crochetHow to crochet for beginners
Learn to hold the yarn, make a starting loop, and crochet a small, straight practice strip.
In this guide
Start with yarn you can seeHold the hook and control the yarnMake a slip knotMake a foundation chainCrochet your first rowFinish a small practice stripStart with yarn you can see
Choose a smooth, light-colored yarn so individual loops stand out. A medium yarn is easier to see than fine thread; a fuzzy or chenille yarn can hide the places where the hook needs to go. Start with the millimeter hook size on the yarn label, then adjust after trying a swatch.
You need a crochet hook, yarn, scissors and a yarn needle for finishing. Two removable stitch markers make row edges easier to find. A winder, blocking board and complete hook set can wait.
Hold the hook and control the yarn
Hold the hook in your dominant hand. A pencil grip holds it from above with the thumb and first finger; a knife grip rests the handle in the palm. Try both without squeezing. Hold the work in the other hand and guide the working yarn over a finger so it feeds with light resistance.
The working yarn leads back to the ball. The tail is the short free end. Do not wrap the yarn tightly around a finger. You want to be able to move the hook through the loop without forcing it. Choose the right-handed or left-handed diagram view below. In the left-handed view, the hook is in your left hand and the working yarn is guided by your right. The loop sequence and meanings of front and back stay the same.
Make a slip knot
Leave a tail around 15 cm long. Cross the working yarn over the tail to make a loop. Hold that crossing. Take a small folded section of working yarn and pull it up through the loop. You now have a new adjustable loop.
Put the hook through the new loop and gently pull the working yarn until the loop rests around the shaft. It should slide on the shaft. The slip knot is your starting loop, not your first chain. If it tightens around the hook head, loosen it and move it back onto the shaft.
Make a foundation chain
Wrap the working yarn over the hook from back to front. Catch it in the notch and draw it through the loop already on the hook. You have made one chain and still have one active loop. Repeat until you have 11 chains.
Count the little V shapes below the hook. Do not count the active loop or the original slip knot. Keep the chain loose enough to insert the hook in the next row.
Hook in your right hand; guide the working yarn with your left hand. The loop counts stay the same.
Hook in your left hand; guide the working yarn with your right hand. The loop counts stay the same.
Crochet your first row
For this practice strip, use US single crochet, called double crochet in UK patterns. Insert the hook into the second chain from the hook. Yarn over and pull up a loop: two loops are on the hook. Yarn over again and draw through both.
Make one single crochet in each remaining chain. You should have 10 stitches. Mark the first and last stitch, chain 1 and turn the work. The chain 1 does not count for this strip. Work into both top loops of each stitch, starting with the first stitch; keep 10 stitches in each row.
Hook in your right hand; guide the working yarn with your left hand. The loop counts stay the same.
Hook in your left hand; guide the working yarn with your right hand. The loop counts stay the same.
Finish a small practice strip
After five rows, cut the yarn leaving a tail long enough to thread a yarn needle and weave through several stitches. Pull that tail all the way through the active loop to secure it. Weave the tail through the backs of several stitches, change direction and weave back without pulling the edge tight.
Lay the strip flat. Count each row and look for edges that widen or narrow. If the count changed, go back to the last correct row and inspect the edge stitch before adding another row. For now, consistent loops matter more than a particular finished size.
Read a pattern and its repeat counts →