The Frosted Sage Snowflake is a small, textured ornament that is mostly lace, with a chunky center of six puff-stitch petals. Six fan-shaped points open out from that center. A smooth scalloped outline frames the fans, and a tiny trefoil of picots finishes each tip.
It is worked in one color, a soft dusty sage-teal. That muted shade looks calm and wintry against green branches, gold baubles, and warm fairy lights. Mercerized cotton gives the stitches a slight sheen and helps the points hold their shape after blocking.
The pattern uses US crochet terms. The finished snowflake measures 5 in (12.7 cm) from tip to tip and 4 in (10.2 cm) from valley to valley.
You work it in the round as one piece, in six rounds. You start with a ring of single crochet and add the six puff petals. Then you work chain loops, the fans, and an outline round, and finish with a border round of single crochet with trefoil tips. An optional chain loop turns it into a hanging ornament.
Finished Size and Construction
- Finished size: 5 in (12.7 cm) tip to tip; 4 in (10.2 cm) valley to valley
- Skill level: Easy-intermediate
- Terminology: US crochet terms
- Yarn weight: Sport weight (2), mercerized cotton
- Hook: 2.75 mm (US C/2)
- Number of pieces: 1 (single motif)
- Layout: Single six-pointed snowflake; no joining
- Piece size: 5 in (12.7 cm) tip to tip
- Size before border (after Round 5): 4.25 in (10.8 cm) tip to tip
- Border depth: 0.375 in (1.0 cm) per point, including the trefoil
Materials
Yarn: Choose a smooth, tightly plied sport-weight mercerized cotton. Cotton gives you crisp puffs and well-defined picots, and it takes starch well. Avoid fuzzy or very soft acrylic, which blurs the fans and makes the points droop.
- Sage-teal (main color): 10 g, about 31 m (34 yd)
This amount includes about a 25% margin for the gauge swatch, the hanging loop, and weaving in ends. If you plan to make a set, one 50 g ball makes about five snowflakes.
Tools:
- 2.75 mm (US C/2) crochet hook
- Tapestry needle
- Small sharp scissors
- Blocking mat or folded towel
- Rustproof pins
- Spray starch or a diluted fabric stiffener (optional)
- Ruler or tape measure
Abbreviations (US Terms)
- ch – chain
- sl st – slip stitch
- sc – single crochet
- tr – treble crochet
- sk – skip
- sp – space
- st(s) – stitch(es)
- rep – repeat
- puff – puff stitch (see below)
- trefoil – three-picot tip (see below)
Puff stitch (puff): Yarn over, insert the hook in the stitch indicated, and pull up a loop to about 0.25 in (0.6 cm) tall. Do this 4 times in the same stitch, so you have 9 loops on the hook. Yarn over and pull through all 9 loops, then ch 1 to lock the puff. The locking ch does not count as a stitch.
Trefoil: [Ch 3, sl st in the 3rd ch from the hook] 3 times, working each sl st into the base of the first picot. The three picots fan out like a tiny clover. The trefoil does not count as a stitch.
Gauge and Checkpoints
Gauge isn’t critical for an ornament, but it decides whether your snowflake comes out the size shown. Work Rounds 1–2 as a test before you commit to the whole piece.
Gauge: Rounds 1–2 = 1.25 in (3.2 cm) across, measured from the outer edge of one puff to the outer edge of the opposite puff.
Checkpoints (measured flat, before blocking):
- After Round 2: 1.25 in (3.2 cm) across
- After Round 3: 2 in (5.1 cm) across the chain loops
- After Round 4: 3.25 in (8.3 cm) across the tops of the fans
- After Round 5: 4.25 in (10.8 cm) tip to tip
- After Round 6 and blocking: 5 in (12.7 cm) tip to tip
If your piece is too big: Change to a 2.5 mm hook, or pull up the puff loops less. Big puffs are the most common reason for an oversized center.
If your piece is too small: Change to a 3 mm hook. If the fans curl inward, check that you are not tightening the ch-6 loops in Round 3.
You can always block a piece that is off by 0.125 in (0.3 cm) or less. Re-gauge anything larger than that.
Pattern
Round 1: Center Ring
Make a magic ring.
Round 1: Ch 1 (does not count as a stitch), work 12 sc into the ring. Pull the tail to close the ring, leaving a small opening at the center. Sl st to the first sc to join. (12 sc)
The small hole you leave open becomes the eye of the snowflake. Don’t pull it completely closed.
Round 2: Puff Petals
Round 2: Ch 1. Puff in the next sc, ch 3, sk 1 sc; rep from * 5 more times. Sl st to the top of the first puff to join. (6 puffs, 6 ch-3 sps; 24 sts counting each chain)*
The six puffs sit side by side and make the round, petal-like center. Push each puff forward with your fingertip so it bulges on the right side.
Round 3: Chain Loops
Round 3: Sl st into the first ch-3 sp. Ch 1, sc in the ch-3 sp, ch 6; rep from * 5 more times. Sl st to the first sc to join. (6 sc, 6 ch-6 loops)*
Each ch-6 loop arches over one puff petal. These loops are the base for the six fans, so each snowflake point lines up with a puff.
Checkpoint: 2 in (5.1 cm) across the loops.
Round 4: Fans
Round 4: Ch 1, sc in the same sc as the join. Work 9 tr in the next ch-6 loop, sc in the next sc; rep from * 4 more times. Then work 9 tr in the last ch-6 loop and sl st to the first sc to join. (6 sc + 54 tr = 60 sts)*
Each group of 9 tr spreads into a half-circle fan. The 5th tr of each fan is its center stitch, and it marks where the snowflake point will be. If you like, place a removable marker in the 5th tr of the first fan.
Checkpoint: 3.25 in (8.3 cm) across the fan tops.
Round 5: Outline Arches
Round 5: Ch 1, sc in the same sc as the join. Ch 5, sk 4 tr, sc in the next (5th) tr, ch 5, sk the last 4 tr of the fan, sc in the next sc; rep from * around, but on the final repeat leave out the last sc and sl st to the first sc to join instead. (12 sc + 60 ch = 72 sts; 12 ch-5 sps)*
This round makes the open framework around each fan. Each fan is now covered by two ch-5 arches that meet at a peak (the sc in the 5th tr). The sc between fans becomes a valley.
Checkpoint (size before border): 4.25 in (10.8 cm) tip to tip.
Border
The border is Round 6. It wraps each ch-5 arch in solid single crochet and adds a trefoil at each point, which gives the snowflake its sharp silhouette.
Border gauge: Work 7 sc into each ch-5 sp, which comes to about 7 sc per 0.875 in (2.2 cm) of arch.
Round 6: Ch 1, sc in the same sc as the join (valley sc). *Work 7 sc in the next ch-5 sp. In the peak sc, work (sc, trefoil, sc). Work 7 sc in the next ch-5 sp, then sc in the next valley sc. Rep from * around, but on the final repeat leave out the last valley sc and sl st to the first sc to join. Fasten off, leaving a 6 in (15.2 cm) tail.
Counts per side (one point):
- Valley sc: 1
- First arch: 7 sc
- Point: 2 sc + 1 trefoil
- Second arch: 7 sc
- Total per point: 17 sc + 1 trefoil
Round total: 6 × 17 = 102 sc + 6 trefoils
Why the math works: A ch-5 arch needs more than 5 sc to lie flat. If you work only 5 sc, the arch tightens and the point cups upward. If you work 9 or more, it ruffles. Seven sc is 5 stitches for the chains plus 2 extra for the curve, so the arch sits smooth and slightly rounded, like the scallops in the photo. Each valley gets only 1 sc, which keeps the dip sharp. The peak gets 2 sc on either side of the trefoil, so the point is narrow and the three picots open outward.
The border adds 0.375 in (1.0 cm) at each tip: 4.25 in + 0.375 in + 0.375 in = 5 in (12.7 cm).
Optional Hanging Loop
Join the yarn with a sl st into the middle picot of any trefoil. Ch 30, then sl st into the same picot. Fasten off and weave in the ends. When folded, the loop hangs about 2 in (5.1 cm) above the tip.
Final Blocking
- Weave in all ends along the back of the sc stitches, splitting the plies so the ends can’t work loose.
- Soak the snowflake in cool water for 5 minutes, then press it gently in a towel. Don’t wring it.
- Lay it right side up on a blocking mat.
- Pin the center first by placing one pin through the center ring.
- Pin the six trefoil tips so they are evenly spaced and 5 in (12.7 cm) apart from tip to tip on opposite points.
- Pin each valley so that opposite valleys are 4 in (10.2 cm) apart.
- Open each trefoil with a pin in each outer picot.
- Spread each fan so the 9 tr fan out evenly.
- Lift each puff gently with a fingertip so it stays rounded.
- If you want a stiff ornament, spray it lightly with starch, or brush on diluted stiffener.
- Leave it pinned until it is completely dry, usually 6–12 hours.
Final Quality-Control Checklist
- Center ring is small but open
- Six puffs, evenly sized and all bulging to the right side
- Six fans, each with 9 tr
- Twelve ch-5 arches, each covered with 7 sc
- Six trefoils, each with three open picots
- Round 6 total: 102 sc + 6 trefoils
- Tip to tip: 5 in (12.7 cm)
- Valley to valley: 4 in (10.2 cm)
- All points the same length within 0.125 in (0.3 cm)
- Ends woven in securely and hidden on the back
- Hanging loop (if used) firmly attached to a trefoil
Troubleshooting
Center won’t lie flat: The puffs are too tall for the ch-3 spaces. Pull up shorter loops, or go down a hook size for Round 2 only.
Fans flare or ruffle: Your treble crochet is loose. Keep the first yarn-over firm, or work 8 tr per fan and skip 4 / skip 3 in Round 5, placing the peak sc in the 5th tr.
Points cup forward: The ch-5 arches are tight. Loosen your chains or work them with a 3 mm hook.
Arches ripple: You’ve worked more than 7 sc per space. Count each arch.
Trefoils look like a single knot: Work each picot’s sl st into the same base chain, and keep the ch-3 relaxed.
Uneven points: This is usually a miscount in Round 4. Check that every fan has exactly 9 tr before you start Round 5.
Care
Hand wash in cool water with a mild soap, press dry in a towel, and re-block flat. Re-starch after washing if you want the snowflake stiff, and store it flat between tissue paper.
Final Notes
Here is the full measurement chain. A 12-sc ring with six puffs measures 1.25 in (3.2 cm). The ch-6 loops bring it to 2 in (5.1 cm). The 9-tr fans reach 3.25 in (8.3 cm), and the outline arches 4.25 in (10.8 cm). The border of 102 sc and 6 trefoils finishes the snowflake at 5 in (12.7 cm) tip to tip and 4 in (10.2 cm) valley to valley.
Measure at each checkpoint and you’ll get a crisp, even snowflake every time. One makes a sweet gift tag, and a handful in sage cotton look lovely on a tree.
Happy crocheting!