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Crochet guides
New to crochet? Start with How to crochet.
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How to crochet
How to crochet from the first loop: hold the hook, make a slip knot and a chain, work rows of single crochet, turn, count and fasten off, step by step.
What you need to start crocheting
The few supplies a beginner needs to start crocheting: one hook, one ball of yarn and scissors. How to choose each one, and what is worth adding later.
Crochet hooks
The parts of a crochet hook, inline and tapered heads, and hooks made of aluminum, steel, plastic and wood: what each is like to use and which to start with.
Crochet yarn types
Types of yarn for crochet by fiber: what cotton, acrylic, wool and blends are like, which suits dishcloths, blankets and baby things, and what to learn with.
How to hold the crochet hook and yarn
The two usual ways to hold a crochet hook, the pencil grip and the knife grip, and how to run the yarn through your other hand to keep the tension even.
How to read a crochet pattern
What each line of a crochet pattern tells you to do, from the starting chain to the count in parentheses, with turning chains, repeats and brackets explained.
Right side and wrong side in crochet
What RS and WS mean in a crochet pattern, and how to tell the right side from the wrong side in rows and in the round, by the starting tail and the stitches.
The parts of a crochet stitch
The names patterns use for the parts of a crochet stitch and where each one is: the two top loops, the post, the base, the third loop and the spaces.
Crochet gauge and how to measure it
What crochet gauge means, how to make and measure a gauge swatch, and what to change when your stitches or rows do not match the pattern.
How to read crochet charts
How to read a crochet chart: one symbol is one stitch, rows run from alternate sides and rounds counter-clockwise from the center. With the six basic symbols.
How to read a crochet graph
How to read a crochet graph: one square is one stitch, start at the bottom right, read odd rows right to left and even rows left to right. Corner to corner too.
Things to crochet
What to crochet first and what to make next: a dishcloth, a scarf, a blanket, pieces in two colors and things in the round, with what each one teaches.
The basic crochet stitches compared
The basic crochet stitches side by side, from slip stitch to treble: how each is made, how tall it is, its turning chain, its UK name and the fabric it gives.
Crochet tips and tricks
Crochet tips for before you start, while you work, with yarn and at the end: read the pattern, count every row, pull yarn from the center, leave long tails.
Types of crochet
The main kinds of crochet side by side: tapestry, mosaic, filet, Irish lace, Tunisian, broomstick and hairpin lace, amigurumi, and what sets each apart.
How to crochet a blanket
The steps of a first crochet blanket in order: pick a size, a stitch, a yarn and a hook, work out the starting chain, keep the edges straight and add a border.
How to crochet a scarf
The steps of a first crochet scarf in order: how wide and how long, which way the rows run, a stitch for both sides, the starting chain and an even width.
Fixing problems
Crochet tension
What sets your crochet tension, and what to change when stitches are too tight, too loose or uneven: the hook, your hold on the yarn and the loop you pull up.
Common crochet problems
Why is my crochet curling, twisting, wavy or getting wider? The common crochet problems in one table, with the likely cause of each and what to change.
Why a crochet hat comes out wavy, pointy or too big
A crochet hat ruffles when its crown has too many increases, turns pointy with too few, and comes out too big when you increase for too long. How to fix each.
Good to know
What is crochet?
Crochet is a way of making fabric from loops of yarn with one hook. What the word means, how to say it, what a person who crochets is called and its main kinds.
Knitting vs crochet
The difference between knitting and crochet: the tools, how the loops are held, the fabric each makes, how much yarn each uses, and which is easier to learn.
Crochet compared with macrame, tatting and loom knitting
How crochet differs from macrame, tatting, loom knitting and embroidery: the tool each uses, how its fabric is made and what it is used for, side by side.
US and UK crochet terms side by side
The same crochet stitch names mean different stitches in United States and United Kingdom patterns. See them side by side and learn to tell which set you have.
Crochet hook sizes explained
How crochet hook sizes work: the millimeter size, the United States letter and number, old United Kingdom numbers and steel hooks, with a conversion chart.
Yarn weights for crochet
What yarn weight means, what the numbers on a yarn label stand for, the usual crochet gauge and hook for each weight, and the names used in other countries.
Crochet slang and acronyms
What WIP, UFO, HOTH, ISO, frogging, stash and yarn chicken mean. Crochet slang and acronyms in plain words, grouped by projects, yarn and online shorthand.
How to wash crochet
How to wash a crocheted blanket, sweater or hat without shrinking or stretching it: read the yarn label, wash gently by hand or machine, and dry it flat.
Crochet stitches for blankets
Ten crochet stitches for blankets, compared by the fabric each makes: closed or open, plain or textured, and how hard each is. With a page for every stitch.
Which crochet stitch to use
What different crochet stitches are used for. Choose a stitch by what the project needs: drape, firmness, stretch, warmth, no holes, or two sides alike.
How to make a crochet pattern bigger or smaller
Three ways to size a crochet pattern up or down: add or remove repeats, change the yarn and hook, or work more or fewer rows. What each one changes.
Is there a purl stitch in crochet?
Purl is a knitting stitch, and ordinary crochet has none. The one purl in crochet is the Tunisian purl stitch. Which crochet stitches copy the look of knitting.
History of crochet
Nobody knows who invented crochet. The first known printed patterns date from the 1820s. What is documented, what is only guessed, and where historians differ.
Can you take a crochet hook on a plane?
Crochet hooks are on the United States and Canadian security lists as allowed in carry-on and checked bags. What each list says, and who has the last word.
How to write a crochet pattern
How to write a crochet pattern others can follow: the parts in order, how to word a row with its count and repeats, and how to check it before sharing it.
How to teach someone to crochet
How to teach a beginner to crochet, adult or child: what to bring, the order to teach in, where to sit, and what to expect from a first lesson.
Color combinations for crochet
How to choose yarn colors for crochet: neighbors, opposites and triads on the color wheel, light against dark, neutrals, and how variegated yarn behaves.
How to crochet shapes
How flat crochet shapes are made, each by one rule: a rectangle, a circle, a square, a triangle, a half circle, an oval and a hexagon, with a heart and a star.
Can a machine crochet?
No machine in use makes hand crochet stitches. What the machines called crochet machines make, why a crochet stitch is hard to mechanize, and how to tell.
The math of crochet
The arithmetic a crocheter uses, each with a worked example: stitches for a width, rows for a length, a chain from a multiple, flat circles, scaling and yarn.
Making your own crochet hook
What a crochet hook needs to work, how one is whittled from a dowel, a chopstick or a twig, how to sand it smooth and how to find the size of the hook you made.
Winding yarn into a ball
Which yarn has to be wound before you crochet, how to wind a hank by hand or with a swift and ball winder, and when to pull from the center or the outside.
What to use when you have no crochet hook
What can stand in for a crochet hook: your fingers for thick yarn, or a hook whittled from a chopstick. What a stand-in needs, and when to wait for a hook.
Crochet to take when you travel
What makes crochet easy to carry on a trip: a small piece, a ball or two of yarn, few tools and a pattern saved offline. With the kinds of piece that fit.
Dyeing crochet
Whether crochet can be dyed depends on the fiber. Which yarns take which dye, dyeing the yarn or the finished piece, tie-dye, dip dye and washing afterward.
Storing yarn, hooks and patterns
How to store yarn so that it stays clean, dry and safe from sunlight and moths, how to keep hooks and patterns, and why yarn of one dye lot stays together.
Framing and displaying doilies
How to get a crochet doily ready to show, mount it on an acid-free backing with stitches and no glue, keep glass and sunlight off the lace, and reuse old ones.
Keeping track of works in progress
How to put a crochet piece down so that you can pick it up again: its yarn, hook and pattern in one bag, your row marked. And when to finish or frog it.
What a bigger or smaller hook does
What changes when you crochet with a bigger or smaller hook than the yarn label or the pattern names: the fabric, the size of the piece and the yarn it takes.
Crocheting with thread
Thread crochet uses the same stitches as yarn, with fine cotton thread and a small steel hook. How thread and steel hooks are sized, and which size to learn on.
Yarn for crochet clothes
Which yarn suits crochet clothes and why: cotton or linen for a summer top, wool or a wool blend for a sweater, wool with nylon for socks, and which weight.
How to design a crochet pattern
How a crochet design goes from an idea to a pattern: a sketch with measurements, a swatch, the sums from gauge to stitch counts, a first sample and notes.
Yarn for dishcloths and washcloths
Cotton is the yarn for crochet dishcloths and washcloths, because it takes up water and stands up to washing. Which weight and hook to use, and why not acrylic.
Stitches that use the least yarn
Which crochet stitches take the least yarn and which the most: open and tall stitches go furthest, short closed stitches take more, bobbles and puffs the most.
Stitches for dishcloths
Which crochet stitches suit a dishcloth and why: textured, closed stitches such as waffle, moss, Suzette, lemon peel and grit stitch, with a page for each one.