3: Begin to Increase

Fourth round (dark blue): Ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, ch2, 2dc into the next space, ch2, repeat
sequence until all the way around. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

Fifth round (dark blue): Increasing. ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, ch1, 2dc into the SAME space, ch1,
into the next space dc2, ch1, 2dc in the same space, repeat sequence until you go all the way around. Join next yarn color. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

Step 4: 'Round & Round'

Sixth round (turquoise): Ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, ch2, 2dc into the next space, ch2, repeat
sequence until all the way around. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

Seventh round (turquoise):Increasing. ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, ch1, 2dc into the SAME space, ch1,
2dc into the next space, ch1, 2dc in the same space, repeat sequence until you go all the way around. Join next yarn color. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

Step 5: 'Another Round'

Eighth and ninth rounds (both rounds of yellow): Ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, ch2, 2dc into the next space, ch2, repeat sequence until all the way around. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space. Repeat for same for the ninth round. Join next yarn color.

(At this point, this would make a beautiful trivet!)

Step 6: 'Round Robin'

Tenth round (orange): Half-Increasing. ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, ch2, 2dc into the next space, ch2, 2dc into the next space, ch1, 2dc into the SAME space. Repeat sequence of 2dc, 2dc, 4dc in the spaces until end of the round. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

Eleventh round (orange): Ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, ch2, 2dc into the next space, ch2, repeat sequence until all the way around. Join next yarn color. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

Step 7: 'Life Goes Round'

Twelfth and thirteenth rounds (both purple): Ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, ch2, 2dc into the next space, ch2, repeat sequence until all the way around. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space. Repeat for same for the thirteenth round. Join next yarn color.

Fourteenth round (dark blue): Ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, ch2, 2dc into the next space, ch2, repeat sequence until all the way around. Join next yarn color. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

Fifteenth round (dark blue): Half-Increasing. ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, ch2, 2dc into the next space, ch2, 2dc into the next space, ch1, 2dc into the SAME space. Repeat sequence of 2dc, 2dc, 4dc until end of the round. Join next yarn color. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

Sixteenth and seventeen rounds (turquoise): Ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, ch2, 2dc into the next space, ch2, repeat sequence until all the way around. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space. Repeat for same for the seventeenth round. Join next yarn color.

Step 8: 'Round in Circles'

Eighteenth round (yellow): Half-increasing. ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, ch2, 2dc into the next space, ch2, 2dc into the next space, ch1, dc2 into the SAME space. Repeat sequence of 2dc, 2dc, 4dc until end of the round. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

Nineteenth round (yellow): Ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, ch2, 2dc into the next space, ch2, repeat sequence until all the way around. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space. Join next yarn color.

Step 9: 'It All Comes Round'

Twentieth and twenty-first rounds (orange):
Ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, ch2, 2dc into the next space, ch2, repeat sequence until all the way around. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space. Repeat for same for the 21st round. Join next yarn color.

Twenty-second and twenty-third rounds (purple): Ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, ch2, 2dc into the next space, ch2, repeat sequence until all the way around. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space. Repeat for same for the 23rd round. Join next yarn color.

Step 10: Beginning to Decrease

Twenty-fourth round (dark blue): Half-decrease. Ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, chain stitch ONLY 1, 2dc in the next space, chain stitch ONLY 1, repeat sequence until all the way around. Change yarn color. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

Twenty-fifth and twenty-sixth rounds (turquoise): Half-decrease. Ch3 (counts as 1dc) 1dc, chain stitch ONLY 1, 2dc in the next space, chain stitch ONLY 1, repeat sequence until all the way around. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space. Repeat the same steps for the 26th row.

(Note: You can see the cardboard "tire" model I made in the third photo. Like I said in the intro, I only made this because I was making this cover as a gift to my mom, who lives on the other side of the country. She gave me the measurements of her Jeep's spare tire and I made a replica out of some cardboard I had. I just wanted to make sure I was making something that was going to fit perfectly!)

Step 11: Decrease More

27th round (yellow): We're decreasing more here to account for going around the tire. Ch3 (counts as 1dc), 1dc in the same stitch, then 2dc in each stitch after that until all the way around. Do not chain stitch in between stitches for this round. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

28th round (yellow): Ch3 (counts as 1dc), 1dc in the same stitch, ch1, then 2dc in next space, repeat until all the way around. Change yarn color. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

29th and 30th rounds (orange): Ch3 (counts as 1dc), 1dc in the same stitch, ch1, then 2dc in next space, repeat until all the way around. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space. Repeat the same steps for the 30th row.

Step 12: Almost There

31st round (purple): We're very slightly increasing here to accommodate for the rounding of the tire. Ch3 (counts as 1dc), 1dc in the same stitch, ch1, then 2dc in next space, ch2, 2dc in next space, ch1. Repeat 2 double crochets in all spaces with alternating ch1 and ch2 in between until all the way around. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

32nd round (purple): Ch3 (counts as 1dc), 1dc in the same stitch, ch1, then 2dc in next space, repeat until all the way around. Change yarn color. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

33rd and 34th rounds (dark blue): Ch3 (counts as 1dc), 1dc in the same stitch, ch1, then 2dc in next space, repeat until all the way around. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space. Repeat the same steps for the 34th row.

Step 13: Finishing Up

35th round (turquoise): We're decreasing more here to account for going around the tire. Ch3 (counts as 1dc), 1dc in the same stitch, then 2dc in each stitch after that until all the way around. Do not chain stitch in between stitches for this round. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

36th round (turquoise): Ch3 (counts as 1dc), 1dc in the same stitch, ch1, then 2dc in next space, repeat until all the way around. Change yarn color. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space.

37th and 38th rounds (yellow): Ch3 (counts as 1dc), 1dc in the same stitch, ch1, then 2dc in next space, repeat until all the way around. Slip stitch three times to the nearest open space. Repeat the same steps for the 38th row.

Step 14: Make It Stretchy

Grab your length of elastic and put a safety pin on one end of it. Thread it through the open spaces between double crochets until you go all the way around.

Because I didn't know exactly how this was going to fit around my mom's tire, I mailed it to her like this and let her cut the elastic where she needed it and she securely sewed the ends together using a needle and thread.

Step 15: Sewing in Your Ends

You'll be left with all of these annoying yarn ends, so you'll need to get a large needle and sew them all into your work.

Step 16: Make a Quick Base Layer

This step isn't necessary but it's an easy way to make the colors of the crochet cover really pop, especially if you don't already have a tire cover on your spare tire.

My mom came up with the idea to make a quick fleece cover for under the crochet cover. She bought some pre-cut polyester fleece 1-1/2 yards (54" x 60") and rounded the corners of it. Then she cut small slits with a pair of scissors two inches apart all the way around the perimeter of the rounded square. Then she (used the same elastic method I did for the crochet cover and) put a safety pin on the end of a length of elastic and threaded it through the slits. She sewed the ends of the elastic together using a needle and thread, and she had a base cover for under the crochet cover!

Step 17: Finally Finished!

This project took me weeks. But the end result was definitely worth it, because it looks so stunning! My mom says she gets compliments on the crochet cover all the time. The colors I chose go really well with her blue Jeep and it makes me so happy looking at the pictures she sends me.

My mom parks under a carport so the sun doesn't hit it directly, and she'll remove it if she feels it might get messed up in stormy/wintry weather. And because I used acrylic yarn (which is basically plastic) this cover should last a long, long time.

Step 18: Update: I Made a Second One!

After seeing this Instructable, a woman asked if I could crochet her a tire cover for her Jeep. She chose a color scheme and I came up with this. Thankfully she loved it!


If you loved this Instructable as much as I loved making it, then please consider voting for me in the Fiber Arts Contest. Thank you!

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