I have recently been experimenting with Tunisian crochet. It is easy to do and I love the fabric that it can produce. I thought I would share some little hints and tips that I have learned along the way and found helpful.
Tunisian crochet starts out with a traditional chain. For the purpose of this tutorial, we will use a chain of 12. Also, I am only going to concentrate on doing the tunisian knit stitch as this is the stitch that I am so keen on right now.
A few notes before starting – with Tunisian crochet you don't turn your work. You are always working on the front of the work. One row is actually worked in two parts. The first pass is called the “forward”, and the second pass is called the “return”. There are sometimes different terms used depending on the designer. On the forward pass you are working from right to left and the loops are left on the hook. On the return pass you are working from left to right and the loops are removed from the hook.
Now let's tackle the foundation row.
Start by making a chain of 12.
This is the first part of the row or the “forward” pass - In 2nd chain from hook, insert your hook, yarn over and pull through a loop and leave the loop on your hook. Repeat this for each ch across to the end. (pic 1). Here it is just a few stitches done.
At the end, you should have as many loops on your hook as you had stitches in your beginning chain. Here we have 12 loops on the hook.
Now for the second part of the row or the “return” pass - Yarn over and pull through one loop only on the hook. This would be equivalent to your turning chain in regular crochet. Yarn over and pull through two loops on the hook and continue to yarn over and pull through two loops all the way to the end. You should now only have one loop remaining on your hook.
Now lets turn our attention to the tunisian knit stitch (Tks).
Row 2 (forward): Skip the first stitch as the loop on your hook will count as your first stitch.
In the second stitch, insert your hook from the front to the back through the two vertical bars and under the horizontal bar.
Yarn over and pull through a loop and leave the loop on the hook.
Repeat this for each stitch across to the end. See the below picture to see the placement of the the 12th and final stitch. The hook should run behind these two vertical bars.
Row 2 (return): Yarn over and pull through one loop only on the hook. Yarn over and pull through two loops on the hook, continue to yarn over and pull through two loops all the way to the end.
Repeat both parts of Row 2 until you have the desired amount of rows. If you are like me and loose track of your count, look at the right-hand side of your work and count the stitches going up the side. This picture shows 3 rows worked.
Easy right? And see what you can make knowing just this one tunisian crochet stitch??
Pattern will soon be released for sale. Stay tuned!
If you have any questions/comments about this tutorial or if you see any glaring errors, please feel free to leave me a comment or email me directly at knotsewcute@gmail.com. I appreciate any feedback.
Update: Click here to purchase the Drawstring Gift Bag.
tara.
