The 3 quick systematic steps involved in How to End a Crochet Project
You have managed to successfully start the amigurumi project and done up most of it and all you have left is to finish it. Think this part should be the easiest right since you are just ending it off? Read on about the 3 steps to finishing a crochet project, especially amigurumi and they include - ending off the stitches, fastening off and weaving in the ends. I talk about different techniques for each part and even using different instruments to end off.
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What to do after you finish a crochet project?
After you have started on your amigurumi project and completed the main components, then the last part reallly, is to finish the crochet project. Here when I am referring to finishing a crochet project, I am actually talking specifically about amigurumi. There are 3 parts and they include the following:
1) Finishing or ending off the crochet stitches
2) Fastening off
3) Finally weaving in the ends
Let us talk about each individual part separately below.
What does finish off mean in crocheting?
For this first part we are talking about finishing off in crocheting, whether it is in a chain, in a row or in a round. To finish off refers to completing the project with the final yarn from the last stitch secured so that the whole crochet piece does not unravel.
How to end a crochet chain?
Starting crochet the easiest way usually involves a crochet chain, then once you have completed it, then cut off the trailing yarn with enough length for weaving. When finishing the crochet chain, right at the end when the last loop is on the hook, pull it all the way through. From there, you will not be able to unravel the chain after that.
How to end a row of single crochet?
After a foundation chain and you have moved onto crocheting a row and many rows after, you would want to end off. After the last single crochet in the row, you should have one remaining loop on the hook. Remember to leave a decent length of remaining trailing yarn for weaving it later or sewing to another piece. Then continue to tug on the loop using the crochet hook until the cut yarn comes through the final stitch.
How to finish off crochet round?
Just like the crochet row above, if you choose to start off with a magic ring and continue in rounds for amigurumi, right at the end of finishing your project, you would have to finish off similarly too. Which finishing the last stitch in a round, you should have one remaining loop on the hook. Cut off the trailing yarn then use the crochet hook to pull on the one loop on the hook until the whole yarn length is pulled through. Then the final stitch and the project is secured.
What does it mean to fasten off in crochet?
The previous step involved was to finish the last stitch and secure it so that it cannot unravel. While the next step is to fasten off, which occurs just before weaving in the ends. Fastening off refers to tying off crochet or basically placing a knot in place with the trailing yarn from the finish previously.
Next we will be talking about fastening of in crochet rounds, invisibly, and in amigurumi using a drawstring.
How do you fasten off crochet rounds?
Crochet in a round, then pull out the last length of the trailing yarn and use a darning needle to thread through the last bit of yarn. Then insert the darning needle into the next stitch (both FLO and BLO) at the front, then into the back of the adjacent stitch. And then continue into the front of the following stitch again.
To fasten it tight, I would pull the darning needle through the back of this stitch and then into the back of the preceding stitch. Finally, pull out the needle through the front of the preceding stitch and into the front of the next preceding stitch. There you would have fastened off a crochet round.
How do you fasten off crochet invisibly?
Fastening off crochet invisibly also refers to fastening off in a round but in a slightly different special situation. It is done invisibly because once you fasten off using this method, the 'V' appearances along the round would appear uniform and you can't even tell which part was fastened off!
Once you have finished off in a crochet round, insert the darning needle into the front of the next next stitch (2 stitches down). The needle should come out at the back of this stitch. Then use the needle to pull the yarn through the back loop of the current stitch. See that it has been closed off invisibly because you cannot differentiate the finished part from the rest of the stitches.
How to fasten off crochet amigurumi?
In the previous example, we are fastening off in an open round, on the other hand, in this example, we are fastening off amigurumi and closing it up. First thread yarn through a darning needle, then insert it into the front loops of all the stitches in the last round. Then finally to close it up, you would have to do it like a drawstring, which is in the next step.
How do you close a drawstring?
Following up from the previous point, after inserting the needle into all the FLO in the last round and pulling it out, then pull the trailing yarn taut like you would a drawstring. You will then see the final circular hole will start to close up. When trying to hide the final stray yarn, thread the needle through the hole in the centre and pull it out of another part of the amigurumi and snip off the excess.
How do you finish a crochet without a knot?
You can finish off your crochet project with a knot, which I do occasionally but to finish off nicely without any knots seen, instead you could end it all by weaving in the ends. This leads into the final part, which happens after finishing the last crochet stitch and after you have fastened it off.
What does weave in ends mean?
So what exactly does weaving in the ends mean? It refers to hiding the last bit of the trailing yarn so that the stitches are secure and the stray yarn is not seen. After concealing this part, you could cut off the excess yarn without fear of the crochet piece unravelling as the weaved parts serve as an 'invisible knot'.
Do you have to weave in crochet ends?
I would say in general yes but it really depends on your crochet project.
If you have a 2D flat piece then it is pretty important to weave in the ends so that it does not affect the front of the piece, and the back of the piece is nice and tucked in. At the same time, you want to ensure the whole piece is secure and does not unravel.
As for 3D pieces like amigurumi, you have the chance to fasten off and hide off the stray yarn inside, which means that you might not even need to weave in crochet ends. Of course you could still weave in the ends inside the amigurumi piece before closing off which is what I do sometimes.
How do you weave in the ends in single crochet?
Here I talk about 2 different examples of weaving in the ends in your crochet project. If you have other ideas or suggestions that you do in your projects, feel free to comment down below, I am always open to new ideas. The 2 ways are the following:
1) Weave into the back stitches
This is probably what is most commonly done. Secure the trailing yarn by weaving the darning needle into the back stitches of the crochet piece. This method usually results in a more 'invisible' or hidden weave. Or you could try the next example.
2) Weave into the horizontal bars
Consider weaving into the horizontal bars across the crochet piece, instead of the back stitches. Then for both examples, reverse the direction and weave it back under a few more stitches in the other direction. Then finally trim off stray yarn.
What is the best way to weave in ends in crochet?
There are a few ways to weave in ends in crochet - it could either be the techniques or the instruments used. For this next part, let us briefly talk about the different instruments you could use for weaving in ends. For me personally, I would say the best way to weave in ends is with a tapestry or a darning needle, but you could use a crochet hook too.
How do you weave in crochet ends with a tapestry needle?
I talked about it in the earlier section above, you could weave in crochet ends with a tapestry needle, either into the back stitches or the horizontal bars. Read more about that just above. The alternative is to use a crochet hook, which is answered in the next question.
How do you weave in crochet ends with a hook?
I like to use this method when I am running out of trailing yarn at the end, when it is getting really short (sometimes when I underestimate the length I need for weaving). With using a crochet hook, you could try any of these 2 methods:
Insert the hook underneath a single back stitch then hook up the stray yarn and string it through, then continue single stitch by single stitch, right until you have completed stringing through a few stitches.
Or you could proceed onto inserting the hook into multiple adjacent back stitches and string it through the adjacent stitches in one shot, this could be faster. Either way, you have just weaved in the crochet ends with a hook.
How do you weave in ends in crochet amigurumi?
As a follow up to the above questions about how to fasten off crochet amigurumi and how to close up a drawstring, the last part is on weaving in ends in amigurumi. After closing up the drawstring mentioned above, thread through the darning needle with the trailing end to another end of the amigurumi and out of it.
You could cut it off after pulling it out on the other side or you could pull it out the other side and weave in and out of the stitches. This won't be done the same way as mentioned above as you cannot see the back stitches or the posterior horizontal bars.
How do you hide the ends of amigurumi?
This is my personal way of ending off my amigurumi. I pull out a stray yarn like I mentioned just above in the previous step, maybe one from one arm and another stray one from the other arm. Then i pull both strands of yarn out through the same stitch hole and tie them together in a knot. Finish up by using a pair of scissors to push the knot back inside the amigurumi to hide it.
Conclusion of how to finish a crochet project
That's it then, hope it was comprehensive and useful! I went through finishing off a crochet project, whether it is a chain or row or round, then fastening off rounds, invisibly, and in amigurumi using a drawstring method. Then finally weaving in ends through the back stitches or into the horizontal bars, either using a tapestry needle or with a crochet hook.
If you found this whole article useful, remember to share it or pin it to Pinterest so that others may read it too. Also, if you have other ideas or other methods you use yourself to finish up your crochet projects, comment below and let me know!
To check out more of my ideas for using various types of crochet stitch techniques to shape amigurumi, grab my free Amigurumi Shaping Starter Guide below!
