How to Read a Crochet Pattern (Beginner Guide)

Before you make a single stitch, read the top of the pattern. Every well-written crochet pattern tells you four things up front: skill level, finished size, yarn weight and hook size, and gauge.

Skip the gauge box and your scarf turns into a bath mat. The yarn label tells you the weight number (1 through 7) and the suggested hook in millimeters. Match what the pattern asks for or your stitch count will be off, even if you follow every instruction perfectly.

Almost every beginner pattern uses the same five abbreviations: ch (chain), sl st (slip stitch), sc (single crochet), hdc (half double crochet), and dc (double crochet). Memorize these and you can read 90% of beginner patterns on sight.

You will also see sk (skip), st (stitch), sp (space), rep (repeat), and tr (treble crochet). Every pattern includes a key, usually at the top or in a sidebar. When in doubt, check the key before you guess.

Repeats are how patterns avoid writing the same instructions over and over. There are three flavors:

• Asterisks *like this* mean "repeat everything between these two stars across the row".
• Brackets [like this] usually group a sequence that gets repeated a specific number of times, e.g. [dc, ch 1] 5 times.
• Parentheses (like this) can mean either a repeat or a stitch count check, e.g. (7 sc) at the end of a row tells you what your total should be.

When you hit an asterisk pair, read what is inside it once out loud, then do that exact sequence again every time you see another star until the row ends.

This is the single biggest beginner trap. US and UK crochet patterns use the same abbreviations for different stitches.

• US single crochet (sc) = UK double crochet (dc)
• US half double crochet (hdc) = UK half treble (htr)
• US double crochet (dc) = UK treble (tr)
• US treble (tr) = UK double treble (dtr)

Check the top of the pattern for a country flag, a note like "written in US terms", or the publisher's location. A UK pattern that calls for "dc" wants you to do what a US crocheter calls a single crochet. Get this wrong and the whole fabric comes out the wrong texture and the wrong size.

Patterns tell you how many stitches to start with as a multiple. Something like "chain a multiple of 2 + 1" means your foundation chain has to follow that formula or the pattern will not work out evenly at the ends.

To pick a starting chain, decide the width you want, divide by your gauge, then round to the nearest valid multiple. The video shows 7 chains as an example: 7 minus 1 is 6, and 6 is evenly divisible by 2, so 7 works.

Patterns also drop stitch counts at the end of rows like (36 dc). After every row, count your stitches and check against the number in parentheses. If you are off, frog back to the start of the row and recount before you go further.

A lot of patterns include a stitch diagram next to the written instructions. The diagram uses standardized symbols: an open oval for a chain, a plus or cross for single crochet, a T-shape for half double crochet, a T with one slash for double crochet, and a T with two slashes for treble.

A red dot or arrow marks where you start. Numbered arrows next to each row show which direction you are working. The big advantage of the chart is you can see exactly which stitch goes on top of which - written instructions sometimes leave that vague.

When the written form confuses you, look at the chart for the same row. When the chart confuses you, read the written form. They are two views of the same instructions.

Once you start working, the pattern stops being abstract and starts being a checklist. Use real tools to keep your place:

• Stitch markers in the first stitch of each row tell you where the row begins when you come back to it.
• Washi tape or a sticky note across the current row in the printed pattern stops you from re-reading row 4 when you are on row 5.
• Row counter (the clicker or an app) keeps your row number honest when you put the project down for a week.

Read one row, work that row, then make the mark before you go on. Do not work two rows ahead of where you marked - you will lose your place every single time.

Most patterns skip the boring parts: turning chains, where to insert the hook on row 1, how to count the turning chain as a stitch (or not). When a line of instructions feels like it has a gap, the pattern is assuming you know what to do.

The two most common gaps to fix yourself:

• Turning chains: at the end of every row you chain a number of stitches and turn the work. Single crochet rows usually chain 1, double crochet rows chain 2 or 3. Whether that turning chain counts as your first stitch is sometimes stated, sometimes not. When in doubt, look at the chart - the symbol next to the row number is your turning chain.
• Where to put the first stitch of a row: if the pattern says "dc in next dc" but does not say where to start, it usually means the first stitch after the turning chain. Look at the chart for confirmation.

When in doubt, search the designer's name plus the pattern name. Most designers post errata or follow-up videos when a question comes up twice.