Single crochet loop stitch

Introduction

I first learned how to do a crochet loop stitch when doing the Happy Berry Road Mat CAL in 2015. In that CAL the hdc loop stitch was used to make squares with “long grass”. One thing I love about the stitch is that you can cut the loops after you’ve made them and the stitches do not come undone.

I’ve used the sc loop stitch in some of my amigurumi projects - mostly to make doll’s hair. If you don’t mind having short hair on your doll this method is quite good in that it means you don’t need to cut and then painstakingly add in lots of strands of hair to your doll when it is finished. The only downside to this stitch is that if you are working in rows then you can only work it every second row. However, even if I'm working in rounds I tend to only work it every second round because it is a bit of a yarn eater stitch and you usually get enough coverage by doing it every second round.

One thing to note is that how you do the loop on this stitch will depend a little on how you hold your yarn in your non-dominant hand. I taught myself to crochet using photo tutorials because I just couldn't figure out how to follow youtube videos at the time. I realised later on that part of the problem was that everyone has their own way of holding the hook and the yarn and I was trying to watch lots of different styles of crochet and got quite confused. I suspect that I'm not yarning over or pulling through my loops quite the same way as everyone else but I know that it works for me. Hopefully there are some out there who will find my way of doing things helpful. 

For the purpose of the tutorial, I have used a J hook and DK yarn in the hope that it will be easier to see the stitches in the photos.

Insert your hook into the stitch as you normally would for a single crochet. Wrap the yarn around your finger (make sure your loop is not too tight or you will struggle to get the loop off again later) and then pull both ends through the stitch.

Yarn over and pull through all three loops. I usually keep the loop of yarn on my finger until I have completed the stitch. Depending on how you hold your hook and yarn will determine how you choose to do this.

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