How to Crochet the Star Stitch
Who’s ready for a new stitch tutorial?! You’re probably jumping up and down, shouting “Me, me!”, right? Well, you’re in luck because today I’m going to be sharing one of my favorite stitches with you: the Star Stitch.
About the Stitch
The star stitch is a lot of fun! It’s one of those stitches that looks complicated, but is actually pretty simple. It can be worked both flat and in the round and creates a beautiful texture as you work. I have used this stitch in quite a few designs including the Great Star Beanie, several pieces in the Ocean’s Breath Collection, and the last section of the Pineapple & Pine Cowl.
This stitch requires only requires you to know a couple of techniques: ch, how to pull up a loop, and hdc. Let me break those down really quick for you before we dive into the stitch any further. And if you need more help, scroll all the way to the end of this post to watch a video tutorial!
- Pull Up a Loop: Insert your hook into stitch. Yarn over, and pull yarn through the stitch and to the front of your work. The yarn on your hook that was pulled through the stitch is your new loop.
- Half Double Crochet: Yarn over, insert hook into stitch, and pull up a loop. Yarn over and pull through all three loops.
Anatomy of the Star Stitch
The key to being successful at star stitch is really about identifying where to work. Your first stitch will go directly in the foundation ch (or row of stitches below it), but after that you will need to understand the structure of the stitch to continue building your row. Let’s start with the first stitch.
MAKING THE FIRST STITCH
You’re going to need an odd number of stitches + ch 3 to begin. First, you’ll pull up a loop in the second chain from hook and each of the next 4 stitches. (Note: If you’re working on top of another row of stitches, you will be using two stitches from the beginning ch 3, and the first 3 stitches from the row.) This will leave you with 6 loops on your hook. Yarn over and pull through all 6 loops. Then Ch 1.
CONTINUING ACROSS THE ROW
This completes the first star stitch of the row. Now we’ll need to look at the anatomy of the stitch so that we can continue building the row. Each of the loops from the previous stitch creates a “spike” and the ch 1 space creates the “eye”. For the next stitch, and the rest of the stitches in the row, you will insert your hook and pull up a loop in each of the following:
- The “eye” of the stitch
- The space between the last two “spikes”
- The same stitch as the last “spike”
- The next two stitches of the row
Now that you know where to work, you will pull up a loop in each of those 5 spaces, yarn over and pull through the six loops on your hook. Then Ch 1. Continue that sequence across the row. Once you finish your last star, you’re going to Half Double Crochet in the same stitch as the last star stitch. This give your work a nice clean edge.
Right Side vs Wrong Side
Ok, so we’ve got the hard part down! We’ve figured out how to create the first stitch, we’ve broken down the anatomy of the stitch, we’ve made it across the row and we’ve given ourselves a nice clean edge. Now we have to Ch 1 and turn and work along the back.
This is not a reversible stitch, meaning that it has a distinct front and back side. The right side (RS) is the side we just worked on and will develop the nicely defined star shapes. The wrong side (WS) is going to have some texture, but not the definition or design that we’re looking for with this stitch.
So we need to work back across the row so we can continue to keep out spikes on the right side. To do this, we’re going to identify the “eye” from each stitch along the previous row. Then we’ll work two half double crochets into each of those eyes across the row. Once we’ve worked into every eye, we’ll work one half double crochet into the top of the last stitch. This will keep our edge nice and clean on the opposite side.
Once you’ve finished working along the wrong side, you’ve finished your first row! Woohoo! You can repeat those steps to continue building.
My Thoughts on the Star Stitch
So as I mentioned before, this is a stitch that has a distinct right and wrong side. This is definitely something to keep in mind when using this stitch. It also needs an odd number of stitches. When you’re working the in the round (video on that coming soon), you’re going to Ch 1 and work in the eyes of the previous row, just like working flat. The major difference is that you’re going to join before you begin the first row and you’re not going to turn.
I really love this stitch to add a textural element to a piece. It is also a dense enough stitch to make a warm piece. It is rumored to be a bit of a yarn-eater, but all the best stitches are. But that’s always something to consider when planning the size and cost of a project.
Star Stitch Video Tutorial
Pattern for Swatch
Ch 25.
Optional Foundation Row: Ch 1, and sc in second ch from hook and each chain across.
Row 1: Complete a row of star stitches doing the following:
Ch 3. Insert hook in 2nd ch from hook, pull up a loop. Insert hook into next ch, pull up a loop. Insert hook and pull up a loop over next 3 st. (6 loops on hook) Yarn over and pull through all loops on hook. Ch 1 to close star stitch (eye of star stitch).
*Insert hook into eye of star stitch, pull up a loop. Insert hook between the last two spikes of the previous star stitch, pull up a loop. Insert hook in the same stitch as the last spike of the previous star stitch, pull up a loop. Insert hook and pull up a loop over next 2 stitches. (6 loops on hook) Yarn over and pull through all loops on hook. Ch 1 to close star stitch.*
Repeat from * to * across until you finish the last star stitch. Hdc in last stitch (same stitch as last star stitch). (12 star stitches)
Row 2: Ch 1 and turn. Sk hdc from previous row. 2 Hdc in the eye of each star from the previous row. Hdc in the top of last star stitch. (25)
Row 3-8: Repeat Rows 1-2
Final Thoughts
I hope you enjoyed this stitch tutorial. I’ll be adding a video on working in the round soon. But for now, be sure to tag me @craftingforweeks in all your starry things, because I do love a good star stitch project!
Until next time, Happy Crafting!
