When you are learning a new craft, mistakes are expected to happen. In this article i would like to give you a head up for the most common crochet mistakes made that you are likely going to encounter.
You can use this as a guide to either avoid the mistakes you are likely to come across or, remind yourself that such mistakes are common.
It will not be the same for every crocheter, so be sure to comment a mistake you are coming across if i happen to leave it out.
Before we go any further…
If you are comfortable with reading crochet patterns, then there are some lovely beginner friendly and affordable ($1.5) crochet patterns you might love! Ribblr has the best!
Common Mistakes Beginner Crocheters Make
When you are new to the crochet craft, you are excite to get your hands on a crochet hook and some yarn! But you do not understand anything about the sizes or types of crochet hook nor the guide to yarn weight.
Because as it turns out, you cannot just pick up any random hook and yarn. There are rules to it.
When i was new to crating, i struggled with yarn weight. All the yarns looked the same to me. So i will help you avoid those mistakes in the early stages.
15 Crochet Mistakes & How to fix them
1. Project Getting Wider
This is a mistake that everyone makes at least once.
I bet you can remember the exact time that you started that project and thought “This is going to be so easy, it’s just repeating the same stitch back and forth!” and then an hour later you realise that your rectangle blanket is now a hexagon!
This issue occurs when you are not counting your stitches and you end up working more stitches than needed.
You could be doubling up into one stitch or unintentionally working a stitch in the turning chain.
This can be reduced or eliminated by counting those stitches!
You could count each row as you finish them, or you can keep a close eye on the shape of your work.
Don’t waste valuable time working quickly and then realising that 10 rows back you added an extra stitch.
Welcome to frog town!
2. Mistaking US and UK Crochet terminology
It’s easy to start off crocheting a pattern and then realize things aren’t quite right because you’re using U.K. terminology instead of U.S., or vice versa.
Most patterns will specify whether they’re using UK or US terms, or they’ll put the alternative name for a stitch in brackets. But just in case, here’s a really useful conversion chart:
| U.S./Canada | U.K. |
| slip stitch (sl st) | slip stitch (ss) |
| single crochet (sc) | double crochet (dc) |
| half double crochet (hdc) | half treble (htr) |
| double crochet (dc) | treble (tr) |
| treble/triple (tr) | double treble (dtr) |
| double treble/double triple (dtr) | triple treble (trtr) |
| gauge | tension |
| skip (sk) | miss |
| yarn over (yo) | yarn over hook (yoh) |
3. Not creating a gauge swatch
The gauge swatch is something that should be learned early on.
This simple square can save you loads of time and effort when following a pattern and can make your own designs much easier to follow. The gauge will determine the tension needed to create the pattern correctly.
I personally crochet more on the looser side so if I start following a pattern written by someone who has a tighter tension then my final project will be much too big. What a waste of time!
Make sure to make those gauge swatches, and if you find that your tension is different then spend a bit of time adjusting by increasing or decreasing your hook size. Learn how to make a gauge swatch.
4. Losing Stiches
It’s not uncommon to be crocheting along only to suddenly notice that your work looks lopsided. It’s easy to do with almost any crochet project, where any mistakes in counting rows or stitches really leap out.
When you lose stitches, the problem is often that you’re not making your turning chain (necessary when you reverse the work to start another row).
Another cause may be splitting the yarn with the hook and then working the stitch twice.
The easiest way to correct this that i found, is to crochet with stitch markers in the first and last stitch of the row, this way, you will not miss a stitch.
And if you can, count the stitches as you !
5. Not reading through the pattern first
When starting an exciting new project, the last thing you want to do is spend time reading through each line first.
You just want to grab your yarn and your hook and begin!
After some experience working with crochet patterns I do feel that it is a mistake if you don’t read the pattern first. It may not make a huge difference every time, but I can remember finding myself confused by a more complicated step simply because I didn’t read ahead to understand the context.
Reading the pattern first can also give you a chance to learn a new stitch ahead of time.
You don’t need to memorise each step but reading through a pattern is like studying for a test before you write it.
It’s always best to begin a new crochet project with confidence!
6. Not using quality yarn
I know there are times we go for the cheaper alternative, to save a bit. But this might not always be the best practice for best results.
I remember buying a yarn before, it looked nice and shiny and cheap, i was excited, but the project would just shrink, and in the end, i had wasted money.
If you want good quality yarn and on a budget, then red heart super saver is the best for you.
7. Wrong Crochet Hook Size
Using the wrong hook size can dramatically change the outcome of your project.
Again, each pattern is written with a specific hook size in mind and changing that will either make your stitches way too tight or much too loose.
Make sure to read your pattern closely to make sure that you are using the correct size. As well, make sure to make your gauge swatch!
You may not even realise that you have the wrong hook in your hand and once you see that your gauge swatch is off then you have just saved yourself a lot of wasted time frogging a whole project!
8. Not learning to read a crochet pattern
One of my crochet patterns got a really bad review because the person did not know how to read a crochet pattern.
As a result, they started crocheting what they thought made sense.
As expected, their outcome and mine were different, simply because they did not know how to read a crochet pattern.
Common Crochet Mistakes Summary
Have you picket up on a the tips to help you avoid some crochet mistakes in the early stages? I wish i had someone to tell me this before i went ahead and learnt how to crochet.
Just as a reminder, the common crochet mistakes are:
- Project getting wider
- Mistaking US and UK crochet terms
- Not creating a gauge swatch
- Losing stitches
- Not reading through the crochet pattern
- Not using quality yarn
- Wrong crochet hook sizes
- Not learning to read a crochet pattern
With that, your crochet mistakes are going to be eliminated.
If i missed out on any crochet mistakes, be sure to let me know of the crochet mistakes you make!
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