Read Crochet Patterns Basics: Gauge

How to Read Crochet Patterns: Understand the Gauge

This article will tell you about the most important thing that you need to be able to do before you start a project pattern: crochet to the gauge that is specified in the pattern.

The word "gauge" rhymes with "cage. In crochet circles, it is also known as "tension". It refers to how tightly or loosely you crochet.

How a Crochet Pattern Tells You the Gauge

A typical pattern will specify the following items:

• Yarn: this might be particular brand of yarn, or a general category of yarn.
• Hook Size: there are several standards for Crochet hooks - US, Metric, British/UK. Below is one conversion chart, thanks to the folks at YarnForward.com:
• Gauge: the number of stitches and rows in a certain number of inches or centimeters. Usually, it is the number of stitches and rows in 4 inches or 10 centimeters.

The yarn, the hook size, and the gauge specification all work together to help you ensure that your project will be the correct size - and that the resulting fabric will feel right (have the right drape or stiffness).

In the rest of this section, reference will be made to a pattern that includes the following specifications:

• Yarn: Bernat Softee Baby
• Hook: Metric size 4 mm, or US size number G or 6, or British size 8
• Gauge: 18.5 single crochet stitches and 19 rows in 4" or 10 cm.

Other patterns and other yarns will have different gauges. This is just an example.

How the Yarn Tells You the Gauge

First, here is a scan of the label of the yarn specified above, Bernat Baby Softee:

Bernat Softee Baby label

Notice, near the top of the label, a little box (the second from the left) that says 10 x 10 cm and 4 x 4 inches. This is the standard size of a "gauge swatch".

Bernat Softee Baby label

In the middle of this little box on the label, there are the words "US 6" and "4 mm", around a graphic that represents a pair of knitting needles. In the box to the right is the corresponding graphic for crochet hooks, saying that you should use a 4 mm or US G/6 hook.

Not surprisingly, this "US G/6" and "4 mm" was also specified in the sample pattern header given above. The yarn manufacturers provide information on the recommended hook size so that the fabric that you create will have the feel and drape that they think is appropriate for this yarn.

Finally, this little box on the label shows a square of "knitted" fabric, and surrounding it are the words "22 S" and "30 R". These numbers are for the KNITTERS, not the CROCHETERS!! There is no crochet stitch or row gauge specification on the yarn.

This means that you have to look at the pattern for the gauge specification for crochet. This is an important point!

The reference pattern says that the gauge is 18.5 single crochet stitches and 19 rows in 4" or 10 cm.

This gauge specification is telling you that with THIS yarn, using THIS hook, YOUR 4" or 10 cm square piece of crocheted fabric should be 18 1/2 single crochet stitches wide and 19 rows long, if you want to make the project the given size.

How to Make a Gauge Swatch

Strong Recommendation: Before you start to crochet a project, create a gauge swatch. Make a foundation chain long enough and crochet enough rows to make a piece of crochet fabric at least 4" or 10 cm square. Checking the gauge with a smaller swatch is generally less accurate.

To make your gauge swatch for this gauge, you should make a chain at least 20 stitches long (or a few stitches more than the number that should be in 4" or 10 cm). More is better, especially with single crochet, because it has a bit of curl to it. Then measure a 4" or 10 cm section of the fabric, and count the number of stitches and rows.
Here is the gauge check that I did for this gauge specification (I only crocheted a couple of inches before deciding to check). Notice that there are a couple of pins at the 0" and 4" marks of the ruler. The picture should be clear enough that you can count the number of stitches between the pins. I counted 18 1/2. Do you?

Gauge Check

The problem is, of course, that YOUR RESULTS MAY VARY! Even when using the specified yarn and hook. And especially if you decide to use a different yarn. And sometimes just because you are new to crochet, and you haven't quite landed on the correct tension.

When The Gauge Swatch Is Not Correct

So, what can go wrong?

• Too few stitches = Too loose: If the way YOU crochet means that in 4" or 10 cm you have only 16 or 17 stitches instead of 18.5 stitches, that means that you crochet more loosely than the pattern designer recommends for THIS yarn. Your project will end up too big - and maybe too floppy.
  • Sometimes you can fix the problem by conscientiously crocheting tighter.
  • Sometimes you can fix it by using a smaller hook.
  • Then you will have to make a new gauge swatch until you land on Perfection.
  • Finally, you should then make note of what it took for YOU to match the pattern designer specifications.
• Too many stitches = Too tight: On the other hand, perhaps in 4" or 10 cm you managed to get 20 or 21 or more stitches. This means that you are Crochet more tightly than the pattern designer recommends for THIS yarn. Your project will end up too small - and maybe too stiff.
  • Try loosening up.
  • Try a larger hook.
  • Then make another gauge swatch.
  • Finally, note what it takes for your crocheting to match what the manufacturer wants.
• Different yarn: Maybe you are substituting yarn - using what is in your stash or what is available in the stores because you can't find the specific yarn. The best yarn to substitute would be something where the manufacturer puts the same knitting gauge on the label - 22 stitches and 30 rows in 4" or 10 cm, in this case. That would suggest that crocheted fabric in the new yarn should have the same characteristics as the specified yarn.

Confession time: I tend to crochet tightly. On the gauge photo above, those who are knowledgeable about crochet will note that I am using a much larger hook than was specified - in fact, it is TWO sizes larger. Because that's what it took to be able to crochet to the correct gauge.

Remember that the manufacturer's and pattern designers gauge specifications are designed to make the resulting fabric feel right. If you crochet too tightly, the fabric will feel stiff. If you crochet too loosely, it will have insufficient body.

So if you are substituting yarn where the manufacturer has specifed a different knitting gauge, then you are going down an unmarked road, because you may not know the appropriate crochet gauge. This means, unfortunately, that you may have to deal with the mathematics of changing a pattern to fit the yarn.

For example, if 18.5 single crochet stitches was supposed to be 4", as in this pattern, but your yarn is thick and fluffy and works up to 9 stitches in 4" with probably a much bigger hook, you will only chain about HALF the specified number of stitches at the beginning. I say "about half", because usually the last one or two or three chains is the turning chain.

A side note: there are very few patterns where the Row Gauge (19 rows in 4" or 10 cm in this case) is important. Most patterns have you crochet a certain length, not a certain number of rows. And USUALLY (but not always), if you crochet the correct stitches per 4", you will most probably crochet the correct rows per 4".

Conclusion

At this point, you know to check your gauge by making a gauge swatch and measuring to confirm that you crochet the correct number of stitches in 4" or 10 cm.

You now have the confidence that when you make your project, it will end up the right size.

Remember, the most critical information in a pattern is the gauge specification. If you can "crochet to gauge", you will be successful.