This beaded curtain turns a window into a soft holiday display. Six vertical strands each carry three deep red lacy stars and two cream snowflakes. A cream chain cord with wooden beads links the motifs, with a hanging loop at the top and a plump tassel at the bottom.
The palette is classic: cranberry red, warm cream and natural wood beads. The tassels alternate red and cream across the panel, which gives the bottom edge a gentle rhythm. The style is Scandinavian cottage, and the curtain is light enough to let winter sun through.
This pattern uses US crochet terms. Each strand measures about 38.9 in (98.8 cm) from the top of the loop to the tassel tip. With the strands hung 4.5 in (11.4 cm) apart, center to center, the full curtain is about 26.25 in (66.7 cm) wide.
Construction is simple. Crochet 18 stars and 12 snowflakes in the round. Then work one continuous cream cord per strand from the top down, locking beads into the chain and slip stitching into the top and bottom tips of each motif. Tassels finish each strand.
Finished Size and Construction
- Finished size: 6 strands, each about 38.9 in (98.8 cm) long; curtain width about 26.25 in (66.7 cm) at 4.5 in (11.4 cm) spacing
- Skill level: Intermediate (chain arms, picots, working into chain spaces)
- Terminology: US
- Yarn weight: DK (light worsted, #3) cotton
- Hook: 3.5 mm (E-4)
- Number of pieces: 30 motifs (18 stars, 12 snowflakes) + 6 tassels
- Layout: 6 strands across x 5 motifs down
- Piece size: star 3.75 in (9.5 cm) point to point; snowflake 3.25 in (8.3 cm) arm tip to arm tip
- Size before border: strand body (first star top tip to last star bottom tip) about 28.2 in (71.6 cm)
- Border depth: there is no fabric border; the finishing edge is a 2 in (5.1 cm) hanging loop at the top and a 1.6 in (4.1 cm) bottom lead plus a 4.5 in (11.4 cm) tassel at the bottom
Materials
Choose a smooth DK cotton. Cotton keeps star points and picots crisp and does not stretch much when hung. Avoid fuzzy or very soft acrylic, which blurs the lace.
- Red (cranberry): 150 g, about 330 m (360 yd); stars and 3 tassels
- Cream: 100 g, about 220 m (240 yd); snowflakes, cords, loops and 3 tassels
- Wooden beads: 70 natural round beads, 10 mm (0.4 in / 1.0 cm), with holes that fit DK yarn (66 needed + 4 spares)
- 3.5 mm (E-4) crochet hook
- Big-eye beading needle or dental floss threader
- Tapestry needle
- Stiff card 5 in (12.7 cm) tall for tassels
- Scissors, tape measure, rustproof pins, blocking mat
- Optional: spray starch
- 6 curtain rings or clips, if your rod needs them
Quantities include a margin of roughly 15% for gauge differences and tassel trimming.
Abbreviations (US Terms)
- ch: chain
- sl st: slip stitch
- sc: single crochet
- dc: double crochet
- sp: space
- st(s): stitch(es)
- rnd: round
- picot: ch 3, sl st in the 3rd ch from hook
- bch (bead chain): slide one strung bead up against the hook, yarn over and pull through, locking the bead inside that chain. Count a bch as 1 stitch.
Special stitch – Snowflake Arm: Ch 10. Sl st in 4th ch from hook (tip loop made). [Ch 3, sl st in same ch] twice (trefoil of 3 loops). Sl st in next 2 ch down the spine. [Ch 4, sl st in same ch] twice (V of side branches). Sl st in remaining 4 ch to return to the base. All 10 chains are used: 3 inside the tip loop, 1 for the tip sl st, and 2 + 4 sl sts down the spine.
Gauge and Checkpoints
Before anything else, make one star and one snowflake and block them. Gauge matters most for fitting the cord to the motifs.
- Cord gauge: 5 ch = 1 in (2.5 cm), measured relaxed.
- Star after Rnd 1: about 1 in (2.5 cm) across.
- Star after Rnd 3: about 2.25 in (5.7 cm) across the shell tips.
- Star after Rnd 5 (blocked): 3.75 in (9.5 cm) point to point.
- Snowflake after Rnd 2: about 1.25 in (3.2 cm) across.
- Snowflake after Rnd 3 (blocked): 3.25 in (8.3 cm) arm tip to arm tip.
If your star is larger than 3.75 in (9.5 cm), go down to a 3.25 mm hook. If it is smaller, go up to 3.75 mm. If only the cord is off, change the hook for the cord alone so you get 5 ch per inch.
Red Star Motif (make 18)
With red, ch 10, sl st in first ch to form a ring.
Rnd 1: Ch 1, 24 sc in ring, sl st in first sc. (24 sc)
The ch-10 ring leaves the open center hole. Do not pull the tail tight.
Rnd 2: Ch 1, sc in first sc, ch 5, skip 3 sc, sc in next sc; repeat from * 4 more times, ch 5, skip last 3 sc, sl st in first sc. (6 sc, 6 ch-5 sps)
Rnd 3: Sl st in first ch-5 sp, ch 3 (counts as dc), (2 dc, ch 3, 3 dc) in same sp, ch 1, (3 dc, ch 3, 3 dc) in next ch-5 sp, ch 1; repeat from * 4 more times, sl st in top of beginning ch-3. (36 dc, 6 ch-3 tips, 6 ch-1 valleys)
Rnd 4 (open points): Sl st in next 2 dc, in the ch-3 tip, in next 3 dc and in the ch-1 sp. Ch 1, sc in same ch-1 sp, ch 7, (sc, ch 5, sc) in next ch-3 tip, ch 7, sc in next ch-1 valley; repeat from * 5 more times, omitting the final sc and joining with sl st to first sc. (18 sc, 12 ch-7 loops, 6 ch-5 tips)
Each pair of ch-7 loops forms the open triangle inside one star point.
Rnd 5 (outline): Sl st into next ch-7 loop, ch 1, 8 sc in ch-7 loop, (3 sc, ch 3, 3 sc) in ch-5 tip, 8 sc in next ch-7 loop, sl st in valley sc; repeat from * 5 more times. The last sl st lands in the first valley sc. Fasten off, leaving a 6 in (15.2 cm) tail. (132 sc, 6 ch-3 tip picots, 6 valley sl sts)
Per point: 8 + 3 + 3 + 8 = 22 sc, and 22 x 6 = 132. The valley sl st pulls each dip inward, which gives the star its sharp outline.
Cream Snowflake Motif (make 12)
With cream, ch 5, sl st in first ch to form a ring.
Rnd 1: Ch 3 (counts as dc), 11 dc in ring, sl st in top of ch-3. (12 dc)
Rnd 2: Ch 3 (counts as dc), dc in same st, 2 dc in each remaining dc around, sl st in top of ch-3. (24 dc)
This makes the small solid center disk with a tiny hole.
Rnd 3 (arms): Ch 1, sc in next dc, work one Snowflake Arm, sc in next 3 dc; repeat from * 5 more times, sl st in first sc. Fasten off, leaving a 6 in (15.2 cm) tail. (24 sc + 6 arms)
This is a conversion round: 24 sc worked 1 per existing dc, plus 6 arms added. One arm sits every 4 stitches, so the six arms are evenly spaced.
Make All Pieces
- Red: 18 stars
- Cream: 12 snowflakes
- Tassels: 3 red, 3 cream (made after joining)
Weave in the center tails now. Keep each motif’s outer 6 in (15.2 cm) tail for tacking the cord later. Lightly block all 30 motifs before joining.
Layout grid (S = red star, F = cream snowflake, R/C = red/cream tassel):
Strand: 1 2 3 4 5 6
Row 1: S S S S S S
Row 2: F F F F F F
Row 3: S S S S S S
Row 4: F F F F F F
Row 5: S S S S S S
Tassel: R C R C R C
Turn every star so one tip points straight up and one straight down. Turn every snowflake so one arm points up and one points down.
Joining
Each strand is one continuous cream cord, worked from the top down. The cord runs behind each motif, so the front stays clean.
Prepare: Using the beading needle, string 11 beads onto the cream yarn and push them down out of the way.
Spacer (used 5 times per strand): Ch 3, bch, ch 3, bch, ch 3. (11 sts: 9 ch + 2 bch)
At 5 ch per inch, 9 ch = 1.8 in (4.6 cm). Add two beads at 0.4 in (1.0 cm) each, and one spacer is 2.6 in (6.6 cm).
Strand:
- Hanging loop: Ch 20, sl st in first ch. The loop is 4 in (10.2 cm) around and hangs 2 in (5.1 cm).
- Top lead: Work 1 spacer.
- Star: With the star face up, insert the hook from front to back through the top tip picot and sl st. Ch 19 behind the star (3.8 in / 9.7 cm), then sl st from back to front through the bottom tip picot. (21 sts)
- Work 1 spacer.
- Snowflake: Sl st into the center trefoil loop of the top arm. Ch 16 behind the snowflake (3.2 in / 8.1 cm), then sl st into the center trefoil loop of the bottom arm. (18 sts)
- Continue in order: spacer, star, spacer, snowflake, spacer, star.
- Bottom lead: Ch 3, bch, ch 3. (7 sts, about 1.6 in / 4.1 cm) Fasten off, leaving a 12 in (30.5 cm) tail for the tassel.
Beads: 2 per spacer x 5 spacers + 1 in the bottom lead = 11 per strand; 11 x 6 = 66 beads.
Stitch-to-stitch logic: Each back chain matches its motif’s tip-to-tip size within about 0.05 in (0.1 cm). That keeps the motif flat over the cord, with no gathering or sagging. Use the motif’s leftover tail to whipstitch the back chain to the center ring at 2 points so it never shows from the front.
Tension: Keep the cord chains relaxed and even. Tight chains shorten the strand and pucker the motifs. Push each bead snug against the previous chain before locking it.
Size checkpoint: Lay one strand flat. From the first star’s top tip to the last star’s bottom tip, it should measure 3 x 3.75 in + 2 x 3.25 in + 4 x 2.6 in = 11.25 + 6.5 + 10.4 = 28.15 in, so about 28.2 in (71.6 cm).
Border: Top Loops and Bottom Tassels
Hanging strands have no fabric edge, so the “border” is the finishing at each end of every strand.
Border gauge: the same as the cord, 5 ch = 1 in (2.5 cm).
Top edge (6 strands): 6 hanging loops of ch 20 each. A 20-ch loop is 4 in (10.2 cm) around and hangs 2 in (5.1 cm). That fits a curtain ring or a rod up to 1.25 in (3.2 cm) across.
Bottom edge (6 strands): 6 tassels, alternating red, cream, red, cream, red, cream.
For each tassel:
- Wrap yarn 30 times around the 5 in (12.7 cm) card.
- Thread the 12 in (30.5 cm) cord tail under all wraps at the top edge and tie tightly.
- Cut the wraps at the bottom edge.
- With a separate 12 in (30.5 cm) length of the same color, wrap the neck 6 times, 0.5 in (1.3 cm) below the top, and knot. Hide the ends inside the tassel.
- Trim the tassel to 4.5 in (11.4 cm).
Why the math works: 30 wraps give 60 cut strands, enough for a full tassel that balances the weight of three stars. Strand length: 2 in (loop) + 2.6 in (top lead) + 28.2 in (body) + 1.6 in (bottom lead) + 4.5 in (tassel) = 38.9 in (98.8 cm). Curtain width: 5 gaps x 4.5 in + 3.75 in (one star width) = 26.25 in (66.7 cm).
Final Blocking
- Before joining, pin each motif face up on the blocking mat.
- Stars: pin the 6 tip picots at 3.75 in (9.5 cm) point to point and press each valley inward.
- Snowflakes: pin each trefoil open and the V branches outward, at 3.25 in (8.3 cm) across.
- Mist with water or spray starch until damp, not soaked.
- Let dry completely before removing pins.
- After joining, hang the strands for 24 hours so the cords relax evenly.
- Steam each tassel lightly, comb it straight, and trim again if needed.
Final Quality-Control Checklist
- 18 stars at 3.75 in (9.5 cm) and 12 snowflakes at 3.25 in (8.3 cm)
- Each star: 132 sc, 6 tip picots, 6 sharp valleys
- Each snowflake: 6 arms, each with a trefoil and a V of branches
- Every strand reads star, snowflake, star, snowflake, star
- 11 beads per strand
- Back chains hidden and tacked
- Strand body about 28.2 in (71.6 cm); full strand about 38.9 in (98.8 cm)
- Tassels alternate red and cream, all 4.5 in (11.4 cm)
Troubleshooting
- Star points curl: Rnd 5 is too tight. Work the 8 sc per loop more loosely, or go up a hook size.
- Star points look rounded: Pull each valley sl st snug and pin the tips sharply.
- Snowflake arms twist: Work all spine sl sts into the back bump of the chain, every time.
- Bead won’t stay put: Make the bch with a firm pull so the bead sits inside the chain loop.
- Strands are different lengths: Recheck cord gauge, then re-chain the spacers on the odd strand.
- Motif tilts: The cord entered off-center. Re-join at the exact tip picot.
Care
Hand wash in cool water with mild soap, roll in a towel, and dry flat, re-pinning the motifs. Comb the tassels while damp.
Final Notes
Here is the measurement chain:
- Cord: 5 ch = 1 in (2.5 cm)
- Stars: 3.75 in (9.5 cm)
- Snowflakes: 3.25 in (8.3 cm)
- Spacers: 2.6 in (6.6 cm)
- Strand body: 28.2 in (71.6 cm)
- Full strand: 38.9 in (98.8 cm)
- Curtain width: 26.25 in (66.7 cm)
Check each link in that chain and the six strands will hang evenly in your window all season.
Happy crocheting!