The Golden Lantern Curtain is a valance-style window curtain made of crocheted strands hanging from a straight header band. Eight strands carry three open, cage-like “lantern” pods each. Seven slim strands of small knots and diamond-shaped chain links hang between them, and every strand ends in a short tassel.
It’s worked in one warm mustard-gold cotton. With sunlight behind it, the ribbed pods glow like a row of woven lanterns. The look is boho and airy, and the view still shows through.
This pattern uses US crochet terms. The finished curtain measures 30 in (76.2 cm) wide and 25.75 in (65.4 cm) long from the top of the header to the tassel tips.
You crochet 15 separate strands top-down, each starting with a small triangle. The pods use one round of broomstick-style long loops. Then you join the triangles with one row of single crochet across their top edges and add five more rows to finish the header. The open mesh row in the header takes a tension rod.
Finished Size and Construction
- Finished size: 30 in (76.2 cm) wide x 25.75 in (65.4 cm) long
- Skill level: Intermediate (simple broomstick lace worked in the round)
- Terminology: US crochet terms
- Yarn weight: Worsted (#4) cotton
- Hook: 5.0 mm (H-8)
- Number of pieces: 15 strands (8 pod strands and 7 slim strands), joined by the header
- Layout: 1 row of 15 strands, pod and slim strands alternating
- Piece size: each strand is 2 in (5.1 cm) wide at the triangle top and 24 in (61.0 cm) long including the tassel
- Size before border: 30 in (76.2 cm) x 24.25 in (61.6 cm) after the joining row
- Border depth: the header band adds 1.5 in (3.8 cm)
Materials
Yarn: Use a smooth, tightly plied worsted-weight cotton. Cotton holds the pod shape after starching and doesn’t stretch much while hanging. Acrylic lets the long loops droop.
- Mustard gold: 250 g / 400 m (437 yd)
This amount includes a margin of about 15% for tassels and test pieces.
Tools:
- 5.0 mm (H-8) crochet hook
- Broomstick pin or smooth wooden dowel, 1.25 in (3.2 cm) diameter, about 8 in (20.3 cm) long
- Stiff cardboard strip, 2.5 in (6.4 cm) wide, for tassels
- Stitch markers and a tapestry needle
- Scissors
- 24 small plastic eggs or small balloons, for blocking
- Spray starch, or fabric stiffener diluted 1:1 with water
- Tension rod or slim curtain rod
Abbreviations (US Terms)
- ch – chain
- sl st – slip stitch
- sc – single crochet
- sc2tog – single crochet 2 together
- dc – double crochet
- st(s) – stitch(es)
- sp – space
- rnd – round
- yo – yarn over
- RS – right side
Special stitches
Knot: Ch 2, then work 4 dc in the 2nd ch from the hook. Drop the loop from your hook and insert the hook from front to back into the first of those dc. Pick up the dropped loop and pull it through, then ch 1 to lock it. The knot is about 0.5 in (1.3 cm) tall.
Long loop: Keep the working loop on the hook. Insert the hook in the next st and pull up a loop. Lift that new loop off the hook onto the broomstick pin. The working loop stays on your hook the whole time.
Gauge and Checkpoints
Gauge: 16 sc and 16 rows = 4 in (10.2 cm). Chain gauge: 4 ch = 1 in (2.5 cm).
Make and block one test pod first. It uses every technique in the curtain except the knot and the tassel.
Checkpoints:
- Pod, after Rnd 3: pressed flat, the collar measures 2 in (5.1 cm) across.
- Ribs: after the work-off round, they relax to about 2 in (5.1 cm).
- Finished pod: 3.5 in (8.9 cm) long, and 2.25 in (5.7 cm) at its widest after blocking.
- Diamond link: 2.5 in (6.4 cm) from stem to stem.
- Triangle: 2 in (5.1 cm) wide and 1.5 in (3.8 cm) deep.
Too big? Use a hook 0.5 mm smaller. If only the ribs are too long, use a 1 in (2.5 cm) dowel.
Too small? Use a hook 0.5 mm larger. If only the ribs are short, use a 1.5 in (3.8 cm) dowel.
The curtain width comes only from triangle width: 15 x 2 in = 30 in (76.2 cm). Get the triangle right first.
Triangle Top (Make 15, One per Strand)
Each strand starts with a triangle worked top-down. Leave a 6 in (15.2 cm) starting tail.
Row 1: Ch 9, sc in 2nd ch from hook and in each ch across, turn. (8 sc)
Row 2: Ch 1, sc in each st across, turn. (8 sc)
Row 3: Ch 1, sc2tog, sc in next 4 sts, sc2tog, turn. (6 sc)
Row 4: Ch 1, sc2tog, sc in next 2 sts, sc2tog, turn. (4 sc)
Row 5: Ch 1, [sc2tog] twice, turn. (2 sc)
Row 6: Ch 1, sc2tog. (1 sc, the point)
Checkpoint: 2 in (5.1 cm) across the top and 1.5 in (3.8 cm) deep. Mark the RS, which is the side facing you on Row 1.
Hanging cord: Ch 8 from the point. The cord is 2 in (5.1 cm).
Don’t fasten off. Go on to the pod strand or the slim strand.
Pod Strand (Make 8)
Pod
Neck ring: Ch 4, sl st in 4th ch from hook to form a ring.
Rnd 1: Ch 1, 8 sc in ring, sl st to first sc. (8 sc)
Rnd 2: Ch 1, 2 sc in each st around, sl st to first sc. (16 sc)
Rnd 3: Ch 1, sc in each st around, sl st to first sc. (16 sc)
Rnds 1–3 make the top collar, 0.75 in (1.9 cm) deep.
Rnd 4 (loop round): Don’t ch 1. Flatten the collar against the pin. Make a long loop in each st around, starting in the first st. (16 loops on the pin, working loop still on the hook)
Rnd 5 (work-off round): Slide the loops off the pin, keeping them in order. *Insert hook through the next 2 loops together, yo, pull up a loop, yo, pull through both loops on hook. Repeat from * 7 more times, then sl st to first sc. (8 sc)
Each sc gathers 2 ribs, which closes the cage at the bottom.
Rnd 6: Ch 1, sc in each st around, sl st to first sc. (8 sc)
Rnd 7: Ch 1, [sc2tog] 4 times, sl st to first sc. (4 sc)
Rnds 5–7 make the bottom collar, 0.75 in (1.9 cm) deep. Pod total: 0.75 in + 2 in + 0.75 in = 3.5 in (8.9 cm).
Diamond Link
Upper stem: Ch 2.
Ring: Ch 12, sl st in the 12th ch from hook (the first of these 12 ch) to close the ring.
Travel: Sl st in each of the next 6 ch to reach the opposite point of the ring.
Lower stem: Ch 2.
When the strand hangs, the ring pulls into a diamond about 1.5 in (3.8 cm) tall. The whole link is 2.5 in (6.4 cm).
Strand Sequence
After the hanging cord, work [Pod, Diamond Link] 3 times. Fasten off, leaving an 8 in (20.3 cm) tail.
Length check: triangle 1.5 in + cord 2 in + pods 10.5 in (26.7 cm) + links 7.5 in (19.1 cm) = 21.5 in (54.6 cm). The tassel brings the strand to 24 in (61.0 cm).
Slim Strand (Make 7)
After the hanging cord, work [Knot, Diamond Link] 6 times. Each repeat is 3 in (7.6 cm): a 0.5 in (1.3 cm) knot plus a 2.5 in (6.4 cm) link. Fasten off, leaving an 8 in (20.3 cm) tail.
Length check: triangle 1.5 in + cord 2 in + 18 in (45.7 cm) of repeats = 21.5 in (54.6 cm). With the tassel, the slim strand is 24 in (61.0 cm), the same as the pod strands.
Tassels (Make 15)
- Wrap yarn 20 times around the 2.5 in (6.4 cm) cardboard strip.
- Thread the strand’s 8 in tail under all the wraps at the top edge and tie tightly. This attaches the tassel to the lower stem.
- Cut through the wraps along the bottom edge.
- Wrap a separate 10 in (25.4 cm) piece of yarn 6 times around the tassel, 0.5 in (1.3 cm) below the top. Knot it and bury the ends inside the tassel.
- Trim the tassel to 2.5 in (6.4 cm).
Make All Pieces
- Pod strands: 8 (24 pods, 24 links, 8 tassels)
- Slim strands: 7 (42 knots, 42 links, 7 tassels)
- Color: all in mustard gold
Layout grid (P = pod strand, S = slim strand):
P S P S P S P S P S P S P S P
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
Pod strands sit at both ends. Pod centers are 4 in (10.2 cm) apart, with a slim strand halfway between each pair.
Joining
Join the triangles with one row of sc across their top edges. This is header Row 1.
Lay out the strands in grid order with every triangle RS facing and foundation chains at the top. The top corners of neighboring triangles should touch.
Row 1 (joining row): Join yarn in the first foundation ch of triangle 1. Ch 1, sc in the remaining loop of each of its 8 foundation ch. Don’t chain between pieces; go straight into the first foundation ch of triangle 2 and sc across its 8 ch. Repeat across all 15 triangles, then turn. (120 sc)
Stitch logic: Each triangle has 8 stitches along its top edge, corners included. 15 x 8 = 120 sc, with no stitches added at the seams.
Tension: Keep your stitches at gauge height. At each seam, snug the first sc of the new triangle against the last sc of the one before it so there’s no gap.
Size checkpoint: Row 1 measures 30 in (76.2 cm) wide. The hanging length is now 24.25 in (61.6 cm).
Border: Header Band
Border gauge: 4 sc per 1 in (2.5 cm), so 120 sts = 30 in (76.2 cm). The band is straight with no corners, so each count below covers the whole top edge.
Row 2: Ch 1, sc in each st across, turn. (120 sc)
Row 3 (mesh row): Ch 3 (counts as dc). *Ch 1, skip next st, dc in next st. Repeat from * 58 more times (59 repeats total). Dc in last st, turn. (120 sts: 61 dc + 59 ch-1 sps)
Check: 1 + (59 x 2) + 1 = 120.
Row 4: Ch 1, sc in each dc and each ch-1 sp across, turn. (120 sc)
Row 5: Ch 1, sc in each st across, turn. (120 sc)
Row 6 (picot row): Ch 1, sc in first 2 sts. *Ch 3, sl st in 3rd ch from hook (picot), sc in next 4 sts. Repeat from * 28 more times (29 repeats total). Ch 3, sl st in 3rd ch from hook, sc in last 2 sts. Fasten off. (120 sc + 30 picots)
Check: 2 + (29 x 4) + 2 = 120 sc.
Why the math works: All 120 stitches come from 15 triangles x 8 stitches, and no row changes the count, so the band stays 30 in (76.2 cm) wide. A picot every 4 stitches puts 2 above each triangle. The mesh row’s 59 spaces make the rod channel.
Rows 2, 4, 5 and 6 (sc) add 1 in (2.5 cm), and Row 3 (dc) adds 0.5 in (1.3 cm). That’s 1.5 in (3.8 cm) in all, for a finished length of 25.75 in (65.4 cm).
Final Blocking
- Weave in all ends.
- Soak the curtain in cool water for 10 minutes, then press it in a towel. Don’t wring it.
- Push a plastic egg, or a balloon inflated to 2.25 in (5.7 cm), into each pod between the ribs. Spread the 8 rib pairs evenly around it.
- Pin the header flat at 30 in (76.2 cm) x 1.5 in (3.8 cm), and each triangle at 2 in (5.1 cm) x 1.5 in (3.8 cm).
- Mist the pods and the header with starch.
- Let it dry completely, about 24 hours.
- Remove the forms. Pop balloons before pulling them out.
- Steam the tassels lightly, comb them straight and trim them level.
Final Quality-Control Checklist
- Every header row has 120 stitches.
- The header measures 30 in (76.2 cm) x 1.5 in (3.8 cm).
- The mesh row has 59 open ch-1 spaces.
- There are 30 picots, 2 above each triangle.
- Each pod has 16 ribs gathered into 8 pairs.
- Every pod is 3.5 in (8.9 cm) long and holds a rounded shape.
- Each link opens into a diamond about 1.5 in (3.8 cm) tall.
- All 15 tassels end level at 25.75 in (65.4 cm).
- The strands alternate P S P from end to end.
Troubleshooting
Ribs uneven in length: Push each loop fully onto the pin before starting the next one.
Loops twisted after coming off the pin: Slide off a few at a time and work them right away.
Pod collapses: Re-starch it over its form. You can also use undiluted stiffener on the ribs only.
Pods spin sideways: Steam the strand while it hangs, with a light weight on the tassel.
Header ruffles: Stitches were probably added at a seam. Recount Row 1; it must be 120.
Header pulls in: The joining row is too tight. Rework it with a hook one size larger.
Strands uneven in length: Recount the pod rounds, the link chains and the knots.
Care
Hand wash in cool water with mild soap and press dry in a towel. Reshape and re-starch the pods over their forms.
Final Notes
All the measurements build on each other. At 16 sc = 4 in (10.2 cm), each triangle is 2 in (5.1 cm) wide, and 15 triangles make a 30 in (76.2 cm) joining row of 120 sc. Every header row keeps those 120 stitches.
Lengthwise, the triangle, cord, pods or knots, and links add up to 21.5 in (54.6 cm). The tassel brings each strand to 24 in (61.0 cm). The 0.25 in (0.6 cm) joining row and the 1.5 in (3.8 cm) header finish the curtain at 25.75 in (65.4 cm). Once your test pod measures correctly, the rest of the curtain should come out to size.
Happy crocheting!