Starfish crochet pattern — seven pieces, 38 rounds, nothing sewn

This free starfish crochet pattern makes an orange star about 9 cm from tip to tip and about 1.5 cm thick, worked on a 3.5 mm hook in four colours in about an hour and a half. Nothing is sewn: each arm finishes as a closed tube of eight stitches, and the top cap works four stitches across the front of every arm in turn — twenty in one round — leaving the four stitches behind each arm untouched for the underside cap to pick up later. All 38 rounds are written out below across seven pieces, each carrying the stitch count it ends on.

Maths verified, not yet made. Every one of the 38 rounds was checked against the round before it by machine — the counts, the increases and the decreases all add up. What nobody can promise you yet is how it sits in the hand.How we check

6 of 8 checks ran on 2026-09-04

1 format and stitch chainscripts/validate.py — 113 patterns, all counts chain.
2 catalogue auditscripts/audit-patterns.py — 113 audited, 0 errors, 66 warnings.
3 geometrygeometry-check.py — 113 checked, 0 errors, 4 warnings.
5 not a duplicate113 distinct display names across 113 patterns
6c target on the recordseo.headKeyword, confidence and demand present and cross-checked by scripts/validate.py
8 page readinessscripts/check-completeness.py --gate — 0 required fields missing, 114 editorial flags, 0 unearned claims.

Not yet checked

4 render matches the pattern — no image has been compared against its own prompt, so a render showing a piece the rounds do not make would not be caught here. Nothing has counted how many do.
6a recognisability — provenance.recognisability is empty in every pattern, so there is no feature list to check the parts against.

Why it is rated Medium

Medium: one round takes four stitches from the front of each of five separate arms in turn, and a single stitch of drift there twists the star and cannot be fixed without undoing both caps.

Sell what you make. Anything you crochet from this pattern is yours to sell — any quantity, no fee, no credit required.

What you need before you start

gather it once, in one place

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Yarn — four colours, all weight 3

Coral pinkscrapsDK cotton

Sunset orange1 skein, and you will use a small part of itDK cotton

Sand beigescrapsDK cotton

CreamscrapsDK cotton

Tools

4 you probably own, 1 to buy

You likely have

Tapestry needle

Scissors

Stitch markers — six is comfortable, one per arm and one for the round in progress

Row counter

You need to buy

Polyester stuffing (~10 g, and you will use less)

Optional

A contrast-colour marker for the front of each arm, so the top round always starts in the same place

Gauge and finished size

the last check before you cast on

Tension

Tight enough that no stuffing shows between stitches. Gauge is not critical — a looser hand gives a larger starfish and the shape survives it — but the same counts on a 2.5 mm hook make a 6 cm keyring and on a 5 mm hook a 13 cm cushion-y one.

Finished size

~9 cm from tip to tip, about 1.5 cm thick

The same stitch counts on a 2.5 mm hook make a star about 6 cm across, small enough for a keyring, and on a 5 mm hook about 13 cm across and softer in the hand.

How to make the starfish, piece by piece

38 rounds across seven pieces.

Switching rewrites every round:US4 sc in mr→UK4 dc in mrWork a US sc as a UK single crochet and the fabric comes out looser and taller.

The first arm

Four stitches in a ring, out to eight, then straight. A small tapered…6 RNDS

starts in coralPink· magic ring· Piece 1 of 7

Four stitches in a ring, out to eight, then straight. A small tapered tube about the size of your little finger.A pinch of stuffing goes in now, while you can still reach the tip.

First six rounds[4] [6] [6] [8] [8] [8]

The pink tip

RND 1–2

14 sc in mr[4]

2(sc, inc) x2[6]

Widening to eight

RND 3–4

36 sc, change to orange[6]

4(2 sc, inc) x2[8]

Straight to the shoulder

RND 5–6

58 sc[8]

68 sc[8]

US termsmrmagic ringscsingle crochetincincreasedecdecreasest(s)stitch, or stitchesrndround

When this piece is doneOne arm done.Fasten off with a long tail and leave the marker in the last stitch. Every arm has to end in the same place or the star will sit crooked.

The second arm

Exactly the same six rounds. Start the ring the same way round as the…6 RNDS

starts in coralPink· magic ring· Piece 2 of 7

Exactly the same six rounds. Start the ring the same way round as the first one.

First six rounds[4] [6] [6] [8] [8] [8]

14 sc in mr[4]

2(sc, inc) x2[6]

36 sc, change to orange[6]

4(2 sc, inc) x2[8]

58 sc[8]

68 sc[8]

US termsmrmagic ringscsingle crochetincincreasedecdecreasest(s)stitch, or stitchesrndround

When this piece is doneTwo arms done.Set it beside the first and check they match at the tip and at the shoulder before you carry on.

The third arm

Six rounds again. By now the shape will be coming off the hook…6 RNDS

starts in coralPink· magic ring· Piece 3 of 7

Six rounds again. By now the shape will be coming off the hook without much thought.

First six rounds[4] [6] [6] [8] [8] [8]

14 sc in mr[4]

2(sc, inc) x2[6]

36 sc, change to orange[6]

4(2 sc, inc) x2[8]

58 sc[8]

68 sc[8]

US termsmrmagic ringscsingle crochetincincreasedecdecreasest(s)stitch, or stitchesrndround

When this piece is doneThree arms done.Stuff it lightly like the others and put it with them.

The fourth arm

One more after this. Same four stitches in the ring, same colour…6 RNDS

starts in coralPink· magic ring· Piece 4 of 7

One more after this. Same four stitches in the ring, same colour change at round three.

First six rounds[4] [6] [6] [8] [8] [8]

14 sc in mr[4]

2(sc, inc) x2[6]

36 sc, change to orange[6]

4(2 sc, inc) x2[8]

58 sc[8]

68 sc[8]

US termsmrmagic ringscsingle crochetincincreasedecdecreasest(s)stitch, or stitchesrndround

When this piece is doneFour arms done.Lay all four in a fan. Any that came out longer or fatter than the rest is worth redoing now rather than after it is attached.

The last arm

The fifth and final one. Do not fasten this one off — the yarn stays…6 RNDS

starts in coralPink· magic ring· Piece 5 of 7

The fifth and final one. Do not fasten this one off — the yarn stays live and becomes the first stitch of the top cap.Mark the four back stitches of every arm before you go on. The underside cap needs to find them again.

First six rounds[4] [6] [6] [8] [8] [8]

14 sc in mr[4]

2(sc, inc) x2[6]

36 sc, change to orange[6]

4(2 sc, inc) x2[8]

58 sc[8]

68 sc[8]

US termsmrmagic ringscsingle crochetincincreasedecdecreasest(s)stitch, or stitchesrndround

When this piece is doneAll five arms done.Arrange them in a ring with the tips pointing out and the marked front of each arm facing you. Keep them in that order.

The top of the star

The round that turns five loose arms into a starfish. Four stitches…4 RNDS

starts in sunsetOrange· picked up· Piece 6 of 7

The round that turns five loose arms into a starfish. Four stitches across the front of each arm in turn, twenty in all, leaving the four behind them untouched.Count twice before committing to that first round. A one-stitch drift twists the whole star, and it cannot be corrected without undoing both caps.

First four rounds[20] [15] [10] [5]

Joining all five arms

RND 1–1

14 sc across the front of each arm, 5 arms[20]

Closing the centre

RND 2–4

2(2 sc, dec) x5[15]

3(sc, dec) x5[10]

4dec x5[5]

US termsmrmagic ringscsingle crochetincincreasedecdecreasest(s)stitch, or stitchesrndround

When this piece is doneThe top is closed.Draw the last five stitches shut through their front loops. The centre should sit flat against the arms, not stand up in a dome.

The underside

The same four rounds again, worked into the stitches you left free…4 RNDS

starts in sandBeige· picked up· Piece 7 of 7

The same four rounds again, worked into the stitches you left free behind each arm. This is the pale side a starfish shows when it turns over.If you wash it, use a cool hand wash. Squeeze rather than wring it, and dry it flat between two towels rather than hanging it up by one arm.

First four rounds[20] [15] [10] [5]

14 sc across the free stitches behind each arm, 5 arms[20]

2(2 sc, dec) x5[15]

3(sc, dec) x5, change to cream[10]

4dec x5[5]

US termsmrmagic ringscsingle crochetincincreasedecdecreasest(s)stitch, or stitchesrndround

When this piece is doneThe starfish is finished.Push a little stuffing into the middle before the last round draws closed — enough that the centre does not fold, not so much that it rounds out.

Ten notes on the starfish

Read them

01An original Crochet Genie design.

02Worked in a continuous spiral. Nothing is joined and nothing is turned, so mark the first stitch of every round and move the marker as you go.

03Nothing is sewn. The five arms are held between two caps worked straight onto them, so the only needle work is weaving in ends.

04Each arm finishes as a closed tube of 8 stitches. The top cap works into the 4 stitches facing you on each arm and leaves the 4 behind them alone; the underside cap picks those free stitches up afterwards. Slide a marker into the back 4 stitches of every arm before you start the top cap — hunting for them later is the one genuinely annoying part of this pattern.

05Work the arms all the same way round and fasten each one off at the same point, or the star will sit lopsided. Lay all five out in a ring, tips outward, before you start the top cap.

06Stuff each arm lightly as you finish it — a pinch, not a plug. Once the caps go on you cannot reach inside. Add a little stuffing to the middle before the last round of the underside.

07The centre steps down 20, 15, 10, 5 rather than halving twice, so it closes flat instead of puckering into a point.

08Close the final 5 stitches by running the tail through their front loops with the tapestry needle and drawing them up.

09The arms are 6 rounds long rather than 5 so the finished star measures about 9 cm across on a 3.5 mm hook.

10The colour changes both happen at a round boundary. There are no carried strands and no colourwork chart.

Four questions this pattern answers

Not questions anybody asked. Each one is written from this pattern's own record, and every answer is read off the fields it names.

How many pieces make up the starfish?

Seven separate pieces, one written list each. The page writes out 38 rounds in all, the longest piece being the first arm at 6 and the shortest the top of the star at 4.

How much yarn will the starfish take?

Four colours, all weight 3, and the pattern asks for coral pink: scraps; sunset orange: 1 skein, and you will use a small part of it; sand beige: scraps; cream: scraps.

What hook will the starfish need, and what is the finished size?

A 3.5 mm hook, US E/4. Finished, it comes out ~9 cm from tip to tip, about 1.5 cm thick; the leading tilde is there because that came off the stitch counts rather than a tape measure.

How long will the starfish take to crochet?

About one and a half hours. That is 38 rounds across seven pieces, coming to 230 single crochet, 20 increases and 30 decreases, and the hours are an estimate rather than a timing of anybody making it.

A round that will not add up?

Tell us the piece and the round number — the stepper already knows where you are.There is nowhere to send one yet.

Report a problem

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