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BLOG Nº 5317 Beginner Crochet Mistakes
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The starting chain too tight is the single most common beginner crochet problem on Reddit. It is followed closely by its inverse (the chain too loose), then by losing stitches at the edges, then by not knowing whether a particular mistake can be fixed without frogging. This article covers seventeen specific problems with specific solutions — not general advice, but the exact thing to do when the exact thing goes wrong.
Mistake 1: Starting chain too tight
What it looks like: The foundation row is difficult to work into; the hook barely fits through each chain; the finished piece curls inward at the cast-on edge.
The fix: Work the foundation chain with a hook one size larger than you will use for the rest of the project. The chain stitches should have noticeably more give than your working fabric. Switch to the correct hook for the first row of actual stitches. This is not a workaround — it is standard practice for crochet worked in rows.
Mistake 2: Starting chain too loose
What it looks like: The foundation row is sloppy; stitches fall off the chain before you can work into them; the cast-on edge has large gaps.
The fix: The reverse of the above. If your chain is consistently loose, try the next hook size down for the foundation chain only. Alternatively, make a chainless foundation (also called a foundation single crochet) which eliminates the foundation chain entirely. Most beginner patterns can be adapted to the chainless foundation.
Mistake 3: Losing stitches at the edges (piece gets narrower every row)
What it looks like: A piece started with 20 stitches is 17 stitches by row 10.
The fix: You are skipping the last stitch in each row. The last stitch of a row in single crochet is usually hidden under the turning chain from the row below — it looks like part of the edge rather than a stitch. Identify it by counting: if you have fewer stitches than you started with, the last stitch was missed. Insert a locking stitch marker in the last stitch of every row before you turn.
Mistake 4: Piece gets wider every row
What it looks like: The opposite problem — the piece grows.
The fix: You are working into the turning chain, treating it as a stitch. In single crochet, the turning chain (chain 1) is a hinge, not a stitch. In double crochet (chain 3), the turning chain sometimes does count as a stitch — check your pattern.
Mistake 5: Visible holes throughout the fabric
What it looks like: The fabric looks open and lacy rather than solid.
The fix: Your hook is too large for the yarn, or your tension is too loose. Drop down one hook size. Amigurumi in particular requires tight, dense fabric — smaller hook than the yarn label recommends.
Mistake 6: Piece is stiff and difficult to work
What it looks like: The fabric is very dense; the hook is hard to push through stitches.
The fix: Your hook is too small, or your tension is too tight. Go up one hook size. Note: for amigurumi, some tightness is intentional — the fabric should be firmer than general crochet. “Stiff and difficult” is too far; “firm with visible stitch definition” is correct.
Mistake 7: Magic ring won’t close
What it looks like: After working into the ring and pulling the tail, the centre stays open.
The fix: The tail must be the working end, not the loop end. When making a magic ring, the strand you pull to close the ring is the free tail — pull it firmly after completing the first round, before moving on. If the ring is already crocheted and the tail is woven in, work a tapestry needle and yarn through the centre from the back and cinch it shut.
Mistake 8: Stitches are different heights within the same row
What it looks like: The fabric looks uneven — some stitches are taller, some shorter.
The fix: You are mixing stitch types accidentally. In a row of single crochet, every stitch should insert under both loops of the row below. Inserting under one loop only (front or back loop) produces a shorter, different-textured stitch. Go slow and verify two loops per stitch until the motion is automatic.
Mistake 9: The yarn splits when I insert the hook
What it looks like: Instead of sliding through a stitch, the hook catches individual plies of yarn.
The fix: Your hook tip is too sharp for a plied yarn, or your insertion angle is wrong. Insert at a slight upward angle rather than flat horizontal. Consider a hook with a rounder tip (Boye-style) for plied yarn.
Mistake 10: Slip stitch joins look too tight
What it looks like: The join round is noticeably tighter than the rest of the piece.
The fix: Slip stitches are worked by habit with the same pressure as a single crochet, but they should be much looser. Practice working slip stitch with the hook only half-inserted — the shallower insertion produces a looser stitch.
Mistake 11: I can’t tell where one round ends and the next begins
What it looks like: After five rounds in the round, all the stitches look identical and you have lost count.
The fix: Use a locking stitch marker in the first stitch of every round. Move it up with each new round. This is not optional in amigurumi — continuous spiral crochet has no visible round marker.
Mistake 12: The piece is spiralling visibly
What it looks like: There is a visible jog on one side where rounds have stepped up.
The fix: In continuous spiral crochet (standard amigurumi), this jog is structural — it exists because there is no true end of round. Place the jog at the back of the piece during construction and it will be invisible when the piece is displayed. To eliminate it entirely, use a join-and-chain round structure — but this changes the fabric texture.
Mistake 13: My decrease stitches leave a visible bump
What it looks like: The decrease rows of an amigurumi head have a small ridge at each decrease point.
The fix: See https://sageandsilky.com/invisible-decrease-crochet-tutorial/. The standard sc2tog picks up four loops and produces a bump. The invisible decrease (invdec) picks up two front loops only and lies flat. SageandSilky patterns use the invisible decrease throughout.
Mistake 14: The colour change shows a bleed from the previous colour
What it looks like: One colour’s top loop is visible at the base of the new colour.
The fix: Change colour on the last yarn-over of the stitch before the new colour begins. See https://sageandsilky.com/clean-color-changes-amigurumi/ for the exact step sequence.
Mistake 15: The piece curls when it should lie flat
What it looks like: A coaster or flat piece cups into a bowl shape.
The fix: Too many increases relative to the round circumference, or tension too tight. A flat circle requires exactly 6 increases per round (in single crochet). If rounds increase faster, the piece ruffles; slower, it cups.
Mistake 16: I wove in the tail and now the stitches have shifted
What it looks like: The area around a woven-in tail is puckered or pulled.
The fix: Weave through the stitches rather than under the yarn overs. Use a tapestry needle and work horizontally through the backs of stitches in a zig-zag pattern — go through four stitches in one direction, reverse, four in the other. Never pull the tail tight; slide it through at the same tension as the surrounding fabric.
Mistake 17: My finished piece looks nothing like the pattern photo
What it looks like: The pattern produces recognisably the right thing, but proportions, texture or size are significantly different.
The fix: Gauge. Check gauge before starting any pattern. See https://sageandsilky.com/crochet-gauge-swatch-amigurumi/ for the ten-minute swatch routine that catches every dimensional problem before it is baked into forty minutes of work.
The first pattern to practice these fixes on
The https://sageandsilky.com/product/minimalist-coaster-set-crochet-pattern/ Minimalist Coaster Set covers four designs that each apply a different skill from the list above: a flat circle (mistake 15), a hexagon in the round (mistakes 3, 11), a square in rows (mistakes 1, 4), and a scalloped edge (mistake 2, colour changes). Four designs, four skill sets, one PDF.
FAQ
Q: Is it better to frog a mistake or try to fix it in place?
A: It depends on where the mistake is and what it is. A single dropped stitch five rows back: frog to that point. A single off-tension stitch in the middle of a large piece: fix in place. Structural problems (wrong stitch count, wrong sequence) always require frogging.
Q: Can I fix a mistake after weaving in the tail?
A: Sometimes. If the mistake is in the join or seam, re-opening the seam and re-sewing is possible. If the mistake is in the woven fabric and the tail has been trimmed, frogging to that point and reknitting is the only reliable option.
Q: Which of these mistakes is most common in amigurumi specifically?
A: Based on pattern support enquiries, in order: 11 (lost round count), 13 (bumpy decreases), 7 (magic ring won’t close), 3 (losing stitches — though less common in round work than flat), 17 (gauge mismatch). The magic ring and the invisible decrease together are the two most worthwhile early skills to master.
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