Grey Botanical Leaf Square Bedspread — Free Crochet Pattern

Materials

• Yarn: Worsted weight (Category 4) 100% acrylic or 50/50 cotton-acrylic blend yarn in Silver Grey.
  • Main Color (Silver Grey): ~3,800 meters (~4,150 yards) for the complete queen bedspread and matching pillow shams.
• Crochet Hook: 5.0 mm (US H/8) ergonomic or aluminum crochet hook, or size required to obtain recommended gauge and smooth drape.
• Notions: Tapestry needle for seaming and weaving in ends, locking stitch markers, sharp yarn scissors, measuring tape.
• Blocking Tools: Blocking foam mats, stainless steel rust-proof T-pins, and steam iron or spray bottle.

Abbreviations

Instructions

Main Botanical Leaf Square Motif — Silver Grey (make ~80 motifs for Queen size)

Each square motif begins with an open center ring, building out 4 pointed botanical leaves with raised central post veins, followed by radiating fan-lace openwork arches and a solid square frame.

Part 1: 4-Leaf Botanical Center Core

1. Round 1 (Center Ring): With Silver Grey yarn, make a magic ring (or ch 6, sl st to join). Ch 1, work 8 sc into the ring. Join with sl st to first sc. Pull ring tail tight. [8 sc]
2. Round 2: Ch 3 (counts as dc), dc in same st, work 2 dc in each st around. Join with sl st to top of starting ch-3. [16 dc]
3. Round 3 (Establishing 4 Leaf Base Loops): *Ch 5, skip 3 sts, sc in next st; repeat from * 3 more times around. Join with sl st to base of starting ch-5. [4 ch-5 loops]
4. Round 4 (Leaf Shaping): In each ch-5 loop work [1 sc, 1 hdc, 2 dc, 3 tr, 2 dc, 1 hdc, 1 sc]. Join with sl st to first sc. [4 large leaf petals]
5. Round 5 (Raised Leaf Vein Texture): *Sc in first sc, hdc in next hdc, FPdc around next 2 dc, FPtr around central tr (leaf vein), FPdc around next 2 dc, hdc in next hdc, sc in next sc, sl st in valley between leaves; repeat from * 3 more times around to give all 4 leaves raised surface definition. Join with sl st. [4 textured leaves]

Part 2: Radiating Fan Lace & Square Frame

1. Round 6 (Rear Frame Foundation): Working behind Round 5 leaves, attach yarn around the back post of the Round 2 center stitches. *Work [3 tr, ch 3, 3 tr] in back of leaf tip to establish corner, ch 3, sc in valley between leaves, ch 3; repeat from * 3 more times to square out the motif. Join with sl st to top of first tr. [4 corner ch-3 sps, 8 side ch-3 sps]
2. Round 7 (Fan Lace Mesh Arches): Sl st into corner sp. *Work [3 dc, ch 2, 3 dc] in corner ch-3 sp, (ch 2, sc in next ch-sp) 3 times, ch 2; repeat from * 3 more times around all 4 sides. Join with sl st to top of starting ch-3. [8 corner dc clusters, 16 mesh arches]
3. Round 8 (Solid Outer Frame): Ch 3 (counts as dc), work 1 dc in each st and 2 dc in each ch-2 mesh arch across all sides, working [2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc] into each corner ch-sp. Join with sl st to top of starting ch-3. [80 dc]
4. Round 9 (Frame Extension Row): Ch 3, work 1 dc in each st around, working [2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc] into each corner ch-sp. Join with sl st, fasten off, and weave in all loose ends. [96 dc; Square motif size = ~22 x 22 cm]

Bedspread Assembly

1. Arrangement: Lay out all 80 completed botanical leaf square motifs on a flat surface in an 8 x 10 grid, ensuring clean alignment of the central 4-leaf motifs across the mattress top.
2. Invisible Seaming: Place adjacent squares right sides together. Using Silver Grey yarn and a tapestry needle, whipstitch through the back loops only (BLO) of matching edge stitches along touching sides. This creates a completely flat, flexible seam grid across the entire blanket face.

Continuous Outer Scalloped Bedspread Border

1. Round 1 (Base Anchor Row): Attach Silver Grey yarn in any outer corner of the assembled bedspread. Ch 1, work single crochets evenly around all 4 outer edges, placing 3 sc into outer corner points and 1 sc dec in inner seams where motifs meet. Join with sl st.
2. Round 2 (Open Mesh Band): Ch 4 (counts as dc + ch 1), *skip 1 st, dc in next st, ch 1; repeat around entire outer perimeter, working [2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc] into outer corners. Join with sl st.
3. Round 3 (Scalloped Shell Border): *In corner ch-sp work [5 dc, picot, 5 dc], sc in next ch-sp, *skip 2 sts, work [4 dc, picot, 4 dc] in next ch-sp, sc in next ch-sp; repeat from * continuously around all 4 sides of the bedspread to form the draped scalloped edging. Join with sl st, fasten off, and weave in all remaining ends.

Matching Decorative Pillow Shams (make 2)

Front Sham Panel Assembly

1. Join 4 main Botanical Leaf Square Motifs in a 2×2 square tile using Silver Grey yarn.
2. Work 2 additional rounds of double crochet framing around the 2×2 block to square off the panel to 45 x 45 cm.

Back Sham Panel

1. Row 1: With Silver Grey yarn, ch 57. Dc in 4th ch from hook and in each ch across. Turn. [55 dc]
2. Rows 2–32: Ch 3 (counts as dc), 1 dc in each st across. Turn. Fasten off after Row 32 [55 dc per row; ~45 x 45 cm square].

Sham Assembly

Place front and back panels wrong sides together. Single crochet around 3 sides using Silver Grey yarn, insert a 45 x 45 cm pillow form, and sc across the 4th side to seal. Finish with a picot scallop border around the outer sham edge.

Tips for Success

• Maintain Uniform Post-Stitch Tension: Keep even tension on the central leaf veins (FPtr) in Round 5 so that the leaf cores lay completely flat before framing.
• Steam Block Individual Squares: Steam-blocking each square motif to ~22 x 22 cm before seaming flattens the fan-lace openwork and makes row-by-row assembly significantly faster.
• Weave In Center Tails Early: Fasten off and weave in magic ring tails securely on all 80 motifs during initial construction to avoid a tedious finishing workload later.
• Keep Assembly Stitches Relaxed: Avoid pulling assembly threads too tightly so that the bedspread retains a soft, fluid drape over the mattress corners.
• Choose a High-Definition Yarn: Smooth acrylic or cotton-acrylic yarn highlights the 3D raised leaf veins and radiating fan-lace arches clearly.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

• Skipping Motif Blocking — Unblocked botanical squares tend to pull inward at the leaf tips, causing puckered, uneven seams during assembly.
• Omitting Front-Post Stitches — Substituting plain double crochets for FPdc/FPtr in Round 5 will flatten out the distinctive 3D leaf vein texture.
• Uneven Seaming Tension — Seaming too tightly pulls joints into rigid ridges instead of letting the blanket lie completely flat.
• Mixing Yarn Dye Lots — Ensure all silver-grey skeins share the exact same dye lot to avoid visible color bands across the plain border sections.

Ways to Customize This Pattern

• Sage Green Palette: Crochet the entire bedspread in soft sage green yarn for a tranquil botanical garden aesthetic.
• Throw Blanket Dimension: Reduce motif count to 35 squares (5 x 7 grid) to create a smaller couch lapghan (~110 x 150 cm).
• Single Motif Coasters & Trivets: Work individual single leaf square motifs in thick cotton yarn to craft structured botanical table trivets or coasters.