Working in the round · Easy
Straight seam in the round
Rounds joined with a slip stitch leave a seam where each round ends and the next begins, and that seam tends to lean. To keep it upright, work the first stitch of each round into the same stitch as the join, or turn the work after every round. To have no seam at all, work in a spiral without joining.
How to work it
See why the seam leans
In rounds that are never turned, every round is worked in the same direction, and each stitch sits a little to one side of the stitch below it. Round after round, the place where the rounds are joined moves sideways with them.
Put the first stitch in the same stitch as the join
Work the first stitch of the new round into the very stitch the slip stitch went into, not into the next one. Every round then begins on top of the beginning of the round below.
At a glance
- Used for
- hats, bags and anything else worked in joined rounds; a seam that runs straight up the back of a hat; color patterns in the round, where a leaning seam shows
- Why it leans
- Stitches worked always in one direction sit slightly to one side of the stitches below. The lean adds up from round to round.
- First stitch
- In the same stitch as the joining slip stitch, with a starting chain that does not count as a stitch
- Turned rounds
- A seam that stays straight; a fabric that looks like rows
- A spiral
- No seam; a small step where the last round ends
- The last round
- An invisible join in place of the last slip stitch hides the end of the seam.
Which of the three to use depends on the piece. A joined round ends level, which matters at the brim of a hat or the top of a bag. A spiral has no seam to hide but ends in a step, because its last stitch stands a whole stitch higher than the first stitch of that round.
To end a spiral with less of a step, finish with stitches that get shorter: after the last stitch, a shorter stitch, then a slip stitch, and fasten off with an invisible join.
Turning the rounds changes the fabric as well as the seam. Work done all in one direction shows only the front of the stitches; turned rounds show front and back by turns, just as rows do. If a pattern is written one way and you work it the other, the finished piece will look different.
In single crochet (UK double crochet) the lean of each stitch is slight, but it adds up. It shows in color patterns, where the whole design drifts with the seam.
When it goes wrong
- My seam slants although I begin in the same stitch as the join.
- Check that the starting chain is not being counted as a stitch, that every round is joined to the first stitch itself and not to the chain, and that in a round that increases the increase comes last in each repeat. If the seam still leans, turn the work after each round, or work in a spiral.
- The end of my spiral has a notch.
- The last stitch stands higher than the stitch beside it. Step down with a shorter stitch and a slip stitch, then fasten off with an invisible join.
Questions
- Why does my seam go diagonal when I crochet in the round?
- Each round sits a little to one side of the round below, because the stitches are all worked in the same direction. The join moves sideways with them.
- How do I get a straight seam in the round?
- Do not count the starting chain as a stitch, and work the first stitch of each round into the same stitch as the joining slip stitch. If the seam still leans, turn the work after every joined round.
- How do I crochet in the round with no seam?
- Work in a spiral: do not join the rounds, and work the first stitch of each round into the first stitch of the round below. Mark the first stitch of each round.