Stitch Something | Behind The Stitch | Episode 3 | Half Double Crochet

Hello Everyone!

Today’s post is another follow up to a video I uploaded a while ago, just like I did with the Single Crochet episode. If you’ve not seen that one, I highly recommend you do, so you can get up to speed with the basic stitches of Crochet, as well as learn what a turning chain is. This time, I have the next stitch up in the chain of command (ridiculous pun intended). This one is called the Half Double Crochet. Now, I suggest, before reading this article, you watch the YouTube video, because you can see the stitch being made in real time, and you won’t have to guess what a picture is trying to tell you.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vu4WKG834vg

Ok, now that you’ve seen the video, let’s take a closer look at how to make the Half Double Crochet. Essentially, I’ll be re-explaining the way it’s made, for those of you who find the video a little too fast or need just that little bit of extra help. Don’t worry, the stitches I’m showing you now aren’t hard at all, in fact, they are the basics and the foundation of any and all stitches in crochet. Believe me, once you know what these stitches are and how to make them, you’ll find that any other stitch will be easy to make, because it’s essentially using these techniques in different forms. So, let’s get on with it. Let’s learn to make the Half Double Crochet.

First Up, The Abbreviation

Like with all my previous Behind The Stitch videos, let’s start off with the abbreviation for the Half Double crochet. This one’s easy. If you’ve been paying attention to my previous videos, you’ll know that the abbreviation for most, if not all crochet stitches, are just the initials of the stitch. So, the abbreviation for the Half Double Crochet is none other than…

HDC

I told you it was easy. So, the next time you see HDC in a crochet pattern, it just means you need to Half Double Crochet into that stitch, chain or chain space. Now, for an example, let’s see if you understand what I’m saying here:

Ch.5, turn.

Row 1: In the 2nd Ch from hook, 1HDC, Repeat for the next 3 Ch, Ch 1, Turn

Row 2: In the same St as last Ch1, 1HDC, Repeat for the next 3 Ch, Ch 1, Turn.

Repeat Row 2 until project reaches 10cm/4in.

Did you get that? Ok, so, you might not have an actual crochet piece on your hands at the moment. That’s ok, the important thing is that you understand what the instructions here are. So, when you see 1HDC, what does that mean? It means make 1 Half Double Crochet, in that chain or stitch, from the previous row. What if I told you to 5HDC, would you know what that means? Yes, it means make 5 Half Double Crochets. Great! Now let’s learn to make one.

An HDC pattern should look like this - remember, I'm using thicker yarn and a bigger hook so you can see how the stitch should look. Sizes will differ if you use different yarn sizes and hook sizes.

Let’s Make A Half Double Crochet

Ok, now that we know what to look for in a crochet pattern, let’s make the Half Double Crochet. First, you’re going to need your foundation chain, as usual. So, let’s start off with 21 chains (Ch 21), that way we can get a nice even 20 half double crochets (20 HDC) in our first row.

Once you have your 21 chains, skip the chain your loop is coming from (remember, if you don’t, you’ll literally be making your current loop bigger and you’ll be twisting it round your hook– we don’t want that).

Not like this…

But like this…

Now, here’s what makes the Half Double Crochet different from the Single Crochet, don’t insert your hook just yet. Instead, yarn over (YO) first, like this:

Now you can insert your hook into the chain. Remember, it’s up to you how you insert it. Whether it’s over the loop in the back, or under, is up to you and what you want to do with the piece you’re working with. For me, I will insert the hook over the loop.

Are we all still here? Good.

You should now be familiar with this term: yarn over (YO) once more.

Here comes the tricky part, bring that yarn through the chain, and just the chain. Don’t bring it through the other loops just yet.

Are you good? Let me know if you’re not, we can start all over again, if you’d like.

If you’re good, you should now have 3 loops on your hook.

Good. Now, yarn over (YO) again.

Are you with me? If you are, bring that yarn through all three loops on your hook.

And you’ve done it! You’ve made your first Half Double Crochet.

You’re amazing! Now, like with the single crochet, all you have to do is rinse and repeat! Of course, this time, you don’t need to skip the next chain, you can crochet in it.

Ok, Time To Show Me How To Make A Half Double Crochet In The Next Row!

Alright, now that you’ve finished your first row, it’s time to get onto the next one. If you’ve watched the video, then you’ll know all about the Turning Chain. This chain helps ensure the next row is evenly spaced out…not horizontally, but vertically. If you don’t include the turning chain, you could be in danger of making your project smaller than it really is. Not only that, but it’ll be difficult to turn onto the next row, without a turning chain. Let me show you.

Here, I’ve made a row of 10 single crochets (10 SC) without a turning chain. You can also see I’ve numbered the stitches I’ve made. Keep an eye on this.

Now, I’ve made the next row, and I’ve reached the end of the row, but uh oh…I only have 9 single crochets (9 SC) instead! What happened?

The lack of a turning chain is what happened. That’s why you need to include a turning chain, before you start the next row. Don't worry, we'll get more into why a turning chain matters, in a few minutes, but before we do, you'll need to see what it's like to make a Half Double Crochet (HDC) in the middle of a pattern, or when you start a new row.

For the Half Double Crochet (HDC), like the Single Crochet (SC), you’ll need to make 1 chain (Ch 1) first.

Remember, when you finish a row, you always flip it, back to front, and we always work from right to left.

Now, it’s just a matter of making the Half Double Crochet, like you did before. So, yarn over (YO).

Insert your hook into the same stitch (St) as your turning chain. Like this…

With me so far? Good

Yarn over (YO) again.

Bring the yarn through the stitch (St). Remember, just the stitch (St), not the other two loops on your hook.

Yarn over (YO) one more time.

Now, you can bring the yarn through all three loops.

Awesome! You’ve made the first Half Double Crochet in the next row.

Ok, so now what? Now you just need to keep going.

A Note On Ending A Row

Ok, so, you might be wondering how you can end a row. While I might have briefly shown you this in the video, I didn’t quite cover it properly. So, when you’re at the end of a row, you might find it difficult to know how or where to end it. That’s why you need the turning chain. Without it, you’re going to get lost here. Essentially, the turning chain helps you not only start a row, or to space your rows evenly, it’s there to help you find the last stitch (St) you’ll need to work your last stitch in. What I mean is this…

Do you see the last gap in this picture?

That’s the last stitch I need for this row. The reason why it’s so easy to spot is the turning chain that acts as an anchor for it.

In this picture, can you see the last gap?

Barely? It's at an angle. That's because of a lack of a turning chain. If I crochet in here, the end of my current row will be at an angle, and squish the end of the row, so when I continue with my pattern, I’ll constantly have a slight curve in my rows. That’s why we need the turning chain.

The Importance Of Turning Chains

Ok, I’ve already talked about different aspects of this, it’s time to actually take a look at what a Turning Chain is. Of course, you should know by now that a Turning Chain is the chain of stitches that you make, at the beginning of a new row. That’s nothing new. What is new, however, is the number of chains you make for each type of crochet stitch. Let me explain.

If I want to make a new single crochet row, I need to make 1 chain (Ch 1).

If I want to make a half double crochet row, I also need to make 1 chain (Ch 1).

If I want to make a double crochet row (which we’ll get to in the next episode), I need to either make 2 chains (Ch 2) or 3 chains (Ch 3), depending on the pattern I’m following, and how tightly I'm making my Double Crochet stitches.

I threw you for a loop there didn’t I?

Well, here’s something a little more confusing, if I want to make a treble crochet row (again, we’ll cover this stitch in another episode), I need to make 4 chains (Ch 4).

Finally, if I want to make a double treble crochet row (I threw you for another loop there didn’t I? Don’t worry, again, we’ll get into this stitch later), I’ll need 5 chains (Ch 5).

The most amount of chains you’ll ever need in a turning chain, at least for a basic stitch, is 5 chains (Ch 5). This is because, each corresponding chain is equal to the height of the crochet stitch you’re making, that’s why a double crochet row needs 2 or 3 stitches (3 St), because it depends on how tightly or how loosely you crochet.

The Turning Chain Is A Pseudo Stitch!

Now, I’ve touched on this subject before, about how a turning chain doesn’t count as a stitch. This is only true for the Single Crochet and the Half Double Crochet. It’s why they only need 1 chain (Ch 1) to begin a row.

For the other stitches, the Double Crochet, Treble Crochet and the Double Treble Crochet, the turning chain does act like a stitch. So, when you make your row, unlike the Single Crochet (SC) and the Half Double Crochet (HDC), you need to make the first stitch in the next stitch.

When you make a new Double Crochet row, and you’ve got your turning chain, you don’t make the Double Crochet in the same stitch (the gap that the arrow is pointing to).

Instead, you make it in the next stitch:

This is because the turning chain, the 2 chains (Ch 2) or the 3 chains (Ch 3), is essentially a pseudo stitch. So, when you finish the row, and you’re counting your stitches, you include the turning chain as a stitch. Does that make sense?

Why Don’t We Crochet In The Same Stitch, When We Make A Double Crochet And The Bigger Stitches?

The reason we don’t is the same reason why we make the turning chain in the first place. It acts like a pseudo stitch. When we include the turning chain in our count, then making a Double Crochet in the same stitch as the chain, will add an extra Double Crochet to the row. Here’s an example.

In this picture, I have 10 Double Crochets in this row, including the turning chain.

In this picture, I’ve Double Crocheted in the same stitch as the turning chain, and now I have 11 Double Crochets.

Do you see the difference?

This extra Double Crochet is called an increase, and we’ll get into that in the next episode, so keep an eye out on my channel for it. For now, just know that when making a turning chain for Double Crochets and bigger, you always crochet in the next stitch, and not the stitch that you’ve made the turning chain from.

Phew! That’s A Lot Of Theory!

We made it! We’ve finally learned how to make the Half Double Crochet (HDC), what it’s abbreviation is, and what a turning chain is. We’re now ready to tackle a few more crochet patterns. This time, I don’t have a test pattern for you, instead, what I want you to do is go back to the pattern on my Single Crochet post and replace those Single Crochets (SCs) with Half Double Crochets (HDCs) and see how you get on.

Now, I’m off to make another Sims build for you, and create new content that you might enjoy, but while you wait, please don’t forget to like, subscribe, comment, share and follow me, here on Feather’s Charm, on my YouTube channel, on my other social media channels, and on Patreon. Your support really helps me make more content like this for you guys.

And as always, be kind, be creative, and be unique.

I’ll see you later!

Feather, out!