Crochet Tutorial: The Crocodile Stitch

By Dora Ohrenstein

Add a little reptile to your repertoire with this excerpt from The Crocheter’s Skill-Building Workshop.

Crocodile stitch swatch
Photo by John Polak, from *The Crocheter’s Skill-Building Workshop*

The crocodile stitch is a wonderful textured stitch. It appears to be a recent — and popular — invention. It’s fun, once you overcome a few challenges.

Executing the “scales” of the crocodile requires some unusual turning this way and that. The crocodile stitches are usually staggered from one row to the next so that the scales are visible. There are many variations on this stitch, but here’s a good one to start with.

Note
To work around the posts of stitches, insert the hook under the post. This is the same as when working any post stitch, except you will be making several stitches around the same post.

Ch a multiple of 4, plus 2 for tch. (ch 26 for swatch)

Row 1 Dc in 4th ch from hook, *ch 1, sk 1 ch, dc in next ch, ch 1, sk 1 ch, dc in next 2 ch, rep from * across, turn.

Note that you have pairs of dc stitches (ready for crocodile stitch) alternating with single dc stitches.

Row 2 Ch 1, *work 5 dc around post of second dc, ch 1, work 5 dc around post of next dc, sl st in next dc (1 crocodile st made), rep from * across, work 5 dc around post of last dc, ch 1, work 5 dc around tch, sl st in top of tch, turn.

Row 3 Sc in center of first crocodile st, *ch 1, 2 dc in next dc (there is already a sl st worked into this dc), ch 1, dc in center of next crocodile st, rep from * across, ch 1, 2 dc in last dc, turn.

Row 4 Ch 1, work crocodile st around first 2 dc posts, *sl st to next dc, crocodile st around next 2 posts, rep from * across, sc in sc, turn.

Row 5 Ch 3, dc in first sc, ch 1, *dc in center of next crocodile st, ch 1, 2 dc in next dc, rep from * across, dc in center of next crocodile st, turn.

Row 6 Ch 1, sk first dc, *crocodile st around next 2 dc, sl st in next dc, rep from * across, ending with crocodile st in last 2 sts, turn.

Rep rows 3–6 for pattern.

Making the Scales

The “scales” of this stitch are worked around the posts of paired dc stitches. Work 5 dc around the post of the first dc, going from the top of the post to the bottom (1 and 2), ch 1, work the next 5 dc around the post of the 2nd dc of the pair going from bottom to top (3 and 4), and sl st in next dc.

Step 1: Work 5 dc around the post of the first dc…

Step 2: …going from the top of the post to the bottom.

Step 3: Ch 1, then work the next 5 dc around the post of the 2nd dc of the pair. The second set of 5 dc must be approached from the opposite direction.

Step 4: When working steps 3 and 4, go from bottom to top. Sl st in next dc.

Excerpted and adapted from The Crocheter’s Skill-Building Workshop © Dora Ohrenstein.

The Crocheter's Skill-Building Workshop

by Dora Ohrenstein

From choosing yarns, shapes, and styles to finishing off your project with flair, Dora Ohrenstein shows you how take your crocheted creations to the next level. This fun guide includes more than 70 stitch-along swatches that teach specific crochet techniques and five projects — a hat, shawl, neck warmer, bag, and scarf — that put your new skills to use. With a variety of stitch patterns and shaping types explained, you’ll be inspired to build upon Ohrenstein’s creations and develop your own sophisticated designs.

$19.95

$24.95 CAD

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About the Author

Dora Ohrenstein is a leading crochet designer, author, and teacher. She is the author of Top-Down Crochet Sweaters and The Crocheter’s Skill-Building Workshop, which is being hailed as a must-have resource by the crochet community. Ohrenstein’s chic and innovative designs appear regularly in Interweave Crochet, Crochet!, Crochet World, Vogue Knitting Crochet, and many other print and online magazines. She is the co-editor of Crochet World's “Talking Crochet” column, and she has written for various other publications about crochet history, international traditions, and techniques.

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