Before you start: your tiny toolkit
For easy practice, use smooth, light-colored medium-weight (#4) yarn and a comfortable 5.0 mm hook. You'll also need scissors and a yarn needle for finishing. Light-colored yarn makes the loops easier to see. This is a starter practice suggestion, not a requirement for every pattern.
01. Make a slip knot
- Make a loop in the yarn with the working strand crossing over the tail.
- Pull a small bight of the working yarn through the loop to create a new loop.
- Put your hook in that new loop and gently snug it up. It should slide along the hook — not squeeze it.
The slip knot does not count as a stitch.
02. Chain stitch (ch)
- Hold the yarn with gentle tension in your other hand.
- Wrap the working yarn over your hook (this is called yarn over).
- Pull that yarn through the loop already on your hook. That's one chain!
- Repeat until you have 13 chains. The loop on your hook does not count.
03. Single crochet (sc)
- Insert your hook into the second chain from the hook.
- Yarn over and pull up a loop. You now have 2 loops on your hook.
- Yarn over again and pull through both loops. You've made 1 single crochet.
- Repeat in each remaining chain. Starting from 13 chains, you'll make 12 sc in the first row.
To make another row, chain 1, turn, and work one sc into each stitch. That turning chain normally does not count as a stitch in these beginner rows.
Try this: Make a 12-stitch-wide practice square, crocheting several rows of single crochet. Count your 12 stitches after every row. It's your first little win.
04. Slip stitch (sl st)
Insert the hook into the stitch, yarn over, then pull the yarn through the stitch and the loop already on your hook in one motion. Slip stitches are often used for joining or moving without adding much height.
05. Half double crochet (hdc)
- Yarn over, then insert the hook into the stitch.
- Yarn over and pull up a loop: 3 loops are on your hook.
- Yarn over, pull through all 3 loops.
06. Double crochet (dc)
- Yarn over, insert into the stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop: 3 loops.
- Yarn over and pull through 2 loops.
- Yarn over and pull through the final 2 loops.
Quick stitch dictionary
| US abbreviation | Name | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| ch | Chain | Creates a foundation |
| sl st | Slip stitch | Joins or moves smoothly |
| sc | Single crochet | Short, dense stitch |
| hdc | Half double crochet | Mid-height stitch |
| dc | Double crochet | Taller stitch |
Important: These instructions use US terminology. UK stitch names differ: for example, US single crochet is called UK double crochet. Always check the terminology in a pattern.
Three very normal beginner problems
- Chains are too tight? Relax your yarn tension. A slightly larger hook for the starting chain may help.
- Your square gets narrower? Count every row — beginners often accidentally miss the first or last stitch.
- The stitch looks messy? That's practice doing its job. Keep your loops reasonably even, not perfect.