As my first post, I
decided to write about basic notions in crocheting. Crochet is one of
my favorite hobbies if not the one favorite. I learned how to crochet
when I was about 15 years old by watching my mom sew a carpet for our
living room. She herself learned the craft by watching her
grandmother and so on. Thus you can say it has been in the family for
quite a while.
Because I learned by
doing, I did not know the names of the basic stitches. You see, there
are only four mainly stitches from which you may play around and make
your own pattern. And may I dare say that among these four, only
three are really important knowing: Chain (and slip stitch), single
crochet, and double crochet. They are the ones I am showing you today.
Without further delay, let
us begin!
• Chain (ch)
First
things first. You need to hold your thread between your thumb and
point fingers. Since I am a right-handed person, I hold the thread
between my left hand fingers so my right hand is free to hold and to
move around my needle.
Next
step, since we are beginning a project and because most of the
projects, if not all of them, are going to begin with a chain, You'll
need to twist your needle in a full 360º circle. You will pull the
thread inside the loop you just created.
Usually,
you'll have to do some more before moving up to the next stitch. It
is also common to start any circular project by making a circle of
chains. First, you chain as many stitches as you want and then, to
close your circle, you'll need to do the slip stitch.
• Slip
stitch (sl
st)
The
slip stitch seems just like a chain. In fact, that first stich I just
wrote about, the one with the 360º, is a type of slip stitch used to
begin a crochet piece. The slip stitch is also there to finish a
line or a project.
The
difference now is in where you insert the needle before stitching it.
Before
you make a chain, you'll insert the needle into the closest stitch
loop, which will be right to the left of your needle. After that,
you'll pull the thread through the two loops you have on your needle
(one from the next stitch loop and one from the last stitch you just
made). Slip stitch and circle well done!
• Single
crochet (sc)
Now
imagine how cool it would be making a loop on the needle just before
making a chain? Basically, this stitch would become a single crochet.
Usually,
a line of chains is the beginner step to every project. Single
crochets cannot be done out of nowhere, they need to have other
stitches working as a base. You need to insert your needle in the
stitch's loop of your choice and make a loop with your thread, which
you'll pull across the stitch. It'll leave you with two loops on your
needle. You'll make another loop from your thread and then pull it
across the first two loops, leaving you with only one loop on your
needle once again. In the biggest picture, I made three single
crochet stitches just to help to visualize how they'll look like in a
line.
 |
| 1 sc is usually the same height as 1 or 2 ch |
• Double crochet (dc)
Again, now imagine how it would look like if you made a loop just before starting to do your single crochet... It would become a double crochet stitch.
Make a loop from your thread and insert the needle in the stitch of your choice. Next, make another loop from your thread, leaving you with three loops and a "stitch" on your needle. Pull the recent loop through the stitch and you'll be left with three loops on your needle. You'll make another loop and pull it through the next two loops. It will seem like I am repeating myself, but make another loop and pull it through the remaining loops on your needle (aka the other two loops).
In the biggest picture bellow, I made four double crochet stitches in a row.
 |
| A dc is usually the same height as 3 ch |
That was all for today! Thank you for reading my opening and I hope I will keep seeing you around here. If you have any questions at all, comment in the box bellow and I'll be more than happy to help you!
---
Mrs. Vieira