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Working in the round · Beginner

Working over a ring

To crochet around a ring, work single crochet (UK double crochet) over it. The hook goes through the middle of the ring to pull up each loop, and the stitch is finished outside the rim, so that it closes round the ring. Go on until the ring is covered, then join the last stitch to the first.

How to work it

  1. Start with a loop on the hook

    Make a slip knot and put it on the hook. Keep the yarn behind the ring.

  2. Put the hook through the ring

    A hard ring, and a hook with one loop on it. The hook passes through the middle of the ring, across the front of its rim, and its head catches the yarn, which lies behind the ring.

    Put the hook through the middle of the ring and catch the yarn on the other side.

  3. Pull up a loop

    Draw the yarn back through the ring and up to its outside edge. There are two loops on the hook.

  4. Close the stitch over the rim

    Five single crochet sit side by side on the ring. Each one is closed round the rim: its two legs reach from its top, outside the ring, to just inside the ring. One loop is on the hook.

    Yarn over outside the ring and pull through both loops. That is one single crochet, made the usual way, and it is closed round the ring.

  5. Cover the ring

    Repeat, putting the hook through the middle of the ring for every stitch. Push the stitches together as you go, and work until no ring shows between them.

  6. Join the round

    The ring is covered: stitches sit side by side all the way round it, and none of the rim shows between them. The loop on the hook stands beside the first stitch, whose top is marked: the slip stitch that joins the round goes there.

    Work a slip stitch into the first stitch to close the round. Fasten off there, or go on: a second round is worked into the tops of the stitches on the ring, like any other round.

At a glance

Used for
covering a ring, a hoop or a wreath form with yarn; starting a round piece on a ring that stays inside the first round
Stitch
Single crochet.
How many stitches
Enough to cover the ring. The number depends on the size of the ring.
Join
A slip stitch into the first stitch.

The same move covers a hard ring, a hoop, a foam wreath form or the elastic of a hair tie. Nothing is worked into: every stitch is made round the ring itself, and the only place the hook goes in is the hole in the middle.

A pattern written for one ring gives a count for that ring. On a ring of another size, cover it by eye and count afterwards, so that the next round can be fitted to the stitches you have.

When it goes wrong

The ring shows between my stitches.
Push the stitches along the ring until they sit side by side, and add more stitches until the gaps are closed.

Left-handed

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

Questions

How many single crochet does it take to cover a ring?
As many as it takes to hide the ring. The number changes with the size of the ring, so a count is fixed only by a pattern written for one ring.
Can I work another round on a covered ring?
Yes. After the joining slip stitch, the next round goes into the tops of the stitches on the ring.
Where does the hook go in when there is no stitch to work into?
Through the hole of the ring, every time. The stitch is then finished outside the ring, so the ring ends up inside the stitch.

Where to go next

Stitches