– Friday Faves –

This month’s theme is TUNISIAN CROCHET. What the heck is tunisian crochet?? It’s sort of a mix between knitting and crochet – you use one long crochet hook, and you end up with all the stitches on the hook as live loops. Confused yet? I’ll clear it up for you, don’t worry!

Before we dive in to the patterns, let’s talk a little about the history. While the true origins of the craft are a little muddy, it looks like we can trace the written history of the craft back to the mid-1800’s in England. The actual term “tunisian crochet” traces back to the late 1880’s, though the craft has been known by many different names; why tunisian crochet stuck, nobody knows. It fell out of popularity as a craft in the early 1900’s and gained popularity again in the United States in the 1960’s & 70’s.

A unique characteristic of tunisian crochet is that the right side of the work is always facing you – you don’t turn your work. Each row of a tunisian crochet pattern is worked in a forward pass, where you pick up all the stitches from the previous row, and the reverse pass, where you “close” all those stitches and get yourself back to the beginning of the row. Unlike crochet and knitting where the beginning of the row is on the left of the work, the beginning of the row in tunisian is along the right edge of the piece.

The fabric created by tunisian crochet is typically very dense, because you connect your rows/stitches both vertically and horizontally. Due to the dense nature of the fabric, it’s typically recommended that you go up 2 hook sizes from what you would normally use with the yarn you’re working with (for example, if you’re using worsted weight yarn and normally use a US H/5.0 mm hook, you’d want to go up to a US J/6.0 mm hook at least). This will help loosen up the fabric a bit. The fabric created will always roll up, and you should plan to block your tunisian crochet pieces to flatten them out.

The hooks are sometimes known as afghan hooks, and much like crochet & knitting, there are various types you can use. For smaller projects with few stitches in a row you can usually use a regular crochet hook. The Ten Stitch Blanket is a great example of this. You can get a long tunisian crochet hook for projects with sort of a medium amount of stitches. This just looks like a long crochet hook with a stopper on the end opposite the hooked end. For larger projects, or just for a little easier hook to work with, you’ll want a crochet hook with a cord on the end. You can buy these as individual fixed hooks, or as an interchangeable set. Just as with knitting needles, you can find many different lengths of cord for the tunisian crochet hooks.

Okay, okay, enough of my gabbing…now on to the PATTERNS!!! You’ll notice a bit of a difference in the layout for this month’s post. There are MANY designers out there doing amazing tunisian crochet work, but for this post I’ve focused on a few designers with a good selection of patterns, and a couple additional individual patterns.

All photos are the property of the original pattern designer. This post may contain affiliate links that support Blackbird Mountain Designs content. All opinions are my own.

1. Tunisian Crochet Washcloth by Poppy & Bliss

© Poppy & Bliss

We all know the best way to practice any craft is a small project, and with the fiber arts a washcloth is the ideal practice project. You can use this pattern for actual cotton washcloths, or use any yarn and simply make a bunch of practice squares you can then sew together into a blanket. (Spoiler alert – there is a sampler square blanket later in the post!)

2. Tunisian Crochet Ten Stitch Blanket by Dedri Uys

© Dedri Uys

Frankie Brown’s Ten Stitch Blanket Knitting Pattern has been a popular one for a while. Dedri created a crochet version, as well as a tunisian crochet version. I’ve made both the knit version and the tunisian crochet version, and they’re so much fun! This is a simple enough pattern that also allows you to learn & practice skills like color changes, short rows, and joining your live stitches to a finished edge. The pattern is FULL of detailed written instructions, and in depth photo tutorials. There is a VERY detailed YouTube video that walks you through this pattern. This pattern is a great introduction to tunisian crochet, and you have all the resources you need to successfully complete a project!

3. Tunisian Shaker Dishcloths by VeryPink Knits

© Staci Perry

The next step after squares is a circle. The pattern for these dishcloths also includes the instructions for smaller coasters. They’re a great way to use up extra bits of the cotton yarn you used in the washcloths! Staci also has a video tutorial for the dishcloths, so you’ll have no trouble working these up!

Here’s where we’re going to get into the REALLY good stuff!

TL Yarn Crafts

If you’ve been following along with my blog posts recently, you should know Toni by now. She’s one of my favorite designers, so this is likely not the last you’ll see of her patterns here!

Toni is the absolute QUEEN of tunisian crochet. As you’re learning tunisian crochet, you’ll want to bookmark her tunisian crochet playlist on YouTube – she’s got a video for anything you need to know in your tunisian journey. These are by no means all of Toni’s tunisian crochet patterns, so check out her Ravelry page for more.

Hot Cocoa Poncho

© Toni Lipsey

The pattern is 2 rectangles seamed together to form an elegant poncho. The recommended yarn in the pattern is Lion Brand Wool Ease, which is an affordable, soft, cozy wool blend yarn. Toni’s got a video to teach you how to do the new-to-you honeycomb stitch, as well as changing colors and all the other skills you need to know. All of this comes together to help you create a beautiful garment that looks more complicated than it really is.

Ada Shawl & Ada Shawl XL

© Toni Lipsey

Instead of using a fancy stitch to bring interest to this piece, you’ll use the tunisian simple stitch and get your interest from the basic color work. The pattern has instructions for 2 sizes, video tutorial links, and yarn substitution suggestions. The suggested yarn is an aran weight yarn, but the nature of asymmetrical triangle shawls lends itself well to using different yarn weights. This has been a very popular pattern for Toni, and you can get some great color ideas by searching #adashawl on Instagram.

Rohn Strong

Rohn is not only a master of crochet socks, but is in the tunisian crochet game in a big way.

Tunisian Delight Sampler Afghan

Rohn is hosting a CAL (crochet along) for this afghan right now, so jump in and join him in this CAL and increase your tunisian skills! A sampler afghan is a great way to practice different stitches in small bits, and then make something with all those practice squares. By the end of this sampler afghan you’re going to feel confident enough to tackle any tunisian crochet project.

Woodburn Tee

Garments can be scary, but don’t run away!! This one is not scary! Rohn has paired simple stitching with bulky yarn, and tossed in some video tutorials to help you be successful with this pattern. This is a fast make, and using the right yarn it will be a great summer wardrobe piece.

Make and Do Crew

You’ve seen Jess around the blog before, too. And for good reason! The variety of beginner friendly patterns Jess has amassed is amazing. Everything always looks way more complicated than it actually ends up being, and her tunisian crochet patterns are no different.

Stained Glass Cowl

© Jess Coppom

Colorwork…in a cowl…in tunisian crochet? No way, right? WAY! Using a variegated yarn along with a solid gives this cowl the stained glass look. It looks like complicated color work, but it actually isn’t! It’s worked flat and seamed together, so don’t worry about that! Jess has this at an advanced beginner level, because you’re adding on post stitches to your repertoire. The pattern includes some video tutorial links, as well.

Sherpa Sweater

© Jess CoppomHOW COZY DOES THIS SWEATER LOOK??? Jess has taken a boucle yarn, which is typically very difficult to work in crochet as you can’t see your stitches very well, and worked it up in tunisian, which is infinitely easier to see your stitches. There are 8 sizes to choose from, many video tutorial links to help you along. The secret to how fuzzy this sweater is…you wear it “inside out”. The “wrong” side of the work is the side that faces out, because it’s the fuzzier looking side.

Don’t forget to check out these designers’ other tunisian crochet patterns!

And there you have it! This month’s Friday Faves. Don’t forget to email me your theme ideas for future Friday Faves.