This little letter L is a sage green initial with a small cluster of flowers tucked into its corner. It hangs from a gold key ring on a short chain. You can use it as a bag charm, a keychain, or a personal gift.
The body is worked in tight single crochet, which gives a firm, slightly pebbled texture. A raised, corded rim runs all the way around the outline. In the inner corner sit three five-petal flowers in pink, cream white, and lilac. Each has a yellow center, and three olive green leaves frame the group.
The pattern uses US crochet terms. The finished charm measures 3.2 in (8.1 cm) wide and 3.9 in (9.9 cm) tall, not counting the hardware.
Construction is simple. You work the L flat in rows, starting with the foot and continuing up the upright. Next you make the flowers and leaves separately. A two-round border outlines the letter, and then you sew the flowers and leaves onto the lower left corner and attach the key ring.
Finished Size and Construction
- Finished size: 3.2 in (8.1 cm) wide x 3.9 in (9.9 cm) tall
- Skill level: Easy (advanced beginner)
- Terminology: US crochet terms
- Yarn weight: DK (#3), cotton
- Hook: 3.0 mm
- Number of pieces: 1 single charm: one letter body, plus 3 flowers and 3 leaves sewn onto it
- Layout: One letter L, with the upright on the left, the foot pointing right, and the flowers clustered at the lower left
- Body size before border: 2.8 in (7.1 cm) wide x 3.5 in (8.9 cm) tall
- Upright width before border: 1.2 in (3.0 cm)
- Foot height before border: 1 in (2.5 cm)
- Border depth: 0.2 in (0.5 cm) on every side
Materials
Use a smooth cotton or cotton blend in DK weight. Cotton keeps the letter’s edges crisp and holds its shape on a keychain that gets handled every day. Avoid fuzzy or very stretchy yarns, because the rim and petal details get lost in them.
Yarn:
- Sage green (letter body and border): 8 g, about 20 m
- Pink (large flower): 2 g, about 5 m
- Cream white (small flower): 2 g, about 5 m
- Lilac (small flower): 2 g, about 5 m
- Yellow (flower centers): 1 g, about 3 m
- Olive green (leaves): 2 g, about 5 m
These amounts include a small extra margin for your gauge check and yarn tails.
Tools:
- 3.0 mm crochet hook
- Tapestry needle
- Stitch marker
- Gold split key ring, 1 in (2.5 cm) across
- Short gold chain, about 1 in (2.5 cm) long, with 2 small jump rings
- Jewelry pliers
- Blocking mat and rust-proof pins
- Scissors
Abbreviations (US Terms)
- ch: chain
- sl st: slip stitch
- sc: single crochet
- hdc: half double crochet
- dc: double crochet
- BLO: back loop only
- MR: magic ring
- st(s): stitch(es)
Special stitch: edge sc2tog (inner corner). Insert the hook in the first spot, yarn over, and pull up a loop. Insert the hook in the second spot, yarn over, and pull up a loop. Yarn over and pull through all 3 loops. This turns two edges into one stitch so the inner corner stays sharp.
Gauge and Checkpoints
Gauge: 5 sc and 6 rows = 1 in (2.5 cm), worked in single crochet rows with a 3.0 mm hook. A swatch of 20 sc x 24 rows measures 4 in (10.2 cm) square.
The letter is small, so it can be your test piece. Work the foot (Rows 1–6) and measure it before you go on.
Checkpoints:
- After Row 6, the foot measures 2.8 in (7.1 cm) wide x 1 in (2.5 cm) tall.
- After Row 21, the total height is 3.5 in (8.9 cm) and the upright is 1.2 in (3.0 cm) wide.
- Pink flower: 1 in (2.5 cm) across. White and lilac flowers: 0.9 in (2.3 cm) across.
- Each leaf: about 1 in (2.5 cm) long.
- After Border Round 2, the letter measures 3.2 in (8.1 cm) wide x 3.9 in (9.9 cm) tall.
If the foot is too big, change to a 2.75 mm hook. If it is too small, change to a 3.25 mm hook. The stitch counts stay the same either way. A slightly tight fabric is better than a loose one for a keychain, so if you’re between two sizes, choose the smaller.
Letter Body
The letter is worked flat in rows. The ch 1 at the start of each row does not count as a stitch.
Foot
Row 1: With sage green, ch 15. Sc in the 2nd ch from the hook and in each ch across. (14 sc)
Rows 2–6: Ch 1, turn. Sc in each st across. (14 sc)
Checkpoint 1: the foot is 2.8 in (7.1 cm) wide and 1 in (2.5 cm) tall.
Upright
Row 7: Ch 1, turn. Sc in the first 6 sts only, and leave the other 8 sts unworked. (6 sc)
Rows 8–21: Ch 1, turn. Sc in each st across. (6 sc)
Fasten off and weave in the ends.
Checkpoint 2: the total height is 3.5 in (8.9 cm). The upright is 1.2 in (3.0 cm) wide, and the 8 unworked foot stitches extend 1.6 in (4.1 cm) beside it.
Finding the front: Single crochet looks almost the same on both sides. Lay the piece with the upright on the left and the foot pointing right, so it reads as an L. That side is the front. Mark it with a stitch marker.
Flowers
Make 3 flowers: 1 pink (large), 1 cream white, and 1 lilac. Each one starts with a yellow center.
Center (make 3):
Round 1: With yellow, make a MR and work 5 sc into it. Pull the ring tight and join with a sl st to the first sc. (5 sc) Fasten off.
Pink flower (large petals):
Round 2: Join pink with a sl st in any sc of the center. *Work (ch 2, 3 dc, ch 2, sl st) all in the same st, then sl st in the next st. Repeat from * 4 more times, working the last sl st into the joining st. (5 petals of 3 dc each)
Fasten off, leaving a 6 in (15.2 cm) tail for sewing. The flower should measure about 1 in (2.5 cm) across.
White and lilac flowers (small petals):
Round 2: Join the petal color with a sl st in any sc of the center. *Work (ch 2, 2 dc, ch 2, sl st) all in the same st, then sl st in the next st. Repeat from * 4 more times, working the last sl st into the joining st. (5 petals of 2 dc each)
Fasten off, leaving a 6 in (15.2 cm) tail. These flowers should measure about 0.9 in (2.3 cm) across.
If a center looks flat, add one yellow French knot over the magic ring.
Leaves
Make 3 leaves in olive green.
Leaf: Ch 7. Working into the back bumps of the chain: sl st in the 2nd ch from the hook, then sc, hdc, dc, hdc, and sc in the next 5 ch, one stitch in each. (6 sts) Ch 2 for the tip. Turn the piece and work along the other side of the chain: sc, hdc, dc, hdc, and sc in the next 5 ch, one stitch in each, then sl st in the last ch. (6 sts) Join with a sl st to the first sl st.
Each leaf has 12 sts plus a ch-2 tip and is about 1 in (2.5 cm) long. Fasten off, leaving a 6 in (15.2 cm) tail.
Border
The border has two rounds. Round 1 is a single crochet outline that squares off the corners. Round 2 is a slip stitch round worked in the back loops, which makes the raised, corded rim.
Border gauge: Work 1 sc in each stitch along the top and bottom edges (5 per inch) and 1 sc in each row end along the sides (6 per inch). A single crochet is a little wider than it is tall, so the sides pack slightly tighter. That keeps the long edges firm and flat, and blocking evens out any small difference.
Corner rule: Each outer corner gets 3 sc worked into one corner stitch. That corner stitch belongs to the top or bottom edge it sits on. The side counts below leave it out, so no stitch is counted twice.
Round 1: With the front facing you, join sage green in the first st of Row 21 (the top left corner of the upright). Then work:
- Top of upright: 3 sc in the first st, sc in the next 4 sts, 3 sc in the last st. (10 sts)
- Inner side of upright: Working down, sc in the row ends of Rows 20 through 8. (13 sts)
- Inner corner: Work an edge sc2tog. Put the first leg in the row end of Row 7 and the second leg in the first unworked st of Row 6, next to the upright. (1 st)
- Top of foot: Sc in the next 6 unworked sts, then 3 sc in the last unworked st. (9 sts)
- Right end of foot: Sc in the row ends of Rows 5 through 1. (5 sts)
- Bottom edge: Working into the other side of the foundation chain, 3 sc in the first ch, sc in the next 12 ch, 3 sc in the last ch. (18 sts)
- Left side: Sc in the row ends of Rows 1 through 20. (20 sts)
Join with a sl st to the first sc. (76 sts)
Check: 10 + 13 + 1 + 9 + 5 + 18 + 20 = 76.
Round 2: Ch 1. Sl st in the BLO of each st around, with no extra stitches at the corners. Join with a sl st to the first sl st. (76 sl sts)
Keep your slip stitches relaxed. If they are too tight, the rim pulls the letter inward. Fasten off and weave in the ends.
Why the math works: Round 1 adds one stitch all the way around, which is about 0.2 in (0.5 cm) on each side. The 3-sc corners give each outer corner enough length to turn 90 degrees and still lie flat. At the inner corner, where the edge turns inward, the sc2tog takes away length instead. Round 2 sits on top of Round 1, so it adds height to the rim but no width. The letter grows from 2.8 in (7.1 cm) to 3.2 in (8.1 cm) wide, and from 3.5 in (8.9 cm) to 3.9 in (9.9 cm) tall.
Assembly
Lay the letter front side up and arrange the appliqués at the lower left corner:
- Pink flower: on the upright, just above where it meets the foot, slightly overlapping the left rim.
- White flower: directly below the pink flower, over the bottom left corner.
- Lilac flower: to the right of the white flower, on the foot, tucked partly under the pink flower.
- Leaf 1: behind the pink flower, with the tip pointing up and out to the left.
- Leaf 2: below the white flower, with the tip pointing down and to the left.
- Leaf 3: to the right of the lilac flower, with the tip pointing right along the foot.
Pin the leaves first and the flowers on top. Sew each piece on with its own tail, using small whipstitches. Catch only the front layer of the letter so no stitches show on the back. Add one extra stitch at each petal tip so the petals stay flat.
Hardware: Open a jump ring and push it through Round 1 at the top center of the upright, between the 5th and 6th sts of the 10-st top edge. Hook on the chain. Use the second jump ring to join the other end of the chain to the key ring. Close both jump rings completely.
Final Blocking
- Lightly mist the charm with water, or steam it from above without letting the iron touch the yarn.
- Lay it face up on a blocking mat.
- Pin the 5 outer corners square.
- Pin the inner corner into a crisp right angle.
- Check that it measures 3.2 in (8.1 cm) wide x 3.9 in (9.9 cm) tall, and that the upright is 1.6 in (4.1 cm) wide.
- Press the petals flat with your fingers.
- Let it dry completely before you remove the pins.
Final Quality-Control Checklist
- The foot is 14 sts wide, the upright is 6 sts wide, and there are 21 rows in total.
- Border Round 1 has 76 sts, and Round 2 has 76 sl sts.
- All 5 outer corners are square, and the inner corner is sharp.
- The rim is even and doesn’t curl the letter.
- The pink flower is 1 in (2.5 cm) across, and the white and lilac flowers are 0.9 in (2.3 cm).
- All 3 leaf tips are stitched down.
- No sewing shows on the back.
- Both jump rings are fully closed.
- The finished size is 3.2 in (8.1 cm) x 3.9 in (9.9 cm).
Troubleshooting
The L is backward. Flip it over. Single crochet looks almost the same on both sides, so the other side can be the front.
The edges ripple. The Round 1 stitches are too loose. Work Round 1 with a hook one size smaller.
The letter cups or curls. The slip stitch round is too tight. Redo Round 2 with a larger hook.
The inner corner is rounded. Check that you used the edge sc2tog there, then pin the corner firmly when blocking.
The petals are floppy. Pull the magic ring tighter and work the petals with a smaller hook.
The charm feels thin. Use a smaller hook for the body, or whipstitch matching felt to the back.
Care
Take off the key ring first. Then hand wash the charm in cool water with mild soap, press it in a towel, and dry it flat.
Final Notes
Here is the measurement chain from start to finish. A gauge of 5 sc and 6 rows per 1 in (2.5 cm) gives a foot of 2.8 in (7.1 cm) x 1 in (2.5 cm). The upright brings the height to 3.5 in (8.9 cm). The 76-stitch border adds 0.2 in (0.5 cm) on every side, for a finished size of 3.2 in (8.1 cm) x 3.9 in (9.9 cm). Sew on three flowers and three leaves, add the key ring, and your initial is ready to hang.
Happy crocheting!