How to Crochet Alpine Stitch
It’s not the first time I’m writing about alpine stitch, and that’s because it’s one of my absolute favorites. This clever technique is quite easy to learn and creates amazing structure. In this post you will find a step-by-step tutorial on how to make it, as well as colorways that you can use in your projects!
Edit / December 2020: I added a video tutorial!
â—‰
SAVE IT IN FAVORITES ON RAVELRY
or follow me on PINTEREST and INSTAGRAM
â—‰
Alpine stitch is great for blankets and accessories, but you can easily use it in garments, too. Combine it with other stitches to achieve interesting surfaces, or play with yarns to create nice color flow.
Below you will find my attempt on a video tutorial. It’s my first one ever, so please don’t laugh 😉 I tried my best!
Please subscribe to my channel to see more!
â—‰
Colorways
I decided to experiment a bit with different colorways on this one, because some time ago I’ve got myself a big Colour Pack of Scheepjes Catona mini-skeins. I’ve been dying to use them for a while now, so making colorful swatches appeared to be a great way to play with different color palettes.
I came up with six colorways, and I really loved the process! As you can see, in some cases I was trying to make colors flow delicately, but in other I mixed and matched them. Each colorway is created with the use of six colors. Hope you like it as much as I do!
â—‰
Unicorn / Alpine Stitch
Classic baby blanket combo, which will look great in a nursery.
Colors: 519 Fresia, 222 Tulip, 238 Powder Pink, 105 Bridal White, 385 Crystalline, 253 Tropic.
Dusty Orange / Alpine Stitch
Neutrals like the company of vibrant, lively hues, so don’t be afraid to mix them.
Colors: 410 Rich Coral, 524 Apricot, 414 Vintage Peach, 404 English Tea, 248 Champagne, 387 Dark Olive.
Peacock / Alpine Stitch
This rich palette is one of my favorites, because it looks like iridescent peacock feather!
Colors: 192 Scarlet, 517 Ruby, 394 Shadow Purple, 401 Dark Teal, 241 Parrot Green, 514 Jade.
Rosebud / Alpine Stitch
To achieve vintage vibe, go for dusty pinks, because they are timeless!
Colors: 130 Old Lace, 255 Shell, 518 Marshmallow, 523 Sweet Mandarin, 408 Old Rose, 396 Rose Wine.
Coral and Blue / Alpine Stitch
Cold and hot goes very well together, and this palette proves that, right?
Colors: 252 Watermelon, 263 Petal Peach, 264 Light Coral, 402 Silver Green, 528 Silver Blue, 391 Deep Ocean Green.
Golden Sky / Alpine Stitch
Go for rich autumnal tones, if you need something eye-catching and moody at the same time.
Colors: 249 Saffron, 383 Ginger Gold, 504 Brick Red, 507 Chocolate, 388 Rust, 501 Anthracite.
Inspired? Great, so let’s learn how to crochet alpine stitch.
For more inspiration and free crochet patterns, visit this post:
â—‰
PATTERN NOTES
LEVEL – upper beginner
TERMS – standard US
TECHNIQUES
- chain (ch)
- single crochet (sc)
- double crochet (dc)
- front post double crochet (fpdc) – yarn over, insert your hook behind the stitch of the row below, yarn over and pull the loop to the right height. You now have 3 loops on your hook, so pull through two, pull through two. You will find photo-tutorial for this stitch under instructions for row 4.
MATERIALS AND TOOLS
- you can use any yarn and recommended hook size
- for step by step sample I used DMC Amigurumi Cotton yarn and 2 mm hook; colorful samples were made with Scheepjes Catona yarn and 2.5 mm hook.
how to crochet alpine stitch
START:
ROW 1:
ROW 2:
ROW 3:
chain 1, single crochet stitches all the way. Remember about the last stitch of the row, which is worked in the turning chain.
foundation chain and rows 1-3
If you want to introduce a new color in your work, don’t finish the last single crochet, but instead add new color, as shown in the picture below. If you are working with one color only, just go on with the pattern.
introducing a new color – end of row 3
ROW 4:
chain 2, *1 fpdc (front post double crochet) in the double crochet of row 2, 1 double crochet*, until you reach last stitch, which is 2 double crochets. Remember to always skip one stitch “behind” fpdc, when working your dc’s, so that stitch count stays the same.
beginning of row 4 and making of front post double crochet
next steps of row 4 and last stitches
ROW 5:
chain 1, single crochet stitches all the way.
row 5 and changing the color
ROW 6:
ROW 7:
chain 1, single crochet stitches all the way.
beginning of row 6
finishing row 6 and row 7 – back and front view
Repeat rows 4-7.
The best place to introduce new color are rows 4 and 6, because “the spikes” of front post dc’s are nicely visible.
I used one color both for row of front post double crochet, and the row of single crochet stitches that goes after it. I think that it’s the best way to alternate colors if you are going for stripy design.
share, like, subscribe!
If you happen to make this project, I would love to see it, so don’t hesitate to contact me! Please feel free to share the results with us in the comments or on social media. Of course, if you find any mistakes in the pattern or find it hard to understand, please let me know, so I can learn and improve!
Sharing is caring, so if you liked this project, be sure to share it with your friends and spread the word, because I really appreciate it! For more free tutorials, patterns and interesting articles – follow my social media pages and allow notifications to get a pop-up whenever new post is published.
â—‰
FOLLOW ME ON PINTEREST AND INSTAGRAM
Thank you so much for sharing the written pattern and the pictures! Beautiful color choices. I can’t wait to try this stitch.
thanks, Tamara! glad you like it <3
So beautiful. I’d like to use this alpine stitch for a blanket to match an amigurmi unicorn I made. About how many row 1 chains do you suggest if I want to make a baby blanket?
Hi DJ! Glad to hear that you like it – alpine stitch is so cool. It all depends on the kind of yarn you are using, so I can’t give you a straight answer. I always start out with a gauge swatch (please take a look on my article about Swatches to learn more about it!), because it helps you to roughly count how many stitches you need to achieve desired width.
Hope it helps!
I love this stitch! Did you carry the yarn up the side? If so, can you tell me how you did it with so many colors?
Hi Patricia! No, the yarn is changed to new color every two rows, I did not carry it up the side 🙂
Hi Kate, I just came across your site and have to say how very talented you are! I can’t wait to do this stitch on my blanket. Your color choices are so beautiful. You really have ‘the eye’ when it comes to creativity. Thank you for sharing your talent and giving us all inspiration to try what you do so perfectly.
‘
Thank you so much, Amanda! Glad I could inspire you to do something creative!
Your instructions were very clear, and your video was amazing! Pretty stitch! What order do you do the colors for the rows following the initial colors? Repeat from the beginning color, or reverse? BTW, you have beautiful hands and nails!
Hello! wow, that’s really too many compliments for me to handle – thank you! 🙂
I think that I would go reverse with colors, because it gives a nice wavy flow. Going from the beginning will result more visible stripes, so if that’s your jam, go for it 😉
Hello! First off I wanted to say that I absolutely love this stitch! My only problem is my work is rolling on me even 28 rows in. Is this normal or am I doing something wrong? Thank you again absolutely love the stitch
Hi Patrisha! Thank you for kind words 🙂 I think the rolling might be caused by too much tension – check if your elongated stitches aren’t too tightly crocheted, so that they pull the whole row towards you. It might be subtle, but maybe crocheting them a little bit looser would help. If the rolling is delicate, it might disappear once you block the finished piece. That’s all I came up with for now, hope it helps!
Love the pattern. How do you go back to the first color? Do you cut the yarn, start at new row and weave hanging yarn into work?
Hi Kat and thank you! I worked alpine stitch two rows by two, so one color starts and ends on the same side of the work (hence, the yarn ends are on one side), but for the sake of the swatch I didn’t cut it. I would definitely cut the yarn if the repeat is “far away”. Hope it helps 🙂
Thank you for such a great video. It was clear and so explanatory. I think your video is at the top of my list. Grateful you go slow, making it easy to follow. I had stopped crocheting but now you have inspired me to pick it up again.
It’s great to hear, thank you!
Is it possible to do this in the round?
yes, it’s possible 🙂 there are video tutorials on youtube on how to do that.
Love the stitch and I’m hoping to use it in an upcoming project. I’m just wondering the approximate yardage needed for an afghan? I want to make sure I get enough yarn. Will be using a light DK weight yarn. Thank you!!!
I love this stitch and I’m hoping to use it in a future project. I’m just wondering if it’s a yarn eater? Does it take a lot of yardage to complete an afghan using this stitch? Thank you!?
hi Staci, yes it is a bit of a yarn eater, so take a look at some free patterns I linked to see how much yarn is recommended for a blanket.
This is beautiful! Great job! I think I am only using 3 colors…can I carry them on the side? Also did you add a border? Thank you for your help!
Thank you, Marilyn! yes you actually can carry them on the side if you use one color for two rows, just like I did. Just remember to keep the tension right so that the yarn on the side doesn’t pull and distort the work 🙂 I made these swatches only, so no border, but I’ve gathered free patterns and ideas for alpine stitch blankets in my article – Alpine Stitch Ideas. See if you can find something there 🙂
HI Kate! Thankyou sooo much for this pattern! I’m currently making a blanket and its rolling at row 7. Does it roll when its too tight or too loose??
Hi Sandy! yeah, it might roll if your tension is too big, but remember that it will loosen up a bit when blocked! A switch to a bigger hook might help as well 🙂