This little angel is all lace and light. Her triangular skirt of open diamond mesh widens from a narrow waist to a row of soft shells, and a corded gold edge finishes the hem. A matching gold band sits at the waist, a smooth round head sits on top, and two lacy wings fan out behind her shoulders.
The colors are simple: cream cotton thread for the body and wings, and metallic gold thread for the waist and hem. On a tree, the tree lights glow through the lace. Laid flat on a gift or a card, she looks like a tiny heirloom.
This pattern uses US crochet terms. The finished angel is about 5 1/4 in (13.3 cm) tall without the loop, about 3 1/2 in (8.9 cm) wide at the hem and about 4 1/2 in (11.4 cm) across the wings.
The construction is simple. You work the skirt flat in rows from the top point down and add the gold hem and waist band directly onto it. Then you make a small stuffed ball for the head, two flat fan wings and a cord for the hanging loop. Finally, you block everything and sew it together.
Finished Size and Construction
- Finished size: 5 1/4 in (13.3 cm) tall without the loop; 3 1/2 in (8.9 cm) wide at the hem; 4 1/2 in (11.4 cm) wingspan
- Skill level: Intermediate
- Terminology: US crochet terms
- Yarn weight: Size 3 cotton crochet thread (Lace, CYC 0) plus fine metallic gold thread
- Hook: 2.25 mm (US B-1)
- Number of pieces: 1 ornament made from 5 parts (skirt, head, 2 wings, hanging cord)
- Layout: Single ornament, so there’s no grid and no joining of motifs
- Skirt size before border: 3 1/2 in (8.9 cm) wide x 3 3/4 in (9.5 cm) tall
- Border depth: 1/4 in (0.6 cm) of gold at the hem, plus a 1/4 in (0.6 cm) gold band at the waist
- Skirt with border and waist band: 4 1/4 in (10.8 cm) tall
Materials
Use a mercerized cotton thread in size 3. Its stitches look crisp, it keeps the mesh open and it takes starch well. For the gold, use a metallic thread of about the same thickness, or hold a finer metallic strand double.
- Cream cotton thread, size 3: 10 g, about 40 m
- Metallic gold thread: 3 g, about 10 m
- 2.25 mm (US B-1) crochet hook
- Tapestry needle
- A small pinch of polyester fiberfill
- Rust-proof pins and a blocking board or foam mat
- Spray starch or fabric stiffener
- Scissors
These amounts include about 25 percent extra, so a test piece and one ripped-out row won’t leave you short.
Abbreviations (US Terms)
- ch: chain
- sl st: slip stitch
- sc: single crochet
- dc: double crochet
- sc2tog: single crochet 2 together
- sk: skip
- sp: space
- st(s): stitch(es)
- RS / WS: right side / wrong side
- rev sc: reverse single crochet (crab stitch)
Special stitches
- Picot: Ch 3, sl st in 3rd ch from hook.
- Reverse sc (rev sc): With RS facing, work from left to right (if you’re right-handed). Insert the hook in the next st to the right, yarn over and pull up a loop. Yarn over again and draw through both loops on the hook. This makes a twisted, corded edge.
- Shell: 5 dc in the same ch-loop.
Gauge and Checkpoints
Gauge: 8 dc = 1 in (2.5 cm); 4 dc rows = 1 in (2.5 cm); 3 net rows = 1 in (2.5 cm); 8 sc = 1 in (2.5 cm) in the round.
Make the skirt first. It’s the biggest piece and the best gauge test. Check these points as you go:
- After Row 1: 7 sts, about 7/8 in (2.2 cm) wide.
- After Row 5: 16 dc, about 2 in (5.1 cm) wide; skirt about 1 1/2 in (3.8 cm) tall.
- After Row 9: 25 dc, about 3 1/8 in (7.9 cm) wide; skirt about 2 3/4 in (7.0 cm) tall.
- After Row 12: about 3 1/2 in (8.9 cm) wide and 3 3/4 in (9.5 cm) tall.
- Head: Round 4 measures about 3 in (7.6 cm) around.
If the skirt comes out too big, switch to a 2.0 mm hook. If it’s too small, try a 2.5 mm hook. Being off by up to 1/4 in (0.6 cm) is fine for an ornament. Just use the same hook for the head and wings as for the skirt so everything stays in proportion.
Skirt
Use cream and work flat in rows from the waist point down. The ch-3 at the start of a dc row counts as a dc. The ch-1 at the start of a sc row doesn’t count as a st.
Each net row adds one loop. Each band row turns L loops into (3 x L) + 4 dc. The next net row turns those dc back into L + 1 loops, so the triangle widens evenly.
Row 1 (RS): Ch 9, dc in 4th ch from hook (the skipped chs count as the first dc) and in each of next 5 ch, turn. (7 sts)
Row 2 (net): Ch 1, sc in first dc, [ch 4, sk 2 dc, sc in next dc] twice, working the last sc in top of turning ch, turn. (2 ch-4 loops, 3 sc)
Row 3 (net): Ch 1, sc in first sc, ch 4, sc in first loop, ch 4, sc in next loop, ch 4, sc in last sc, turn. (3 loops, 4 sc)
Row 4 (net): Ch 1, sc in first sc, ch 4, sc in first loop, [ch 4, sc in next loop] twice, ch 4, sc in last sc, turn. (4 loops, 5 sc)
Row 5 (band): Ch 3, dc in same sc, 3 dc in each of the 4 loops, 2 dc in last sc, turn. (2 + 12 + 2 = 16 dc)
Row 6 (net): Ch 1, sc in first dc, [ch 4, sk 2 dc, sc in next dc] 5 times, working the last sc in top of turning ch, turn. (5 loops, 6 sc)
Row 7 (net): Ch 1, sc in first sc, ch 4, sc in first loop, [ch 4, sc in next loop] 4 times, ch 4, sc in last sc, turn. (6 loops, 7 sc)
Row 8 (net): Ch 1, sc in first sc, ch 4, sc in first loop, [ch 4, sc in next loop] 5 times, ch 4, sc in last sc, turn. (7 loops, 8 sc)
Row 9 (band): Ch 3, dc in same sc, 3 dc in each of the 7 loops, 2 dc in last sc, turn. (2 + 21 + 2 = 25 dc)
Row 10 (net): Ch 1, sc in first dc, [ch 4, sk 2 dc, sc in next dc] 8 times, working the last sc in top of turning ch, turn. (8 loops, 9 sc)
Row 11 (net): Ch 1, sc in first sc, ch 4, sc in first loop, [ch 4, sc in next loop] 7 times, ch 4, sc in last sc, turn. (9 loops, 10 sc)
Row 12 (WS, shells): Ch 1, sc in first sc, [shell in next loop, sc in next sc] 9 times. (9 shells; 45 dc + 10 sc = 55 sts)
Fasten off cream and weave in the ends.
Head
Use cream and work in continuous rounds. Mark the first st of each round.
Rnd 1: 6 sc in a magic ring. (6)
Rnd 2: 2 sc in each st around. (12)
Rnd 3: [Sc in next st, 2 sc in next st] 6 times. (18)
Rnd 4: [Sc in next 2 sts, 2 sc in next st] 6 times. (24)
Rnds 5–8: Sc in each st around. (24)
Rnd 9: [Sc in next 2 sts, sc2tog] 6 times. (18)
Rnd 10: [Sc in next st, sc2tog] 6 times. (12)
Stuff it firmly into a smooth ball.
Rnd 11: Sc2tog 6 times. (6)
Fasten off and leave a 6 in (15.2 cm) tail. Thread the tail through the front loops of the last 6 sts and pull it closed. Keep the tail for sewing. The head should be about 1 in (2.5 cm) across.
Wings (Make 2)
Use cream. Ch 4 and sl st in the first ch to form a ring.
Row 1: Ch 3 (counts as dc), [ch 3, dc in ring] 4 times, turn. (5 dc spokes, 4 ch-3 sps)
Row 2: Ch 1, sc in first dc, [ch 4, sc in next ch-3 sp, ch 4, sc in next dc] 4 times, working the last sc in top of turning ch, turn. (8 ch-4 loops, 9 sc)
Row 3: Ch 1, sc in first sc, [ch 5, sc in next sc] 8 times, turn. (8 ch-5 arcs, 9 sc)
The ch-5 arcs sit just outside the ch-4 loops, which gives the wing its layered, nested-arc look.
Row 4: Ch 1, [3 sc, picot, 3 sc] in each of the 8 ch-5 arcs. (48 sc, 8 picots)
Fasten off. On one wing, leave a 6 in (15.2 cm) tail for sewing. Each wing is about 2 1/4 in (5.7 cm) wide and 1 1/2 in (3.8 cm) tall.
Hanging Cord
Use cream. Ch 37, then sl st in 2nd ch from hook and in each remaining ch. (36 sl sts, about 3 in / 7.6 cm)
Fasten off and leave tails at both ends.
Border
The gold border goes on two edges: the hem and the waist. The slanted sides of the skirt stay plain.
Border gauge: 9 sc = 1 in (2.5 cm) along the curved hem. The scallops make the shell edge longer than the straight width. The 37 sc cover about 4 1/8 in (10.5 cm) of curve, while the hem lies about 3 1/2 in (8.9 cm) wide.
Hem Row 1 (RS): With RS facing, join gold in first sc of Row 12. Ch 1, sc in same sc, [sk next dc, sc in next 3 dc, sk next dc, sc in next sc] 9 times. (1 + 36 = 37 sc)
Hem Row 2 (RS): Don’t turn. Ch 1, rev sc in each sc across. (37 rev sc)
Fasten off.
Why the math works: Each shell has 5 dc. You skip the outer dc on each side and work into the center 3. That gives 3 sc on each scallop and 1 sc in each valley, so 4 sc per shell. Nine shells x 4 = 36, plus the starting sc makes 37. Skipping the outer dc keeps the gold snug so the hem doesn’t ruffle. Hem Row 2 works one rev sc in each sc, so the count stays at 37.
Waist Row 1 (RS): With RS facing, join gold in the foundation ch at the right-hand top corner of the skirt. Ch 1 and work 7 sc across the underside of the foundation: 1 sc in the base of each of the 6 dc and 1 sc in the base of the turning ch. (7 sc)
Waist Row 2 (RS): Don’t turn. Ch 1, rev sc in each sc across. (7 rev sc)
Fasten off and leave a 6 in (15.2 cm) tail. The waist band is about 7/8 in (2.2 cm) wide, the same as Row 1.
Final Blocking
- Mix the spray starch or fabric stiffener as the label directs.
- Dampen the skirt and both wings, then press out the extra water in a towel.
- Pin the skirt RS up into a neat triangle: 3 1/2 in (8.9 cm) at the hem and 4 1/4 in (10.8 cm) tall including the border and waist band. Pin both slanted sides straight.
- Pin each mesh diamond open, and pin each shell and gold scallop into an even curve.
- Pin each wing into a fan 2 1/4 in (5.7 cm) wide and 1 1/2 in (3.8 cm) tall, with the ring end as the narrow point. Pin out each picot, and lift the outer top edge slightly so the wing sweeps upward.
- Apply plenty of starch and let everything dry completely, ideally overnight.
- Unpin everything. Sew the head to the center top of the gold waist band with the head tail.
- Place the wings behind the skirt. Put the ring point of each wing about 1/4 in (0.6 cm) from the center line, just behind the waist band, angled up and out. Sew them to the back of Rows 1–3 and to each other. The wingspan should be 4 1/2 in (11.4 cm).
- Fold the hanging cord in half and sew both ends to the top of the head, so a loop of about 1 1/4 in (3.2 cm) stands above it.
Final Quality-Control Checklist
- The skirt has 9 shells and 37 gold sts at the hem.
- Both band rows are straight and level.
- The mesh diamonds are open and even, with no twisted loops.
- The waist band has 7 sts, and the head sits in the center of it.
- The head is round and firm, and the top is closed with no gap.
- Both wings have 8 picots and are the same size.
- The wings are symmetrical and tilt upward by the same amount.
- The ornament is 5 1/4 in (13.3 cm) tall and 4 1/2 in (11.4 cm) across the wings.
- All ends are woven in and trimmed on the WS.
Troubleshooting
The skirt sides curve inward: Your net chains are too tight. Loosen the ch-4 loops, or use the next hook size up for the net rows only.
The hem ruffles: Check that you skipped the first and last dc of each shell in Hem Row 1 and that you have 37 sc.
The hem pulls the shells flat: Work Hem Row 1 more loosely, or use the next hook size up for the gold.
The head looks lumpy: Add stuffing a little at a time, and roll the ball between your palms before you close it.
The wings flop forward: Starch them again and sew them higher, so they’re anchored across Rows 1–3.
The metallic thread splits: Use a hook with a smooth, rounded head, and work with a short length of thread.
Care
Spot clean with cool water and mild soap only. Reblock with starch if needed, and store the angel flat in tissue paper to protect the wings.
Final Notes
The measurements are short and easy to check. Row 1 starts with 7 sts at 7/8 in (2.2 cm). The bands grow to 16 dc at 2 in (5.1 cm) and 25 dc at 3 1/8 in (7.9 cm). The hem ends with 9 shells, 3 1/2 in (8.9 cm) wide and 3 3/4 in (9.5 cm) tall, and the gold border adds 37 sts. With the waist band, the skirt is 4 1/4 in (10.8 cm) tall. The 1 in (2.5 cm) head brings the angel to 5 1/4 in (13.3 cm), and two 2 1/4 in (5.7 cm) wings give a 4 1/2 in (11.4 cm) span. If each checkpoint matches, your angel will match too.
Happy crocheting!