Would you like to make an Afghan blanket or Afghan slippers? You should use the Afghan stitch as it is very warm because there are no holes in it. Read our guide for more facts and information…
The Afghan stitch goes by numerous names. You may find it listed in the internet as Tunisian stitch, tricot crochet and railway stitch among other names. The last name, railway stitch came from England as working women often took their crocheting and knitting with them while waiting on a train.
Basics
You will first of all need an Afghan hook and a compatible weight of yarn. Unlike regular crochet where you work every loop off the hook before beginning the next stitch, with Afghan stitch the rows are worked in two parts, keeping all the loops on the hook for the first half of the row, and then completing the row by working all the loops off the hook. The basic Afghan stitch is worked by beginning with a length of chain. Your pattern will stipulate how many stitches are required.
To Work the Stitch
Insert the hook into the 2nd chain from the hook, yarn over hook, pull the loop through. Keeping all loops on hook, continue pulling loops through each chain stitch to end of chain length. Do not turn work. To complete row, work all loops off hook as follows: Yarn over hook and pull loop through first loop on hook. Yarn over hook and pull through next two loops. Repeat from beginning to end. The last loop on the hook is the first loop of the next row. Do not turn your work. This is the foundation row for most of the Afghan stitch patterns.
The hook is positioned differently for the second row of the basic afghan crochet stitch, but the stitches themselves are worked similarly on and off the hook as for the foundation row.
To begin, miss the first vertical bar on the previous [foundation] row. Insert the hook under the front vertical bar of the next stitch [as above]. Yarn over hook, and pull loop through.
Continue along foundation row in this manner, until you have two stitches remaining. Insert the hook under the front vertical bars of both these last two stitches together, yarn over hook, pull loop through both stitches.
Work the second half of this row in the same manner as you did the foundation row. Continue working this way until your practice piece measures approximately 10cm [4ins]. This is a good size piece to check your tension on. If your tension is too loose, change to a smaller hook. If it’s too tight, choose a size larger hook.
Should you run into trouble, there are several videos on the web that show the correct way to do the Afghan stitch.
