This curtain panel looks like a climbing vine in deep teal. Each column is a chain of curling spirals, slim corded stems, and raised, ridged leaves. Light passes through the open spaces between the leaves, so the panel works well in a winter window, whether or not you decorate for the holidays.
The whole panel is one solid color, a rich teal cotton. All of the texture comes from the stitches: stems in firm single crochet, leaves made of graduated stitches outlined in back-loop single crochet, and a simple single crochet heading across the top. The pattern uses US crochet terms throughout.
The finished panel measures 31.75 in (80.6 cm) wide by 61 in (154.9 cm) long, including a 2 in (5.1 cm) heading. Each vine motif is 4 in (10.2 cm) wide and 8 in (20.3 cm) tall.
The construction is modular. You make 49 identical vine motifs and join them join-as-you-go into a grid 7 motifs wide and 7 motifs tall. Leaf tips connect side to side, and each motif’s bottom ring connects to the spiral below it. To finish, you work a straight heading band across the top spirals.
Finished Size and Construction
- Finished size: 31.75 in x 61 in (80.6 cm x 154.9 cm)
- Skill level: Intermediate
- Terminology: US crochet terms
- Yarn weight: Worsted (#4) cotton
- Hook: 4.5 mm (US 7)
- Number of pieces: 49 vine motifs
- Layout: 7 columns x 7 rows
- Piece size: 4 in x 8 in (10.2 cm x 20.3 cm)
- Size before border: 31.5 in x 59 in (80.0 cm x 149.9 cm)
- Border depth: 2 in (5.1 cm) heading, top edge only
Materials
Choose a smooth, mercerized or combed worsted-weight cotton. Cotton gives the leaf ridges crisp definition and hangs straight without stretching. Avoid fuzzy yarns, because they blur the spirals.
- Teal: 400 g / 680 m (about 744 yd), for example 4 balls of 100 g / 170 m (186 yd)
Quantities include a margin of about 15%. Each motif uses roughly 11 m (12 yd), and the heading uses about 43 m (47 yd).
Tools:
– 4.5 mm (US 7) crochet hook
– Locking stitch markers (at least 10)
– Tapestry needle
– Scissors
– Measuring tape
– Blocking mats and rust-proof pins
– Spray bottle
– 15 curtain clip rings
Abbreviations (US Terms)
- ch: chain
- sl st: slip stitch
- sc: single crochet
- hdc: half double crochet
- dc: double crochet
- BLO: back loop only
- st(s): stitch(es)
- rnd: round
Special stitch: Surface slip stitch (surface sl st). Hold the yarn behind the leaf. Insert the hook from front to back through the fabric, pull up a loop, and draw it through the loop on the hook. This forms a raised chain line on the front, which becomes the leaf vein.
Gauge and Checkpoints
Gauge: 16 sc and 18 rows = 4 in (10.2 cm) in sc worked in rows.
Make one complete motif before starting the panel and check these measurements:
- Leaf after Rnd 2: 2.25 in (5.7 cm) long from base to tip, without the picot
- Stem: 22 sc = 5.5 in (14.0 cm)
- Coiled spiral: about 1.5 in (3.8 cm) across
- Bottom ring: about 1 in (2.5 cm) across
- Whole motif: 4 in (10.2 cm) from leaf tip to leaf tip, and 8 in (20.3 cm) from spiral top to ring bottom
If your motif is too big, go down to a 4 mm (US G-6) hook. If it is too small, go up to a 5 mm (US H-8) hook. Even a 0.25 in (0.6 cm) error per motif adds up to 1.75 in (4.4 cm) across the 7 columns, so get this right before you continue.
Vine Motif (make 49)
You work each motif in one piece. You start with a chain for the spiral and stem, work down one side of it making the right-hand leaves, make the bottom ring, then work back up the other side making the left-hand leaves.
Foundation
Ch 39. The last 16 ch made form the spiral section, and the first 22 ch form the stem. The 39th ch is the turning ch.
Down Pass (right side of vine)
Sc in 2nd ch from hook and in the next 15 ch (16 sc, spiral cord).
Sc in next 3 ch (stem). Make Leaf R1 (see Leaf below).
Sc in next 8 ch. Make Leaf R2.
Sc in next 11 ch. This brings you to the bottom of the foundation.
Down pass total: 16 + 3 + 8 + 11 = 38 sc, plus 2 leaves.
Bottom Ring
Ch 8, then sl st in the last sc made to form a ring. Work 14 sc into the ring and sl st in the same last stem sc.
Ring total: 14 sc.
For motifs in Rows 2–7, you join the ring as you work it. See Joining.
Up Pass (left side of vine)
Now work in the free loops of the foundation chain.
Sc in next 12 ch. Make Leaf L2.
Sc in next 8 ch. Make Leaf L1.
Sc in next 2 ch (22 stem sc made). Sc in the free loops of the next 16 ch along the spiral section, then sl st in the turning ch at the tip.
Up pass total: 12 + 8 + 2 + 16 = 38 sc, plus 2 leaves.
The left leaves sit one stitch higher than the right leaves, so the pairs are slightly staggered: L1 is 2 sts below the top of the stem and R1 is 3 sts below it. Fasten off and leave a 12 in (30.5 cm) tail.
Leaf (worked 4 times per motif)
From the last sc made on the stem, ch 12. The first 2 ch are the stalk and the remaining 10 ch are the leaf foundation.
Rnd 1: Skip 1st ch from hook (this is the tip ch). In the next 8 ch work: sc, hdc, dc in each of the next 4 ch, hdc, sc. Work 3 sc in the next ch (the base, next to the stalk). Rotate the leaf. Working in the free loops of the same 8 ch, work sc, hdc, dc in each of the next 4 ch, hdc, sc. Work 2 sc in the skipped tip ch. Sl st to the first sc. (21 sts)
Rnd 2: Ch 1. Working in BLO, sc in each of the next 8 sts, 3 base sts, and 8 sts (19 sc). Work 2 sc in the next st, ch 3 (tip picot), and 2 sc in the last st. Sl st to the first sc. (23 sc plus ch-3 picot)
The unworked front loops from Rnd 2 form the raised ridge outline.
Vein and return: Work 9 surface sl sts down the center line of the leaf, from tip to base. Then sl st in each of the 2 stalk ch to get back to the stem, and continue with the stem instructions.
Coil the Spiral
Curl the 16-st spiral cord inward toward the stem, about 1½ turns, so it lies flat and is about 1.5 in (3.8 cm) across. Use the tail to tack it in 3 places on the back. Weave in the end.
Place a locking marker in the highest sc on the outer curve. This is the spiral-top st, which you use for joining and for the heading.
Make All Pieces
Make 49 teal motifs in total. You build the panel from the bottom up, working left to right in each row. Motif 1 sits at the bottom left.
Row 7 (top): [43][44][45][46][47][48][49]
Row 6: [36][37][38][39][40][41][42]
Row 5: [29][30][31][32][33][34][35]
Row 4: [22][23][24][25][26][27][28]
Row 3: [15][16][17][18][19][20][21]
Row 2: [ 8][ 9][10][11][12][13][14]
Row 1 (hem): [ 1][ 2][ 3][ 4][ 5][ 6][ 7]
Make Motifs 1–7 first. Each one joins only to its left neighbor. Their rings stay free and form the scalloped hem.
Joining
You join each motif as you make it, using two kinds of connection points.
Side join (leaf tips). When you work Rnd 2 of Leaf L1 or L2 and there is already a motif to the left, replace the ch-3 picot with: ch 1, sl st in the ch-3 picot of the matching right leaf of the motif to the left (L1 to R1, L2 to R2), ch 1. Every other stitch count stays the same (23 sc). Leaves R1 and R2 always get a normal ch-3 picot, because the next motif will join to them.
Vertical join (ring to spiral). For motifs in Rows 2–7, work the ring like this: 7 sc in the ring, ch 1, sl st in the marked spiral-top st of the motif directly below, ch 1, 7 sc in the ring. That is still 14 sc. Sc 7 and 8 sit at the bottom center of the ring, so the link hangs straight.
Stitch-to-stitch logic: Each connection is one sl st between two ch-1 spaces. This gives a 0.5 in (1.3 cm) gap between leaf tips and between ring and spiral. The horizontal pitch is 4 + 0.5 = 4.5 in (11.4 cm). The vertical pitch is 8 + 0.5 = 8.5 in (21.6 cm).
Tension: Keep the joining sl st loose enough to match the picot. If it is pulled tight, the leaves bunch together and the columns lean.
Size checkpoint: Row 1 should measure 31.5 in (80.0 cm) from the outer edge of the far-left picot to the outer edge of the far-right picot. That is 7 motifs x 4 in, plus 6 gaps x 0.5 in, plus 0.25 in (0.6 cm) of free picot at each end. The full grid should be 7 x 8 + 6 x 0.5 = 59 in (149.9 cm) tall.
Border (Top Heading)
Like a lace curtain, this panel has a heading at the top only. The sides and hem keep the natural edge of the vines.
Border gauge: 16 sc and 18 rows = 4 in (10.2 cm), the same as the motif gauge.
Row 1 (anchor row): With the wrong side facing, join the yarn with a sc in the free L1 picot of Motif 43 (now at your right). Ch 8, sc in the spiral-top st of the same motif, ch 8, sc in the next leaf-tip join (the sl st linking this motif’s R1 to the next motif’s L1); repeat from * across. On Motif 49, end the last repeat with sc in its free R1 picot. (127 sts)*
The count is 7 motifs x 18 sts (ch 8, sc, ch 8, sc) = 126, plus the 1 starting edge sc = 127. No extra stitches are added at the seams, because each leaf-tip join gets exactly one sc, and that sc closes the repeat of the motif just worked.
Rows 2–9: Ch 1 (does not count), turn. Sc in each st across, working into the chains themselves rather than around them. (127 sc per row)
Fasten off and weave in the ends.
Why the math works: At 4 sc per inch, 18 sts = 4.5 in (11.4 cm), which matches the horizontal motif pitch exactly. 126 stitch widths from the first sc to the last sc = 31.5 in, and adding the width of one sc gives 127 sts = 31.75 in (80.6 cm). Nine rows at 18 rows per 4 in = 2 in (5.1 cm), so the total length is 59 + 2 = 61 in (154.9 cm).
Hanging: Clip a ring onto sts 1, 10, 19, and so on, every 9 sts through st 127. That gives 15 rings spaced 2.25 in (5.7 cm) apart.
Final Blocking
- Weave in all remaining ends along the stems, where they won’t show.
- Lay the panel face up on blocking mats, with the motifs in straight columns.
- Pin the heading to 31.75 in (80.6 cm) wide.
- Pin each leaf-tip join and each ring-to-spiral join to the grid: 4.5 in (11.4 cm) apart across and 8.5 in (21.6 cm) apart down.
- Pin every leaf picot to a point and smooth the leaves open.
- Spray until damp but not soaked.
- Let it dry completely, at least 24 hours, before unpinning.
Final Quality-Control Checklist
- All 49 motifs are 4 in x 8 in (10.2 cm x 20.3 cm).
- Each leaf has 23 sc in Rnd 2, a clear vein, and a picot or join at the tip.
- Every spiral is coiled the same direction and tacked flat.
- All columns hang straight, with no leaning.
- The heading has 127 sts in every row and measures 31.75 in (80.6 cm).
- The panel measures 61 in (154.9 cm) long.
- No ends are visible from the front.
Troubleshooting
- Leaves cup or curl: Your dc tension is tighter than your sc tension. Loosen up on the dc in Rnd 1, then block flat.
- Spiral won’t lie flat: Tack it in 4 places instead of 3, and steam it lightly.
- Columns lean to one side: The side joins are too tight. Redo the join so the ch-1s match the picot length.
- Heading ripples: You worked around the chains instead of into them. Re-count to 127.
- Heading pulls the spirals up: Your ch 8 is too tight. Go up 0.5 mm for Row 1 only.
Care
Hand wash in cool water with a mild detergent, then press out the water in a towel. Dry flat, and re-pin the heading if needed.
Final Notes
The measurement chain is simple. Gauge sets the motif at 4 in x 8 in (10.2 cm x 20.3 cm). Seven motifs and 0.5 in (1.3 cm) joins give a grid of 31.5 in x 59 in (80.0 cm x 149.9 cm). The 127-st heading brings the panel to 31.75 in x 61 in (80.6 cm x 154.9 cm). Check each link in that chain and your curtain will hang straight.
Happy crocheting!