Front Post Double Crochet- Tuesday Tutorial
As promised here is the next tutorial in our new series. This week’s guest teacher is the lovely Kristen from Hooks, Books, and Wanderlust. She will be teaching us how to do a simple Front Post Double Crochet today. This technique makes for an amazing texture that can be used in so many ways. Check out the free crochet tutorial below.
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Featured Crochet Tutorial
Hello, my fellow yarn enthusiasts! I’m Kristen, the heart and hands behind Hooks, Books, & Wanderlust blog. I am a wife, #boymom, and a breast cancer survivor. I enjoy everything crochet, reading past my bedtime, and traveling as much as I can.
After teaching myself how to crochet when I was pregnant with my youngest son six years ago, because I wanted to make him a baby blanket. I never expected I would love crochet as much as I did. But once I picked up that hook, there was no turning back. Less than a year later, I was diagnosed with Stage III breast cancer, and I had a whole new reason to crochet. I made myself SOOOO many hats and scarves and a couple of blankets as well. Now I like to share my love for all things crochet, reading, and travel over on my blog. I also love to help others learn how to crochet!
Front Post Double Crochet
I can’t wait to teach you the Front Post Double Crochet stitch today!
Post stitches are used to create a variety of patterns and textures in crochet. Like cables, ribbing, or more decorative raised patterns. They are worked around the post of the stitch from the previous row, as opposed to the normal method of working through the top ‘V’ of the stitch. There are both front and back post stitches for all the basics: single crochet, double crochet, etc. But today, I will be showing you the more common Front Post Double Crochet (you’ll see it abbreviated in patterns as FPdc).
I chose this tutorial because as a beginner, it is a perfect way to build on the basics to create interest. It’ll be great practice so that you can make my Alpine Dreams Beanie or the soon-to-be-released Alpine Dreams Cowl on my blog!
What you need
Before we can get started, grab these items:
- Practice yarn: I recommend using a light color that isn’t a shade of white so that you will be able to see your stitches best.
- Hook: Take a peek at your yarn label and see which hook size they recommend for your yarn.
- Skills Needed: chain stitch (ch), double crochet (dc)
Set Up
Go ahead and ch 22, then dc into the second ch from your hook and into each ch across (20 dc). And just for funsies, and to give you something a bit more substantial to hold on to, ch two, turn, and dc in each stitch across (20 dc). You should now have two rows of good old double crochet. Time for the fun to start!
“Front” post indicates from which side of the fabric you should insert your hook around the post, which in this case means inserting it from front to back. For the FPdc, you will work a double crochet by inserting your hook from the front of your fabric, around the back of the post of the indicated stitch from the previous row, then back out the front of your fabric. This will push the stitch forward, or to the front of your fabric as it is facing you.
The “post” of your stitch is the long vertical part that you can see when viewing the fabric. Basically, all the stuff underneath the top ‘V’ you would usually work into. See the first picture below.
To work around the post, you will utilize the space between the posts of the stitches from the previous row. You’ll start with a yarn over (yo), just like any other dc, then insert your hook in the space before the post you intend to work. Behind the back of the post, poke your hook back out through the space after the post you are working. Next, you’ll yo and pull that loop back the way you came behind the post and pull it up through the space just before that post. From there, you’ll dc as normal: yo, pull through the first two loops, yo, pull through the last two loops. See the pictures below.
If you would like to see this stitch in action, you can watch my video tutorial below.
I hope you found this tutorial helpful and if you would like to put what you learned to use, be sure to check out my Alpine Dreams Beanie pattern. Or even my recent blog post featuring other patterns that use the FPdc. While you’re there, be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss the upcoming release of my Alpine Dreams Cowl, which will also use this stitch!
If you liked this tutorial, be sure to subscribe to my blog and my YouTube channel for tutorials, patterns, and more! Want to hang out? You can find me on Instagram and Facebook. If you would like to be kept up to date on all the latest news on the blog, first crack at testing new patterns, exclusive discount codes for my shops, and a free monthly printable, sign up for my newsletter! To see this month’s current freebie, click here.
How did you enjoy our second tutorial? Kristen will be back again next week to teach us all the Back Post Double Crochet. Sign up to my mailing list here to be the first to see new tutorials. If there are any techniques you would love to see leave a comment or join our Facebook community and join the discussion. If you missed the first tutorial in our series, click here to see the DragonSkin tutorial.
Enjoyed this post and looking for some patterns to try? Check out the Summer Tee Roundup for my favourite summery crochet patterns!