When creating a crochet piece, there’s usually a right side and wrong side of the fabric that you are creating. Most patterns usually indicate which row is the right side and which row is the wrong side.
What should you know about the right side and wrong side of crochet? The right side of the crochet is the better-looking side, where the stitches are facing you, and the patterns are often more pronounced. The wrong side is where the stitches are facing away from you, and the pattern is often less visible.
For some reversible patterns, the right side and wrong side really don’t matter. However, knowing which is the right side of crochet will help you be more attentive when creating patterns, especially for decorative pieces like a pillowcase, table runner, or crochet top.
In this article, we will tell you everything that you need to know about the right side and wrong side of crochet to help you create the best-looking crochet project.
Right Side Vs. Wrong Side
When you work any crochet stitch, the side that’s facing you will be the right side, and the side facing away from you is the wrong side. The easier way to identify this is that the top of the row will look like a chain stitch from the right side and a ‘-’ from the wrong side.
The first thing that you’ll need to know is that the right side and wrong side of crochet don’t always matter if the fabric is reversible.
This is when you crochet a flat piece of fabric without any textures: You crochet one row and turn to crochet another row. Both sides of the fabric will look the same: one row of right-side-facing stitches and one row of wrong-side-facing stitches.
When you work back and forth like this, the row that you’re working into will always be the wrong side, and the row that you’re creating will always be the right side.
A lot of patterns are like this, so you don’t always need to care which is the right side and which is the wrong side.
However, the right side becomes more prominent when:
- You crochet in the round, for example, when making a granny square
- You crochet a textured stitch, for example, front-post double crochet, where the front post stitch will look raised on the right side and hollow from the wrong side.
This is when you’ll really see the difference between the right side and the wrong side since you’ll focus on creating the pattern and texture on only the right side of the fabric.
This is also the side that will face outwards when you use the piece (for example, if you have a crochet pillowcase, the right side will be the side you see, and the wrong side will be hidden inside the pillowcase.
Right Side Of Crochet
There is more than one way to know the right side of crochet.
Here are the easiest ways to tell which side is the right side:
- If the tail end of the foundation chain is facing the left side
- You’re working on an odd row
- If the top of the stitch looks like a chain (or ‘v’)
- If the row calls for front post stitches
Why is that so?
- The tail end of the foundation chain is facing the left side
When you work your foundation chain and then crochet into the foundation chain from the right side to the left side, the tail yarn of the foundation chain is always facing the left side.
The first row of the work always counts as the right side row, so if the tail yarn is facing the left side, then no matter what row you’re working, you’re always on a right side row.
Note that this method only helps you identify pieces that are worked flat (back and forth every row). However, if you are working in the round, the tail end is either in the middle of the round (as with granny squares) or at the beginning of the round, which is not very helpful.
- You’re working on an odd row
A lot of crochet patterns have charts or written instructions that tell you which row you are working on.
We’ve already established that the first row of every pattern will always be the right side row, so if you follow this logic, the odd rows (1, 3, 5, 7, 9, and so on) will always be the right side row, and the even rows (2, 4, 6, 8, and so on) will always be the wrong side.
Again, this method only works if you are working a piece flat (back and forth for every row). However, if you are working in the round, then you’ll have to refer to the last two methods to identify the right side and wrong side row.
- The top of the stitch looks like a chain (or ‘v’)
Experienced crocheters can always tell which side is the right side and which side is the wrong side of crochet.
This is because on the right side, the top of the stitch will always look like a chain, and the body of the basic stitches (single crochet, half double crochet, double crochet) will always look like a ‘v’ where the yarn is pulled through).
In comparison, on the wrong side, the stitch will always look like ‘π’ (the character for pi).
This method works both for pieces that are worked back and forth and in the round.
- The row calls for front post stitches
Crocheting front post stitches (where you insert your hook through the front post of the stitch below rather than the stitch itself), is one of the most common ways to create textured stitches. However, this texture is only created on the right side, and the wrong side will look like the stitch is hollow.
If the row calls for front post stitches, it’s always going to be a right-side row because the texture will be raised on the right side. On the wrong side, the texture is not so prominent.
If the texture is single-sided, the side where the textured stitches are seen more prominently is the right side.
Wrong Side Of Crochet
The methods above help you identify both the right side and the wrong side of crochet. When you know which side is the wrong side, it will also help you know where to weave in the loose ends and hide where your new yarn is joined.
- Weave in the loose ends
After finishing your crochet piece, you will need to take care of the loose ends of the yarn, where you change colors, or at the start and end of your project.
Loose ends are always tucked inside the back of the stitches themselves. You can use a tapestry needle and then insert the needle inside the back of one or two stitches and snip off the end.
While this method will hide your ends nicely, inserting the yarn into the wrong side (the back of the stitches) will make for a clean-looking right side without bulking up the stitches.
- Hide knots
Joining new yarn is inevitable when you’re working on a big piece of work, like a crochet sweater or blanket. Even if you use the invisible knot, it can still bulk up and show on the right side of your work.
That’s why we recommend always hiding the joint on the wrong side of the piece. If you’re lucky, when you crochet, the joint will face the back anyway.
However, if you pull up a look and the joint is showing in the front, you can remove the hoop and twist it around to hide the joint without changing the appearance of the stitch.
Why Does This Matter?
In some crochet projects, the right side and wrong side may look identical or not very different from one another, so it doesn’t really matter which side is which.
However, the right side and wrong side do matter for some types of crochets, namely amigurumi and textured crochets.
Amigurumi is the art of crocheting stuffed animals and other creations. Amigurumi is worked in the round to create a three-dimensional object, and as we have already mentioned, anything worked in the round will have a clear wrong side and right side.
Amigurumi uses only single crochet stitches to create super structured and solid fabrics. The right side of the single crochets will always face outwards so that the stitches appear uniform and clean, which adds to the unique amigurumi look.
Similarly, with single-sided textured crochet (for example, using front post and back post stitches), one side of the crochet fabric will always have more prominent textures, and that’s always the front post side.
If you’re making a pillowcase, for example, make sure that the textured side of the fabric is facing the front of the pillowcase while the plain side is facing the inside of the pillowcase.
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