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Texture · Intermediate

Knit-look stitches

These four crochet stitches come close to the look of knitting. Waistcoat stitch and camel stitch cover the fabric with the V shapes of plain knitting. Slip stitch ribbing and back loop ribbing make the ridges of a knitted rib. None of them is a new stitch: each is an ordinary crochet stitch with the hook put in a different place.

How to work it

  1. Waistcoat stitch: Vs in upright columns

    A diagram of the face of waistcoat stitch: upright columns of Vs, each V standing in the V below it, like the knit side of plain knitting. One column is in the accent color.

    A single crochet (UK double crochet) worked between the two legs of the V of the stitch below, in place of under its two top loops. Worked round and round with the right side facing, the Vs stand one in another in upright columns. It looks like the flat, knit side of plain knitting, which is why it is also called the knit stitch. Keep the stitches loose, or use a larger hook, because the hook has to pass through the middle of each stitch.

  2. Camel stitch: Vs in lines across

    A diagram of the face of camel stitch: level braids of sideways Vs, one braid for each round, lying one above another. One braid is in the accent color.

    A half double crochet (UK half treble) worked into the third loop, the strand that lies behind the two top loops. In rounds, the top loops of every round are pushed to the front and lie there as a braid of sideways Vs. The lines of Vs run round the piece, not up and down it.

  3. Slip stitch ribbing: narrow, springy ribs

    A diagram of slip stitch ribbing turned on its side: narrow upright ribs set close together, each one a chain of small Vs, with a thin furrow between one rib and the next. One rib is in the accent color.

    Rows of slip stitches, each one worked into the back loop only of the stitch below. The rows are very short and fold into narrow ribs that stretch and spring back, with a look close to knitted ribbing. Slip stitches are tight to work into, so make them loosely.

  4. Back loop ribbing: ridges with stitches between

    A diagram of back loop ribbing in single crochet turned on its side: upright ridges set wide apart, with the stitches of the rows showing as small sideways Vs between one ridge and the next. One ridge is in the accent color.

    Single crochet, or half double crochet, worked into the back loop only on every row. The front loop that each row leaves free shows as a ridge, and the ridges stand up as ribs that stretch. It is a very common way to crochet a rib.

At a glance

Used for
hats, cowls and bags worked in the round; brims, cuffs and hems that should stretch
For Vs in columns
waistcoat stitch, in rounds
For Vs in lines across
camel stitch, in rounds
For a rib that looks knitted
slip stitch ribbing in the back loop
For a common crochet rib
back loop ribbing in single or half double crochet

The two V stitches and the two ribs do different jobs. Waistcoat stitch and camel stitch make the body of a piece: a hat, a cowl, a bag. Both show their knitted look on the right side only, and both need rounds to do it, with the right side always facing you. Worked in turned rows they look different.

The two ribbings are for brims, cuffs and hems. A band of ribbing is a strip of short rows, worked sideways, as long as the band is to go round. The stretch lies between the rows, so the strip stretches along its length. Turned so that its rows stand upright, the ridges look like the ribs of a knitted cuff. The pictures of the two ribbings show them turned that way.

How firm the fabric is differs too. Waistcoat stitch is tight and thick. The ribbings give and spring back.

Tunisian crochet, a technique of its own, also has stitches that look like knitting. Crochet has no purl stitch, though the name turns up: the guide on the purl stitch says what people mean by it.

When it goes wrong

My waistcoat stitch is too tight to get the hook through.
Loosen the stitches or go up a hook size. The hook goes through the middle of each stitch, which needs room.
My waistcoat or camel stitch does not look knitted.
Check that you are working in rounds without turning. Both stitches put their Vs on the right side, and turned rows break up the look.
My slip stitch ribbing is stiff and hard to work.
The slip stitches are too tight. Make each one loosely, with a looser loop on the hook, so that the next row can get into it.

Left-handed

The pictures show the hook held in the right hand. For the left hand, read each picture as its mirror image.

Variations

  • Waistcoat stitch. The stitch itself, step by step, with its rounds.
  • Camel stitch. Where the third loop is, and the hook in it.
  • Back loop only. Which loop is the back loop, and the ridge the front loop leaves.
  • Slip stitch. The stitch that slip stitch ribbing is made of.

Questions

Which crochet stitch looks most like knitting?
For the flat face of plain knitting, waistcoat stitch worked in rounds: it is the one also called the knit stitch. For a knitted rib, slip stitch ribbing in the back loop.
Can I get a knit look in rows?
Yes, with the ribbings, which are worked in rows. Waistcoat stitch and camel stitch look most like knitting in rounds.
Is there a purl stitch in crochet?
No. Purl is a knitting stitch, and ordinary crochet has none.
Does knit-look crochet stretch like knitting?
The ribbings stretch and spring back. Waistcoat stitch makes a tight, thick fabric.

Where to go next

Stitches

Guides