Double crochet can be super confusing to learn, because it's such a tall stitch. Its height requires a significant turning chain, and that turning chain is what creates the confusion that leads to wobbly edges.
The good news is, you're so not alone if you're confused or frustrated by this! As I said, it's the single most common question I'm asked.
The slideshow below is a new and different way of presenting my photo tutorial, and I hope it helps you! Toggle the “autoplay” switch in the top-right to either advance the slides by clicking, or to have them advance automatically.
Also, you obviously don't need my beginner crochet class. š That's just the way the app listed it when I put it in, and I realized too late that I couldn't move it to the end. But the class is super comprehensive ā it covers everything you need to know to get started crocheting, and it also covers loads of things that will help you if you already know the basic stitches. There's three-and-a-half hours of instruction in there. If that sounds good, check it out.
How To Make Neat Edges in Double Crochet by kpwerker on Jumprope.
I picked up a cake of Sheepjes Whirl yarn a couple of weeks ago, and it whispered to me that it wants to be crocheted into a pi shawl.
Now that I've been working on it for a while, and have ripped back to the third row a couple of times, I'm accepting that it's not aĀ true pi shawl, because the proportions of my stitch pattern aren't working out exactly. Which is fine by me.
It's a simple v-stitch pattern and I'm loving every minute of making it, even with the ripping back. ā¤ļø
I filmed this tutorial well over a year ago but forgot to put it here on my site! š
Beginning a crochet project in the round with an adjustable ring means there won't be a hole in the very centreĀ of your project. (Sometimes you want that hole, but sometimes you really don't.)
It's a very useful technique to master, and it's super simple. If you crochet amigurumi or other kinds of toys in the round, if you make non-lacy hats, or anything else where you want to eliminate the hole in the centre, the adjustable ring will be your best friend.
I have never been excited about a new class like Iām excited about this one!Ā Zigzag Crochet: A Beginnerās Guide to Ripples & WavesĀ is all about my absolute favourite kind of project to crochet. (Uh, obviously, zigzags, ripples, waves, chevrons ā whatever you call them.)Ā Come learn how to bend stripes into cool shapes, from spiky chevrons to gentle waves. With texture or lace, and always with colour!
I designed the class around a baby-blanket pattern made inĀ machine-washable yarnĀ (as every baby blanket should be), and I walk you through the project from beginning to end.
Thereās loads more in class, too! Learn how to use a zigzag pattern to make a project of any size, from a scarf to a king-size blanket. Explore how yarn weight and gauge affect the size of your projects, play with loads of colour, and learn how to handle all the pesky ends you have to deal with when you work in stripes. Discover how to make a wide variety of patterns, including the feather and fan pattern Iām using to makeĀ this epic scarf, and learn how to introduce variations into patterns so you can alter the way they look.
The single most common question I'm asked by students is why the edges of their crochet look awful.
For some reason, many crocheters make their first project in double crochet. I get it, it's a very common stitch and it's easy to make.
But the first and last stitches in a row of double crochet can be super duper confusing, which is why it's so common for edges to look uneven and terrible.
I specifically designed this double crochet tutorial for beginner crocheters, but it'll be helpful even if you've been stitching for years.
Image 1: Hereās what it looks like as you approach the end of a row of double crochet. Iāve circled the tops of the stitches from the previous row that remain to be worked. The most common confusion is where to place the last couple of stitches; itās very, very common for beginners not to work a stitch in the top of the turning chain from the previous row. So in the circle are the final double crochet (rightmost in the circle) and, to the left of it at the end, the top of the turning chain.
Image 2: The arrow is keeping track of the turning chain, and Iām inserting my hook into the next double crochet.
Image 3: Iāve pulled up a loop in the double crochet. The arrow is still indicating the top of the turning chain.
Image 4: Iāve finished the stitch and the arrow is on pointing to the top of the turning chain. See how easy it would be to skip it? After all, it sort of looks like the edge could straighten out after a little tugging. Alas, though, it wonāt.
Image 5: Ok, no more arrow. Here Iām about to insert my hook in the top of the turning chain. By ātop of the turning chain,ā I mean the topmost of the three chains. Notice how Iām using the fingers of my other hand to open that sucker up. It can be tight and/or awkward to shove your hook in there, but persistence will pay off.
Image 6: Iāve pulled up a loop in the top of the turning chain. Itās pretty apparent now that we need to work a stitch here to make the edge straight, eh?
Image 7: Hereās the completed final stitch of the row. Thereās nothing to the left of it to stick my hook in, so Iām confident it really is the end of the row.
Image 8: Now we say to āturn your work.ā This means to flip it around so your hook is poised to start the next row (in these photos Iām working right-handed, so at the beginning of a row my hook is on the right. If youāre a lefty and you crochet left-handed [hey, not all lefties do!], your hook is on the left at the beginning of a row).
Image 9: Make 3 chains. This is the āturning chainā which serves the function of raising the hook to the height of the stitches youāll be making. Since double crochet is a fairly tall stitch, most patterns say to ācount the turning chain as the first stitch of the row.ā This is because that turning chain takes up about as much space as a double crochet. Since weāre counting it as the first stitch, we work the first actual double crochet into the second stitch of the row, not the first. (If we work it into the first stitch, the edge will bulge out and look wonky.) The arrow is keeping track of that first stitch that weāre going to skip before making the first double crochet.
Image 10: This might be a confusing photo. If it is, ignore it. Iām inserting my hook in the second stitch, and the arrow is pointing to the skipped first stitch.
Image 11: Ok, this is better. Here Iāve pulled up a loop for the double crochet, and the arrow is pointing to the first stitch which I didnāt insert my hook into. At the very right, you can pick out the chains of the turning chain; see how theyāre pretty much rising from that first stitch? Thatās why we skip it before working the first double crochet.
Image 12: Iāve completed the double crochet and the arrow is still indicating the first stitch from the previous row. So even though Iāve only worked one double crochet, you can see it looks like we actually have two stitches made. This is why we count the turning chain as a full-on stitch.
Itās entirely possible that my familiarity with crochet has prevented me from really getting to the heart of any confusion you might have. Please leave a comment with any questions I havenāt answeredāor that, eep, Iāve introducedāand I or someone in the community will chime in to help you out.
And promise me something, eh? In a few months when a friend begs you to teach them how to crochet, start with single crochet, wouldya? The last stitch of the row can still be tough to place, but at least you wonāt have to contend with the turning-chain-counts-as-a-stitch thing.
Hi! I'm a writer and editor, and also like a camp counselor for grownups. I help people have way more fun making stuff. Learn more about how right here.
Hi! I'm a writer and editor, and also like a camp counselor for grownups. I help people have way more fun making stuff. Learn more about how 