The Sault Ste. Marie Museum is collecting poppies for 2024!

The outcome of the original Poppy Project was to create a large-scale poppy display to be mounted on the front of the Sault Ste. Marie Museum for Veteran's Week 2023. 
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This display featured poppies made by veterans, community members, youth, and associated groups with the Museum and was installed on a large that was mounted on the front of the building. It was unveiled in November 2023. A second net was made and is on permanent display in the Sault Museum's Skylight Gallery. The community produced over 6000 crochet poppies in 2023! The local cadet group installed the poppies to the netting, and we had great help in making this final project possible. (See photo gallery below)

A series of workshops was planned to engage groups to create poppies and encourage oral history/history sharing and recognition of service. The Facilitator for 2023 was Kimberley Pelletier Sagidjiwegjig, who ensured that participants were able to complete a poppy during their visit. Patterns and How To Instructions for crocheting your own poppies are accessible below. 

We invite you to continue to crochet poppies and grow this project for 2024. Due to the repair work needed on the exterior of the Museum building, the exterior poppy installation will be displayed at the new Sault Ste. Marie Legion. The interior poppy display at the Sault Ste. Marie Museum is available to view in our Skylight Gallery.  Poppy donations can dropped off at the Sault Museum (690 Queen St. E) Tuesday to Saturday, 10 AM - 4 PM. 

PATTERNS

HOW TO CROCHET A POPPY - BEGINNER

HOW TO CROCHET A POPPY - BEGINNER

What we recommend you use...

5mm hook and 5oz/141g acrylic medium weight #4 red and black, and scissors

With Black Yarn

Make a magic circle: Make a loop. Yarn over hook. Pull through the loop. Yarn over hook to begin chain stitch. Pull through loop to complete chain stitch. 

R1: 12 sc in loop, join with slip stitch in first sc
Switch to red yarn 
R2: Ch1 (count as 1st sc), dc in same st, 4 dc in next st, dc & sc in next st, *sc & dc in next st, 4 dc in next st, dc & sc in next st* (one petal), repeat from * three times, slip st in 1st sc (in ch1), cut and tread in end. 
HOW TO CROCHET A POPPY - INTERMEDIATE

HOW TO CROCHET  A POPPY - INTERMEDIATE

What we recommend you use

5mm hook and 5oz/141g acrylic medium weight #4 red and black, scissors and yarn needle

Petals

Petal 1: With Red, Chain 9. Yarn over and insert your hook in the back bump of the third chain from the hook, yarn over and pull up 1 loop. *Yarn over, insert your hook into the back bump of the next chain, yarn over and pull up 1 loop**. Repeat from * to ** 5 more times. You will have 15 loops on your hook. Yarn over and pull through all 15 loops. Chain 1 to close the petal.
Petal 2-4: Rep Petal 1, finish off and leave a long tail to assemble.

Assembly

Thread your yarn tail on your yarn needle and weave the needle in and out through the petal

Poppy Center

With Black, ​create a Double Magic Ring and make 5 single crochet into the ring.
  1. Leave a 4 to 6 inch tail of yarn and then wrap the yarn around your hand (or 2 fingers) twice.
  2. You will want to press your thumb on the 2 strands of yarn that you wrapped around your hand, to hold them in place.  Insert your hook under the 2 strands of yarn and pull the third strand (the working yarn) of yarn beneath the 2 strands that are held in place by your thumb, to pull up 1 loop.
  3. Chain 1
  4. Now we will begin to work our stitches into your double magic ring – and start the 5 single crochets. Insert your hook into the center of your double magic ring and under the tail of your yarn. So beneath all 3 strands of yarn.
  5.  Yarn over the hook and pull that loop beneath all 3 strands of yarn (the yarn tail and the 2 strands from the double magic ring).
  6. You now have 2 loops on your hook.
  7. Yarn over the hook and pull through both loops on your hook. This completes your first single crochet.
  8. Complete the following 4 single crochets into the double magic ring and around the yarn tail
  9. Now pull the yarn tail to see which strand of the double magic ring moves and in what direction.
  10. Pull the end slowly and firmly to close the first ring.
  11. To pull the second ring closed, pull the yarn tail.

Slip stitch to the initial single crochet to join. Finish off leaving a tail of yarn for assembly.

Final Assembly 

Place the black center in the middle of the red poppy and stitch them together securely. Weave in ends. Your poppy should be about 2 inches in diameter. 
Knit a Poppy

KNIT A POPPY

Are you a knitter? Then check out this pattern...

DONATE CROCHET POPPIES

Follow the patterns and instructions above.

Please drop off your crochet poppies at the Sault Ste. Marie Museum (690 Queen St. E) between 10am - 4pm, Tuesday - Saturday! 

If you have any questions, please contact:
[email protected]