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🧰 Required Tools & Equipment

✓ 5.0 mm (Size H-8) crochet hook
✓ Yarn needle (tapestry needle)
✓ Scissors
✓ Locking stitch markers

📦 Materials & Supplies

✓ Worsted weight acrylic yarn (Size 4, light solid color)

⚠️ Safety Checkpoints & Warnings

• Keep wrists straight and take short breaks every 15 minutes to prevent repetitive strain injury.
• Do not wrap working yarn tightly around fingers to avoid cutting off circulation.
• Point scissor tips away from your body and working yarn when trimming ends.

📋 Step-by-Step Guide (6 Steps)

Make a Slip Knot

Cross the yarn tail over the working yarn to form a loop. Reach through the loop with your thumb and forefinger to grab the working strand, then pull it through to create a cinchable loop. Insert the crochet hook into the loop and pull the working end until the loop sits snugly on the hook shaft without pinching tight.

👁️ Camera AI Checkpoint

• A single adjustable loop sits comfortably on the hook shaft.
• A yarn tail of approximately 4 to 6 inches hangs freely below the knot.

🛑 Watch Out For

• Pulling the knot too tight against the metal hook so it cannot glide.
• Leaving too short of a yarn tail for weaving in later.

⚠️ Safety Note: Avoid wrapping yarn around your fingertips with excessive force.

Establish Hand Position and Yarn Tension

Hold the crochet hook in your dominant hand using either a pencil grip or a knife grip. Thread the working yarn through the fingers of your non-dominant hand (draping over the index finger and gently held by the pinky/ring fingers) to regulate tension. Pinch the base of the slip knot with your non-dominant thumb and middle finger.

👁️ Camera AI Checkpoint

• Hook held stably in dominant hand with index/thumb resting on the flat thumb rest.
• Non-dominant thumb and middle finger pinching just below the slip knot on the hook.

🛑 Watch Out For

• Gripping the hook with a clenched fist, causing wrist fatigue.
• Letting go of the base knot, leading to an uncontrolled spinning loop.

⚠️ Safety Note: Keep your wrists neutral; do not bend them sharply inward while establishing tension.

Work the Foundation Chain

Rotate the hook under and behind the working yarn to create a 'yarn over' (from back to front). Rotate the hook beak slightly downward to catch the strand, then draw it through the loop on your hook to form one chain stitch. Repeat this motion for 10 to 12 chains, moving your pinch fingers up the chain every 2-3 stitches to maintain control.

👁️ Camera AI Checkpoint

• A straight, uniform braid-like strip of V-shaped chain stitches.
• One active loop resting smoothly on the crochet hook shaft.

🛑 Watch Out For

• Pulling chains too tight, making it impossible to insert the hook on the next row.
• Failing to move the stabilizing pinch fingers upward as the chain grows.

⚠️ Safety Note: Do not tense your shoulder; keep elbows resting near your torso.

Crochet Row 1 (Single Crochet)

Skip the first chain closest to the hook. Insert the hook tip under the top loop (or back bump) of the second chain from the hook. Yarn over, pull up a loop (leaving two loops on the hook), yarn over again, and pull through both loops on the hook. Repeat this single crochet across all remaining chains to the end of the row.

👁️ Camera AI Checkpoint

• A flat horizontal band with neat 'V' shapes along the top edge.
• Equal number of completed single crochet stitches matching your target count (e.g., 10 stitches).

🛑 Watch Out For

• Working into the very first chain loop directly under the hook instead of skipping it.
• Accidentally splitting the yarn plies with the hook tip.

⚠️ Safety Note: Ensure sharp hook edges do not abrade your guiding finger.

Turn and Crochet Row 2

Chain 1 to create a turning chain, then turn the entire piece horizontally like turning the page of a book. Insert your hook under BOTH top loops of the first stitch (the V shape). Yarn over, pull up a loop, yarn over, and pull through both loops to complete a single crochet; repeat into every stitch across the row.

👁️ Camera AI Checkpoint

• Both edges of the crochet fabric remain straight and parallel.
• Stitch count at the end of Row 2 precisely matches Row 1.

🛑 Watch Out For

• Skipping the very first stitch or missing the final, slightly slanted stitch at the end of the row.
• Inserting the hook under only one loop instead of both top loops of the V.

⚠️ Safety Note: Keep good posture to avoid neck strain while closely counting stitches.

Fasten Off and Weave in Yarn Tails

Cut the working yarn leaving a 6-inch tail. Yarn over and pull the cut tail completely through the active loop on the hook, pulling firmly to lock the knot. Thread the tail onto a tapestry needle and weave it horizontally through 4-5 interior stitches in one direction, then reverse back through for half an inch before trimming flush.

👁️ Camera AI Checkpoint

• Secure end knot with no loose loops visible.
• Yarn tails woven invisibly inside the fabric with no frayed ends poking out.

🛑 Watch Out For

• Cutting the tail too short (under 2 inches), making it unravel after washing.
• Weaving only in one direction, allowing the tail to slip free when stretched.

⚠️ Safety Note: Cut yarn with scissor blades oriented away from the main fabric to avoid accidental snips.

Credit: inspired by an original tutorial by Ami Amour — watch the original on YouTube.

Don’t have everything?

No Locking stitch markers? A contrasting scrap of yarn, a bobby pin, or a small paperclip.
No Yarn needle (tapestry needle)? A smaller crochet hook (e.g., 3.5 mm) to manually pull the yarn tail through the backs of stitches.