Texture · Easy
Textured stitches
Crochet makes texture in several ways, and this page sorts them into five: stitches of two heights set side by side, stitches worked round the post below, bobbles and their relatives, rows worked into one loop only, and long or crossed stitches. Most are plain single crochet (UK double crochet) or double crochet (UK treble) with the hook put in a different place.
How to work it
Two heights side by side
Work a short stitch and a tall stitch in turn along the row, such as a single crochet and then a double crochet, and on the next row put each on one of the other kind. The mix of tall and short stitches gives texture all over the fabric. Lemon peel stitch is the plain form of it.
Post stitches: raised ribs
A post stitch is worked round the post of a stitch in the row below, the upright part under its top, and not into the top itself. The stitch is raised on the side facing you when the hook goes round from the front. Post stitches make ribbing, basketweave and cables, and post stitch ribbing is a thick fabric.
Bobbles, puffs and popcorns: bumps
All three work several stitches, or parts of stitches, into one place and close them together, so that the group stands out from the fabric as a rounded bump. Bobbles are usually worked on wrong-side rows, the rows worked with the back of the piece facing you, so that they stand out on the right side. These stitches use more yarn than plain double crochet.
One loop only: ridges
The top of every stitch has two loops. Work a row into the back loop or the front loop only of each stitch, not under both. The loops that are left unworked make a line across the fabric, a ridge.
Spikes and crossed stitches
A spike is a stitch, usually a single crochet, worked into a row one or more rows below the usual place, so that a long strand lies over the rows between. Crossed stitches are a pair worked out of order: skip a stitch, work the next one, then go back and work the skipped stitch. The pair makes an X.
At a glance
- Used for
- blankets, scarves and other pieces that should have body; ribbing, basketweave and cables
- For an even, pebbled surface
- two heights side by side, as in lemon peel stitch
- For upright ribs
- post stitches
- For bumps that stand out
- bobbles, puffs or popcorns
- For lines across the fabric
- rows worked in one loop only
- For long strands or an X
- spike stitches or crossed stitches
- Uses more yarn
- bobbles, puffs and popcorns, compared with plain double crochet
None of these is a new stitch to learn from nothing. Each is a basic stitch worked in an unusual place or grouped with others, which is why a pattern that uses one says in its notes exactly what it means by the name.
Texture costs yarn. Bobbles, puffs and popcorns all take more yarn than plain stitches, and a piece covered in them is heavier. If you are short of yarn, set the bumps apart on a plain ground. Any amount worked out before you start is an estimate.
Think about both sides before you choose. Bobbles show on one side of the fabric, so that side becomes the right side. For a blanket or a scarf, where both sides are seen, a stitch that looks good on both is the better choice.
When it goes wrong
- My bobbles pop out on the wrong side.
- A bobble is pushed away from you as you make it. Work bobbles on the wrong-side rows and they stand out on the right side.
- My spike stitches pull the rows together.
- Pull the long loop up to the height of the row you are working before you finish the stitch.
Left-handed
The pictures show the hook held in the right hand. For the left hand, read each picture as its mirror image.
Variations
- Lemon peel stitch. Single and double crochet in turn, row by row.
- Post stitches. Where the post is, and the hook round it from the front and from the back.
- Basketweave stitch. Blocks of front and back post stitches.
- Bobble stitch. One bobble, step by step.
- Puff stitch. Long loops drawn up in one place and closed.
- Popcorn stitch. Whole stitches in one place, folded together.
- Back loop and front loop. Which loop is which, and the ridge a free loop leaves.
- Spike stitch. Where the hook goes, and how long to pull the loop.
- Crossed stitches. The X of two double crochets, in front or behind.
Questions
- Which crochet stitches are 3D?
- Bobbles, puffs and popcorns. Each is a group of stitches worked into one place and closed together, so that it stands out from the fabric as a rounded bump.
- Do textured stitches use more yarn?
- Bobbles, puffs and popcorns do: they take more yarn than plain double crochet.
- Which textured stitch is good for ribbing?
- Post stitches. Front and back post stitches worked in turn stack up into ribs. Post stitch ribbing is a thick fabric.
- What is a simple textured stitch to start with?
- Lemon peel stitch, also taught as griddle stitch. It uses only single crochet and double crochet, and one row repeats.