Tunisian Crochet

Tunisian Crochet

1/4/12 Update: Please stay tuned for information on a terrific new Tunisian crochet book I’ve authored that should be available very soon. In the meantime, please try out this quick pattern for Tunisian fingerless mitts at Kimane Designs: Lucia Mitts.

If you are a visual learner, the DVD included in my book, Learn to Do Tunisian Lace Stitches, is a must-have! To see some of my free videos, please visit my YouTube channel here.

Popular blog posts about Tunisian crochet:

Learn Tunisian Stitches (online)

Tunisian crochet: It’s Revolutionary!

Knitting vs. Tunisian Crochet

11/8/09 Update: If you’ve tried Tunisian crochet, but you’re interested in learning more. Or, if you’re interested in Tunisian but you’re intimidated by trying something new. I’ve got great news for you! My new book, Learn to Do Tunisian Lace Stitches, is now available for purchase.

This book includes 10 new stitch patterns and 11 new projects incorporating those stitch patterns. You can work on the projects I’ve designed. Or, you can use the stitch patterns to create your own one-of-a-kind project. But, the real news? This book includes a DVD! This DVD takes you through each of the basic stitches used in the book as well as every stitch pattern, in detail. Imagine having me teaching you right in the comfort of your own home! You will become a Tunisian expert in no time at all!

For years and years, I would NOT try it.  But, now that I have tried it, I don’t know how I survived without it!  As difficult as it may look and sound, it’s really the easiest form of crochet to teach and learn.

I think the most difficult part about Tunisian crochet is finding the hooks and finding the patterns.

Personally, if I’m looking for a Tunisian crochet hook, I go straight to Its All Just String. There’s quite a variety available.

Now, for the patterns. Oh, yes, there ARE patterns! But, sometimes they’re harder to find.

I have self-published several Tunisian crochet patterns on my website. My newest release is a lovely shawl made in laceweight merino wool. Unlike what you normally find in Tunisian crochet, this shawl incorporates a beautiful Tunisian lace stitch pattern, which incorporates what appear to be little angels. You can find Mariposa at Kimane Designs.

Another fun technique in Tunisian crochet is short rows. One of my newer Tunisian crochet designs is this Color Wheel Bag. I’ve designed several round and circular pieces using short row techniques. I find them very fun to do and most of them can be completed without the use of an afghan hook.

More of my self-published Tunisian crochet patterns can be found at CrochetKim.com and Kimane Designs.

I have had several books on Tunisian crochet published with Annie’s Attic. My newest book is Tunisian Around the Home.

You can also browse my website here for links to Tunisian crochet patterns on the internet.

These Tunisian crochet books have also been published by Annie’s Attic on my behalf. Thankfully, most of them have now been made available again on Annie’s Attic. Direct links are posted in the side bar on the right.

Tunisian, Afghan Stitch, Crochenit, Cro-Hook, MoEZ?  What’s the difference?

Tunisian crochet is the term for any crochet in which you use a long-ish hook. You open the stitches on one “pass”, then you close them up on the second “pass.” It’s very similar to knitting, although thicker since it takes two passes in order to complete the row.

If you can do a single crochet, then you can do Tunisian crochet. Imagine a single crochet. You insert your hook and pull up a loop. Then, you pull through two loops on your hook. For basic Tunisian crochet, all you are doing is a single crochet in assembly-line fashion. You insert your hook and pull up a loop, but you do that all the way across. Then, you yarn over and pull through the loops, closing each stitch, one at a time.

Tunisian Crochet encompasses hundreds of stitch variations and combinations that make it a very versatile technique.  What most people call “afghan stitch” is actually only one of many Tunisian stitches.

The Tunisian hook, also called afghan hook looks like a knitting needle with the “knob” on one end, but a crochet hook on the other instead of a point. You can also get the same thing with a hook on each end, a double-ended afghan hook. Now, for the hooks. Boye and Susan Bates both make them.

There are regular afghan hooks and there are those with the extender cable. There are regular double-ended hooks and there are those with the cable.

In the 70s, Mary Middleton introduced “Crochenit” which is double-ended Tunisian using only a size M hook. At the same time, Boye and Susan Bates were using their double-ended hooks and the technique was called cro-hook or cro-knit, depending on who the manufacturer/publisher was.

Twenty-five or so years’ later, Mary joined with Annie’s Attic for a short while and several leaflets were published as well as new manufacture of her special Crochenit hook, with red and green point protectors included for easy start and stop.  I am very fortunate in that I have some of Mary’s original Crochenit hooks from the 70s.  I was able to get them on eBay as well as some of her original publications before she started publishing through Annie’s Attic.

In the 90s, crochet with the double-ended hook became widely known as Crochet on the Double when many new patterns were introduced by Annie’s Attic in this technique.  Darla Fanton designed a tremendous amount of items and had several leaflets published as she basically reintroduced the technique, almost by herself.  There were others (including me LOL).  But, Darla’s numerous designs sort of “heralded” the reintroduction.

MoEZ is the name given the hooks made by Monte Grimm. They are both regular Tunisian hooks as well as double-ended hooks. Instead of a knob on the end of the Tunisian hooks, I believe he has dipped them in some type of rubber, color coding the rubber for the size of the hook. They make larger Tunisian hooks from about a size L and up.

Carolyn Christmas introduced her larger Tunisian hooks in the late 90s or early 00s. They are Tunisian hooks in sizes L, M, N and P, I believe. These are called Easy Tunisian hooks.

Although very similar, there is a major difference between regular Tunisian crochet and cro-hook . For regular Tunisian, you work with one hook and you don’t turn your work. For double-ended Tunisian (cro-hook, cro-knit, crochet on the double), you turn your work and you use two separate balls of yarn, one for each hook.

Here are some links to get you motivated to try out this technique.  And, even if you’re familiar with Tunisian, having done the “afghan stitch” in the past, you will love these links to try out some new Tunisian stitches!  Dust off your afghan hooks and give it a go!

This is a list of some of my YouTube videos I have made on Tunisian crochet. You can see my full listing of Tunisian crochet videos on my YouTube channel.

• Tunisian crochet: Foundation Row
• Tunisian crochet: Simple Stitch
• Tunisian crochet: Reverse Stitch
• Tunisian crochet: Knit Stitch
• Tunisian crochet: Twisted Knit Stitch
• Tunisian crochet: Easy Bobble
• Tunisian crochet: Post Stitch Bobble

Other resources

Encyclopedia of Tunisian Crochet by Angela Grabowski of ChezCrochet.

NexStitch website, owned by Amie Bentley.

If you find yourself intrigued by Tunisian crochet, you are not alone! If you like the idea of joining an email group for discussions on Tunisian, please do join the Tunisian Crochet YahooGroup, owned by me and Angela Grabowski.