Crochet Strawberry Cupcake Cup Holder with a Hidden Mesh Bag

This crochet cupcake has a useful surprise inside. When the pink mesh is tucked away, the ribbed brown base, white frosting, and red berries form a compact dessert-shaped accessory. Pull the mesh upward and it becomes a holder for a cup or bottle.

The project combines several textures: front-post stitches for the cupcake wrapper, a puff-stitch frosting edge, small berry bobbles, and an open chain-loop net. A green drawstring and strawberry decoration bring the colors together.

Fit depends on your yarn, tension, and mesh height. Keep your intended cup nearby and test the project as it grows rather than assuming it will fit every tumbler.

Materials

• Worsted-weight brown yarn for the base.

• White yarn for the frosting and upper edging.

• Pink yarn for the cake section and mesh.

• Red yarn for the strawberry and berry bobbles.

• Green yarn for the leaves and drawstring.

• A crochet hook suited to your yarn.

• A small amount of filling for the strawberry.

• Scissors, a yarn needle, and a stitch marker.

The public video description specifies worsted-weight yarn but does not list a hook size. Choose a hook that gives the base a reasonably firm fabric while keeping the mesh flexible.

Use similar yarn thicknesses across the cupcake sections. A much finer mesh yarn can behave differently under the weight of a filled cup.

Abbreviations

This pattern uses US crochet terms.

• MR: Magic ring.

• ch: Chain.

• sl st: Slip stitch.

• sc: Single crochet.

• hdc: Half double crochet.

• dc: Double crochet.

• dc-inc: Work 2 dc into one stitch.

• sc-inc: Work 2 sc into one stitch.

• dec: Single crochet 2 stitches together.

• FPDC: Front post double crochet.

• FLO / BLO: Front loop only / back loop only.

Follow the video’s beginning-chain and joining method. Keep the completed counts consistent rather than adding an extra stitch where a beginning chain already counts.

Part 1: Ribbed Cupcake Base

Use brown yarn.

Round Instructions Stitches

1 12 dc into a MR; join 12

2 dc-inc in every st; join 24

3 [dc, dc-inc] × 12; join 36

4 [dc, dc-inc, dc] × 12; join 48

5 [3 dc, dc-inc] × 12; join 60

6 Working BLO, dc in every st; join 60

7–10 Repeat [2 dc, FPDC] around 60

The BLO round creates the turning edge. The front-post stitches form the vertical ridges around the wrapper.

When working a FPDC, insert the hook around the designated stitch post rather than into its top loops. Maintain one stitch per position so each round stays at 60.

Check the base against your cup before continuing. Changing only the mesh height will not correct a base that is too small.

Part 2: White Frosting Ruffle

Change to white yarn.

Round 11: Work 60 sc around.

For the ruffle, use the front loops of Round 11.

Ruffle Round 12: Repeat:

ch 2, a 4-hdc puff in the next stitch, ch 1, skip 1 stitch, sl st in the next stitch.

Follow the demonstration for forming and closing the puff. Keep its loops tall enough to create a soft cluster rather than a tight knot.

The back loops of Round 11 remain available for the pink section.

Part 3: Pink Cake Section

Join pink yarn to the unused back loops of Round 11, behind the ruffle.

Pink Round 12: Work 60 dc.

Rounds 13–16: Repeat [3 dc, ch 1, skip 1 stitch] around.

Follow the video’s placement when working over the previous round’s chain spaces, keeping the four-position repeat aligned.

On Round 16, work into the front loops as demonstrated. Leave the corresponding back loops unused for the hidden mesh.

A removable marker in the reserved loop line can help distinguish it from the decorative upper edge later.

Part 4: Upper Edging and Drawstring Channel

The tutorial uses a decorative white edge and a separate white channel. Check the close-up demonstration before attaching these sections: the loops reserved inside Round 16 must remain available for the mesh.

Decorative Edge

At the upper pink edge indicated in the video, work into the front loops:

[sc, ch 3, skip 1 stitch] around.

Drawstring Channel

Using the corresponding remaining loops shown for the channel:

• Channel Round 1: 60 sc.

• Channel Round 2: Repeat [3 sc, ch 3, skip 2 stitches] around.

The second round creates the drawstring openings.

The written source abbreviates the loop placement in this area. Use the video to distinguish the channel attachment from the separate inner loop line reserved for the mesh.

Green Drawstring

With green yarn, ch 85.

Thread the chain through the channel openings and test it with the cupcake open and gathered. Adjust the length if your yarn or tension produces a substantially different size.

Confirm the length before attaching the strawberry.

Part 5: Large Strawberry

Use red yarn. All increases in this section are single-crochet increases.

Round Instructions Stitches

1 6 sc into a MR 6

2 [sc, sc-inc] × 3 9

3 [sc, sc-inc, sc] × 3 12

4 [3 sc, sc-inc] × 3 15

5 [2 sc, sc-inc, 2 sc] × 3 18

6 [5 sc, sc-inc] × 3 21

7 [sc, dec] × 7 14

8 dec × 7 7

Add a small amount of filling before closing the final opening. Keep the strawberry soft enough to retain its tapered shape.

Fasten off and secure the closure.

Green Leaves

Into a magic ring, repeat:

[ch 3, dc, ch 3, sl st] × 5.

Draw the ring closed, fasten off with a sewing tail, and attach the leaves to the strawberry.

The pictured strawberry also has small white seed details. These are an optional finishing touch rather than another crochet round.

Part 6: Mini Berry Bobbles

Attach red yarn to a ch-1 space in the pink cake section.

For each berry:

1. 1.Ch 2.

1. 2.Begin 4 dc in the same space, leaving the final loop of each stitch on the hook.

1. 3.Yarn over and draw through the remaining loops to close the cluster.

1. 4.Ch 2.

1. 5.Sl st into the same space.

Fasten off and secure the ends.

Space the berries so some pink fabric remains visible. Avoid placing a bobble where it interferes with the drawstring or mesh opening.

Part 7: Hidden Mesh Holder

Join pink yarn to the unused inner back loops reserved at Round 16.

Mesh Round 1

Repeat:

[sc, ch 12, skip 4 stitches] around.

Across the 60-position foundation, this creates 12 chain loops.

Following Mesh Rounds

Work sc into the top of the next chain loop, then ch 12. Repeat around, keeping 12 loops per round.

Continue until the net reaches a useful height for your intended cup. Follow the video for the upper finishing and carrying arrangement; the written mesh repeat alone does not specify every detail of that finish.

Test the fit while the mesh is extended. It should surround the cup without pulling the cupcake base into a narrow cone or leaving the cup free to slide through the openings.

Assemble and Test

Weave in the yarn ends and arrange the frosting around the cupcake.

Attach the strawberry to the drawstring end using a secure sewn connection. Check that tightening the opening does not depend on pulling directly on the strawberry’s leaves.

Start with an empty cup. Check the base, mesh height, opening, and cord movement. Then test with cool water over a sink before using it with a drink.

Support the cup itself when carrying hot drinks. The crochet does not secure a loose lid or provide reliable heat protection.

When empty, tuck the mesh into the cupcake and arrange the upper section around it. Do not force a tangled net through a tightly gathered opening.

Watch the Complete Tutorial

Use the demonstration for the puff stitch, upper loop placement, mesh finish, and assembly.

Useful chapter points:

• 0:20: Ribbed cupcake base.

• 4:25: Frosting ruffle.

• 6:15: Pink cake section.

• 9:15: Strawberry.

• 12:10: Leaves.

• 12:14: Mini berries.

• 13:52: Hidden mesh.

Troubleshooting the Fit

The base is too small: Check your gauge and cup diameter. More mesh rounds add height, not base width.

The mesh pulls unevenly: Count the loops and check that each round attaches consistently to the preceding loops.

The opening is difficult to gather: Look for tight chains, a missed drawstring opening, or a decoration catching the cord.

The cupcake will not close neatly: Untangle and fold the mesh before gathering the top. Check that the cord is long enough to reopen fully.

Choose Another Cupcake Palette

Keep the brown wrapper and try lavender with cream frosting, or pair a dark-brown base with mint accents. Similar yarn thicknesses help preserve the relationship between the firm cupcake and flexible net.

For a gift, fit the holder to the recipient’s actual cup when possible. A photograph of the cup is less useful than its diameter, height, and filled weight.

Follow the yarn label when washing. Reshape the ruffle and strawberry, let the holder dry completely, and inspect the mesh joins and cord attachments before using it again.

Pattern and video tutorial by Crochetnotes.