How to Place a Border on Half Double Crochet

Confused by where to place your stitches when working a border on half double crochet stitches? Tired of your work getting warped by border? This tutorial on how to place the first round of a border on half double crochet stitches, including two options, is for you.

Borders are incredible finishing techniques that can skyrocket the look and feel of our finished work. They can be as simple or as fancy as we’d like them to be which can heighten the finished look of the project.

But if you’ve never been taught how to crochet into the edges of your work, you might be wondering just how in the world you achieve the first round of a border.

Especially with half double crochet stitches, how are you supposed to know where to place your border stitches so they don’t pull and warp your work?

Let’s take the confusion out of placing borders by going over how to place a border on half double crochet stitches.

What to know before we get started

This tutorial will teach you how to place a border on a swatch of half double crochet. When making the border in the tutorial, we use single crochet stitches. You can, however, use half double crochet or double crochet when crocheting the first round of the border.

The most important thing to know when learning to place the first round of a border is where to place the stitch, not what stitch to use.

In this tutorial, I’ll show you two options for placing a border on half double crochet stitches.

The first way is to place 1 stitch in the side of each row which will create a border but can warp the project. Half double crochet are a unique height – in between a single and double crochet. This first option can work but often pulls the sides in and which can be frustrating.

The second way is to alternate placing 1 stitch in the side of one row and 2 stitches in the side of the next row. This creates a much cleaner border that doesn’t pull in on the sides.

The image above shows both ways of crocheting a border on half double crochet stitches. While it isn’t as noticeable in the image above, the swatch with only 1 single crochet in the side of each row is much tighter and wants to curl inward.

On the sides of the swatch on the left, you can see how much longer the tops of the stitches are, meaning these stitches need to stretch out to reach the next row. This is what causes the “rolling” or warping of the work.

I’ll show both options because they both have their time and place. My preferred method is typically to alternate 1 single crochet in the side of one row and 2 single crochet in the next row.

What to know before starting this tutorial:

• Get to know what the “raw edge” of your project means to help understand the border directions easier in a pattern. We will go over this below.
  
• You need to be able to count your rows properly to ensure that you’re placing the correct number of stitches. My How to Count Crochet Rows tutorial will teach you how to count your rows and what the “right” and “wrong” side of the stitches look like which will be very helpful in following this tutorial.

Notes to keep in mind when placing a border on half double crochet:

There are a few things to keep in mind while placing a border on half double crochet stitches that will help ensure your border doesn’t make your work wonky.

Generally, the “rules” of placing a border on double crochet stitches are:

• On the top (last row worked) and bottom (chains and first row worked), place the same amount of stitches as they are in a row.
  
  • This means if there are 10 stitches in a row, you will want to work 10 stitches on the top and bottom of your project (Numbers 1 and 2 in the image below).
    
• On the raw edges (sides of the work), you have two options.
  • You can place 1 stitch in the side of each row
  • Or alternate 1 stitch and 2 stitches.
  • Either option works fine, though the first can be a little too tight and warp the work. It will be up to you to decide which to use and when.
    
• Each corner of your project needs to have a corner created to ensure that the border does not pull in. This is typically achieved by creating a chain 2 space or by placing 3 stitches into the last stitch on each side. I’ll teach you how to use a chain 2 to turn the corner.

What is the “raw edge”?

First things first, you need to know what a raw edge even is when we’re talking about borders. You may also see references to a “edge”, “raw side”, “the sides of stitches” or “the sides of rows”.

These all refer to the sides of the project that are not the top or the bottom of stitches. Let’s take a look at a swatch:

In this image, we can see a swatch of 8 rows of 10 half double crochet. Each row of this swatch was worked by chaining 1, placing 1 half double crochet in the first stitch and each stitch across. Each side of this swatch is labeled with a number.

Side 1 is the last row worked. This is the “top” of the project.

Side 2 is where we created chains and worked our first row. This is often referred to as “bottom of chains” or sometimes just “chains”.

Side 3 is one of the raw edges.

Side 4 is the other raw edge.

When placing a border, we have to use all of these sides. This is true regardless of if you’re working a border on half double crochet, single crochet, double crochet or a mix of these or any other stitches.

How to Place a Border on Half Double Crochet Stitches

We’ll begin our border on double crochet using the swatch below. This swatch has 8 rows with 10 half double crochet in each row.

Typically when starting a border on any project, you would turn your work as if you’re going to work a new row. This is what we’ll learn here.

However, this is not always the case. Some patterns may tell you to not turn and instead start working down the raw edge (the sides of the rows) first. That’s okay and there’s nothing wrong with that. You’ll simply work our first side last.

Option 1 – Placing 1 stitch in the side of each half double crochet row

To begin placing a border on half double crochets, we will turn our work.

If you’re using the same color as your swatch or project, you will chain 1 and turn.

If you’re using a different color like I am (for better visibility in these tutorial photos), you will turn your work and join the new color in the first stitch as seen in the image below.

Now, for the easiest part of placing a border on half double crochet: We place 1 single crochet (or taller stitch, if you’d like) in each stitch across the row to the end as the black dots in the image above indicate.

You can see this completed in the image below.

Now, instead of chaining 1 and turning our work to begin a new row, we are going to instead rotate the project to work along the first raw edge. This makes it so that the sides of the stitches are facing up as if they were a row.

The black arrow that turns a corner in the image above indicates that we will rotate the work instead of turning the work.

When we rotate our work, we need to create a corner to ensure this border doesn’t pull inward. To do this, we will chain 2. This creates enough room for the border to lay flat and is an obvious corner for use in future rounds.

In the image above, I have rotated the swatch to now work down the first raw edge (or sides of the stitches). I have also chained 2, which a pink arrow points to. Black dots indicate the sides of the half double crochet stitches we will place stitches into for this edge of the border.

We will work 1 single crochet into the side of each half double crochet down the edge. Because there are 8 rows worked, we will work a total of 8 single crochet.

It’s important to note that the single crochet prior to the chain 2 we placed in the border does not count as the side of a row. This can be confusing if you’re using the same color because it certainly looks like the side of a row, though it’s easier to see in my images because I am using a different color.

In the image above, a black arrow points to the last single crochet I placed in the first part of the border. A red X is at the top of this arrow. This is to indicate that this is NOT a stitch to work into for the border.

We also do not want to use the same stitch that our last border single crochet was placed in. In the image above, a tapestry needle points to the top of this stitch. We do not want to place our border stitch here.

Instead, we will place our first border stitch into the side of the first row. In this case, the “wrong side” of a half double crochet is facing us.

When the wrong side of a half double crochet is facing on this raw edge, like in the image above, there will be a chain 1 (or 2) on the edge. For this first stitch on this swatch, we will place 1 single crochet between the chain 1 and the half double crochet.

In the images above, a tapestry needle is inserted where we will place this first stitch. In the bottom image, the chain 1 is highlighted yellow and the half double crochet is highlighted pink. This further allows us to see that we will insert our hook between the chain 1 and the half double crochet to place this stitch.

You can see my single crochet placed in the image below.

Now we can move on to placing our border stitches in the side of the next half double crochet.

The “right side” of the half double crochet is facing us in the next row. When the “right side” of a half double crochet is facing on this edge, there will not be a chain 1 to work into.

This means we will either have to place our next border stitch around the post of the half double crochet (as shown with a black arrow in the image above) or by splitting the post of the half double crochet like we do in double crochet.

If you prefer to work around the post of the half double crochet, insert your hook around the post as the black arrow in the top picture of the image above indicates. You can see what this looks like in the bottom picture in the image above.

If you prefer to split the post for a cleaner border, follow the steps and images below:

To place our 1 single crochet in the side of this half double crochet by “splitting” the post, we will insert our hook into the center of the post. This helps ensure there are no big gaps when the border is completed.

The top picture in the image above has a tapestry needle pointing to the bottom V of the post of the half double crochet with a black arrow coming out of the stitch, indicating we will insert our hook into the center of the V.

The middle picture in the image above is a top down view of the side of the stitch, with a tapestry needle going through the two loops on the side of a half double crochet that look similar to the top of a stitch. This is where we will insert our hook.

The bottom picture in the image above shows a single crochet placed in the center of the post. You can see there is no gap created by the border stitch.

Let’s place our next single crochet on the next half double crochet.

The “wrong side” of the half double crochet is facing us, which means we have a chain 1 that built height on the side. This means we will place 1 single crochet between the chain 1 and the half double crochet.

In the top picture of the image above, a tapestry needle points to the space between the chain 1 and the half double crochet. This is where we place our single crochet.

In the bottom picture of the image above, the single crochet has been placed.

Let’s place our next single crochet on the next half double crochet.

The “right side” of the half double crochet is facing us, which means we need to either “split” the post (my preferred method) or place a single crochet around the post of the half double crochet as shown before.

In the top picture of the image above, a tapestry needle points to the bottom V of the post of the half double crochet with a black arrow coming out of the stitch, indicating we will insert our hook into the center of the V.

In the bottom picture of the image above, the single crochet has been placed.

We have placed 4 single crochet stitches into the side of the swatch for this border so far. We will continue placing 1 single crochet in the side of each half double crochet down this first raw edge of the project.

Black dots in the image above indicate the sides of the 4 rows in which we still need to place 1 single crochet.

You can see all 8 stitches placed on this first side of the swatch in the image below.

Now that we are at the end of the first raw edge, we will chain 2 to create space for a corner and then we will once again rotate the project to work along the next side. Once rotated, the bottom of the chains will face upward as if they are a row to work into.

The black arrow that turns a corner in the image above indicates that we will rotate the work instead of turning the work. A pink arrow points to the chain 2 which creates the space for the corner.

In the image above, we can see the chains are now facing upward as if they’re a row to work into. Black dots over the bottom of each chain indicate that we will place 1 single crochet into each chain across this side.

I prefer to crochet in the back bump of the chains, which creates a clean professional finish and is much easier to work into for borders.

My chains may look slightly different to yours because of this. Crocheting in the back bump of the chain makes the chain look like the top of a stitch, which you can see below.

As the black arrows in the image above indicate, we will place 1 single crochet in the bottom of each chain until we reach the end of this side.

You can see this completed in the image below.

Now that we are at the end of this side, we will chain 2 to create space for a corner and then we will once again rotate the project to work along the final raw edge. Once rotated, the final raw edge of the project will face upward.

The black arrow that turns a corner in the image above indicates that we will rotate the work instead of turning the work.

Now that we have chained 2 to create a corner and rotated our work, we can begin working up the final raw edge of the project.

It is important to note that the last single crochet we just placed in the bottom of the chains prior to the chain 2 does not count as the side of a row.

In the image above, a black arrow with a red X points downward to this stitch to indicate that it does not count. A black arrow points to the side of the first half double crochet with a green checkmark to indicate this is where we start our border.

A pink arrow points to the chain 2 that will become the corner.

On this edge, the “right side” half double crochet stitches now have the chain 1 to build height. This is the opposite of how it was on the first edge.

To place our single crochet into the side of this first half double crochet on this edge, we will place 1 single crochet around the chain 1 that built height, just like we did on the other side.

In the image above, a tapestry needle points to the space between the chain 1 and the half double crochet. This is where we will insert our hook to place the stitch. You can see my first single crochet of this side placed in the image below.

Now we place 1 single crochet into the side of the next half double crochet. The “wrong side” half double crochet stitch is now facing and there is no chain 1 to build height. This is the opposite of how it was on the first edge.

To place our single crochet in the side of this half double crochet, we will work directly into the middle of the post of the post just like on the previous side.

In the image above, a tapestry needle pointing to the bottom V of the post of the half double crochet, indicating we will insert our hook into the center of the V. Alternatively, you can work into the space between the two half double crochet, though it will create a gap.

You can see the single crochet placed in the image below.

Now we will place 1 single crochet into the next half double crochet. The “right side” is facing us.

To place our single crochet into the side of this half double crochet, we will place 1 single crochet around the chain 1 that built height for the row. In the image above, a black arrow goes through the space between the chain 1 and the half double crochet.

You can see the single crochet placed in the top picture of the image below.

Then, we place 1 single crochet into the side of the next stitch, which has a black arrow pointing to it in the image below. Once again we will split the post or work around the post to place our stitch.

We have placed 4 single crochet stitches into the side of the swatch for this border so far. We will continue placing 1 single crochet in the side of each half double crochet down this final raw edge of the project.

Black dots in the image above indicate the sides of the 4 rows in which we still need to place 1 single crochet.

You can see all 8 stitches placed on this final side of the swatch in the image below.

Now that all of the border single crochet stitches are placed, all we have left to do is create the final corner and join the round.

To create the final corner, we will chain 2 and we will rotate the swatch one final time so that the top of the swatch is facing upward.

In the image above, a pink arrow points to my chain 2 that will create the corner. A black arrow goes through the very first stitch placed in the border round.

To close the round, we will slip stitch into the first stitch (black arrow). You can see these steps completed in the image below.

This completes one round of a border on single crochet stitches. In the image above, pink arrows point to each chain 2 space which creates a corner. The image above used Option 1.

It may not be super noticeable in the picture, but this border is very tight. Notice on the sides how the tops of the stitches look stretched out. This is because there aren’t really enough stitches to make up this border so the stitches have to stretch and it will pull on the project.

Option 2 – Alternating 1 stitch and 2 stitches in side of each half double crochet row

Now that we know how to place 1 single crochet in the side of each half double crochet row, let’s learn how to alternate placing 1 single crochet and 2 single crochet in the sides of the rows.

This alternative creates a much more even and flat border.

Since we’ve gone over how to place a border in general, I’m going to skip ahead to working the first raw edge:

Just like with Option 1, we begin with a “wrong side” half double crochet and a chain 1 on the edge. This is where we will place 1 single crochet, just like in Option 1.

On this first raw edge of half double crochet stitches, any time there is a chain 1, you will place 1 single crochet into the space between the chain 1 and the half double crochet.

You can see this completed in the image below. We can now place 2 single crochet into the side of the next half double crochet for this type of border.

This half double crochet is showing the “right side”. On this edge of a project using a half double crochet, you will always place 2 half double crochet into “right side” half double crochet. There is no chain 1 on the side, so we will instead work into the top of the stitch and we will either split the post or insert our hook between posts.

In the top picture of the image above, a tapestry needle points to the top of the half double crochet. We will place 1 single crochet here.

In the bottom picture of the image above, a tapestry needle points to the bottom V of the post of the half double crochet, indicating we will insert our hook into the center of the V (or entirely around the post, if you prefer).

In the image above, you can see the 2 single crochet placed in the side of the “right side” half double crochet.

Just like in Option 1, we will continue working down this first raw edge.

On this raw edge, whenever a “wrong side” half double crochet faces us and there is a chain 1 on the side, we will place 1 single crochet.

Whenever a “right side” half double crochet faces us and there is no chain 1 on the side, we will place 2 single crochet – 1 in the top of the stitch and 1 in the center of the post (or around the post).

Continue working down the side to the end of the raw edge.

In the image above, I’ve worked down the raw edge, alternating stitches as stated previously. You can see how much more uniform these stitches look because they don’t have to stretch so far between stitches.

Rotate and place 1 single crochet in the bottom of each chain, just like in Option 1. Then, rotate again to work along the final raw edge.

Now that we’ve reached the final raw edge, we will continue to place border stitches by alternating the amount of stitches placed.

Just like in Option 1, the “right side” half double crochet stitches now have a chain 1 and the “wrong side” half double crochet stitches don’t. This is the opposite of the first side.

In the image above, the right side of a half double crochet is facing which means there is a chain 1. A tapestry needle points to the space between the half double crochet and chain 1. This is where we will place 1 single crochet.

You can see the single crochet placed in the image below.

Now a “wrong side” half double crochet faces us. There is no chain 1 on the side, so we will instead work into the post of the stitch and the top of the stitch.

In the top picture of the image above, a tapestry needle points to the bottom V of the post of the half double crochet, indicating we will insert our hook into the center of the V (or entirely around the post, if you prefer).

In the bottom picture of the image above, a tapestry needle points to the top of the half double crochet. We will place 1 single crochet here.

In the image above, you can see the 2 single crochet placed in the side of the “wrong side” half double crochet.

Just like in Option 1, we will continue working up this last raw edge.

On this raw edge, whenever a “right side” half double crochet faces us and there is a chain 1 on the side, we will place 1 single crochet.

Whenever a “wrong side” half double crochet faces us and there is no chain 1 on the side, we will place 2 single crochet – 1 in the center of the post (or around the post) and 1 in the top of the stitch.

Continue working down the side to the end of the raw edge.

Now all of the necessary stitches are placed for Option 2 of the border. Now we can chain 2 and slip stitch to the first border stitch of the round to close.

Because we have worked more stitches into the sides of the project, the border is much more flat and uniform. The stitches don’t need to stretch out to reach the side of the next row, which helps eliminate any rolling or warping.

When do I use Option 1 or Option 2?

When working a border on half double crochet stitches, it’s really up to you and what you want out of the project when you create your border.

In some cases, 1 single crochet in the side of each row works fine. In others, it doesn’t.

Most typically, you will see my patterns require Option 2 as it is my preferred method of crocheting a border. In general, I believe Option 2 looks better and is a much better base to work further border rounds on without risking the project becoming warped.

The reality is that sometimes working a border on half double crochet stitches is going to take some trial and error.

Once you’ve practiced crocheting a border on half double crochet using both options, you’ll come to see which method you prefer and why.

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Now that you’ve gone through this tutorial on how to crochet a border on half double crochet stitches, I’d recommend practicing placing a border on swatches made of scrap yarn.

The more you practice a technique, the better you’ll be at using it, of course!

But I suggest practicing with a swatch made of scrap yarn so that you can really zero in and focus on learning without the pressure of finishing a project.

Once you’re comfortable with placing a border on half double crochet stitches, you can learn how to place a border on other stitches like single crochet and double crochet or on double crochet projects that use the Stacked Single Crochet technique.

Did you find this tutorial helpful? Save it for later and share it with others by Pinning it to Pinterest!

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