Once you’ve mastered the basics of how to crochet chains and how to double crochet, it’s time to learn how to treble crochet! Unlike the double crochet stitch, treble crochet stitches are taller and a lot more flexible, making them a fabulous stitch for projects like scarves and garments that you want to have a bit of flow to them.
When learning how to treble crochet, it’s easy to get confused by different terminologies – as in US terminology this would be called a double crochet stitch. But don’t worry, a UK treble crochet stitch and a US double crochet stitch are made in exactly the same way, and there is a simple way to figure out which terminology you’re using. If you ever see a pattern that uses treble crochet stitches and starts with a 3ch turning chain, then you know it’s almost certainly a UK treble crochet stitch. If you’re in any doubt, you can check out our abbreviations and conversions guide.
If you want to follow along and practice, in this treble crochet tutorial we will be starting with 12 chains, and will end up with 10 stitches on each row.
You Will Need
How to treble crochet
To work a treble crochet into chains, start by winding the yarn round the hook (yrh) and then into the 4th chain from your hook (the 3ch that you skip will form your turning chain that gives you the height of your treble stitches – more on this later)
Wrap the yarn around the hook (yrh) and pull the yarn through the chain only.
You will now have 3 loops on the hook…
…Yrh again, and draw the yarn through just the first 2 loops on the hook.
You will now have 2 loops on the hook…
…Yrh again and draw the yarn through the remaining loops on the hook.
And that’s how to do a treble crochet stitch!
Now just repeat all the steps above in each chain along to the end (if you’re following along with us, you’ll have 8 more trebles to make).
How to work the second row of treble crochet
To start your second row of treble crochet stitches, you will first need to turn your work and ch3 to make your turning chain. With treble crochet stitches, your turning chain does count as a stitch, so to account for this we will wrap our yarn round hook, skip the first stitch (the one at the base of your turning chain) and insert the hook under both loops of the next stitch along, as shown in the picture below.
Then we make a treble crochet stitch in the same way as we did on the first row. Yrh and pull through the stitch (leaving 3 loops on your hook)…
… Yrh again and pull through 2 loops only (leaving 2 loops on your hook)…
…then Yrh one more time, and pull through the remaining 2 loops on your hook.
Remember that your turning chain counts as a stitch, so that is technically your second treble stitch you’ve just made.
Now make a treble in each chain along until you come to the turning chain of your first row (if you’re following along you will need to make 7 more treble stitches)
It is really important to remember that with treble crochet your turning chain counts as a stitch, so you will need to work a treble crochet into your turning chain. To do this you insert your hook into the top chain of your 3ch turning chain, and complete a treble crochet stitch as normal. If you neglect to do this your stitch count will be incorrect and you will decrease by a stitch with each subsequent row.
And that’s how to treble crochet, to carry on with more rows you just repeat what you’ve done with the second row. And don’t forget to count those ch3 turning chains as a stitch!