Answer
Why Is My Crochet Circle Curling or Wavy? How to Fix It
A crochet circle curls up into a bowl when it has too few increases for its size, and turns wavy or ruffled when it has too many. A flat single crochet circle usually starts with 6 stitches and adds 6 every round (6, 12, 18, 24 and so on), with the increases spread evenly, so check your count at the end of each round.
At a glance
| Where | What's there | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Craftuary Academy: increaseours | Lesson 5 of Crochet 101: two stitches in one, in free looping 3D. | Making each increase right |
| Craftuary Academy: reading a roundours | How (sc, inc) x6 (18) spreads six increases evenly round a circle. | Spacing increases |
| Craftuary pattern checkerours | Shows whether each round of a pattern really makes the count it prints, so you can tell a pattern mistake from a counting slip. | Checking a pattern's rounds |
| Craftuary: how to read a crochet patternours | A worked circle from 6 to 24 stitches, round by round. | Seeing the 6-12-18-24 sequence |
| Craft Yarn Council: yarn weight system | The standard yarn weights with their usual hook ranges; a hook far too small for the yarn makes tight stitches that can cup a circle. | Matching hook to yarn |
How to start
- Count the last round. Compare with the pattern: a circle that is short of stitches cups, one with extra stitches ripples.
- Check your tension. Very tight stitches can cup a circle even with the right count; try a hook half a size bigger.
- Spread the increases. If the circle turns into a hexagon, the increases are stacking; start each round's repeat at a different point.
- Remember amigurumi is meant to cup. Toys stop increasing on purpose and work even rounds, which turns the circle into a tube.
Questions
How many increases does a flat double crochet circle need?
Usually 12 per round: start with 12 dc in the ring, then add 12 each round.
Why does my circle look like a hexagon?
Six increases stacked in the same places make six corners. Stagger them, for example by working (sc, inc) one round and (inc, sc) or a split repeat the next.
Can I fix a wavy circle without ripping it all out?
Only from the round where the count went wrong. Undo back to the last round with the right count and work it again.
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