Puffs, bobbles and clusters · Easy
Popcorn stitch
A popcorn stitch is five finished stitches of double crochet (UK treble) worked into one stitch and then gathered. Take the hook out of its loop, put it through the top of the first of the five, catch the loop again and pull it through. The five fold into a cup that stands out from the fabric. A bobble and a cluster are made of unfinished stitches, closed with one pull through every loop on the hook. A puff is made of long loops, closed the same way. None of those three takes the hook out.
How to work it
Take the hook out
Draw the working loop up a little, so that it cannot slip undone, and take the hook out of it.
Go through the first of the five
Put the hook from front to back under both loops at the top of the first double crochet of the five, the one you made first. Then catch the free loop with the hook again.
Pull the loop through
Pull the loop through the top of that first stitch and draw it back to its usual size. The five stitches are gathered together, and the popcorn stands out on the side facing you.
The stitch pattern, row by row
- Multiple
- Chain a multiple of 4 plus 2 (14 or more).
- Starting chain
- The rows here are written for a chain of 22, which is 5 times the multiple of 4, plus 2.
- The ch 1 at the start of a row does not count as a stitch.
- Row 1 is the wrong side.
- A popcorn folds toward you as it is closed, so the popcorn rows are right-side rows.
- Foundation. Ch 22.
- Row 1 (WS). Sc in 2nd ch from hook and in each ch across (21 sc).
- Row 2. Ch 1, turn; sc in next 2 sts, [pc in next st, sc in next 3 sts] 4 times, pc in next st, sc in next 2 sts (16 sc, 5 pc).
- Row 3. Ch 1, turn; sc in each st across (21 sc).
- Row 4. Ch 1, turn; sc in next 4 sts, [pc in next st, sc in next 3 sts] 4 times, sc in next st (17 sc, 4 pc).
- Row 5. Ch 1, turn; sc in each st across (21 sc).
Repeat rows 2 to 5 for the pattern.
What each symbol meansHow to read a chart
Abbreviations in these rows
- ch
- chain stitch
- sc
- single crochet (UK double crochet)
- dc
- double crochet (UK treble)
- WS
- wrong side
- sp
- space
- st
- stitch
- pc
- popcorn: 5 dc in the same st or sp, take the hook out of the loop, insert it from front to back through the top of the first dc of the group, put the loop back on the hook and pull it through.
At a glance
- Used for
- large, round bumps on blankets, pillow covers and hats; thick, textured fabric; flower motifs
- Abbreviation
- pc, or pop in some patterns
- In UK terms
- popcorn, the same name, made of five trebles
- Multiple
- The chain is a multiple of 4 plus 2 (14 or more).
- Row repeat
- Rows 2 to 5.
- Sides
- Has a right side: row 2 and every second row after it are worked with it facing.
- Edges
- The side edges are straight: a row that begins with a chain that does not count begins and ends in a stitch, and that chain is not worked into.
Which way the hook goes through the first stitch decides which side the popcorn stands on. From front to back, it stands on the side facing you. From back to front, it stands on the far side. So a popcorn can be made on any row: put the hook in from the front on right-side rows and from the back on wrong-side rows, and every popcorn stands on the right side.
The rows on this page make popcorns on right-side rows only, with the hook put in from the front.
Many patterns chain 1 after pulling the loop through, to hold the popcorn closed, and others do not. The rows on this page do not. Read how your pattern describes its own popcorn.
Five double crochets make the usual popcorn. Fewer stitches make a smaller one and more make a larger one.
The fabric has a front and a back: the popcorns stand on one side, and the other side is nearly flat. Popcorns use a lot of yarn, and the fabric is thick.
When it goes wrong
- The loop came undone when I took the hook out.
- Pull the loop up a little larger before you let go of it. Draw the loop back to size once it is through the first stitch.
- My popcorns stand on the back of the work.
- The hook went through the first stitch the wrong way for that row. For a popcorn on the side facing you, put the hook in from front to back. For one on the far side, put it in from back to front.
Left-handed
The pictures show the hook held in the right hand. For the left hand, read each picture as its mirror image.
Variations
- Bobble stitch. Five unfinished stitches of double crochet in one stitch, closed with one pull through all six loops.
- Cluster stitch. The same closing as a bobble with fewer stitches, in one place or spread over several.
- Puff stitch. Long loops pulled up in one stitch and closed with one pull through all of them.
- Back popcorn. The same stitch with the hook put through the first double crochet from back to front, so that the popcorn stands on the far side. It is used on wrong-side rows.
Questions
- How is a popcorn stitch different from a bobble stitch?
- A popcorn is made of finished stitches, and it is gathered by taking the hook out and pulling the loop through the first of them. A bobble is made of unfinished stitches that stay on the hook and are closed with one pull through every loop.
- Which stitch does the hook go back into?
- The first double crochet of the five, the one you made first. The hook goes under both loops at its top.
- Does a popcorn stitch take more yarn than a plain stitch?
- Yes. Every popcorn is five double crochets in the space of one stitch.