Your first adjustable loop
A slip knot makes the adjustable loop that starts many crochet projects. It rests on your hook while you learn to form a foundation chain. It is a starting connection, not a completed chain stitch.
Gather a smooth yarn and the hook suggested for it. Leave a tail about 6 inches (15 cm) long so you can handle the yarn comfortably and later weave in the end. A pattern may ask for a longer tail for sewing; follow that instruction when you begin a particular project.
Work slowly enough to see which strand leads to the ball. That is the working yarn. The free end is the tail. Keeping those names clear makes the next steps easier.
Make the knot step by step
- Form a loop. Lay the yarn across your fingers and cross the working strand over the tail, making a loose loop. Hold the crossing so it stays in place.
- Pull a bight through. Reach through the loop and catch a short folded section of working yarn. Pull that folded section through the loop. Do not pull the entire ball or the free end through.
- Set the knot. Hold the new loop and gently draw the strands below it until a small knot forms. Keep the new loop open.
- Insert the hook. Put the hook through the new loop and slide it onto the full-width shaft behind the head.
- Adjust the loop. Draw the working strand gently to reduce the loop around the shaft. Stop while it can still slide.
A bight is simply a folded portion of yarn. You are pulling a new loop through the first loop, which is what makes this knot adjustable. If you pulled the entire tail through and made a fixed knot, undo it and try again.
Check before making a chain
The loop should sit around the shaft without squeezing it. Slide it gently toward the head and back. It should move without forcing, but it should not hang so loosely that it falls off the hook. The knot itself stays below the loop.
Pinch the knot between the thumb and a finger of your yarn hand. Feed the working yarn loosely over your index finger. Keep the tail clear of the strand you will catch with the hook. Catching the tail by mistake uses up the loose end instead of drawing yarn from the ball.
The next movement is a yarn over: catch the working yarn with the hook. Drawing that yarn through the loop will make your first chain. Practice the knot confidently before continuing.
What counts as a stitch?
For the beginner patterns on this site, the slip knot does not count as a chain. The active loop sitting on the hook does not count as a completed chain either. Count the visible chain links below the hook after you make them.
If a pattern says to chain 7, you make seven completed chain links after the slip knot. The loop on your hook remains there while you count those links. This distinction prevents an easy one-stitch error before the first row even begins.
Our single crochet practice patterns work into the second chain from the hook. A starting chain of 7 therefore gives 6 single crochet stitches in the first row. Read the full project instructions before applying that relationship to other stitches.
Fix common slip-knot problems
- The loop will not adjust: you may have made a fixed knot or pulled through the wrong part of the strand. Undo it and remake the loop with a bight of working yarn.
- The loop sticks on the hook: loosen it and size it on the shaft, rather than the narrow throat.
- The tail is too short: remake the knot farther from the free end.
- The knot keeps moving: pinch below the hook while you practice and keep the ball from tugging the working strand.
There are other valid slip-knot methods. Use the one you can repeat reliably, provided the loop adjusts and the yarn feeds from the ball.
A small practice exercise
Make the knot three times, removing the hook and undoing the yarn between attempts. On the last attempt, identify the tail, working yarn, knot, shaft, and active loop. Check that the loop slides before making any stitches.
Is a slip knot needed for every project? No. Some circular starts use another method, such as a magic ring. Should I pull it very tight? Keep the knot secure while allowing the working loop to move. Your next course lesson is How to Crochet a Chain, currently marked coming soon. You can also download the stitch reference to keep the vocabulary nearby.