Author: ELeni

A free pattern for a simple & cozy crochet decoration

Post revised in December 2025

Back in 2023, I was looking for some easy-to-make Christmas decorations.

Although our home is furnished in a clean and simple style, I prefer my Christmas decorations to feel a bit more traditional and nostalgic. I had been looking for something like a candy cane or a classic Christmas wreath, and somehow that search sparked the idea to make my own. So I grabbed some yarn, picked up my hook, and got started…

I really like the result! And I thought I might as well write down the pattern and share it with you. Maybe you like it too…

I used Schachenmayr Catania and a 2.75mm hook to make my wreaths. They measure about 6 cm in diameter, which is between 2 1/4 and 2 1/2 inches.

I used

• 212 Khaki – for the wreath
• 192 Weinrot (Wine Red) – for decoration
• 105 Natur (Off White) – also for decoration

You will need only small amounts.

Catania is 100 % mercerised cotton and has 125 m per 50 g. You can easily substitute it with any other sport weight yarn.

And, the pattern will also work with any other yarn weight. Only the size of the finished wreath might vary.

And of course you can use any other colour you like and decorate your wreath with whatever comes to your mind.

Some ideas for decoration

To decorate the little Christmas wreaths, you can simply sew on a few beads or stars, for example. Or cut out small shapes from felt and stick them on …

Unfortunately, I didn’t have any of these items on hand, so I focussed on what you can do with yarn.

I immediately thought of some ribbons and bows. But you can also just embroider some French Knots, as shown in the picture below (bottom right).

Variant A – A Simple “Red Ribbon”

To symbolise a little ribbon, I simply worked a round of slip stitches around the stitches of round 1. The ends of the ribbon (made of chains) are tied to a bow.

To make the chains as small as possible, I used a crochet hook that was one size smaller (2.75 mm) than for the wreath (2.75 mm). The slip stitches were made with a 3.5 mm hook to avoid them from being too tight.

Here is how to make Variant A

• The yarn has to be on the back side of the work for the slip stitches, but on the front to work the chain stitches.
  • Therefore, insert the hook between any two hdc of round 1 and bring the yarn from back to front
• Start with the smaller hook size. Make a slip knot and chain 22. My chain was about 7 cm / 2 3/4 inch long.
• Change to the bigger hook size. Start at the stitch to the left of the chain (where the thread comes in front) and slip stitch around all the stitches of round 1.
• Change to the smaller hook again. Make another 22 chains.
• Fasten off and secure the ends – either with some knots or just sew them away on the back side
• It might look a bit bulky if the bow is tied, so just lay it in shape and fix it with a thread as described below (Variant B).

Variant B – A Two-coloured “Bow”

This bow is made from a chain, approximately 15 or 16 cm (about 6 inch) long.

Here is how to make Variant B

As before, it’s best to use a smaller hook size to ensure the chains are nicely small. I used my 1.75mm hook again.

The bow is made with two different colours (A and B). To get the striped effect, the colours are changed with every stitch.

Please note: You probably have to work a little more slowly and tighten the previous stitch slightly with each colour change.

• Start with a slip knot on the hook using colour A.
• Grab the colour B thread and make a chain.
• Grab the colour A thread again to make the next chain
• Continue like this until you reach the desired length

And a word about the yarn ends:

Like shown in the photo above, I simply cut off the yarn at the ends of the chain and untangled it a little. Unfortunately, I didn’t like it at all!

So here’s my tip: Think twice before cutting the thread. You can just as easily sew it on the back (shown in the photo on top of the page). Looks better, doesn’t it?

Variant C – A Two-coloured “Ribbon”

A two-coloured alternative to variant A

Here is how to make Variant C

• For this two-coloured ribbon, again, the yarn is needed in the back to work the slip stitches. Start and end of the threads are needed on the front to tie the bow.
  • So, bring the yarn to the front between any two stitches of round 1. Like in Variant A, only this time, the two threads, (colour A and B) at once.
  • Leave the tails long enough to tie the bow later. Mine we’re about 20 cm long
• On the front side: start with a slip knot in one of the threads (colour A)
  • Using colour A, slip stitch around the stitch directly to the left of the thread.
  • Work the second slip stitch around the next stitch, using colour B
  • Work the next slip stitch using colour A again – and so on

As with the two-colored chain (Variant B), you will probably have to tighten the previous stitch a bit after the color change.

At the end of the round, cut the yarn, again leaving a long tail. Bring the ends to the front and tie a bow. Then, shorten them to your desired length.

In case you want to hang your wreaths, simply attach a thread, ribbon, or cord to the backside. Ensure it’s roughly aligned with the centre of the bow (where appropriate).

If you like my little Christmas Wreath and would like to make one too, you can download the free pattern here

Little Christmas Wreath_v2- 2025Download

The pattern is not tested. So, if you spot any errors or have any questions, don’t hesitate to contact me.
And please, feel free to add your projects to my Ravelry page.

Have fun 💕