Sick of having a gap in the edge of your crochet piece when you use a turning chain? Or wish there was a way to join your yarn that was less bulky than the standard slip stitch join? Today I’m going to teach you how to do the standing half double crochet stitch (also called the HDC join) which will not only eliminate those pesky gaps but give you a cleaner (and quicker way) to join your yarns.
Included in this post you’ll find a written and photo tutorial for this useful technique but also a step-by- step video tutorial so no matter how you prefer to learn, we’ve got you covered.
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Terminology:
This tutorial is written using US terms however, if you’re more accustomed to the UK terms, here is a quick conversion for you:
| US Terms | UK Terms |
| CH = Chain | CH = Chain |
| HDC = Half Double Crochet | HTR = Half Treble Crochet |
| HDC Join = Half Double Crochet Join | HTR Join = Half Treble Crochet Join |
| SL ST = Slip Stitch | SL ST = Slip Stitch |
| YO = Yarn Over | YO = Yarn Over |
Materials Needed:
No special materials are needed to do the standing half double crochet, just whatever yarn and hook you’re using for your crochet project. Although I’m using King Cole Wildwood Chunky (available at your local yarn store or on Amazon) and a 5mm Furls Crochet Borealis Streamline hook in this tutorial, this technique can be used with any yarn weight and hook combination.
The Standard Way to Join a New Yarn
In most projects that give the instructions “join new yarn to stitch X”, the designer expects you to join your yarn to the indicated stitch with a slip stitch join (sl st join).
If your first stitch is supposed to be a half crochet stitch, then you’ll have to add a chain 2 (or sometimes a chain 1) turning chain to bring your working yarn to the right height before executing your half double crochet stitch. But that slip stitch and chain 2 adds bulk that can make your join messy.
But now, you’re going to learn a better way. Enter the standing half double crochet.
This joining method is used when the first stitch of the round or row starts with a half double crochet stitch. This is also called a standing half crochet because it is considered to be a free standing stitch since it doesn’t require the turning chain.
Ways to Use the Standing Half Double Crochet
The standing HDC is one of my favourite joining techniques as it can be used in a variety of ways.
- It can be used to add and/or join a new color of yarn
- Use it to add a new yarn
- It can be used to join two crochet pieces of fabric together
Overall, this and other standing stitches are a great technique for joining yarn and getting a cleaner finish.
While we will typically join our new yarn under both loops of the first stitch of a new row or new round, we can use this technique to join your yarn anywhere you would like. It doesn’t need to be limited to a full row of HDC stitches, it can be used any time either the first stitch needed or starting stitch is a half double crochet.
Learn The Standing Half Double Crochet With The Video Tutorial
View this tutorial on YouTube
Standing Half Double Crochet Photo Tutorial
Step 1: Place a slip knot onto your crochet hook.
Step 2: Yarn over (yo) and insert hook into the designated stitch you need to join to or in the place in your crochet project that you want to join.
Step 3: Yarn over hook and pull up a loop. You should have three loops on your hook.
Step 4: Yarn over hook and pull the loop through all three loops on your hook.
After you have finished your half-double crochet join, you can continue on crocheting the rest of the stitches in that row/round as you normally would or as your pattern instructs you to.
Isn’t this such a great way to join a new colour and eliminate those bulky starting chains?
How to Join Two Pieces of Fabric Together With This Standing Crochet Stitch
When using this technique as a type of join for joining two pieces of fabric together, repeat step 2 – 4 into the next stitch and each stitch across or into the end of each row to join your fabric together until complete (see me join two pieces of fabric in the video tutorial).
I hope that you’ve found this tutorial helpful. There are other chainless joins that you can use to substitute in for other basic crochet stitches. Check out my standing single crochet and my standing double crochet tutorial (both video and photo tutorials) .
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