A cream lace crown at the top and six rainbow coils hanging from it, each one edged in white, each finishing in a matching star and a small silver bell. It turns slowly in any moving air and the bells are just loud enough to notice.
It looks like a big project and it is really six copies of a very small one. Each coil is a single row worked into a chain and takes about twenty minutes. The part that needs care is the crown, which has to be stiff enough to hold a circle while carrying six weighted strands.
What you’ll need
DK cotton in six colours, red, orange, yellow, green, blue and purple, plus a good amount of cream and white. About 25 g of each colour, 60 g of white for the edgings and 50 g of cream for the crown.
A 2.5 mm hook.
You’ll also want a 20 cm metal craft ring or embroidery hoop, six small silver jingle bells, fabric stiffener, strong white thread, and a tapestry needle.
Finished drop is about 55 cm below the crown, and the crown is 20 cm across.
Abbreviations are US terms. ch is chain, sl st is slip stitch, sc is single crochet, hdc is half double crochet, dc is double crochet, tr is treble crochet, inc is two stitches in one, MR is magic ring, sp is space.
Part 1. The lace crown
Start by covering the ring. In cream, work sc closely all the way around the metal ring until it is completely hidden, packing the stitches tight so no metal shows. Join with a sl st. Count your stitches at this point and note the number, because everything above is worked into it. Aim for a multiple of six so the strands space evenly. Add or remove a stitch or two to make that work.
Now the openwork band, worked upwards from the covered ring.
Round 1. Ch 4, skip one stitch, dc into the next, then ch 1 and skip one stitch, dc into the next, repeated around. Join.
Round 2. Ch 4, dc into each dc with ch 1 between, keeping the open squares stacked directly above each other. Join.
Round 3. Ch 5, skip two stitches, dc into the next, then ch 2 and skip two, dc into the next, repeated around. Join. The larger spaces open the pattern out.
Round 4. Into each ch 2 space work 3 dc, then ch 2, then 3 dc into the same space, which gives you a row of fans. Join.
Round 5. Sc into the top of each fan and ch 3 between, joining the fans into an arched top edge.
Round 6. Work sl st, ch 2, sl st into the same stitch, repeated all the way around the top edge for a picot finish. Fasten off.
Soak the whole crown in fabric stiffener while it is still on the ring, shape it so the band stands upright rather than flaring out, and leave it to dry completely.
Stiffening is not optional here. The crown is holding a circle against the pull of six weighted strands, and unstiffened cotton lace will collapse inwards within a day.
Part 2. The spirals, make six
One in each colour. All six are identical apart from the yarn.
Ch 70. Keep the chain relaxed and do not let it twist as you count.
Row 1. Ch 2, then work 2 dc into the third chain from the hook and 2 dc into every chain across. Do not fasten off.
Row 2. Turn and work sc into every stitch across the full length. The work will be coiling by now, so follow the curve rather than fighting it. Fasten off.
Change to white.
Row 3. Work sl st, ch 2, sl st into the same stitch, repeated into every second stitch, all the way along the outer edge of the coil. Fasten off.
That white edge does two jobs. It ties six different colours together into one object, and it stops each coil looking like a loose scribble of colour on its own.
There is no wire in these. They are short and light, and they need to swing freely for the piece to work. If one relaxes over time, wet it, wind it around a marker pen and let it dry there.
Part 3. Matching the coils
This matters more on this piece than on any single hanging.
All six must twist the same way. Lay them out side by side and check. A coil that spirals the opposite way to its neighbours is instantly visible in a row of six, in a way it never is on its own.
All six must also be the same length once they have relaxed. Hang them from a shelf edge overnight before you attach anything, then measure. Cotton stretches slightly and it does not stretch evenly, so a set that measured identically off the hook often does not afterwards. Adjust by taking out or adding a turn at the top of the longer ones.
Part 4. Stars, make six
One in each colour, worked flat.
Round 1. 5 sc in MR (5) Round 2. Inc five times (10) Round 3. Sc, inc, repeated five times (15)
For the points, sl st in the next stitch, then work sc, hdc, dc, ch 2, sl st in the second ch from the hook, dc, hdc, sc all into the next stitch, then sl st in the following stitch. Repeat four more times. Fasten off.
Make two of each colour and join them back to back with sc through both layers if you want them thicker, or leave them single, which is quicker and hangs better.
Part 5. The hanging rope
The rope in the photo is a string of small white balls rather than a plain cord, which is what keeps the top of the piece from looking thin against the crown.
Make about twelve small white bobbles. 5 sc in MR (5), inc five times (10), sc around (10), dec five times (5), stuff with a pinch of filling and close.
Thread them onto a doubled length of strong white thread, one after another with a knot between each, to make a beaded rope about 25 cm long. Finish with a loop at the top.
Putting it together
Attach the six coils to the underside of the covered ring, spaced evenly around the circle. Divide your stitch count by six and mark the six points before you sew anything, because eyeballing the spacing on a circle is much harder than it sounds and an uneven one is obvious from across a room.
Sew each coil at its top end, going through the same spot several times.
Sew a matching star to the bottom of each coil, then hang a silver bell just below each star on a short length of white thread so it swings and rings.
Attach four lengths of cream thread to the crown at north, south, east and west, gather them at the top and tie them to the bottom of the beaded rope. Check the crown hangs perfectly level before you knot anything permanently. A tilted crown ruins the whole effect and it is only fixable at this stage.
Hang it up and leave it a day. Coils settle and lengthen slightly under their own weight, and you will almost certainly want to shorten one.
Notes and variations
A pastel version in six soft shades makes a lovely nursery piece, though you should leave out the bells if it is going near a cot.
An all cream version with no colour at all is very elegant and reads as a proper light shade rather than a mobile.
Make it with eight coils on a 25 cm ring for something more dramatic over a stairwell.
Hang it over a light fitting rather than from a hook and the coils throw moving shadows on the ceiling when the bulb is on. Use an LED bulb only, and never let the cotton touch the fitting.
Questions I get asked
Why does my crown collapse inwards? Not enough stiffener, or it was shaped while drying rather than after. Stiffen it while it is still on the ring and hold the band upright as it dries.
Why do my coils hang at different lengths? Cotton stretches unevenly. Hang them overnight before attaching and adjust then, not before.
Can I use acrylic? For the coils yes. For the crown no, because acrylic will not hold a stiffened shape and the crown is structural.
Is it safe over a cot? Not with bells and not with anything a baby could reach. Mount it well out of reach and check the knots regularly.