Crochet guide
Crocheting with fuzzy, velvet and boucle yarn
Textured yarns are hard to crochet for one reason: the fuzz, fur or loops hide the stitches, so you cannot easily see where to put the hook or count what you have made. The answers are to work by feel, to use a larger hook, to hold a smooth yarn alongside, and to keep the stitches simple.
On this page 6 parts
The yarns
| Yarn | What it is |
|---|---|
| Boucle | A looped yarn: small loops stand out along a core thread |
| Chenille and velvet yarn | A fuzzy yarn: short pile held in place by core threads. Slippery to the touch |
| Eyelash and faux fur yarn | A thin base thread with long strands that stand out from it |
All of them are novelty yarns, and all of them give a soft, fuzzy fabric. Chenille is used for blankets, baby things, sweaters and scarves.
Why they are hard to crochet
The texture hides the stitches. In a fuzzy fabric it is hard to see where one stitch ends and the next begins, so it is hard to find the place for the hook, and hard to count stitches and rows.
What helps
- Work by feel. You already know where the next stitch should be. Feel for it with your fingers and put the hook there.
- Use a larger hook. With eyelash and fur yarns, a hook larger than usual opens the stitches up and makes them easier to see. The fuzz fills the fabric in, so it does not need to be tight. See what a bigger or smaller hook does.
- Hold a smooth yarn alongside. Crochet the textured yarn together with a strand of plain, smooth yarn, as one. The smooth strand shows the stitches. Choose a hook big enough for both. See crocheting with two strands.
- Keep count while you work. A finished row of fur is slow to count. Say the number of each stitch as it comes off the hook.
- Mark the row ends. A stitch marker in the first or last stitch of a row shows where the row stops. See using stitch markers.
Which stitches
Keep the stitches simple. The texture of the yarn hides a stitch pattern, so the work of a fancy stitch is lost. Plain stitches such as single crochet (double crochet in United Kingdom terms) and half double crochet (UK half treble crochet) are enough.
Choosing a stitch covers stitches for smooth yarn.
Velvet yarn that worms
Velvet yarn is slippery. A loop can pull away from the fabric and stand out from it, sometimes after the piece is finished. Crocheters call that worming.
Loose stitches are blamed for it. So the advice given is the opposite of the advice for fur yarn: keep the tension firm, pull each loop a little tighter than usual, and go down a hook size or two. Yarn tension explains tight and loose stitches.