Foundation Single Crochet (FSC)
Lots of crochet patterns start out with a foundation chain followed by the instructions to make a single crochet into each chain. The problems are manifold: we lose count of our chain stitches, we recount, we rip out, we start over; we end up with an ungainly edge of chains that were too loosely constructed, or we discover a taut, unforgiving edge from chains that were too tightly constructed! It’s very hard to get right!
Enter the Foundation Single Crochet, an ingenious way to simultaneously create the foundation row and the first row of single crochets in one easy foundation row. Isn’t that amazing? Yes, it is!
Here’s how to do it…
Make a slip knot and chain 2.
Insert the hook from right to left under the top strands of the first chain. The pink here indicates the “top strands”…
And this is what inserting the hook under them looks like…
Yarn over and pull a stitch through. There are now two loops on the hook.
*Yarn over and loosely pull a stitch through the just the first loop. There are now two loops on the hook.
It may be a good idea to mark the chain you just made with a removable stitch marker or piece of scrap yarn since you’ll be coming back to it.
Yarn over and pull through both loops. There is now one loop on the hook.
Mark the stitch you just made with a removable stitch marker or piece of scrap yarn. It is your first single crochet!
Now locate the first stitch you marked. Remove the stitch marker and put the hook into the middle of that stitch, splitting the top strands and making sure the back strand of the stitch is on the left side of the hook. There should be two strands on the left of the hook and one strand on the right. Here’s where the hook will go…
And here is the hook in that place… Notice that there are two strands and one loop on the hook.
Yarn over and pull through the two strands. There are now two loops on the hook.
Repeat from * (eliminating the step where you mark the first single crochet) until you have as many single crochets as you need! Here’s a start:
The Foundation Single Crochet might be a little tricky the first time, but once you get the hang of it, it’ll be your new best friend!
I’m totally blind and need precise written instructions for most of my crafts… you are without a doubt the best instructor of this stitch!! I’ll be coming back when I have more questions! the chain stitch has been the bane of my life and I’m so excited to know how to use the FSC stitch to start most of my projects! I can’t wait to learn the FHDC stitch next 😀
Hi Tammy,
Thank you for your kind words! I’m so glad to hear that our tutorial is accessible to you.
All the best,
Lili
Thank you so much for sharing.
I have arthritis in my hands and have a problem with keeping even tension on the thread. Any suggestions? Thank you for your generosity.❤️
Hi Margaret,
Thank you for writing in! I’m sorry to hear that maintaining tension while crocheting is difficult, but I definitely have some suggestions that may help. First, there are different ways you can hold your yarn in your left hand, and you’ll need to do a little experimenting in order to find the best method for you. I’d recommend searching “crochet yarn hold” in your favorite search engine, and lots of videos will come up, if you want to see multiple methods in action! Next, I’ve heard of a gadget called a “tension ring” which is simply a ring that you wear while crocheting that helps hold the yarn for you. (You can also find these on the internet.) I hope my recommendations are useful!
All the best,
Lili