Techniques
How to Crochet in the Round: Joined Rounds, Spirals and Flat Circles
To crochet in the round, start with a magic ring or short chain and work around instead of back and forth. Join each round with a slip stitch for neat, separate rounds, or keep going in a spiral and mark the first stitch. For a flat circle, add the same number of stitches every round: 6 for single crochet.
By the Knit&Note team
Hats, baskets, coasters, amigurumi and the bottom of plenty of bags are crocheted in the round. Instead of turning at the end of each row, you keep going around, and the fabric grows outward from the center or upward from a base.
It looks harder than rows. It is mostly the same stitches, with two new decisions: whether to join each round, and how to add stitches so the piece lies the way you want.
How to start a round
There are three common starts, and your pattern will name one.
Magic ring. An adjustable loop you work into and then pull closed. Best when you want no hole in the middle.
Chain 2, then work into the second chain from the hook. Simple and solid, with a slightly less tidy center.
Chain a few and join with a slip stitch. Leaves a small open center, common in lace motifs and granny squares.
Bags and baskets often start from a chain instead. You work along one side of the chain, put several stitches into the last chain to turn the corner, then work along the other side. That gives you an oval, and you keep working around it. Littmyebag by Strikkerlittmye uses a related idea: the base is worked back and forth first, then you work around it and up the sides.
Joined rounds vs spiral rounds
This is the choice that confuses most people. Both are correct.
Joined rounds
At the end of each round you slip stitch into the first stitch of that round, then chain 1 for single crochet, or more for taller stitches, to bring the yarn up to the height of the next round. Each round is a complete, separate ring.
Joined rounds are good for stripes, because the color change lines up cleanly, and for patterns where every round is different. The downside is a visible seam where the joins stack up, and it tends to lean a little as you go.
Spiral rounds
You skip the slip stitch and the chain. When you reach the end of a round, you work straight into the first stitch of the previous round and keep going. There is no join, and the fabric looks smooth all the way around.
Spirals are standard in amigurumi and common in hats. The catch is that nothing shows where one round ends, so you need a stitch marker. Stripes also show a small step where the colors meet.
Use whichever your pattern says. Switching from joined to spiral moves the stitch placement and can throw off the shaping.
Stitch markers, your best friend in the round
In a spiral, the round has no visible start. A stitch marker fixes that.
Work the first stitch of the round.
Clip a locking stitch marker, a safety pin or a scrap of contrast yarn into that stitch.
Work around until you reach the marked stitch again.
Take the marker out, work that stitch, and put the marker into the stitch you just made. That is the first stitch of the new round.
In joined rounds, a marker in the first stitch helps too, because the first stitch after a join is easy to miss. Missing it is the classic reason a round comes up one stitch short.
Count your stitches at the end of every round, at least until the shaping is done. Most patterns give the total in parentheses at the end of the round, like (18) or (18 sts).
Increasing evenly for a flat circle
A flat circle has to grow by the same number of stitches every round. For single crochet that number is 6, and the rhythm looks like this:
Round 1: 6 sc in a magic ring. (6)
Round 2: 2 sc in each st around. (12)
Round 3: *sc in next st, 2 sc in next st; rep from * around. (18)
Round 4: *sc in next 2 sts, 2 sc in next st; rep from * around. (24)
Round 5: *sc in next 3 sts, 2 sc in next st; rep from * around. (30)
Each round, the number of plain stitches between increases goes up by one. Keep going like this for as long as you want the circle to grow.
Taller stitches need more increases, because each round adds more height and the circle widens faster. Half double crochet circles usually start with 8 stitches and add 8 per round. Double crochet circles usually start with 12 and add 12 per round.
If your circle misbehaves
It cups into a bowl. Too few stitches. Check your counts; you may have skipped an increase.
It ruffles like a frill. Too many stitches. Recount, because one extra increase per round adds up quickly.
It turns into a hexagon. Increases stacked directly on top of each other create corners. Stagger them by shifting where the first increase falls, for example by working half of the plain stitches before it on every other round.
A cup is not always a mistake. Stop increasing and work even rounds, one stitch in each stitch, and the circle turns upward into walls. That is how hats, baskets and the sides of a round bag are made.
In the Knit&Note app
Rounds blur together quickly, especially in a spiral. The Knit&Note app has a round counter that keeps the number you tap, so you can put the work down and pick up exactly where you were. You can mark the line you are on, keep notes inside the project, and tap abbreviations like sc or inc to see what they mean.
FAQ
Should I join rounds or work in a spiral?
Follow your pattern. If you are making something up as you go, spirals give a smoother look with no seam, and joined rounds give cleaner stripes and rounds that are easy to count.
Why is my crochet circle not flat?
Cupping means too few stitches, ruffling means too many. Count each round and compare it with the total the pattern gives.
Do I turn my work when crocheting in the round?
Usually not. You keep the right side facing you. Some patterns do turn after each joined round to straighten the seam or change the texture, and they will tell you when.
What does 'work even' mean in the round?
Work one stitch into each stitch, with no increases or decreases. The stitch count stays the same and the fabric grows straight up.
