Crochet · stitch tutorial
Front post double crochet (FPdc): how to do it, step by step
To work a front post double crochet (FPdc), yarn over, insert the hook from front to back to front around the post of the stitch below instead of into its top loops, yarn over and pull up a loop, then (yarn over, pull through 2) twice. Because it wraps the post, the stitch sits raised on the front of the fabric.
Front post double crochet, step by step
- Yarn over. Once, as for a regular double crochet.
- Find the post. The post is the upright body of the stitch in the row below, between its top and its base.
- Hook around it from the front. Insert the hook from the front, to the right of the post, behind it, and out to the front on the left (left-handed: the other way).
- Pull up a loop. Yarn over and draw the loop back around the post: 3 loops on the hook.
- Finish. Yarn over and pull through 2, twice.
Keep the stitch count right
The post stitch takes the place of the stitch you wrapped around, so skip the top of that stitch: don't also work into it. One post stitch replaces one stitch, and the count stays the same.
Back post double crochet (BPdc)
The same stitch, but the hook goes in from the back, around the post and out the back again. It pushes the stitch behind the fabric. Front and back post stitches together make most raised crochet textures.
Ribbing, basketweave and waffle
- Ribbing: alternate FPdc and BPdc. In the round, repeat the same sequence each round. In rows, work each stitch the way it faces you: FPdc around the raised posts and BPdc around the sunken ones, so the ribs line up.
- Basketweave: blocks of FPdc and BPdc, swapped every few rows.
- Waffle stitch: one FPdc and two plain dc, with the post stitches moving each row. See the crochet waffle stitch tutorial.
Post stitches pull the fabric in a little, so a ribbed brim is snugger than the same number of plain stitches. New to the base stitch? How to double crochet first.
Use it in a real stitch patternThe waffle stitch is front post double crochet over plain double crochet in a 3-stitch repeat. The guide walks you through it row by row, and a beanie uses post stitches for a ribbed brim.
Waffle stitch tutorialCrochet a beanie
Questions
What is front post double crochet in UK terms?
Front post treble (FPtr). Back post double crochet is a back post treble (BPtr).
What is the difference between front post and back post double crochet?
The direction you go around the post. Front post goes in from the front, so the stitch sits raised on the side facing you; back post goes in from the back, so it sits behind.
Can I work front post stitches on the first row?
No. A post stitch wraps around a stitch in the row below, so work at least one row of regular stitches (usually double crochet) first.
How do I decrease with front post double crochet (FPdc2tog)?
Yarn over, go around the post of the next stitch, pull up a loop, yarn over and pull through 2; yarn over, go around the post of the stitch after, pull up a loop, yarn over and pull through 2; yarn over and pull through all 3.
Do post stitches use more yarn?
Yes. Each one wraps around a whole stitch, so post-stitch fabric is thicker and takes noticeably more yarn than plain double crochet.
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