Stitch tutorials and technique guides, photographed step by step.
6 min read
Narrowing edges, holes, cupping circles, twisted chains and a dropped project: what each looks like, what caused it, and the fastest fix.
5 min read
How to recognize a stitch from above, count rows and rounds, and put markers where they save you from ripping back.
5 min read
Abbreviations, asterisks, brackets, parentheses and size notation, and a method for reading a row so you never lose your place.
5 min read
Flat pieces are worked back and forth, tubes and circles are worked around. What changes: turning, joining, the right side, and the spiral.
5 min read
An adjustable starting loop that closes the hole at the center of anything worked in the round. Two ways to make it, and how to stop it coming undone.
4 min read
The two stitches most blankets and garments are made of: taller, faster and softer than single crochet, with turning chains that finally start to count.
4 min read
The shortest, densest stitch and the one amigurumi is built on. How to make it, turn a row, and a table for reading UK and US patterns.
4 min read
How to make the knot that starts every project, chain evenly, count chains, and work into them without twisting.
5 min read
Two hook grips, one way to tension the yarn, and why the position of your hands matters more than which one you pick.
5 min read
A decrease worked through the front loops only that vanishes into single crochet fabric. Why the standard decrease shows, and when not to use the invisible one.
5 min read
How a flat circle, a ball and a cone are shaped with single crochet, why increases are staggered, and the stitch counts you will see in every toy pattern.
4 min read
Wet, spray and steam blocking: what each does, which fibers want which, and how to pin a shawl or a sweater so it dries into the size on the schematic.
5 min read
How to make tails stay put in every kind of fabric: the two-direction rule, what to do with slippery yarn, and how to avoid the job altogether.
4 min read
How to swap the yarn a pattern calls for: match the weight, respect the fiber, compare meterage, buy by the meter and swatch before you commit.
4 min read
The eight standard yarn weight categories, what they are called in different countries, and how to tell them apart when the label does not help.
