How Do I Crochet?
If you've ever wanted to give all your relatives homemade hats, scarves and blankets, learning to crochet is one of the quickest ways you can make it happen. Crocheted items can usually be completed more quickly than knitted items, and learning just a few crochet stitches will enable you to make beautiful items for yourself and your friends. Before you can learn to follow complicated crochet patterns, you need to learn the basics of how to crochet.
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Things You'll Need
- Crochet hook
- Yarn
- Simple crochet pattern such as a scarf or blanket that uses single and/or double crochet stitches
- Yarn needle
Instructions
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Learn to hold the crochet hook. Hold it in your right hand if possible; if you are left-handed and prefer to hold it in your left hand, you will have to reverse instructions when you are using patterns. Hold the hook between your thumb and index finger, grasping it comfortably so you can control it easily. You will use your left hand to control the yarn.
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2
Make a slip knot on your hook. Make a loop in your yarn and put your hook through the loop. Hook your crochet hook onto the tail of the yarn and pull the tail through the loop. You should now have a slip knot tied loosely around your hook.
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3
Learn the chain stitch. Hold the crochet hook, with the slip knot on it, in your right hand. Use your left middle finger and thumb to hold the slip knot in place on the hook. Put your left index finger through the tail of the yarn to create a loop. Use your left index finger to put the loop of yarn over the crochet hook from back to front and catch the yarn on the hook. Pull this new loop through the loop that is already on the crochet hook.
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4
Crochet patterns begin with a chain row. Continue to make chain stitches until you have completed the number required in the pattern. Neither the slip knot nor the first chain stitch count toward your total number of chain stitches.
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Learn to turn your work. When you reach the end of the row, you must make one or more additional chain stitches to create the next row. If the next row will be single crochet stitches, then make one extra chain stitch at the end of the row. Then turn the entire crochet piece over so the last stitch of the row becomes the first stitch in the new row.
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6
Make a single crochet when your pattern calls for it. When you finished your chain row, you should have one loop over your crochet hook, the loop of the last chain. Insert your crochet hook through the center of the chain next to it, going from back to front. Use your left hand to loop the tail of the yarn over the hook from back to front. Then use the crochet hook to pull the new loop through both of the loops that are already on the hook. Use your left hand to make another loop over the hook with the tail of the yarn, and pull that loop through the loop on the hook. This completes one single crochet.
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Continue a row of single crochet stitches when your pattern calls for it. For each stitch, begin by placing the hook through the next stitch in the previous row. Wrap the tail around the hook, and pull the new loop through the previous stitch. Loop the yarn over the hook again, and pull the new loop through the two loops that are already on the hook. Continue this pattern for as many stitches as your pattern calls for.
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8
Make a double crochet when your pattern calls for it. Loop the tail of the yarn over your hook and insert the hook through the fourth chain from the end of your beginning chain. Loop the tail of the yarn over your hook again, and pull the new loop through the three loops that are already on the hook. Loop the yarn around your hook again, and draw the new loop through two of the loops on your hook, leaving two loops still on the hook. Loop the yarn over your hook again, and pull the new loop through the two loops on your hook, leaving one loop still on the hook. This completes one double chain stitch.
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9
Continue a double crochet row by wrapping a loop of the yarn tail around the hook. Put the hook through the center of the next chain in the previous row. Wrap the tail of the yarn around the hook. Pull the yarn through two of the loops that are on the hook. Wrap the tail of the yarn around the hook. Pull the yarn through two of the loops on the hook. Repeat this pattern until you reach the end of the row. To turn a double crochet row, make three chain stitches at the end of the row and then turn the piece over.
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10
Fasten off your last row when your piece is complete. Cut the yarn, leaving several inches after the last stitch. Wrap the cut tail around your hook, and pull it through the last loop still on your hook. Pull it tight. Use a yarn needle to weave the tail into the last stitch so it doesn't hang loose from your finished piece.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit crochet image by Lytse from Fotolia.com
