Easy Crochet Forget Me Not Flower Tutorial for Beginners
Few things in the fiber arts world are as satisfying as making a small, delicate flower that looks far more complicated than it actually is. The forget me not flower is one of those magical little projects. With its five dainty petals and cheerful blue center, it captures something timeless and sweet — and once you learn how to crochet it, you’ll find yourself making dozens of them for everything from hair accessories and brooches to blanket embellishments and gift toppers.
This tutorial is written for complete beginners. If you can make a magic ring, chain, and single crochet, you already have nearly everything you need. By the end of this post, you’ll have a finished forget me not flower and a clear understanding of how to customize it, attach it to other projects, and use it in creative ways.
Let’s get started.
What Is the Forget Me Not Flower?
Before we dive into stitches and yarn weights, it’s worth spending a moment on the flower itself. The forget me not (Myosotis) is a real wildflower with five small, rounded petals arranged in a ring around a bright yellow or white center. They typically bloom in shades of pale blue, lavender, pink, and white, and they’ve carried symbolic meaning for centuries — representing remembrance, loyalty, and enduring love.
In crochet, the forget me not translates beautifully into a five-petal motif that works in thread, fingering weight, or even bulkier yarn if you want a more graphic, stylized look. The structure is simple: you work into a central ring, create petals from that ring, and finish with a contrasting color in the middle.
Materials You Will Need
One of the best things about this project is how little you need to get started. You don’t need a big stash of yarn or a collection of specialty tools.
Yarn: For a traditional, delicate forget me not, choose a light fingering weight (size 1) or crochet thread (size 10). Sky blue, pale cornflower blue, or soft lavender are the most realistic petal colors. For the center, you’ll want a small amount of pale yellow or white. That said, don’t feel boxed in — deep navy with a gold center, dusty rose with cream, or even variegated thread all create stunning results.
Hook: Match your hook to your yarn weight. For fingering weight yarn, a 1.75mm to 2.25mm hook works well. For size 10 crochet thread, a 1.5mm steel hook is standard. If you’re using worsted weight for a chunkier, more stylized flower, a 4.0mm or 5.0mm hook is ideal.
Scissors: A small, sharp pair works best for snipping thread close to the flower.
Yarn needle or tapestry needle: You’ll need this to weave in your ends neatly.
Stitch marker (optional): Helpful for keeping track of your center ring if you’re new to working in the round.
Wire stem (optional): If you want to make a brooch or a bouquet, floral wire wrapped in green floss or yarn makes a charming stem.
Understanding the Stitches
If you’re brand new to crochet, here’s a quick refresher on the stitches used in this pattern. Experienced beginners can skip ahead to the pattern itself.
Magic Ring (also called Magic Circle): This technique lets you start working in the round with a tight, adjustable center. It might feel awkward at first, but it becomes second nature quickly. To make a magic ring, wrap your yarn around two fingers, pull a loop through the circle with your hook, and chain to begin your first round.
Chain (ch): The most basic crochet stitch. You simply yarn over and pull through the loop on your hook.
Slip Stitch (sl st): This stitch joins rounds together or moves your yarn to a new position without adding height. Insert your hook, yarn over, and pull through both the stitch and the loop on your hook in one motion.
Single Crochet (sc): Insert your hook into the stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop, yarn over again, and pull through both loops. This creates a short, tight stitch.
Half Double Crochet (hdc): Yarn over first, then insert your hook, yarn over and pull up a loop (you now have three loops on your hook), yarn over and pull through all three loops.
Double Crochet (dc): Yarn over, insert your hook, yarn over and pull up a loop (three loops on hook), yarn over and pull through two loops, yarn over and pull through the remaining two loops.
These five stitches are all you need for this entire project.
Abbreviations Used in This Pattern
ch — chain
sl st — slip stitch
sc — single crochet
hdc — half double crochet
dc — double crochet
MR — magic ring
rep — repeat
sp — space
Easy Crochet Forget Me Not Flower Pattern
This pattern creates a single forget me not motif approximately 1.5 inches (4 cm) in diameter when worked in fingering weight yarn and about 2.5 to 3 inches when worked in worsted weight.
Round 1: The Center Ring
With your petal color (blue, lavender, or your chosen shade), make a magic ring.
Chain 1, then work 5 single crochet stitches into the magic ring. Pull the ring closed snugly. Slip stitch to the first single crochet to join. (5 sc)
This creates a tight five-stitch ring that will anchor each of your five petals.
Round 2: Creating the Petals
This is where the magic happens. Each petal is worked as its own little loop, and you’ll make all five in this one round.
Petal instructions: Chain 3, then work 1 double crochet, 1 half double crochet, and 1 single crochet all into the same stitch at the base of the chain. Chain 3, then slip stitch into the same base stitch again.
That sequence — ch 3, dc, hdc, sc into base, ch 3, sl st into base — forms one petal.
Now slip stitch into the next stitch of Round 1 and repeat the petal instructions.
Continue until you have worked a petal into each of the five stitches of Round 1.
At the end of the fifth petal, slip stitch to the base of the first petal to close the round. Fasten off, leaving a short tail.
Round 3: The Center Accent
Join your contrast color (yellow, white, or cream) with a slip stitch into any stitch of Round 1, working from the front so the center accent sits on top of the flower.
Chain 1, then work 1 single crochet into each of the 5 stitches of Round 1. Slip stitch to join. Fasten off and weave in all ends.
Your forget me not flower is complete.
Step-by-Step Photo Guide Tips (for Those Following Along)
Even without photos in this post, here are some tips to help you visualize each step clearly.
When you make your magic ring, don’t pull it completely closed until after you’ve worked your five single crochets. A slightly open ring is easier to work into for beginners.
When you start each petal in Round 2, the ch 3 at the beginning acts like the spine of the petal. Work your dc, hdc, and sc snugly so the petal holds its rounded shape. If the petals are splaying out too flat, try working them a little tighter.
The slip stitch between petals in Round 2 is what gives each petal its clear separation and that classic forget me not look where the petals radiate out from the center. Don’t skip it, and don’t pull it too tight — you want the flower to lie flat.
For the center in Round 3, working from the front side makes the contrast stitches pop visually. If you want a more raised center button effect, work three or four single crochets into the center space instead of into individual stitches, which puffs the center out slightly.
How to Weave in Ends Cleanly
Weaving in ends on tiny flowers can feel fiddly, but here’s a method that keeps everything tidy.
Thread your yarn tail onto your tapestry needle. Weave the tail through the back loops of three or four stitches in one direction, then double back in the opposite direction. This locks the yarn in place without a knot and keeps the back of the flower neat enough to use as a brooch or ornament. Trim the end close, giving the weave a little tug so the trimmed tip hides inside the fabric.
Troubleshooting Common Problems
The flower won’t lie flat. This usually means your stitches are too tight in Round 2. Try going up half a hook size, or consciously loosen your tension as you work through each petal.
The petals look uneven. This is almost always a consistency issue with how many chains or stitches you worked into each petal. Count carefully at the start, and once it becomes muscle memory, evenness comes naturally.
The magic ring is loose. Pull the ring closed more firmly before joining Round 1, and make sure to always pull both the tail and the working yarn snug when you begin.
The center looks messy. If your contrast color join is visible, try joining with a standing single crochet instead of a slip stitch and chain. To do this, make a slip knot on your hook, hold the tail against the work, and insert your hook as if to work a regular single crochet. This creates a nearly invisible join.
The flower is too small or too large. The size of this flower is entirely controlled by yarn weight and hook size. Want a teeny tiny flower for jewelry? Use size 10 crochet thread. Want a large, bold flower for a tote bag? Use bulky weight yarn and a 6mm hook. The pattern scales beautifully.
Ways to Use Your Forget Me Not Flowers
Once you’ve made one, you’ll want to make twenty. Here are some of the most popular ways to use crochet forget me not flowers.
Hair accessories. Stitch a flower or cluster of three flowers onto a bobby pin base, a barrette blank, or a headband. They look especially lovely on children’s headbands in a rainbow of colors.
Brooches and pins. Stiffen your flower lightly with fabric stiffener or a weak solution of white glue and water, let it dry flat, then hand stitch a pin back to the reverse.
Blanket and dishcloth embellishments. Crochet forget me nots make beautiful dimensional additions to baby blankets, throw pillows, and even kitchen linens. Stitch them directly to the surface or sew them on after the fact.
Wreath and garland decorations. String a series of flowers together with green yarn or floss to create a delicate garland for a shelf, a window, or a holiday decoration.
Gift wrapping. Attach a forget me not to a wrapped gift as a handmade topper instead of a traditional bow. They’re especially meaningful for sympathy gifts, given the flower’s association with remembrance.
Bookmarks. Attach a forget me not to the end of a ribbon or a length of yarn for a charming handmade bookmark.
Bouquets. Wind floral wire around a toothpick or thin dowel, wrap it in green embroidery floss, and attach a flower to the top with a few stitches. Gather a handful of these into a tiny bouquet. They make lovely little gifts or table decorations.
Appliqué on clothing. Sew forget me nots onto the collar or cuffs of a denim jacket, the pocket of a bag, or the hem of a skirt for a whimsical, handmade touch.
Customizing the Pattern
This basic pattern is a wonderful foundation, but crochet is all about making things your own.
Color variations. While traditional forget me nots are blue, try making a bunch in different shades — blush, peach, deep purple, coral — and mix them together for a wildflower effect. White flowers with a yellow center look like chamomile. Hot pink with a deep magenta center looks tropical and bold.
Adding a calyx. A calyx is the green base of a flower. To add one, join green yarn at the back of the flower after it’s complete and work five slip stitches or single crochets evenly around the back edge. This finishes the flower neatly and makes it look more realistic when used in arrangements.
Layering petals. For a fuller flower, make two forget me nots in slightly different colors and layer them slightly offset so the petals of the back flower peek out from behind the front flower. Stitch them together at the center.
Beaded center. Instead of a yarn center, sew a small seed bead or a pearl bead to the center of the flower after it’s complete. This works beautifully for jewelry applications.
Stiffening for structure. If you need the flower to hold a three-dimensional shape — for example, for a corsage or a hair comb — stiffen it by dipping the finished flower in a solution of one part white glue to two parts water, shaping it gently while wet, and allowing it to dry on a slightly convex surface (the back of a spoon works perfectly) so it holds a gentle curve.
Tips for Working with Crochet Thread
If you’re making small, delicate forget me nots with size 10 crochet thread, there are a few extra tips that will make the experience smoother.
Use a steel hook rather than an aluminum or plastic one. Steel hooks are shorter and more precise, which helps with the close, detailed work of thread crochet.
Work in good light. Thread is much harder to see than standard yarn, and straining to see your stitches leads to errors. A bright daylight lamp is a worthwhile investment if you plan to do a lot of thread crochet.
Keep your tension gentle. Thread has very little give, so yanking your stitches tight will pucker the flower and make it hard to work into. Think of threading a needle — controlled, deliberate, relaxed.
Blocking thread flowers makes a dramatic difference. Pin the damp flower to a foam blocking board, shaping the petals with pins, and allow it to dry completely. The petals open up and the whole flower looks more refined and intentional.
Making a Forget Me Not Cluster
One single forget me not is sweet. A cluster of three to five is stunning. To make a cluster, simply make three to five individual flowers and arrange them so they slightly overlap. Stitch them together at a few points at their bases and add a few small chain stitches or loop stitches in green yarn between the flowers to suggest stems and leaves.
For leaves, chain 8, then work down the chain: sc in the second ch from hook, hdc in the next, dc in the next two, hdc in the next, sc in the next, and sl st in the last. This gives you a simple, pointed leaf shape that tucks in nicely between the flowers of your cluster.
Final Thoughts and Encouragement
The forget me not flower is one of those crochet patterns that delivers a big reward for a small investment of time and skill. Even as a total beginner, you can create something genuinely beautiful in under thirty minutes once you’ve practiced the pattern a couple of times.
Don’t worry if your first flower isn’t perfect. The second will be better, the third better still, and by the tenth you’ll be making them while watching television without looking down at your hands. That’s the joy of crochet — repetition becomes rhythm, and rhythm becomes meditative.
If you’re using these flowers as gifts, know that a handmade forget me not carries a meaning that no store-bought item can replicate. You made it. You chose the color, the yarn, the time and attention. The flower’s name itself is a message.
Keep your finished flowers in a small jar or bowl where you can see them. They’re cheerful, they’re portable, and they’re the kind of small beautiful thing that makes a workspace or bedside table feel a little more alive.
Happy hooking, and don’t forget to share your finished flowers.
