Over the past few years, I’ve fallen in love with Tunisian crochet. It was a long time coming. Honestly I’m surprised this didn’t happen sooner. When I was a child, I wanted to learn to knit and couldn’t figure it out. My mother couldn’t and said it was “too hard” so she hated it. We both knew Tunisian crochet could look like knitting, however, the few resources I found back then didn’t make sense to me.
Once you figure out the rhythm of it and learn what parts of stitches to work with, it’s a fun new form and creates fabric that is unique. I really love how it plays with colour.
I’m so smitten I recently designed a crochet cowl — multimesh. The way it’s worked up blends colors into a cohesive and colorful whole and without it looking muddy. The colors retain their vibrancy due to the nature of the Tunisian crochet stitch. This design is worked up Artyarns worsted weight Silky Twist, using a “Duos” kit and a full length skein, approximately 440 yards/440 meters total.
There’s many resources online and a few new books out that show I’m not alone in falling for this crochet technique.
Resources
Edie Eckman is an excellent teacher and creates remarkable videos. In the two I’m linking here, she explores the Tunisian Simple Stitch for both Right-Handed and Left-Handed Crocheters.
Kim Guzman of CrochetKim has been working with Tunisian Crochet for years. I’ve been able to borrow her book, Tunisian crochet stitch guide, from my public library. Published in 2013 it shows basic stitches, colorwork, and lace. While it may look dated when compared to publications from the past few years it is a useful book!
If you’re looking for a more modern guide, Toni Lipsey’s 2021 title, The Tunisian crochet handbook: a beginner’s guide is lovely. It’s available from Hoopla if your library subscribes to that service or through a local bookstore or your yarn shop. It guides you through the basic essentials and includes 20 modern looking projects. The page layout makes it easy to skim or read closely. The swatch and tutorial photographs are clear and bright. Tutorial steps match the photos and I know I almost expected them to move they felt so right as I worked with them. The section “Adding Color” is where I first saw two-toned stripes and fell in love. I think this is a useful title no matter your Tunisian crochet skill level.
Once you have mastered the basics – what other stitches can you make? Yes, it’s possible and fun to play and design your own. My preference is to first comb through a dictionary for inspiration. Some times I’ll create a new combination of stitches and at others I’ll create a new variation based on another stitch. If you love stitch dictionaries like I do, then the Tunisian Crochet Stitch Dictionary by Anna Nikipirowicz will be a useful addition to your shelf. There’s a clear photo of each stitch, it’s charted, and many of the steps are laid out with clear tutorial photos to help you figure out how to work them.
Tools
I’m working on adding more products to the shop, including Tunisian hooks. I struggled to find some when I was swatching for multimesh. Please sign up to my newsletter to be informed when I add them to the shop.
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