Crochet Daisy Mug Cozy with Button – Free Pattern

A crochet mug cozy with a big white daisy is like a little bit of spring that stays on your desk all year. This one is worked in a soft sage green textured stitch, wraps around your favourite mug and fastens with a wooden button next to the handle. It slips off in seconds when the mug needs washing.

Unlike a takeaway cup cozy, which is a tube, a mug cozy has to leave room for the handle. This pattern is worked flat as a rectangle, finished with a rope-like edge, and closed with a short strap and button that passes over the top of the handle. The daisy is made separately and sewn to the front.

It uses single crochet, double crochet and the reverse single crochet for the edge. There is also a short bonus pattern for a matching daisy coaster at the end.

Why this mug cozy works

The main fabric is the suzette stitch: a single crochet and a double crochet worked into the same stitch, then a stitch skipped. Each row nests into the row below, so the fabric is thick and bumpy, with a lovely woven texture, but it still stretches a little around the curve of the mug. It is a perfect background for an appliqué flower because the texture makes the smooth daisy stand out.

The fabric is worked lengthwise, so each row runs around the mug. That means you can make it longer or shorter for any mug just by changing the starting chain. The height is set by the number of rows.

The edge is reverse single crochet, also called crab stitch. It makes a twisted, rope-like border that matches the edge in the photo and stops the top and bottom from curling.

Materials you will need

• Sage green yarn: about 55 yards of worsted weight (#4) cotton
• Cream yarn: about 6 yards for the petals
• Mustard yarn: about 3 yards for the daisy centre
• Hook: 5 mm (H-8)
• Button: one 1″ (25 mm) wooden button
• Notions: tapestry needle, sewing thread to match the button, scissors

Gauge and finished size

In suzette stitch with the 5 mm hook, 7 pattern repeats (14 sts) and 10 rows make about 4″. The finished cozy is about 9½″ long and 3¼″ tall before the strap, which fits a standard straight-sided mug about 11½″ around, leaving room for the handle.

Abbreviations

• ch = chain: yarn over and pull through the loop on your hook.
• sl st = slip stitch: insert hook, pull a loop through the stitch and the loop on your hook together.
• sc = single crochet: insert hook, yarn over and pull up a loop (2 loops on hook), yarn over and pull through both.
• hdc = half double crochet: yarn over, insert hook, pull up a loop (3 loops), yarn over and pull through all 3.
• dc = double crochet: yarn over, insert hook, pull up a loop (3 loops), yarn over and pull through 2, yarn over and pull through the last 2.
• st(s) = stitch(es); sp = space; BLO = back loop only.

rev sc = reverse single crochet (crab stitch): working from left to right instead of right to left, insert hook in the next stitch to the right, pull up a loop, yarn over and pull through both loops.

How to measure your mug

Wrap a tape measure around the mug at its widest point, then measure the gap between where the handle joins the mug at the top and bottom — usually about 1½″ to 2″. Subtract the handle gap from the circumference. That is the length of the cozy. For an 11½″ mug with a 2″ handle gap, the cozy is 9½″ long. Measure the height of the straight part of the mug and subtract about ½″ so the cozy does not touch your lip or the table; that is the height.

Step by step

Part 1: The body

With sage green, ch 34. This gives 33 stitches, about 9½″. For a different length, use any odd number of chains.

Row 1: (Sc, dc) in 3rd ch from hook, *skip next ch, (sc, dc) in next ch*; repeat from * to last 2 ch, skip next ch, sc in last ch. Turn. (16 pairs + 1 sc)

Row 2: Ch 1, (sc, dc) in first sc, *skip the dc, (sc, dc) in the next sc*; repeat from * to the end, ending with sc in the turning ch. Turn.

Rows 3–8: Repeat Row 2.

Check the height: it should be about 2¾″. Add or remove rows in pairs to suit your mug.

Row 9: Ch 1, sc in each st across. Do not turn. (33)

Part 2: The rope edge

Edging: Ch 1, and working from left to right along the top edge, rev sc in each st across. At the corner, rev sc 3 times into the corner. Continue down the short end, along the bottom edge, and up the other short end in the same way, working about 1 rev sc per row end along the sides. Join with a sl st to the first st.

Crab stitch feels awkward for the first few stitches because you are working backwards. Keep the loops loose and it becomes easy quickly.

Part 3: The strap

With the right side facing, join sage green in the middle of one short end so there are 3 sts above and 3 sts below the join point; you will work over 7 sts.

Strap Row 1: Ch 1, sc in the 7 sts along the short end. Turn. (7)

Strap Rows 2–6: Ch 1, sc in each st across. Turn. (7)

Strap Row 7 (buttonhole): Ch 1, sc in next 2 sts, ch 3, skip next 3 sts, sc in last 2 sts. Turn.

Strap Row 8: Ch 1, sc in next 2 sts, 3 sc in the ch-3 sp, sc in last 2 sts. Fasten off. (7)

Sew the button to the opposite short end, centred and about ½″ in from the edge. Wrap the cozy around the mug, take the strap over the gap above the handle and button it. Adjust the button position if the fit is loose.

Part 4: The daisy

With mustard, make a magic ring.

Round 1: Ch 1, 8 sc in the ring. Join with sl st to first sc. (8)

Round 2: Ch 1, 2 sc in each st around. Join. Fasten off mustard. (16)

Round 3: Join cream in any st. *In the next st work (hdc, 3 dc, hdc), sl st in the next st*; repeat from * around. Join. Fasten off, leaving a long tail. (8 petals)

Sew the daisy to the centre front of the cozy — the side opposite the strap — using the cream tail, sewing around the edge of the mustard centre and the base of each petal so the petal tips stay free and slightly raised.

Bonus: the matching daisy coaster

Make the daisy as above but continue in rounds: Round 4 (cream), join in the tip of any petal, ch 1, sc in the tip, ch 5, *sc in the tip of the next petal, ch 5*; repeat around, join (8 sc, 8 ch-5 sps). Round 5, ch 1, 6 sc in each ch-5 sp around, join (48 sc). Round 6 (mustard), ch 1, *sc in next st, skip 1, 5 dc in next st, skip 1*; repeat around for a scalloped edge, join and fasten off. The coaster is about 5½″ across, just right under a mug.

Variations

• Other flowers: use pink petals with a white centre, or make a sunflower with yellow petals and a brown centre.
• Three little daisies: make three daisies using only Rounds 1 and 3 (8 sc centre, petals worked into every st) and sew them in a cluster.
• No button: make the cozy 1″ longer and sew a strip of hook-and-loop tape to the ends instead.

Choosing yarn for a cup cozy

A cup cozy has two jobs: protect your hand from heat, and survive being washed when coffee drips down the side. Worsted weight cotton is the best choice for both. It does not melt or go shiny with heat, it is firm enough to hold the cozy’s shape, and it can go in the washing machine. A cotton–acrylic blend is a good second choice, a little softer and a little more forgiving of uneven tension.

Pure acrylic works and comes in every colour, but it is a poorer insulator against heat and can go limp after a few washes. Wool is beautifully warm and gives the most knitted-looking fabric, but it can felt in a hot wash, so keep wool cozies for hand washing. Whatever you choose, use a smooth yarn rather than a very fluffy one — texture stitches like shells, puffs and cables show up best in a yarn with good stitch definition.

Common problems and fixes

The cozy is too short to reach around the handle gap.

Add rows to the strap. Each sc row adds about ¼″.

The petals curl.

Steam the daisy lightly with an iron held above it, then pat it flat and let it cool before sewing it on.

The crab stitch edge is tight and puckers.

Work the edge with a hook half a size larger than the body.

Washing and caring for your cozy

Slip the cozy off the cup before you throw the cup away — it is easy to forget. Rinse any coffee drips out under cool water straight away so they do not stain. Cotton cozies can go in the washing machine on a gentle 30°C cycle inside a mesh laundry bag; wool cozies should be hand washed in cool water. Either way, press out the water in a towel, reshape the cozy around a clean cup or a jar of the same size, and let it dry there so it keeps its taper.

Turning it into a gift

A cup cozy is one of the best small crochet gifts: it takes an evening, it costs very little, and the person actually uses it every day. Slip it onto a reusable travel cup, tuck a coffee shop gift card or a few tea bags inside, and tie a kraft paper tag on with twine. For teachers, colleagues or a craft fair table, make a batch in the same pattern in three or four colours — they look lovely lined up together.

The Cosy Café Cup Cozy Collection

This pattern is part of a collection of seven cup cozy posts: six free patterns that all use the same worsted weight yarn, the same 5 mm hook and the same sizing method, plus a guide to choosing between them. Make one for your own morning coffee, or make a mix as a set of gifts — they all fit the same cups.

• Shell Stitch Cup Cozy
• Puff Stitch Cup Cozy
• Daisy Mug Cozy — you are here
• Cable-Look Monogram Cup Cozy
• Heart Cup Cozy (coming soon)
• Embroidered Flower Cup Cozy
• Best Crochet Coffee Cup Holder Patterns (coming soon)

Frequently asked

Will this fit a tapered mug?

For a mug that is wider at the top, work Rows 5 to 8 with a 5.5 mm hook so the top edge is a little longer.

Can I leave the cozy on in the dishwasher?

No. Unbutton it and wash it by hand or in a mesh laundry bag in the washing machine.

Before you start

Measure your mug and the handle gap first. The starting chain is the only number you may need to change. More cosy home makes are in Home & Decor.