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Changing color · Easy

Mosaic crochet

Mosaic crochet makes a pattern in two colors without ever changing color inside a row. Each row is worked in one color, mostly in single crochet (UK double crochet). Here and there a taller stitch, usually a double crochet (UK treble), is dropped down in front of the row below, so that its color covers a stitch of the other color. There are two ways of doing it, called overlay and inset.

How to work it

  1. Work each row in one color

    A row is worked from end to end in one yarn. In overlay mosaic the color changes after every row. In inset mosaic it changes after every two rows. Squares of the other color that seem to sit inside a row are not worked in that row at all: they are made by stitches dropped down from a later row.

  2. Overlay: drop a stitch in front of the row below

    Three rows of single crochet, each row one color: the first color, the second, and the first again, which is being worked. One stitch of the top row is a tall stitch that drops down in front of the row of the second color and stands on the row of the first color below it, so that it covers one stitch of the second color with a line of the first. A ring marks it.

    In overlay mosaic every row is worked with the right side facing. The yarn is cut at the end of each row and the next row is begun again at the starting edge. The plain stitches are single crochet worked into the back loop only, which leaves the front loops free. For a dropped stitch, work a double crochet into the free front loop of the stitch two rows down, in front of the row between. It takes the place of the plain stitch at that spot.

  3. Inset: chain over a gap, then fill it from above

    Two rows of the first color, then two rows of the second color. In both rows of the second color, three chains bridge a gap over two stitches that were skipped. In the new row of the first color, two tall stitches drop down in front of both lengths of chain and stand on the two skipped stitches, three rows down. A ring marks them.

    In inset mosaic the work is turned as usual and each color is worked for two rows. Where a square of the other color is wanted, the stitches are skipped and a length of chain is made over them, one chain more than the stitches skipped, in both rows. When the first color comes back, a double crochet is worked into each skipped stitch, in front of both lengths of chain.

  4. Read the chart

    A mosaic chart of six rows of seven squares, numbered 1 to 6 at the right. Each row has a color of its own: rows 1, 3 and 5 the first color, rows 2, 4 and 6 the second. Some squares carry an X. Under every X the square of the row below is drawn in the color of the row above it, so that upright lines of each color cross the rows of the other.

    A mosaic chart is a grid in the two colors, drawn as the finished fabric looks. Each row of the chart has a color of its own: that is the yarn for the row. A square of the other color in that row is not worked in the other yarn. In an overlay chart every row of the chart is one row of crochet, read from the same side each time, and a mark on a square, often an X, means a dropped stitch there. In an inset chart every row of the chart is two rows of crochet: across and back.

At a glance

Used for
blankets, cushions and bags with a geometric pattern; pattern in two colors with one yarn in hand at a time
Colors in a row
One.
Stitches
Single crochet, with double crochet for the dropped stitches, and in inset mosaic lengths of chain.
Overlay
A new color every row, right side always facing, the yarn cut at the end of each row.
Inset
Two rows of each color, turned as usual, the yarn carried up the side.
Chart
Shows the finished colors. The color of the row is the yarn to work with.

The two ways give a similar look and suit different pieces. Overlay mosaic leaves two cut ends for every row, one at each side edge, so a piece ends with a row of ends down both sides. Each must be woven in or covered by a border. Inset mosaic has no such ends: the color that rests is carried up the side until its two rows come round again.

The dropped stitches lie on the front only. The back shows plain stripes of the two colors.

Mosaic differs from tapestry crochet, where two colors are worked in the same row and the one not in use is carried inside the stitches. In mosaic only one yarn is in hand at a time.

A mosaic pattern is followed from its chart. Charts are not all drawn alike, so each pattern says which of the two ways it uses and how its chart is marked.

When it goes wrong

I changed color in the middle of a row because the chart shows another color there.
The chart shows how the fabric will look, not which yarn to use for each square. Work the whole row in the row's own color. The other color arrives later, as a stitch dropped down from the row above.
My overlay piece has loose ends down both sides.
That is how overlay mosaic is made: the yarn is cut after every row. Weave the ends in, or cover them with a border.
I cannot tell which way a pattern is worked.
Look at how often the color changes. A new color every row, with the yarn cut, is overlay. Two rows of each color with lengths of chain is inset.

Left-handed

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

Variations

  • Overlay mosaic. One row of each color, all rows worked with the right side facing, dropped stitches worked into front loops two rows down.
  • Inset mosaic. Two rows of each color, worked back and forth, dropped stitches worked in front of lengths of chain into the stitches that were skipped.

Questions

What is the difference between overlay and inset mosaic crochet?
Overlay changes color every row, is worked with the right side always facing and leaves cut ends at both edges. Inset works two rows in each color, turning as usual, and carries the resting yarn up the side.
How do I read a mosaic crochet chart?
Each row of the chart has one color of its own, and that is the yarn for the row. Squares of the other color in it are made by dropped stitches. In an overlay chart a marked square, often with an X, is a dropped stitch, and each chart row is one row. In an inset chart each chart row is worked twice, across and back.
Do I change color in the middle of a row?
No. Each row is worked in one color from end to end. That is what sets mosaic crochet apart from tapestry crochet.
What does the back of mosaic crochet look like?
Stripes of the two colors. The pattern is on the front only.

Where to go next

Stitches

Guides