Chainless Foundation

Raise your hand if you hate sewing into chains.

Yeah, that's what I thought. Is there anyone who doesn't completely dread that first row of a scarf, and having to sew into all of those pesky, tight little knots?

What I'm about to show you will change your life. (At least your crochet life.) With the Chainless Foundation Stitch, you NO LONGER have to chain a million and then go back and sew into them one by one. Trust me, when you master this simple concept, you'll be whipping out scarves and cowls like nobody's business. (And you'll wonder why this wasn't, like, the first thing you ever learned.)

For this tutorial, we'll use the Double Crochet (DC), although this can be modified for single, half, etc (we'll cover that toward the end).

DOUBLE CROCHET CHAINLESS FOUNDATION STITCH

First DC:

Chain 3. Yarn over and insert hook into third chain from hook.
Draw up a loop (you will have 3 loops on your hook, as in Figure 1 below); then yarn over and pull through only the first loop. (—This is the magic step that makes it work!—) You will still have 3 loops on your hook. (It should look like Figure 2, below.)

Now, complete the DC as normal (yarn over, draw through first two loops; yarn over again and draw through remaining two loops).

Next DC (repeat the following steps for as many DCs as you need):

Yarn over and insert hook into the loops of the last DC. It's a little hard to see at first but you'll get the hang of it once you get going. Here's a photo to help you... I've highlighted the loops you need to insert hook into:

Draw up the loop and Ch 1 from the loop. (—Look, it's the magic step again! —)

Yarn over, draw through the first two loops. Yarn over again and draw through remaining two loops.

To connect for crochet in the round:

Bring your ends together as in the photo, being careful not to twist the row. (This is so much easier to do now, isn't it?)

Insert hook into top of first DC, draw through, and slip stitch through the loop on your hook. Ch 3 and begin next row of normal DCs (or whatever stitch you are going to do next). When you're done with the scarf (or whatever), you can use the starting tail to sew that gap together.

How awesome is that?!? If it seems labor-intensive now, just practice. Seriously, it won't take long before you are knocking out that first row in record time. And notice how NICE that bottom edge is – no more little bumps! Just a beautiful row of loops!

HALF DOUBLE CROCHET CHAINLESS FOUNDATION STITCH

First HDC:

1. Chain 2. Yarn over and insert hook into second chain from hook.
2. Draw up a loop (you will have 3 loops on your hook), then draw through only the first loop on hook. You will still have 3 loops on your hook.
3. Complete HDC as normal (yarn over and draw through all 3 loops).

Next HDC (repeat the following steps for as many HDCs as you need):

1. Yarn over and insert hook into the loops of the last HDC.
2. Draw up a loop and pull through first loop on hook.
3. Yarn over, and draw through all three loops on hook.

SINGLE CROCHET CHAINLESS FOUNDATION STITCH

First SC:

1. Ch 2. Insert hook into second chain from hook.
2. Draw up a loop (you will have 2 loops on your hook), then draw through only the first loop on hook. You will still have 2 loops on your hook.
3. Complete SC as normal (draw through both loops).

Next SC (repeat the following steps for as many SCs as you need):

1. Insert hook into the loops of the last SC.
2. Draw up a loop and pull through first loop on hook.
3. Draw through both loops on hook.