A red and cream flower coaster brings a bold floral outline to a small table setting. This version pairs a red circular center with eight rounded red petals, small cream fan groups and a fine cream edge that follows the dips between the petals.
The free pattern below is an original interpretation inspired by the reference image, not the exact recipe behind the photograph. Its stitch counts have been checked for internal consistency, but the design has not been physically crocheted or tested. Make one motif first and check its shape and fit with your own yarn and cup.
Five joined rounds build the flower from the center outward. The cream groups create eight chain spaces, each of which receives one red shell. A final round of single crochet outlines the shells while slip stitches keep the valleys low and distinct.
Choose cotton for your red and cream flower coaster
Use smooth cotton in two colors of the same weight. A firmly spun yarn makes it easier to see the cream fan groups and to identify each red double crochet when adding the border. Fuzzy yarn can hide the valleys where the edging changes from single crochet to slip stitch.
- DK-weight cotton in cherry red and warm cream.
- A 3 mm crochet hook as a starting point, adjusted to your yarn and tension.
- A blunt yarn needle, scissors and a removable stitch marker.
- A flat drying surface and rustproof pins if your yarn allows damp blocking.
No measured gauge, finished diameter or yarn consumption is supplied for this untested interpretation. Crochet the first motif before planning a set. Measure its red center and compare it with the base of the cup or glass you intend to use; the outer petals are decorative and should not be relied on to level an unstable cup.
This project suits a confident beginner who can work double crochet, follow a skipped-stitch repeat and join rounds. The construction uses ordinary stitches rather than clusters: every three-dc cream group has three separate stitch tops, and every red shell has nine separate stitch tops.
US stitch terms and the eight-repeat rhythm
Instructions use US terminology. For the standard names, see the Craft Yarn Council crochet abbreviations guide.
- MR: magic ring
- ch: chain
- sl st: slip stitch
- sc: single crochet
- dc: double crochet
- st/sts: stitch/stitches
- sp: space
- Shell: 9 dc worked into one indicated ch-3 space.
Double crochet: yarn over, insert the hook into the indicated stitch or space, yarn over and draw up a loop. Yarn over and pull through two loops, then yarn over and pull through the remaining two loops. Each dc has its own finished top; do not close several dc together as a cluster.
Single crochet: insert the hook, yarn over and draw up a loop, yarn over and pull through both loops. Slip stitch: insert the hook, yarn over and pull through the fabric and the loop on your hook in one movement. Keep the slip stitches relaxed enough that they do not draw the flower inward.
Work in joined rounds without turning. In Rounds 1–3, the beginning ch 3 counts as one dc. In Rounds 4–5, the beginning ch 1 does not count. Joining slip stitches and the slip stitches used to attach a new color are excluded from the round totals. The eight valley slip stitches in Round 5 are part of that round’s edging and are counted separately.
The foundation grows from 16 dc to 32 dc. Round 3 then uses four foundation stitches for each repeat: one stitch holding three dc and three skipped stitches beneath a chain arch. Thirty-two divided by four gives eight repeats, so the flower has eight spaces for eight red petals.
Red and cream flower coaster: five-round pattern
Round 1: start the red disk
With red, make a magic ring. Ch 3 to count as the first dc, then work 15 dc into the ring. Pull the ring closed gently and join with a sl st to the third chain of the beginning ch 3. Count: 16 dc. Keep red attached.
Mark the top of the beginning ch 3 if you tend to lose it. It is the sixteenth counted dc when checking the round, even though you made those chains first. The joining slip stitch is not an extra stitch to work into.
Round 2: double the center count
Ch 3 to count as the first dc, then work 1 dc into the same stitch at the base of the chain. Work 2 dc into each of the remaining 15 stitches. Join to the top of the beginning ch 3. Count: 32 dc. Fasten off red.
The first increase consists of the beginning ch 3 plus one dc. Do not add two more dc at that starting stitch, or you will finish with 33 stitches. Lay the red center down and check that it is reasonably flat before adding the cream round.
Round 3: make eight cream fan groups
Join cream with a sl st in any dc of Round 2. Ch 3 to count as the first dc, then work 2 dc into that same stitch. Ch 3 and skip the next 3 stitches. Repeat seven more times. Join to the top of the beginning ch 3. Fasten off cream.
Count: 24 dc arranged in eight groups of three, plus 8 ch-3 spaces. The final three skipped stitches are the last unused stitches immediately before the starting group. Do not add a ninth group at the join.
