Crochet Daisy Flower Keychain

This crochet daisy flower keychain has a puffy yellow center and twelve rounded petals with a neat outline. The center is a little dome worked in the round. The petals grow straight out of its last round on short chains, then one outline round in the same color makes them full and rounded. A flat disc closes the back. You'll need DK cotton in yellow and one petal color, a 2.5 mm hook and about an hour.

Key Takeaways

• Two pieces: the yellow dome with its petals and their outline, and a flat back disc.
• Twelve petals, no counting stress: each one sits on 2 sts of the center, so 24 sts make 12 petals.
• The outline makes the shape: one round of sc around each petal turns a thin petal into a full, rounded one.
• Small amounts: about 4 yd of yellow and 16 yd of the petal color per daisy.

Why I love this keychain

What's happier than a daisy? Make one in every color and you have a little bouquet for your keys, your bag and everyone you know. The puffy yellow center is what makes these daisies look so cheerful, and it only takes five rounds.

They're also a great way to use up cotton scraps. The yellow center stays the same and the petals change, so a few odd balls in pastel colors become a whole set. I like lavender, mauve, sky blue, pink, white and peach together.

Skill level. Easy. You need a magic ring, sc, hdc, dc and inc, chains for the petals, and a little whipstitching for the back. I explain each part step by step.

Want a different flower? My crochet flower keychain is a flat pink cherry blossom.

What you'll need

Yarn (DK #3 cotton), per daisy

Color	Used for	Amount
Golden yellow	The domed center	about 4 yd
Petal color (lavender, mauve, sky blue, pink, white or peach)	Petals, outline and back disc	about 16 yd

• I like Paintbox Yarns Cotton DK. It comes in all of these pastels, and the stitches stay crisp.
• I've worked these amounts out from the stitch count, with tails for sewing. They're estimates.

Hook

• 2.5 mm. A small hook for DK on purpose: the dome stays firm and the petals hold their shape.

Notions

• A small pinch of fiberfill, a stitch marker, a tapestry needle and scissors.
• A split key ring with a short chain, plus an open jump ring, 7 to 8 mm.
• Two pairs of flat or chain-nose pliers to open and close the jump ring.

Gauge

Gauge isn't critical. Crochet tightly enough that the stuffing doesn't show through the dome. With DK cotton and a 2.5 mm hook, that's about 6 sc per inch (2.5 cm). The sizes below are calculated from that, with rounds about as tall as the stitches are wide. At that tension, the daisy should come out about 3¼ in (8 cm) across, with a center about 1¼ in (3 cm) across. Those sizes are estimates, so measure yours.

Abbreviations (US crochet terms)

• MR: magic ring
• ch: chain
• sl st: slip stitch
• sc: single crochet
• hdc: half double crochet
• dc: double crochet
• inc: 2 sc in the same st
• sk: skip
• R: round
• st(s): stitch(es)

R1–R5 of the center are worked in a continuous spiral: don't join, and move your marker up each round. The number in parentheses at the end of each round is the stitch count.

How the daisy is built

Here's the whole thing in one sentence. A yellow dome grows to 24 sts, twelve chain petals are worked into its last round, an outline round in the same color goes around every petal, and a flat back disc is sewn behind the center.

Each petal is a chain of 6 with stitches worked back down it. The outline round then works up the free side of that chain, around the tip and back down the stitches. That's why the petals look full and rounded, with a little line down the middle.

The pattern, step by step

Part 1: The center and the petals

Make 1, in yellow and your petal color.

Domed center (yellow).

• R1: MR, 6 sc in the ring. (6) Pull the ring closed. This is the top of the dome.
• R2: inc × 6. (12)
• R3: (sc, inc) × 6. (18)
• R4: sc around. (18) This plain round lifts the center into a dome.
• R5: (sc 2, inc) × 6. (24)

Sl st in the next st. Cut the yellow, leaving a 4 in (10 cm) tail, and join the petal color in the same st.

Petals (petal color).

• R6: [ch 6, sl st in the 2nd ch from the hook, sc in the next ch, hdc in the next ch, dc in each of the next 2 ch, sk 1 st, sl st in the next st] × 12. (12 petals)

That's 12 petals in total, each sitting on 2 sts of R5. The first chain of each petal is the turning chain: it becomes the round tip. The last sl st of R6 goes into the st where you joined the petal color.

Outline (petal color). Don't cut the yarn. Each petal now has two sides: on one side, the free loops at the bottom of its chain, and on the other, the tops of the 5 sts you just made.

• R7: [5 sc up the free loops of the petal's chain, 3 sc in the tip, 5 sc down the tops of the petal's sts, sl st in the sl st between petals] × 12. (12 petals outlined)

Go up the side you meet first: that's always the free-loop side of the next petal. Sl st to the first sc and fasten off, leaving an 8 in (20 cm) tail.

Each petal is about 1 in (2.5 cm) long and a little wider than a pinky finger.

Part 2: The back disc and the key ring

Back disc (petal color). Make 1. It closes the back of the dome.

• R1: MR, 6 sc in the ring. (6)
• R2: inc × 6. (12)
• R3: (sc, inc) × 6. (18)
• R4: (sc 2, inc) × 6. (24)

Sl st in the next st and fasten off, leaving a 12 in (30 cm) tail.

Sew it on.

1. Turn the daisy face down. Push a small pinch of fiberfill into the back of the yellow dome, just enough to keep it round.
2. Lay the disc over it, right side out. Its edge sits on the back of R5, at the base of the petals: 24 sts on 24 sts.
3. With the disc's tail, whipstitch the disc to the back of R5 all the way around, one stitch in each st. Keep the stitches in the base of the petals so they don't show on the front.
4. Hide the ends between the disc and the dome.

The key ring.

1. Choose the top petal. Open the jump ring sideways with the pliers, twisting one end toward you and the other away.
2. Slide the jump ring through the tip of that petal, under the middle sc of the 3 sc at the tip and the turning chain below it, so it holds two layers of yarn.
3. Add the end link of the keychain's short chain, then close the jump ring by twisting the ends back until they meet with no gap.

Hold the daisy up by its ring: it hangs with the top petal pointing up. Give it a few firm tugs.

Safety. This keychain has a metal jump ring and key ring, so it isn't a toy for children under 3.

Make it yours — six colors and more

Variation	Change from base pattern
Lavender, mauve, sky blue, pink, white, peach	Work R6, R7 and the back disc in the petal color. The yellow center stays the same.
Two-tone petals	Work R6 in one color and the R7 outline in a lighter or darker one.
Bigger daisy	Use worsted cotton and a 3.5 mm hook: it comes out about 4½ in across.
Bag charm	Swap the key ring for a lobster clasp so it clips onto a bag handle.
Daisy bouquet	Make six in different colors and hang them all from one big ring.

Troubleshooting the three things that go wrong

The petals curl or twist

The petal chains are too tight, so the stitches worked back down pull them into a curl. Chain a little looser, or use a 3 mm hook for the 6 chains only. Press the finished daisy under a book for an hour.

The outline goes up the wrong side

On R7, always start each petal on the side you reach first, the free loops at the bottom of the chain. If you go up the stitch tops first, you'll be working into the free loops on the way down, and the petal twists. Count 5 sc up, 3 sc at the tip, 5 sc down.

The center is flat

R4 is the plain round that makes the dome, so check you didn't increase there. Then give the back a little more stuffing before you sew the disc on.