Single crochet (sc)
sc in US patterns. UK: double crochet (dc). German: Feste Masche.
To single crochet, insert the hook under both loops of the next stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop (2 loops on the hook). Yarn over again and pull through both loops. One loop stays on the hook for the next stitch.
Step by step
Scroll through the steps and the model follows. Tap a step to jump to it.
- Start with one loop on your hook.
- Find the next stitch: the two loops lying on top of it (glowing).
- Insert the hook under both loops, front to back.
- Yarn over: catch the working yarn behind the work.
- Pull up a loop through the stitch. 2 loops on the hook.
- Yarn over.
- Draw the yarn through both loops on the hook…
- Single crochet made. One loop stays on the hook, ready for the next stitch.
Two loops, not three
A single crochet has no yarn over before the hook goes in, so after you pull up a loop there are two loops on the hook. If you count three, you wrapped the yarn first and you're making a half double crochet.
Names and turning chain
- US
- single crochet (sc)
- UK
- double crochet (dc)
- German
- Feste Masche (fM)
- Turning chain
- ch 1
When you use it
Single crochet is the shortest of the basic stitches and makes a dense, firm fabric. It is the stitch for amigurumi, bags, dishcloths and edgings, and the first stitch most people learn after the chain.
In a UK pattern this same stitch is called double crochet (dc). If a UK pattern says "dc", work a US single crochet. Our US vs UK chart lists every name.
How to count it
Each single crochet shows a small V on top. Count the V's along the top of the row. The turning chain (1 chain) does not count as a stitch.
Practice piece
A small single crochet square teaches you to keep straight edges, which matters more than speed at this stage.
- Chain 16. Single crochet in the 2nd chain from the hook and in each chain across (15 stitches).
- Chain 1, turn, and single crochet in each stitch across (15). Count at the end of the row.
- Repeat the second row until the piece is roughly square, about 15 rows in worsted-weight yarn.
Both side edges should run straight up. If the swatch leans into a trapezoid, you are adding or skipping a stitch at the ends; place a stitch marker in the first and last stitch of each row until the counts stay at 15.
No yarn yet? For your first stitches, use a smooth, light-colored worsted-weight yarn and a 5.5 mm (I-9) hook. What yarn and hook to buy.
How it looks in a pattern
Row 2: ch 1, turn, sc in each st across (15).
Chain one, turn the work, then work one single crochet into every stitch of the row below, starting with the first. The (15) tells you the stitch count to check at the end of the row. In a UK pattern the same line reads "dc in each st".
Common mistakes
- Losing or adding stitches at the endsWork the last stitch of the row into the last V, and the first stitch of the next row into the first V, not into the turning chain. Count every few rows.
- Going under one loop onlyUnless the pattern says front or back loop only, the hook goes under both loops of the V.
- Tight loopsPull each loop up to the width of the hook's shaft. Tight single crochet is hard to work into on the next row.
Questions
- Is single crochet the same as double crochet in the UK?
- Yes. The US single crochet is the UK double crochet. The stitch is identical; only the name differs.
- Does the turning chain count as a stitch?
- Not for single crochet. Chain 1, turn, and work the first single crochet into the first stitch.
- What is sc2tog?
- Single crochet two together, a decrease: pull up a loop in each of two stitches (3 loops on the hook), yarn over and pull through all 3. For amigurumi, the invisible decrease looks neater.