Candy Corn Triangle Crochet Coaster – Free Halloween Pattern
A candy corn crochet coaster is pure Halloween fun. It is a striped triangle — yellow at the wide base, orange in the middle, white at the tip — that looks exactly like the classic sweet, only bigger and completely calorie-free. Put one under each glass at a Halloween party and everyone smiles.
Unlike most coasters, it is not a circle. It is worked flat in rows, starting at the wide base and getting narrower as you go, with the stripes changing colour as you climb. A neat border in white rounds off the corners and makes it look finished.
You need single crochet and a decrease. The shaping is entirely counted, so it is very hard to go wrong.
Why this candy corn coaster works
A crochet triangle is a row that gets shorter. Decrease one stitch at each end of a row and the next row is two stitches narrower. How often you decrease decides the shape: every row makes a wide, flat triangle; every other row makes a taller one with sides that slope like the real sweet.
This coaster decreases on every other row. The counts go 21, 21, 19, 19, 17, 17, and so on down to a single stitch at the tip. Every row lands on a known odd number, so you can check your triangle at any point.
The honest trade-off: a triangle has three sharp corners, and a mug sits better on a circle. This is a coaster for glasses, cups and party drinks rather than a large mug. It is also a lovely table decoration on its own.
Materials you will need
- Yellow yarn: about 10 yards of worsted weight cotton
- Orange yarn: about 8 yards
- White or cream yarn: about 10 yards, for the tip and the border
- Hook: 4.0 mm (G-6)
- Notions: tapestry needle, scissors
Finished size
About 5″ across the base and 5″ tall in worsted cotton.
Abbreviations
- ch = chain.
- sc = single crochet: insert hook, yarn over and pull up a loop (2 loops), yarn over and pull through both.
- sc2tog = decrease: pull up a loop in each of the next two stitches (3 loops on hook), yarn over and pull through all 3.
- sl st = slip stitch.
Pattern notes
- Worked flat in rows from the base up to the tip, turning at the end of each row.
- The ch 1 at the start of a row does not count as a stitch.
- Decrease at both ends on odd-numbered rows from Row 3. Work straight on even rows.
- Change colour on the last yarn-over of the final stitch of a row.
Step by step
Part 1: The yellow base
With yellow:
Row 1: Ch 22. Sc in the 2nd ch from hook and in each ch across. Turn. (21)
Row 2: Ch 1, sc in each st across. Turn. (21)
Row 3: Ch 1, sc2tog, sc to the last 2 sts, sc2tog. Turn. (19)
Row 4: Ch 1, sc in each st across. Turn. (19)
Rows 5 to 7: Continue: decrease on Row 5 (17), straight on Row 6 (17), decrease on Row 7 (15). Change to orange on the last stitch of Row 7.
Part 2: The orange middle
Rows 8 to 15: Continue the same rhythm in orange: straight (15), decrease (13), straight (13), decrease (11), straight (11), decrease (9), straight (9), decrease (7). Change to white on the last stitch of Row 15.
Part 3: The white tip
Rows 16 to 20: In white: straight (7), decrease (5), straight (5), decrease (3), straight (3).
Row 21: Ch 1, sc3tog — pull up a loop in each of the 3 sts and pull through all 4 loops. (1) Do not fasten off.
Check: the two sloping sides should be straight and the same length. If one is steeper, a decrease was missed on that side.
Part 4: The border
Still in white, work sc evenly down the first sloping side, about 1 sc per row end. At the base corner, work 3 sc into the corner. Work 1 sc in each stitch along the base. Work 3 sc into the next corner, then sc evenly up the other side. At the tip, work 3 sc into the top. Join with a sl st to the first sc and fasten off.
The three stitches at each corner keep the points sharp, and the white border makes the coaster look like a single, finished sweet.
Rounding the corners
If you prefer softer corners, like a real piece of candy corn, work only 2 sc into each corner instead of 3, and pull the border round slightly tighter. The corners will curve gently.
Party ideas
Candy corn coasters are made for Halloween parties. Put one at every place setting, or scatter them along a buffet table under drinks. A stack of four tied with orange ribbon makes a sweet party favour or hostess gift. For a child’s party, sew a loop at the tip and they become a garland.
Colour variations
The classic yellow, orange and white is unmistakable. Try a “harvest” version in brown, orange and cream for Thanksgiving, or a pastel version in lilac, mint and white for a softer look. A black, purple and white version looks wonderfully spooky.
Finishing and care
Weave in the colour-change ends along the back of their own colour. Machine wash cool in a laundry bag and dry flat. Steam the corners into sharp points if they curl.
Frequently asked
My triangle is too wide and flat.
You are decreasing on every row. Decrease only on every other row for the taller shape.
My stripes are uneven.
Count the rows in each colour: 7 yellow, 8 orange, 6 white.
Can I make it bigger?
Start with a longer odd chain and add rows in the same rhythm. Keep the colour proportions roughly the same.
Why cotton is the right yarn for coasters
Coasters have two jobs: protecting a table from heat and soaking up the drips from a cold glass. Cotton does both better than any other fibre. It absorbs moisture instead of letting it run off, and it tolerates the heat of a hot mug without softening, melting or going shiny the way some acrylics can. It also washes well again and again, which matters for something that sits under coffee every day.
Look for plain worsted-weight kitchen cotton or a recycled cotton. Mercerised cotton has a lovely sheen and crisp stitches but absorbs a little less; it is perfect for decorative coasters and party tables.
Blocking coasters flat
Even a well-made coaster can curl slightly at the edge. Blocking fixes it in minutes. Wet the coaster, press out the water in a towel, lay it flat, pat it into shape and leave it to dry. For a quicker result, lay a damp cloth over it and press with a warm iron, lifting rather than sliding. Cotton responds very well to steam, and once blocked the coaster stays flat through many washes.
Changing colours neatly
The stripes on candy corn are what make it recognisable, so it is worth changing colour cleanly. Finish the last stitch of the old colour until two loops remain, then pull the new colour through those two loops. Leave a 6″ tail of each colour and weave each one into the back of its own stripe. Weaving a dark orange tail into the white tip shows through, so always keep tails within their own colour.
Using it as decoration
Candy corn coasters are just as good off the table as on it. Sew a loop to the tip and hang a row of them as a short garland across a window. Glue a magnet to the back for a fridge decoration. Or prop one in front of a jar of real candy corn as a playful label.
How long it takes
The triangle takes about thirty minutes and the border another ten. Because the rows get shorter as you climb, the last section in white goes very quickly. A set of four is an easy evening, and a perfect last-minute make the day before a Halloween party.
Storing them between seasons
Wash and dry the coasters flat at the end of the season and store them stacked in a box so the corners stay sharp. A sheet of tissue between each one stops the colours rubbing. Next Halloween, a quick steam and they are ready for the party table again.
A final tip
Count each row as you finish it rather than at the end of a colour section. Catching a missed decrease straight away takes seconds; finding it ten rows later means pulling back a whole stripe.
Before you start
Count your Row 1 carefully — 21 stitches. Everything after it follows from that one number. More Halloween makes are in Halloween.
