Widening (adding stitches)
The term ‘widening’ may refer to two kinds of activities while crocheting, namely:
- Shaping a crochet piece by increases and decreases in rows
- Adding stitches while working on circular piece (see → crocheting in the round)
- C2C – the corner-to-corner method (see → C2C)
- invisible increase (amigurumi)
The issues of crocheting in the round and the C2C method are described in separate articles available at the links above.
Shaping a crochet piece by increases and decreases in rows is especially important if we are making an item of clothing such as a top or a dress. Just as a the pattern determines the precise shape of the parts of the garment while working with a textile, we must transfer appropriate crocheting techniques in order to shape the parts of the crochet piece.
How-to:
- Widening the middle of the piece:
It may be achieved by crocheting the same stitches or different ones, two or three times in the same stitch of the previous row. It’s also the basic method of creating shell stitch and spherical shapes, i.e. in amigurumi.
- Widening at the edge of the piece:
It requires inserting the hook in the last stitch below the previous row, drawing through a loop of a suitable height and crocheting it into a single or double crochet stitch. Next, you need to turn the piece over and make an adequate number of turning stitches for either making a single or double crochet stitch and crocheting it into a the single or double crochet stitch which we made before turning the piece over.
