This ornament is a vintage-style skeleton key with a snowflake flower for its bow. Gold puff petals sit in the middle of the bow, ringed by soft cream puffs, and a lacy edge of cream loops ends in small gold picot points. Below the bow, a puffy shank of stacked cream segments with thin gold bands leads down to two little teeth.
The palette is just cream and gold, so it suits a warm, candlelit tree. It looks good on its own, and a group of them on one branch looks even better.
The pattern uses US crochet terms. The finished key is about 7 in (17.8 cm) long and 3.25 in (8.3 cm) across the bow, plus a 2 in (5.1 cm) hanging loop.
The construction is simple. Work the bow center in joined rounds, then join the shank to the bottom loop and work it as a small tube. Add the two teeth to the shank’s side in short rows. Finish with a two-round scalloped edge around the bow and a chained hanging loop.
Finished Size and Construction
- Finished size: 7 in (17.8 cm) long × 3.25 in (8.3 cm) wide at the bow, plus a 2 in (5.1 cm) loop
- Skill level: Intermediate (puff stitches, color changes, working into chain loops)
- Terminology: US crochet terms
- Yarn weight: DK / light (#3) cotton or cotton blend
- Hook: 3.5 mm (US E-4)
- Number of pieces: 1 (worked continuously, no sewing)
- Layout: single standalone ornament
- Piece size: 3.25 in (8.3 cm) bow; shank 4 in (10.2 cm) long × 0.75 in (1.9 cm) wide
- Bow size before border: 2.75 in (7.0 cm)
- Border depth: 0.25 in (0.6 cm) on each side of the bow
Materials
Mercerized cotton or a cotton blend in DK weight works best. It shows off the puff stitches and holds the picot points crisply. For the gold, choose a smooth matte gold, or a gold cotton with a light metallic strand. Avoid very fuzzy yarn, because it blurs the petals.
- Color A – Cream: 12 g (about 28 m)
- Color B – Gold: 7 g (about 16 m)
These quantities include roughly a 15% margin for your gauge swatch and tails.
Tools:
– 3.5 mm (US E-4) crochet hook
– Tapestry needle
– Scissors
– Stitch marker
– Rustproof pins and a foam blocking mat
– Spray bottle; optional light spray starch
– Small amount of fiberfill or yarn scraps (optional, for the shank)
Abbreviations (US Terms)
- ch – chain
- sl st – slip stitch
- sc – single crochet
- sc2tog – single crochet 2 together
- sk – skip
- sp – space
- st(s) – stitch(es)
- MR – magic ring
- RS / WS – right side / wrong side
Puff stitch (puff): [Yarn over, insert hook in the indicated st or sp, yarn over and pull up a loop to about 0.5 in (1.3 cm)] 4 times (9 loops on hook). Yarn over and pull through all 9 loops, then ch 1 to close. The closing ch 1 is part of the puff and is not counted as a separate stitch.
Picot: Ch 3, sl st in the 3rd ch from the hook.
Gauge and Checkpoints
Gauge: 10 sc = 2 in (5.1 cm) with a 3.5 mm hook.
On a small ornament, gauge decides whether the bow and shank stay in proportion. Work the bow center through Round 5 first, measure, and only then continue.
Checkpoints:
– After Round 1: 0.75 in (1.9 cm) across
– After Round 2 (gold flower): 1.25 in (3.2 cm) across
– After Round 4: 1.75 in (4.4 cm) across
– After Round 5: 2.75 in (7.0 cm) across, measured loop tip to loop tip
– One shank segment (puff round + gold round): 0.5 in (1.3 cm) tall
– Finished shank: 4 in (10.2 cm) from the bow’s bottom loop to the tip
– After the border: 3.25 in (8.3 cm) across the bow
If your work is too big: go down to a 3.25 mm hook, or try a tighter yarn.
If your work is too small: go up to a 3.75 mm (US F-5) hook.
If only the puffs look off: pull the puff loops up to an even 0.5 in (1.3 cm). Taller loops make the puffs fatter but don’t change the round count.
Part 1: Bow Center
Round 1 (Cream): Make a MR, ch 1, 12 sc in the ring. Pull the ring closed and join with sl st to the first sc. Fasten off Cream. (12 sc)
Round 2 (Gold): Join Gold with a sl st in any sc. Ch 2 (does not count), puff in the same st, ch 2, sk next st. Puff in next st, ch 2, sk next st; repeat from * 4 more times. Join with sl st to the top of the first puff. Fasten off Gold. (6 puffs, 6 ch-2 sps)
These six puffs are the gold petals.
Round 3 (Cream): Join Cream with a sl st in any ch-2 sp. Ch 2 (does not count), puff in the same sp, ch 3. Puff in next ch-2 sp, ch 3; repeat from * 4 more times. Join with sl st to the top of the first puff. (6 puffs, 6 ch-3 sps)
Each cream puff sits between two gold petals, which gives the layered flower look.
Round 4 (Cream, conversion round): Ch 1, sc in the top of the first puff (the same st as the join), then 5 sc in the next ch-3 sp. Sc in the top of the next puff, 5 sc in the next ch-3 sp; repeat from * 4 more times. Join with sl st to the first sc. (36 sc = 6 sc worked 1 per puff + 30 sc in the spaces)
Round 5 (Cream): Ch 1, sc in the same st. Ch 4, sk 2 sts, sc in next st; repeat from * 10 more times. Ch 4, sk the last 2 sts, and join with sl st to the first sc. (12 sc, 12 ch-4 loops)
Lay the bow flat and check it: it should be 2.75 in (7.0 cm) across. Choose any ch-4 loop as the bottom loop and mark it. The loop directly opposite is the top loop, where the hanging loop goes later. Fasten off.
Part 2: Shank
The shank is a small tube worked in joined rounds, always with the RS facing. Carry the color you’re not using up the inside of the tube. To change color, finish the last step of the join with the new color.
Round 1 (Cream): Join Cream in the marked bottom loop. Ch 1, 4 sc in the loop, ch 4, and join with sl st to the first sc to close a ring. (4 sc, 4 ch)
Round 2 (Cream): Ch 1, sc in each of the 4 sc and in each of the 4 ch. Join. (8 sc)
Round 3 (Cream, puff round): Ch 1. Puff in next st, sc in each of next 3 sts; repeat from * once more. Join, changing to Gold. (8 sts: 2 puffs + 6 sc)
Flatten the tube so that one puff sits in the center front and the other in the center back.
Round 4 (Gold): Ch 1, sc in each st around. Join, changing to Cream. (8 sc)
Rounds 5–14: Repeat Rounds 3 and 4 five more times. Line each puff up over the puff below it. That gives you 6 segments in total, and the last round is a gold round. (8 sc)
Checkpoint: six segments measure about 3 in (7.6 cm). If you want a firmer shank, tuck a pinch of fiberfill or yarn scraps inside now.
Round 15 (Cream): Repeat Round 3. Cut Gold. (8 sts: 2 puffs + 6 sc)
Round 16 (Cream): Ch 1, sc2tog 4 times. Join. (4 sts)
Fasten off, leaving a 6 in (15.2 cm) tail. Thread the tail through the 4 stitches, pull tight to make the rounded tip, and weave it in.
Checkpoint: the shank should be 4 in (10.2 cm) long and about 0.75 in (1.9 cm) wide when flattened.
Part 3: Teeth (make 2)
Work both teeth on the right edge of the flattened shank, with the front puff facing you. Use the edge column of sc that sits halfway between the front and back puffs.
Upper tooth (Rounds 9–10):
Row 1 (Cream): Join Cream with a sl st in the right edge st of Round 9. Ch 1, 2 sc in the same st, then 1 sc in the right edge st of Round 10. Turn. (3 sc)
Row 2 (Cream): Ch 1, puff in the first st, sc in the next st, puff in the last st. Change to Gold on the last step. Turn. (3 sts: 2 puffs + 1 sc)
The two puffs sit one above the other, which gives the tooth its double bump.
Row 3 (Gold): Ch 1, sc in each st. Fasten off both colors. (3 sc)
Lower tooth (Rounds 13–14): Work Rows 1–3 exactly as for the upper tooth, but in the right edge sts of Rounds 13 and 14.
The segment between the two teeth (Rounds 11–12) stays plain, so you get a clear gap. Each tooth sticks out 0.75 in (1.9 cm), which makes the shank 1.5 in (3.8 cm) wide across the teeth.
Border: Bow Scalloped Edge
Border gauge: each finished scallop is about 0.75 in (1.9 cm) wide at its base, and the border adds 0.25 in (0.6 cm) to every edge of the bow.
The border goes around the 11 free ch-4 loops. The bottom loop already holds the shank, so you skip it. Each round is worked from one side of the shank, all the way around the bow, to the other side. For counting, number the Round 5 sc 0 through 11, going around from just after the shank: sc 0 sits on one side of the bottom loop and sc 11 on the other.
Round 6 (Cream): With the RS facing, join Cream with a sl st in sc 0. Ch 1. (2 sc, ch 2, 2 sc) in the next ch-4 loop, sl st in the next sc; repeat from * 10 more times. Your last sl st lands in sc 11, next to the shank. Fasten off.
Per loop: 4 sc + 1 ch-2 tip + 1 sl st.
Total: 44 sc, 11 ch-2 tips, and 12 sl sts (the joining sl st plus 11).
Round 7 (Gold): Join Gold with a sl st in the joining sl st of Round 6. Sl st in each of the next 2 sc. In the ch-2 tip work (sc, picot, sc). Sl st in each of the next 2 sc, then sl st in the next sl st; repeat from * 10 more times. Fasten off.
Per scallop: 5 sl sts + 2 sc + 1 picot.
Total: 55 sl sts, 22 sc, and 11 picots, plus the joining sl st.
Why the math works: Round 5 made 12 loops, and the shank uses one, so 12 − 1 = 11 loops get a scallop. Round 6 works 1 sl st into each of the 12 Round 5 sc, so it starts and ends right beside the shank with no gap. Round 7 works exactly 1 stitch per Round 6 stitch: 4 sc become 4 sl sts, each tip gets one gold point, and each sl st gets one sl st. Nothing is added or skipped, so the edge lies flat. The bow measures 2.75 in (7.0 cm) before the border, and 0.25 in (0.6 cm) on each side makes 2.75 + 0.25 + 0.25 = 3.25 in (8.3 cm).
Hanging loop: Hold one strand of Gold and one strand of Cream together. Join both with a sl st in the picot at the top scallop (the one opposite the shank). Ch 24, which should measure about 4 in (10.2 cm). Sl st into the same picot, then fasten off. Folded, the loop stands 2 in (5.1 cm) tall.
Final Blocking
- Weave in all the tails. Hide them inside the shank tube or behind the puffs.
- Mist the whole ornament until it’s evenly damp, but not soaked.
- Lay it face up on the blocking mat. Pin the bow into a circle 3.25 in (8.3 cm) across.
- Pin each of the 11 gold picots outward so the points are evenly spaced.
- Shape the gold petals and cream puffs with your fingertips so they’re rounded and even.
- Straighten the shank so it’s 4 in (10.2 cm) long, and pin the teeth square to it.
- If you’d like crisp points, mist lightly with spray starch.
- Let it dry completely, then unpin.
Final Quality-Control Checklist
- The bow measures 3.25 in (8.3 cm) across.
- The total length is 7 in (17.8 cm), not counting the loop.
- There are 6 gold petals and 6 cream puffs in the center.
- There are 11 scallops, each with one gold picot.
- The shank has 6 segments plus the tip, and the puffs are stacked in a straight line.
- Both teeth are on the right side, with one plain segment between them.
- The hanging loop is directly opposite the shank, so the key hangs straight.
- All tails are hidden and no ends show from the front.
Troubleshooting
The bow cups: Round 4 probably has too few stitches. Recount for 36 sc, or go up a hook size for Rounds 4–5.
The bow ruffles: your chain loops are too loose. Use ch 3 instead of ch 4 in Round 5, or tighten your tension.
The puffs look flat or uneven: pull every loop up to the same 0.5 in (1.3 cm) height before you close the puff.
The shank spirals: this happens when puffs drift off line. Always join each round with a sl st, and check that each puff lands directly above the one below.
Gold shows through the cream: carry the unused strand loosely along the inside of the tube.
The key hangs crooked: move the loop so it sits exactly opposite the shank.
Care
Hand wash in cool water with a mild soap, press out the water in a towel, and dry flat. Store it flat or hanging, away from crushing weight, so the puffs keep their shape.
Final Notes
The measurement chain is short. A 2 in (5.1 cm) gauge for 10 sc leads to a 2.75 in (7.0 cm) bow center. The border adds 0.25 in (0.6 cm) on each side for a 3.25 in (8.3 cm) bow. Six 0.5 in (1.3 cm) segments plus the ends give a 4 in (10.2 cm) shank, and the whole key comes to 7 in (17.8 cm). If you check those numbers as you go, every key will match, whether you make one or a whole branch of them.
Happy crocheting!