Enjoy That Morning Coffee in a Colorful Crochet Mug Cozy

The colors of fall look great in foliage, but the warm hues are even prettier in crochet projects. This mug cozy combines the best seasonal colors with an awesome ombré technique. You’re gonna want to wrap your morning brew in it every day!

Ombré Crochet Mug Cozy

Level: Easy

What You Need

Getting Gauge

This cozy was made for an oversize mug. You’ll need to adjust the pattern to whatever size mug you have, and the key to getting the right size is gauge. Here’s how to find yours:

1. Measure the circumference and height of your mug in inches.

2. Subtract the space you need for the handle from the circumference. You may also want to subtract a bit from the height, to give yourself space for drinking.

3. Make a swatch and adjust as needed to get 5 stitches per 1″ and 5 rows per 1″.

4. Multiply the circumference of your mug by 5. Double this, and round up to the nearest odd number. This is the number for your starting chain.

5. Multiply the height of your mug by 5. This is how many rows you need.

Pro Tip: The mug cozy is worked in linen stitch rounds. All of the color changes happen in the back half of the cozy, so they’re less visible. Use a hook smaller than the size you would normally use for your yarn weight. We used a 3.25mm hook for our DK yarn to get a good, firm crochet fabric.

Row 1

Using Color 1, chain the number of stitches you calculated for your starting chain. Join with sl st. Ch 2, *skip a ch, sc into the next stitch, ch1*. Repeat * to end. Close round with a sl st.

You will end up with a thin circle. Fasten off Color 1 and weave in the ends.

Place two markers directly opposite each other to divide the circle into two. The half that contains the join in Round 1 is the back, and you should make all your color changes in this section. To avoid an obvious seam, join your new yarn colors at different points.

Row 2

Choose any chain space in the back part of the circle to join Color 2.

The chain space can be difficult to see at first. Make sure you are placing your hook between the single crochet stitches. In the photo above, the red circles show the chain spaces, and the green ‘v’s are the single crochets.

Join Color 2 with a standing single crochet. This is a much neater way to start a new color when working in linen stitch, as it minimizes the seam.

Start by holding the yarn at the back of the work. Yarn over once.

Insert your hook into the chain space, yarn over and pull through.

Yarn over once more and pull through both loops on the hook.

You have just completed the first sc of round 2.

Now you can carry on with round 2, working in linen stitch: *Ch1, sc into next ch space*. Repeat to end, then join with a sl st into the standing sc.

It’s a good idea at this stage to check that your cozy and your mug are a good fit. There should be a small gap between the ends and the start of the handle.

Additional Rounds

Repeat Round 2 using your chosen color sequence. Weave in all ends at the back of the work. There are a lot, so be as neat as you can.

Finishing

You now have something that looks like a shallow cowl (especially if you have a large mug)!

Use a blunt-ended darning needle and matching yarn to sew together the top and bottom edge with a whip stitch, leaving a gap of about ½” at each side. (You’ll thread your handle braces through these gaps.)

Remove your stitch markers, sew in any remaining yarn tails and gently steam block.

To steam block, place your finished cozy right-side down on your ironing board and cover with a damp cloth. Hold your iron at the surface of the cloth until it steams. (This steam will go into your yarn and help the cozy retain its shape.) Use gentle pressure — do not press down too hard or you will flatten the crochet stitches.

Fitting the Handle Braces

Using any two colors held together and a 4mm hook, make a chain that’s slightly longer than twice the depth of the cozy.

Thread the tail ends onto your blunt darning needle and pull the chain through the ½” open space on one side of the cozy.

Tie the two sets of tail ends of the chain together securely.

Cut the tails to a length of 1″, then move the handle brace so the ends are inside the cozy. Repeat for the other side.

Slip these over your mug handles to hold the cozy in place.

You’re done! Now brew a homemade pumpkin spice latte to really get in the fall mood.