Chocolate Orange Slice Crochet Hotpad Free Pattern

Introduction

This Chocolate Orange Slice hotpad is a beginner-friendly little project that looks like a candy you could almost eat. Worked in smooth single crochet rounds, it has a chocolate brown center, a wide pastel orange ring, and a chocolate brown border, so it reads as a chocolate-dipped citrus slice at a glance. It is perfect for anyone new to crocheting in the round, for gift-making, or for adding a sweet, dreamy touch to a kitchen. Because it is worked flat and thin, it is quick to finish and easy to block into a neat, even circle.

Materials Needed

• Yarn: Lace weight (0) cotton thread. Approximately 50 yards (46 m) pastel orange (Color A) and 30 yards (27 m) chocolate brown (Color B). Cotton is recommended because it handles heat well.
• Hook: 1.8 mm (US 6 steel) or 1.65 mm (US 7 steel), or whichever size gives you the gauge below.
• Notions: Stitch marker, tapestry needle for weaving in ends, small sharp scissors, and pins plus a spray bottle or steamer for blocking.
• Finished size: Approximately 4.5 inches (11.5 cm) in diameter.

Abbreviations

• MR — magic ring: an adjustable loop you crochet into, then pull closed.
• sc — single crochet: insert hook, pull up a loop, yarn over, pull through both loops.
• inc — increase: work 2 single crochet into the same stitch.
• st / sts — stitch / stitches.
• rnd / rnds — round / rounds: one full circle of stitches worked in continuous spirals.
• [ ] x6 — repeat everything inside the brackets six times.

Gauge

16 single crochet and 16 rounds = 1 inch (2.5 cm). To check, crochet a small flat swatch in the round and measure across the middle; if your stitches are larger than this, drop to the smaller hook, and if smaller, go up a hook size.

Tips Before You Start

• Use a stitch marker in the first stitch of each round. Because the hotpad is worked in a continuous spiral, the marker is the only way to keep track of where each round begins.
• Keep your tension even and slightly firm; loose single crochet makes a floppy hotpad that will not lie flat.
• Change colors on the last stitch of the previous round by pulling the new color through the final two loops, so the color change looks clean.
• Do not cut the old color until you have worked a few stitches in the new color; this keeps the edge tidy and avoids a gap.

Step-by-Step Instructions

Color A = pastel orange. Color B = chocolate brown. The hotpad is worked in continuous rounds; do not join or turn unless told to.

Center and Body (one piece)

Rnd 1 (B): Make a magic ring, work 6 sc into the ring, pull the ring closed (6 sts).

Rnd 2 (B): inc in each st around (12 sts).

Rnd 3 (B): [sc, inc] x6 (18 sts).

Change to Color A.

Rnd 4 (A): [2 sc, inc] x6 (24 sts).

Rnd 5 (A): [3 sc, inc] x6 (30 sts).

Rnd 6 (A): [4 sc, inc] x6 (36 sts).

Rnd 7 (A): [5 sc, inc] x6 (42 sts).

Rnd 8 (A): [6 sc, inc] x6 (48 sts).

Rnd 9 (A): [7 sc, inc] x6 (54 sts).

Rnd 10 (A): [8 sc, inc] x6 (60 sts).

Change to Color B.

Rnd 11 (B): [9 sc, inc] x6 (66 sts).

Rnd 12 (B): [10 sc, inc] x6 (72 sts).

Rnd 13 (B): sc in each st around (72 sts).

Fasten off, leaving a short tail.

Assembly and Finishing

There is no seaming: the hotpad is complete as one flat circle. Weave in all ends on the wrong side, running each tail through several stitches in two directions so it will not work loose. Block the hotpad by pinning it flat into a true circle, misting it lightly with water or steam, and letting it dry completely; this smooths the color changes and helps the edges lie flat.

Pro Tips and Variations

• Swap the pastel orange for a brighter citrus shade, or use a cream center for a "white chocolate" version.
• Work a second identical circle and single crochet the two together around the edge for a double-thick hotpad.
• Add a small hanging loop of 8 chain stitches at the edge before fastening off so it can hang on a hook.