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Crochet guide

The parts of a crochet stitch

A crochet stitch has a top, made of two loops, and a post under it. Patterns name these parts to say exactly where the hook goes: under both top loops, under the front loop or the back loop alone, round the post, or into a space.

On this page 6 parts
  1. The top and the post
  2. The front loop and the back loop
  3. The third loop
  4. Chain spaces and the turning chain
  5. Where the next stitch is
  6. Where to go next

The top and the post

A crochet stitch has two main parts: a top and a post. The picture shows a row of double crochet seen from the front. Stitch names on this page are United States terms, and a double crochet is a treble in United Kingdom terms.

A row of double crochet seen from the front, standing on the row before, with four places numbered. 1 is above the two loops at the top of a stitch, in the accent color. 2 is beside the upright post of a stitch, in the accent color. 3 is beside a ring at the foot of a post, where the stitch stands in the row below. 4 is above a ring in the gap between two posts.
  1. The top. The top of a stitch is two loops that lie along the top edge of the row. Seen from above they look like a V on its side. Unless a pattern says otherwise, the hook goes under both loops.
  2. The post. The post is the upright part under the top. It gives the stitch its height: short in a single crochet (UK double crochet), tall in a double crochet. A post stitch is worked round it. See post stitches.
  3. The base. A stitch stands in a stitch of the row below. Patterns use the word most for chains: "the stitch at the base of the turning chain" is the stitch the chain rises from.
  4. The space between two stitches. This is the gap between two posts. "Work between stitches" means put the hook there, not under any top loops. Groups of granny stitch are worked this way.

The front loop and the back loop

The two loops of the top have names of their own.

The top edge of a row seen from the front and a little from above. Each stitch top is a loop of two strands. On one stitch the two strands are drawn apart: the nearer one, numbered 5, is in the accent color, and the farther one, numbered 6, is in a darker color.
  • 5 is the front loop: the loop nearer to you.
  • 6 is the back loop: the loop farther from you.

A pattern that says FLO or BLO wants the hook under the front loop only, or the back loop only. See back loop and front loop.

The names go by the side that is facing you, not by the stitch. When you turn the work, the loop that was farther away is now the nearer one, so what was the back loop is now the front loop.

The third loop

A half double crochet (UK half treble) has one more strand. It lies on the back of the work, just under the two top loops, and it is called the third loop. Camel stitch is worked into it.

Chain spaces and the turning chain

Two more places are made of chains, not of stitches.

  • A chain space is the gap under one or more chains that were made over skipped stitches. A stitch "in the chain space" goes into the gap, with the hook under the whole chain. See chain space.
  • The turning chain is the chain made at the start of a row to lift the yarn to the height of the stitches. In some patterns it counts as the first stitch and in others it does not. See turning chain.

Where the next stitch is

"The next stitch" is the next top along the row that has not been worked into yet. Two things are never counted as it: the loop on your hook, and a chain that does not count as a stitch.

At the start of a row it depends on the turning chain. If the chain counts as a stitch, skip the stitch at its base and work into the one after. If it does not count, the first stitch goes into the stitch at its base.

Where to go next

Stitches