The Ivory Fan Christmas Tree is a small lacy ornament made from six fan shells stacked in three tiers: one fan at the top, two in the middle and three at the bottom. Each fan has dense ribs that radiate from a single point, a line of small eyelets near its lower edge and a neat single crochet rim. A short tan trunk sits below the bottom tier, and a chain loop at the tip lets it hang.
The palette is soft and simple. The tree is ivory cotton and the trunk is a light tan or beige. The look is vintage and lacy, a little like old doily work, and it suits a natural or neutral tree, gift wrap or a window.
This pattern uses US crochet terms. The finished ornament is about 3.75 in (9.5 cm) wide and 4.25 in (10.8 cm) tall from tip to trunk. The hanging loop adds about 1.5 in (3.8 cm), for an overall height of about 5.75 in (14.6 cm).
The tree is worked as one piece, top down, in turned rows. Each tier is 4 rows: a shell row, a rib row, an eyelet row and a single crochet edge row with a picot at each end. The next tier’s shells are worked into the two end stitches of that edge, so the middle of the edge laps over the tier below. You finish with a 5-stitch trunk in tan and a chain loop at the top.
Finished Size and Construction
- Finished size: 3.75 in (9.5 cm) wide × 4.25 in (10.8 cm) tall, plus a 1.5 in (3.8 cm) loop
- Canopy (fans only): 3.75 in (9.5 cm) wide × 3.5 in (8.9 cm) tall
- Trunk: 0.7 in (1.8 cm) wide × 0.75 in (1.9 cm) tall
- Skill level: Easy to intermediate
- Terminology: US
- Yarn weight: Fingering / #1 super fine mercerized cotton
- Hook: 2.25 mm (US B-1)
- Number of pieces: 1 (worked in one piece, with the trunk and loop added on)
- Layout: 3 tiers of fans: 1, then 2, then 3
- Piece size: each fan is about 1.2 in (3.0 cm) across the bottom
- Size before border: 3.5 in (8.9 cm) wide × 3.4 in (8.6 cm) tall (through Row 11)
- Border depth: 1 sc row, about 1/8 in (0.3 cm), plus picot tips
Materials
Use a smooth, mercerized cotton in fingering weight. Mercerized cotton gives clean stitch definition and crisp ribs, and it blocks well. Avoid fuzzy or very stretchy yarns because the fans will lose their shape.
- Ivory (main color): 8 g, about 27 m
- Tan / beige (trunk): 2 g, about 7 m
These quantities include a margin for your gauge swatch and yarn tails. One ornament actually uses about 5 g of ivory and 1 g of tan.
Tools
- 2.25 mm (US B-1) crochet hook
- Tapestry needle
- Scissors
- Rustproof pins and a foam blocking board
- Spray bottle with water
- Optional: spray starch for a firmer ornament
Abbreviations (US Terms)
- ch – chain
- sl st – slip stitch
- sc – single crochet
- dc – double crochet
- sk – skip
- sp – space
- st(s) – stitch(es)
- RS / WS – right side / wrong side
- [ ] – repeat the instructions in brackets as directed
Special stitches
- Shell: 6 dc worked into the same stitch or space. When a row begins with a shell, ch 3 counts as the first dc, so you work ch 3 and then 5 dc in the same st.
- Picot: ch 3, sl st in the sc just made. Picots are not counted as stitches.
Gauge and Checkpoints
Gauge: 7 sc and 8 sc rows = 1 in (2.5 cm); 3 dc rows = 1 in (2.5 cm).
Gauge matters because every tier is built on the tier above it. Work Tier 1 (Rows 1–4) first and treat it as your swatch.
Checkpoint 1 (after Row 4): Tier 1 measures about 1.25 in (3.2 cm) between the picot tips and 1.15 in (2.9 cm) from the ring to the bottom of the edge.
Checkpoint 2 (after Row 8): The tree measures about 2.5 in (6.4 cm) wide and 2.3 in (5.8 cm) tall.
Checkpoint 3 (after Row 11): The tree measures about 3.5 in (8.9 cm) wide and 3.4 in (8.6 cm) tall.
If your tier is too big: go down to a 2.0 mm hook or tighten the loops on your dc. If it is too small: go up to a 2.5 mm hook. Changing the hook is better than changing stitch counts, because every count below depends on the 9-stitch fan.
Pattern
Each fan follows the same stitch logic in every tier:
- Shell row: 6 dc
- Rib row: 9 dc
- Eyelet row: 5 dc and 4 ch-1 sps (9 sts)
- Edge row: 9 sc
Turning chains count as stitches throughout. Pick the neater side as the RS when you finish.
Tier 1 (1 Fan)
Row 1 (shell row): With ivory, make a magic ring. Ch 3 (counts as dc), 5 dc in the ring. Pull the ring tight. Turn. (6 dc)
Row 2 (rib row): Ch 3 (counts as dc), 2 dc in next dc, [dc in next dc, 2 dc in next dc] twice, working the last 2 dc into the top of the turning ch-3. Turn. (9 dc)
Row 3 (eyelet row): Ch 4 (counts as dc + ch 1), sk next dc, dc in next dc, [ch 1, sk next dc, dc in next dc] 3 times, working the last dc into the top of the turning ch-3. Turn. (5 dc and 4 ch-1 sps = 9 sts)
Row 4 (edge row): Ch 1, sc in first dc, picot, [sc in next ch-1 sp, sc in next dc] 4 times, working the last sc into the 3rd ch of the turning ch-4, picot. Turn. (9 sc, 2 picots)
Check against Checkpoint 1.
Tier 2 (2 Fans)
Row 5 (shell row): Ch 3 (counts as dc), 5 dc in first sc, sk next 7 sc, 6 dc in last sc. Turn. (12 dc: 2 shells)
The 7 skipped sc stay free. They become the rim of Tier 1 that laps over the tops of the two new fans.
Row 6 (rib row): Ch 3 (counts as dc), 2 dc in next dc, [dc in next dc, 2 dc in next dc] twice (first fan, 9 dc); [dc in next dc, 2 dc in next dc] 3 times, working the last 2 dc into the top of the turning ch-3 (second fan, 9 dc). Turn. (18 dc)
Row 7 (eyelet row): Ch 4 (counts as dc + ch 1), sk next dc, dc in next dc, [ch 1, sk next dc, dc in next dc] 3 times (first fan); dc in next dc, [ch 1, sk next dc, dc in next dc] 4 times, working the last dc into the top of the turning ch-3 (second fan). Turn. (10 dc and 8 ch-1 sps = 18 sts)
Row 8 (edge row): Ch 1, sc in first dc, picot, sc in each ch-1 sp and each dc across, working the last sc into the 3rd ch of the turning ch-4, picot. Turn. (18 sc, 2 picots)
Check against Checkpoint 2.
Tier 3 (3 Fans), Rows 9–11
Row 9 (shell row): Ch 3 (counts as dc), 5 dc in first sc, sk next 8 sc, 6 dc in the sp between the 9th and 10th sc (the meeting point of the two Tier 2 fans), sk next 8 sc, 6 dc in last sc. Turn. (18 dc: 3 shells)
The shells are spaced evenly, with 8.5 stitches between each pair of shell points. This keeps the three bottom fans the same size and the tree symmetrical.
Row 10 (rib row): Ch 3 (counts as dc), 2 dc in next dc, [dc in next dc, 2 dc in next dc] twice (first fan); [dc in next dc, 2 dc in next dc] 3 times (second fan); [dc in next dc, 2 dc in next dc] 3 times, working the last 2 dc into the top of the turning ch-3 (third fan). Turn. (27 dc)
Row 11 (eyelet row): Ch 4 (counts as dc + ch 1), sk next dc, dc in next dc, [ch 1, sk next dc, dc in next dc] 3 times (first fan); dc in next dc, [ch 1, sk next dc, dc in next dc] 4 times; rep from * once more, working the last dc into the top of the turning ch-3 (second and third fans). Turn. (15 dc and 12 ch-1 sps = 27 sts)*
Check against Checkpoint 3. Do not fasten off.
Border
On this ornament the border is the scalloped sc rim and picot tips along the bottom tier. Rows 4 and 8 already gave Tiers 1 and 2 the same rim. Row 12 finishes the outline, and the trunk and loop are added afterward.
Border gauge: 7 sc = 1 in (2.5 cm), worked 1 sc per stitch.
Row 12 (final edge row): Ch 1, sc in first dc, picot, sc in each ch-1 sp and each dc across, working the last sc into the 3rd ch of the turning ch-4, picot. Fasten off, leaving a 6 in (15.2 cm) tail. (27 sc, 2 picots)
Counts per edge:
- Tier 1 rim: 9 sc (1 fan × 9)
- Tier 2 rim: 18 sc (2 fans × 9)
- Tier 3 rim: 27 sc (3 fans × 9)
- Left side: 3 picot tips, one at each tier end
- Right side: 3 picot tips, one at each tier end
Why the math works: each fan ends its eyelet row with 9 sts (5 dc + 4 ch-1 sps). One sc per stitch gives 9 sc per fan, so the rim fits the curve without ruffling or cupping. The picots add about 1/8 in (0.3 cm) at each side, which takes the width from 3.5 in (8.9 cm) to 3.75 in (9.5 cm). The sc row adds about 1/8 in (0.3 cm) of height, giving a canopy of about 3.5 in (8.9 cm).
Trunk
Hold the tree with the bottom tier up. Count the 27 sc of Row 12 from the right. The middle fan holds sc 10–18, and its center is sc 14.
Row 1: Join tan with a sl st in sc 12. Ch 1, sc in the same st and in next 4 sc. Turn. (5 sc)
Rows 2–6: Ch 1, sc in each sc across. Turn. (5 sc)
Fasten off after Row 6. The trunk measures about 0.7 in (1.8 cm) wide and 0.75 in (1.9 cm) tall, centered under the middle fan.
Hanging Loop
With ivory, join with a sl st at the top of the Row 1 ring (the tip of the tree). Ch 24, which is about 3 in (7.6 cm). Sl st into the same st and fasten off. Folded, the loop stands about 1.5 in (3.8 cm) tall.
Weave in all ends along the dc ribs, where they stay hidden.
Final Blocking
- Lightly spray the ornament with water until it is damp but not dripping.
- Lay it RS up on the blocking board.
- Pin the tip of the tree, then pin each picot tip so the 3 picots on each side line up along a straight diagonal.
- Ease each fan open so its ribs radiate evenly and the eyelets are clearly open. Pin the bottom of each fan at its lowest point.
- Measure: 3.75 in (9.5 cm) across the bottom picots and 3.5 in (8.9 cm) from the tip to the bottom of the middle fan.
- Square the trunk to 0.7 in (1.8 cm) × 0.75 in (1.9 cm) and pin its corners.
- Mist with starch if you want a stiffer ornament.
- Let it dry completely before you unpin it.
Final Quality-Control Checklist
- Tier stitch counts: 9, 18 and 27 sc on the three rims
- Each fan has 4 open eyelets
- 6 picot tips, 3 per side, all the same size
- The Tier 1 and Tier 2 rims lap neatly over the fan tops below them
- The middle bottom fan starts exactly at the meeting point of the Tier 2 fans
- The trunk is 5 sc wide and centered on sc 14
- The loop is securely anchored at the tip
- All ends are woven in and trimmed
- Finished size is 3.75 in (9.5 cm) × 4.25 in (10.8 cm), plus the loop
Troubleshooting
The fans ruffle: your dc are too loose or a rib row got extra stitches. Recount 9 dc per fan, or go down a hook size.
The fans cup: you skipped a stitch in the rib or edge row. Each fan needs 9 dc in the rib row and 9 sc in the edge row.
The eyelets are uneven: make sure every ch-1 skips exactly one dc and that the turning ch-4 counts as the first dc + ch 1.
The tree leans: the Row 9 middle shell is off-center. It belongs in the gap between sc 9 and sc 10.
The ring has a hole at the top: pull the magic ring tighter before Row 2 and secure the tail firmly.
The trunk is off-center: recount from either side. There should be 11 sc on both sides of the trunk.
Care
Hand wash in cool water with mild soap, press out the water in a towel and reblock flat to dry. Store the ornament flat or hanging, away from heavy items that could crush the fans.
Final Notes
The measurement chain is short. Tier 1 should be 1.25 in (3.2 cm) wide on a 9-stitch fan. Tier 2 grows to 2.5 in (6.4 cm), and Tier 3 reaches 3.5 in (8.9 cm) before the rim. The final rim and picots bring the canopy to 3.75 in (9.5 cm) wide, and the trunk takes the ornament to 4.25 in (10.8 cm) tall. If Tier 1 matches the gauge, everything after it will too. Make one and then a whole set for your tree.
Happy crocheting!