Double Crochet Stitch Tutorial

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This Double Crochet Stitch Tutorial will teach you a basic crochet skill which you can use in crochet patterns to create everything from sweaters to stuffed toys. A crochet lesson is essential for anyone new to crochet, this beginner friendly guide discusses how to complete the stitch and provides easy crochet patterns that call for it.

The Double Crochet Stitch as a Building Block

The double crochet stitch is the bread and butter of several types of patterns.  There are many variations and combinations that make the double crochet stitch one of the most versatile.

Being so widely used makes the double crochet stitch a basic building block for your crochet stitch tool-belt (metaphoric tool-belt). It is also one of the easiest stitches to complete.

If you are just learning to crochet, you need to know this stitch!

Getting Started

I chose to use a blue yarn for this lesson because of the high stitch visibility in the color, I am using Red Heart Super Saver yarn and a size I9 5.5 mm crochet hook. I personally love the Susan Bates variety 😊 Get some lovely personalized hooks like mine HERE on Etsy! You’ll be supporting hand-made crafts.

If you look at the label of a skein or ball of yarn you will learn lots about that yarn. In the pink circle you will find the size of the yarn, this skein is a 4 or medium weight yarn. The blue circle tells me what size hook is recommended with this yarn, this is only a recommendation. It is much more important to stick to the pattern’s suggestion and gauge if provided. The purple circle tells you how to care for anything you might crochet with this yarn.

For the purposes of this tutorial I am going to focus only on the double crochet stitch, and assume you already have a foundation to work the stitch into.

If you need to learn a good foundation to work learn the chain stitch with this easy to follow tutorial.

This might be some chain stitches that you will work back into, or perhaps a row of stitches you worked in a previous row.

For my foundation I have created a row of foundation chain double crochet stitches that I will be working into. In the photo below I have chained 2 and turned my work so I can begin the next row. Please don’t mind the band-aid 😅

Double Crochet Stitch Tutorial

Step 1) Yarn Over (YO) the hook and insert your hook into the stitch to be worked. Pull up a loop. You will have 3 loops on your hook at this point

Step 2) YO and pull through the first two loops on your hook. You should have 2 loops on your hook.

Step 3) YO and pull through the remaining 2 loops on your hook. You should be back down to 1 loop on your hook. You have just completed a double crochet! Congratulations!!!

Double Crochet Stitches in Patterns

Now that you can complete the stitch itself, let’s talk about how it is used in a pattern….

Stitch Diagram

The stitch symbol for the double crochet look like this:

It is the symbol you will find if you are working from a stitch diagram.

See the little line going at a slight angle across the center of the upright bar? That is the single yarn over that you do before inserting your hook in the stitch to be worked. This is a good rule to remember when you are working with long stitches.

Once you get used to the stitches and their symbols, a pattern diagram can be much easier to read than a written pattern (and faster).

Written Pattern Language

When you are working in rows, flat, going back and forth along your stitches you are probably using what we call a turning chain, which is just a few chain stitches that are worked at the very beginning (or the end in some patterns) of a row. Some pattern designers count these chains as the first stitch of the row and will say something like “The first 2 chains of every row count as the first DC”. Other designers use 3 chains to count as a double crochet.

When writing a pattern, I tend to use 2 chains to count as a double crochet in the beginning of my rows.

For this instruction picture this:

Other pattern designers do not count the beginning, turning chains as the first stitch of the row. Again, they will usually tell you in the notes before the pattern. When this is the case use this diagram to help you see where to put your first stitch.

Don’t Stop With This Lesson!

I hope this double crochet stitch tutorial is useful for you to learn a new crochet stitch or revisit a foundation stitch. This is a great thing to review as needed to make sure you understand the basics before moving on to a more complicated stitch.

Another stitch you might want to have a look at is my Single Crochet Stitch Tutorial found here.

Or a Half Double Crochet Stitch Tutorial, found here.

There are lots of different types of patterns you can complete using only or almost only the double crochet stitch. Here are a couple of my favorites.

My Gender Neutral Chevron Baby Blanket

This Long Double Crochet Cowl from All About Ami (This one you need to know a Single Crochet for too!)

The All Double Crochet Afghan from Kristine in Between

Share this post on Facebook or Pin it so your crochet friends can see it and you can get back here if you ever need a refresher!

Please let me know what you found helpful in this post, and what you’d like to know more about! I love to hear from you all 🙂