Cranberry Bloom is a lace curtain made of four tall, narrow strips. Each strip is a column of cream flowers set inside open cranberry mesh. Light comes through the diamond-shaped chain loops, and the solid flowers keep the panels looking full rather than sparse.
There are only two colors. The flowers have cranberry centers and cream petals, and the lace frame is cranberry. The look is a little vintage, like a sunny cottage window, but the clean outline on each edge makes it neat enough for a modern room.
This pattern uses US crochet terms. Each finished strip is 8.5 in (21.6 cm) wide and 61 in (154.9 cm) long, plus hanging tabs. Hang the four strips in two pairs, as shown, or space them out across a wider window.
You start each motif as a round flower and then add three lace rounds that turn it into a rectangle 7.5 in (19.1 cm) wide by 10 in (25.4 cm) tall. Six motifs are seamed into a strip. A two-round border and three hanging tabs finish each strip.
Finished Size and Construction
- Finished strip size: 8.5 x 61 in (21.6 x 154.9 cm), plus tabs
- Skill level: Intermediate
- Terminology: US
- Yarn weight: Worsted (#4), cotton
- Hook: 5 mm (H-8)
- Number of pieces: 24 motifs (6 per strip) and 12 tabs (3 per strip)
- Layout: 4 strips, each 1 motif wide by 6 motifs tall
- Motif size: 7.5 x 10 in (19.1 x 25.4 cm)
- Strip size before border: 7.5 x 60 in (19.1 x 152.4 cm)
- Border depth: 0.5 in (1.3 cm) on each side
Materials
Use a smooth, mercerized or matte worsted cotton with about 170 m (186 yd) per 100 g. Cotton holds its blocked shape well and handles sunlight better than acrylic. Avoid fuzzy yarns, because they blur the mesh.
- Cream: 320 g (544 m)
- Cranberry: 550 g (935 m)
Both quantities include a margin of about 10%. That covers your gauge test and small differences in tension.
Tools:
– 5 mm (H-8) crochet hook
– Tapestry needle
– Stitch markers
– Rust-proof blocking pins
– Blocking mats or a large towel-covered surface
– Spray bottle
– Measuring tape
Abbreviations (US Terms)
- ch – chain
- sl st – slip stitch
- sc – single crochet
- hdc – half double crochet
- dc – double crochet
- tr – treble crochet
- sp – space
- rev sc – reverse single crochet (crab stitch)
- RS / WS – right side / wrong side
Special stitches:
– Fan: 7 tr worked into the same stitch.
– Reverse sc: Work sc from left to right (right-handed). Insert the hook into the next stitch to the right, yarn over, pull up a loop, yarn over and pull through both loops. This makes the cord-like edge.
Gauge and Checkpoints
Gauge: 16 sc and 18 rows = 4 in (10.2 cm).
Before you commit to 24 motifs, make one full motif and block it. Check these measurements:
- After Round 4: the cranberry center is 3.25 in (8.3 cm) across.
- After Round 6: the flower is 5.25 in (13.3 cm) across, measured from petal tip to petal tip.
- After Round 10, blocked: the motif is 7.5 x 10 in (19.1 x 25.4 cm).
If the motif is too big, go down 0.5 mm in hook size. If it is too small, go up 0.5 mm. If only the flower is correct and the frame comes out too large, work the chain loops a little more firmly. Don’t change chain counts, because the border math depends on them.
Motif (make 24)
Flower Center (Cranberry)
Round 1: Make a magic ring. Ch 3 (counts as dc), work 9 dc in the ring, then sl st to the top of the ch-3. (10 dc)
Round 2: Ch 3, dc in the same stitch, then 2 dc in each stitch around. Sl st to the top of the ch-3. (20 dc)
Round 3: Ch 3, 2 dc in the next stitch, then dc in the next stitch, 2 dc in the next stitch 9 times. Sl st to the top of the ch-3. (30 dc)
Round 4: Ch 1, then sc in each of the next 2 stitches, 2 sc in the next stitch 10 times. Sl st to the first sc and fasten off. (40 sc)
Checkpoint: 3.25 in (8.3 cm).
Petals (Cream)
Round 5: Join cream in any sc. Ch 3 (counts as dc) and dc in the next stitch. Then ch 2, skip 2 stitches, dc in each of the next 2 stitches 9 times, ch 2, skip 2 stitches. Sl st to the top of the ch-3. (20 dc and 10 ch-2 spaces)
Round 6: Ch 1, sc in the gap between the first 2 dc, and work 9 dc in the next ch-2 sp. Then sc in the gap between the next 2 dc, 9 dc in the next ch-2 sp 9 times. Sl st to the first sc and fasten off. (10 petals: 90 dc and 10 sc)
The 5th dc of each petal is its tip. Checkpoint: 5.25 in (13.3 cm).
Lace Frame (Cranberry)
Lay the flower RS up with one petal pointing straight up. Name the petals P0 to P9, going clockwise from the top. P1, P4, P6 and P9 are the corner petals.
Round 7: Join cranberry with sc in the tip of P0. Ch 6, sc in the tip of the next petal 9 times, ch 6, then sl st to the first sc. (10 sc and 10 ch-6 loops)
Name the loops L0 to L9, where L0 sits between P0 and P1.
Round 8: Ch 1 and sc in the same sc (P0). Then work:
– ch 5, sc in L0, ch 5, fan in the P1 sc;
– ch 5, sc in L1, ch 5, sc in P2, ch 5, sc in L2, ch 5, sc in P3, ch 5, sc in L3, ch 5, fan in P4;
– ch 5, sc in L4, ch 5, sc in P5, ch 5, sc in L5, ch 5, fan in P6;
– ch 5, sc in L6, ch 5, sc in P7, ch 5, sc in L7, ch 5, sc in P8, ch 5, sc in L8, ch 5, fan in P9;
– ch 5, sc in L9, ch 5, then sl st to the first sc.
(16 sc, 4 fans of 7 tr each, and 20 ch-5 loops)
The fans now point into the four corners. The top and bottom each have 4 ch-5 loops between fans, and each long side has 6.
Round 9: This round squares the motif into a rectangle by using different stitch heights. The corner of each fan is its 4th tr.
Sl st into the next ch-5 loop. Ch 4 (counts as tr), then work:
– ch 4, dc in the next loop, ch 4, (sc, ch 3, sc) in the 4th tr of the fan;
– long side: ch 4, sc in the next loop, ch 4, sc in the next loop, ch 4, hdc in the next loop, ch 4, hdc in the next loop, ch 4, sc in the next loop, ch 4, sc in the next loop, ch 4, (sc, ch 3, sc) in the 4th tr of the fan;
– bottom: ch 4, dc in the next loop, ch 4, tr in the next loop, ch 4, tr in the next loop, ch 4, dc in the next loop, ch 4, corner in the fan;
– long side: repeat the long-side sequence;
– top: ch 4, dc in the next loop, ch 4, tr in the last loop, ch 4, then sl st to the top of the beginning ch-4.
(24 ch-4 loops: 5 across each short side and 7 along each long side. Also 28 anchor stitches: 4 dc, 4 tr, 8 sc and 4 hdc along the sides, plus 8 corner sc. And 4 corner ch-3 spaces.)
The tall trebles at the top and bottom centers lift those edges flat. The short sc and hdc on the long sides keep them close to the flower.
Round 10 (outline): Ch 1 and sc in the same stitch. Working around, put 4 sc in each ch-4 loop, 1 sc in each anchor stitch (including the corner sc), and 3 sc in each corner ch-3 sp. The middle sc of each corner group is the corner stitch. Sl st to the first sc and fasten off.
Short side: 1 corner + 1 sc + 1 anchor sc + 20 sc (in loops) + 4 anchors + 1 anchor sc + 1 sc + 1 corner = 30 stitches, including both corners.
Long side: 1 + 1 + 1 + 28 sc (in loops) + 6 anchors + 1 + 1 + 1 = 40 stitches, including both corners.
Round total: (2 x 30) + (2 x 40) − 4 shared corners = 136 sc
At 4 sc per inch, 30 stitches = 7.5 in (19.1 cm) and 40 stitches = 10 in (25.4 cm).
Make All Pieces
- Motifs: 24 in total, 6 for each strip. Each motif uses both colors: cranberry for Rounds 1–4 and 7–10, and cream for Rounds 5–6.
- Tabs: 12 in total, 3 for each strip, all in cranberry (instructions are under Hanging Tabs, after the border).
Layout per strip (short edges joined, top to bottom):
[M1]
[M2]
[M3]
[M4]
[M5]
[M6]
Window layout (four strips, hung in pairs):
[Strip A][Strip B] window [Strip C][Strip D]
Block all the motifs to 7.5 x 10 in (19.1 x 25.4 cm) before you join them. Matching stitch counts is much easier on flat, blocked pieces.
Joining
Method: Slip stitch seam through the inside loops, worked in cranberry.
Hold two motifs WS together, with the bottom short edge of one lined up against the top short edge of the other. Match corner to corner. Each edge has 30 stitches, including its corners.
Join yarn in the first corner stitch through both pieces. Sl st through the inside loop of each matching pair of stitches: stitch 1 to stitch 1, and so on up to stitch 30 to stitch 30. Fasten off. Repeat for all 5 seams in each strip.
Tension: Keep each sl st as tall as a sc. If the seam pulls tight, the strip will cinch in at every join. Stretch the seam gently every 10 stitches as you go.
The seam doesn’t add or remove any stitches. Both corner stitches of every motif stay on the long edge as working stitches.
Size checkpoint: each joined strip measures 7.5 x 60 in (19.1 x 152.4 cm).
Border
Border gauge: 4 sc per inch, the same as the motif outline.
Starting counts per strip:
– Long sides: 6 motifs x 40 stitches = 240 stitches each, including the strip’s 2 end corners.
– Short sides: 1 motif x 30 stitches = 30 stitches each, including the corners.
Round 1 (cranberry): Join in any non-corner stitch on a long side. Ch 1, then sc in each stitch around, working 3 sc in each of the 4 strip corner stitches. Sl st to the first sc.
This round is 1 sc in each existing stitch plus 2 extra stitches at each corner:
– Long side: 240 + 2 = 242 stitches
– Short side: 30 + 2 = 32 stitches
– Round total: 536 + 8 = 544 sc
Round 2 (cranberry): Ch 1, then work rev sc in each stitch around. Sl st to the first stitch and fasten off. (544 rev sc)
Round 2 adds no stitches. The corded edge is a little firmer than sc, and that keeps the long sides from stretching out.
Why the math works: 242 stitches ÷ 4 per inch = 60.5 in (153.7 cm), which is the joined length plus one border stitch at each end. 32 ÷ 4 = 8 in (20.3 cm). With the corded round added, the strip finishes at 8.5 x 61 in (21.6 x 154.9 cm).
Hanging Tabs (make 3 per strip)
Ch 7. Sc in the 2nd ch from the hook and in each ch across, for 6 sc. Work 15 more rows of 6 sc, turning with ch 1 each time, for 16 rows in total. Each tab measures 1.5 x 3.5 in (3.8 x 8.9 cm).
Number the 32 Round 1 stitches along the top edge from one corner to the other. Place the tabs over stitches 3–8, 14–19 and 25–30:
| Stitches | Placement |
|---|---|
| 1–2 | gap (2) |
| 3–8 | tab (6) |
| 9–13 | gap (5) |
| 14–19 | tab (6) |
| 20–24 | gap (5) |
| 25–30 | tab (6) |
| 31–32 | gap (2) |
Total: 2 + 6 + 5 + 6 + 5 + 6 + 2 = 32 stitches.
Sew the first row of each tab to the back of the top edge. Fold the tab over and sew its last row just below the first. Each loop fits a rod up to 1 in (2.5 cm) across.
Final Blocking
- Weave in all ends along the chain loops of the mesh, never across the open spaces.
- Soak each strip in cool water for 15 minutes.
- Press the water out gently between towels. Don’t wring.
- Pin the strip flat to 8.5 x 61 in (21.6 x 154.9 cm). Pin the long edges straight first.
- Pin each seam line perpendicular to the edges.
- Open each corner fan and pin out the diamond mesh so the loops sit evenly.
- Shape the petals round with your fingers.
- Let the strip dry completely, at least 24 hours.
Final Quality-Control Checklist
- Every motif has 136 stitches in Round 10 (30 per short side and 40 per long side).
- Every flower has 10 evenly spaced petals, with the top petal centered.
- All 4 fans point into the corners of each motif.
- Each strip has 5 flat seams with corners matched.
- Border Round 1 has 242 stitches on each long side and 32 on each short side.
- The strips measure 8.5 x 61 in (21.6 x 154.9 cm) and are all the same length.
- The tabs are evenly spaced and securely sewn.
Troubleshooting
- The flower ruffles: your dc tension is loose. Go down a hook size for Rounds 1–4 only.
- The flower cups: add a slightly looser tension in Round 3, or block the center flat with steam.
- The motif comes out square instead of tall: check that you used tr at the top and bottom centers in Round 9 and sc on the long sides.
- The strip ripples at the seams: the sl st seam is too tight. Undo it and rework it more loosely.
- The long sides wave: check that Round 1 has exactly 242 stitches per long side.
- The fans flop over: pin them open firmly during blocking.
Care
Hand wash in cool water or machine wash on a gentle cycle in a mesh bag, then lay flat to dry and re-block if needed. Rotate the strips now and then so the sun fades them evenly.
Final Notes
Here is how the measurements build on each other:
– Flower: center 3.25 in (8.3 cm), full flower 5.25 in (13.3 cm)
– Motif: 7.5 x 10 in (19.1 x 25.4 cm), with 30 and 40 stitches per side
– Joined strip: 7.5 x 60 in (19.1 x 152.4 cm), with 240 stitches on each long edge
– Finished strip: border brings it to 8.5 x 61 in (21.6 x 154.9 cm)
If you check one stage at a time, all four strips will hang straight and match.
Happy crocheting!