HazelLoopUK

Learn to crochet · lesson 6 of 12 · about 20 minutes

How to half treble crochet (UK htr, US hdc)

To half treble crochet, yarn over, put the hook into the stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop so you have three loops, then yarn over and pull through all three. It sits between a double and a treble in height. US patterns call it half double crochet (hdc).

You’ll need

  • 4mm hook
  • DK yarn
  • a stitch marker (optional)

Step by step

  1. 1Make your chain

    For a row of 15 stitches, make 16 chains. In this lesson the 2 chains you skip at the start count as the first stitch.

    1Yarn over2Pull through the loop on the hookCount the V shapes, not the loop on the hook

  2. 2Yarn over first

    Before you put the hook in, wrap the yarn over the hook from back to front. Every half treble starts with this yarn over.

    1Yarn over first, then insert2Yarn over, pull up a loop (3 loops)3Yarn over, pull through all 3

  3. 3Go into the third chain from the hook

    Skip 2 chains and put the hook into the third chain from the hook, under two strands.

  4. 4Pull up a loop

    Yarn over and pull the yarn through the chain only. You have three loops on the hook.

  5. 5Pull through all three

    Yarn over and pull through all three loops at once. One loop is left. That’s one half treble crochet (htr).

  6. 6Work across

    Make an htr in each chain to the end, remembering the yarn over before each one. You’ll have 14 htr plus the skipped 2 chains, which make 15 stitches.

  7. 7Chain 2 and turn

    Make 2 chains and turn. Here the 2 chains count as the first stitch, so skip the stitch at the base of the chain and make your first htr into the second stitch. Patterns differ on this: some say the ch 2 doesn’t count, and then you work into the first stitch instead. Bella Coco uses both, depending on the pattern, so read the notes.

    Turn the work at the end of each rowTurning chain: 1 for dc, 2 for htr, 3 for tr

  8. 8Finish in the turning chain

    Work an htr into each stitch across. Make the last one into the top chain of the 2-chain turning chain from the row below. Miss it and you lose a stitch each row.

    Same count every rowMarker in first and last stitch

  9. 9Count your stitches

    Count 15 stitches, including the turning chain. Clipping a marker into the top of each turning chain makes the last stitch easy to find.

Check your work

Common mistakes

Working into the stitch at the base of the turning chain when the chain counts as a stitch.
That adds a stitch. Skip it and start in the second stitch.
Missing the top of the turning chain at the end of the row.
Your count drops by one each row. Put the last htr into the top chain of the turning chain.
Pulling through two loops, then the last one, separately.
For htr, pull through all three loops together in one movement.

Practise

Chain 16 and work 8 rows of htr, with 15 stitches in every row counting the ch 2. Then try the other way: chain 17, work the first htr into the 3rd chain from the hook and one in each chain after it (15 htr). On each new row, ch 2, turn, work the first htr into the stitch at the base of the chain, and don’t work into the ch 2 at the end. Compare the edges.

How much yarn for a crochet scarf →

Sources: simply-yarn.com, simply-yarn.com, lovecrafts.com, blog.bellacococrochet.com, blog.bellacococrochet.com, yarnspirations.com, yarnspirations.com, craftyarncouncil.com. Written in UK terms; the US name is in brackets the first time a stitch appears.