First crochet stitches and reading patterns
How to hold a hook, make a first chain, tell single from treble crochet, and read pattern abbreviations without losing your place.
Hold the hook in your dominant hand the way you hold a pencil or a knife, with the thumb and index finger pinching the flat part of the shaft just below the head. Wrap the yarn once around the little finger of the other hand, run it across the palm and over the index finger, and keep that index finger up so the yarn feeds with light, even tension. Make a slip knot, slide it onto the hook, and you are ready for the first chain.
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Notes
Beginners who want the same instructions written out at length, with the stitch names spelled out rather than abbreviated, can find them in the beginner pages of this crochet companion magazine, which keeps its explanations in plain English. The rest of this article covers the same ground: the chain, the four basic stitches, and the abbreviations that trip people up.
How do I hold a crochet hook and make my very first chain?
A slip knot is a loop that tightens when you pull the tail. Cross the yarn over itself to form a loop, pull the working strand through the loop, and tighten it around the hook. It should slide along the shaft without being loose enough to fall off.To make a chain, wrap the yarn over the hook from back to front, then pull that wrap through the loop already on the hook. That is one chain. Repeat it. The row of V shapes you produce is the foundation chain, and almost every flat project starts with one.Two things go wrong most often. The first is tension: if the yarn is gripped too tightly, the chain will not slide and the hook will fight you. The second is the turning chain. When you finish a foundation chain and want to work back along it, you make one or more extra chains to bring the yarn up to the height of the next row. The number depends on the stitch: one chain for single crochet, two for half double, three for double, four for treble. Those turning chains are not counted as stitches in every pattern, which is one reason patterns tell you to count.Count the chain as you make it, not afterwards. Recounting a long foundation chain is the single most common way beginners lose ten minutes.
What is the difference between single, half double, double and treble crochet?
The four basic stitches differ in one mechanical way: how many times the yarn is wrapped around the hook before the hook goes into the fabric, and how many times it is pulled through. That difference produces the height.Single crochet (sc): insert the hook into the next stitch, yarn over, pull up a loop, yarn over again, pull through both loops. Height: about one chain. Fabric: dense, firm, good for amigurumi, borders and anything that needs to hold shape.Half double crochet (hdc): yarn over first, insert the hook, yarn over, pull up a loop, yarn over, pull through all three loops on the hook. Height: between single and double. Fabric: slightly softer than single, with a visible horizontal bar.Double crochet (dc): yarn over, insert the hook, yarn over, pull up a loop, yarn over, pull through two loops, yarn over, pull through the last two. Height: roughly twice a single crochet. Fabric: open and quick to work, the standard for blankets and shawls.Treble crochet (tr): yarn over twice, insert the hook, yarn over, pull up a loop, then yarn over and pull through two loops three times. Height: taller than double, with a looser, lacier look. In UK terminology this stitch is called double treble, and the stitch called double crochet in the US is called treble in the UK. That naming difference is real and it changes the size of a finished piece, so check which convention a pattern uses before you start.A useful exercise is to work one row of each stitch on the same foundation chain, in blocks of ten, and compare the heights side by side. The difference becomes obvious in the hand, not just on the page.
How do I read a crochet pattern without getting lost in abbreviations?
Read the whole pattern once before picking up the hook. Note the skill level, the yarn weight, the hook size, and the finished measurements. Then read the abbreviations key, which every well-written pattern includes.The common ones are short and consistent: ch for chain, sl st for slip stitch, sc for single crochet, hdc for half double, dc for double, tr for treble, yo for yarn over, st or sts for stitch or stitches, rep for repeat, beg for beginning, and sk for skip. Parentheses and brackets group stitches that are worked into the same place or repeated a set number of times. An asterisk marks the start of a repeat, and the instruction after it tells you where the repeat ends.Row instructions are read left to right for right-handed crocheters and right to left for left-handed ones, but the numbers matter more than the direction. A line like "Row 3: ch 3, dc in next 4 sts, 2 dc in next st, turn" tells you the turning chain, the stitch count, the increase, and the turn, in that order. If the count at the end of the row does not match the pattern, the error is almost always in the previous row, not the current one.Two habits prevent most confusion. First, mark the last stitch of each row with a removable stitch marker, because the turning chain is easy to mistake for a stitch and easy to miss. Second, keep a tally on paper as you finish each row. A pattern is a set of instructions, not a test, and annotating it is normal practice.
What should a beginner make first?
A square. Work a foundation chain of about twenty stitches and alternate rows of single crochet until the square is roughly square. This teaches tension, turning chains, and counting without the pressure of a shape. Dishcloths, scarves and simple blankets are the same exercise at a larger scale.After that, a hat in half double crochet worked in the round introduces working into a ring and increasing evenly. Charity projects such as preemie hats and chemo caps are built on exactly these skills, which is why they are often recommended as a second project: the pattern is short, the yarn is soft, and the finished object goes somewhere useful.
How do you keep track of where you are?
Use a row counter, a pencil tick on a printed pattern, or a notes app. Whichever you choose, use only one. Switching systems mid-project is how rows get repeated.If you lose your place, count the rows from the bottom edge rather than trying to remember. The fabric itself is the record. Rip back to the last row you can verify and start again from there. Frogging, as unraveling is called, costs less time than guessing.Finally, keep the first square. It is the reference point for every later piece, and the difference between it and the tenth square is the whole of the learning curve.
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