How To Finish Off Crochet - Easiest Ways

Learn the right way how to finish off crochet. You have worked on your crochet project for weeks now, you finally get to the end of your pattern, and it says “fasten off”. Now what? Here is how to fasten off your yarn and weave in your ends. We will also take a look at how to work edgings on your crochet, and how to join up all the separate pieces of your crochet. In short, all the hints and tips you need to be able to finish off your crochet items.

How to Finish off Crochet

Finishing off crochet involves:

1. Tying the yarn to stop it from unraveling
2. Creating borders
3. Joining pieces together

Fastening Off your Yarn

When you get to the last stitch of your work, cut the thread 5-6” (12-15 cm) from the hook.

Draw the cut end of the yarn through the last loop on the hook. This is just as though you are going to make a chain stitch, but then pull the yarn all the way through instead of forming a loop.

Your crochet is now secure and won’t unravel easily. Pull that tail end of the yarn until it is reasonably tight. (But not too tight!) This fastens off the yarn without making any extra knots.

Now thread the leftover tail of yarn into a yarn needle. Weave the tail through 4 or 5 stitches.

Go back again, weaving in the opposite direction, back to where you first started weaving. This secures your yarn even more firmly.

Pull the yarn tight, and cut it about ½“ (1.4 cm) from the crochet fabric. Now pull gently on the fabric and the yarn will disappear into the crochet stitches.

Tip: When you are starting your crochet project, leave a 5-6” (12-15cm) tail of yarn before you begin your foundation chain, so that you will be able to weave this end in, in the same way. This ensures that you don’t have any annoying little bits of yarn sticking out of your completed project.

 How To Finish Off Crochet with Borders

Many crocheters like to make blankets. If you are following a specific pattern, it will give you a pattern for the border as well. However, if you are just putting together a whole lot of granny squares or other motifs, or you are crocheting a simple row pattern to use up scraps, you will need a simple border to finish off the project neatly. These borders can be used for anything else as well, for example, potholders, table toppers, crochet edges on pillowslips, and so on.

There are, of course very many border patterns with which to finish off your crochet masterpiece. Some are very beautiful, but incredibly complex, some involve many many rounds of crochet. If you want a spectacular border, you can easily find many complicated patterns online. If, however, you are still fairly new to crochet, or don’t have a lot of time to complete your project, here are a few very simple, quick, and easy borders that will still finish off your work neatly and attractively.

Abbreviations For These Borders

Note: US terminology has been used for all these stitches.

• ch- chain stitch
• sc- single crochet
• dc- double crochet
• sp-space
• sk- skip
• st-stitch
• yo- yarn over

Single Crochet Border

The simplest border of all is to simply work two rows of single crochet all the way around the edges. This straightens out your side edges neatly and just gives an even neat edge all the way around. It is your choice whether to do each row in a different color or stick to just one color for both rows. In these diagrams, I have crocheted the borders in a contrasting color for visibility.

Picot Border

This is another really simple stitch that gives a pleasing result. A picot is a little bump made by three chain stitches.

1. Row 1- single crochet all the way around. This evens out any bumpy edges.
2. Row 2- *sc 2, (sc1, ch3, sc1, all into same stitch)
3. Repeat from* all the way around.

V Stitch Border

This makes an attractive ruffled edging.

1. Row 1-  (sc1, ch1 sk 1) all the way around.
2. Row 2- ch2, dc into ch1 sp, ch2, 2 dc into same space. *2 dc into next ch sp, ch2, 2 dc.
3. Repeat from *all the way around.

Simple Shell Border

1. Row 1- sc all the way around.
2. Row 2- (sk 1 st, dc 5 sts into next st, sk1, sl st into next st.)
3. Repeat all the way around.

All of these borders involve only 2 simple rows and will finish off any project off beautifully, from garments to blankets to potholders. If you feel that the 2-row border is proportionally too small for your large blanket, simply add a few rows of single crochet before you add the ‘shaped’ part of the border.

How to Finish Off Crochet by Joining

Another aspect of finishing off crochet work is how to join separate pieces of crochet, whether putting motifs together or assembling a garment.

Joining Seams With a Yarn Needle

If you don’t have a specially made yarn needle, you can use any tapestry needle with a blunt tip and a large eye. The blunt tip helps to avoid splitting your yarn while you are sewing, and the large eye is obviously to thread your thick yarn through. You should use the same yarn to stitch pieces together as you used for the crochet project. This will help to make your seams invisible.

In the pictures, I have used contrasting yarn for visibility.

Cut the yarn approximately twice the length of the seam.

1. Mattress Stitch

Place right sides of your crochet fabric together, matching the loops of the stitches along the top of the work.

1. Join the yarn onto the work at one end. Leave 5-6” (12-15 cm) for weaving in afterwards.
2. Insert the needle into the first loop after the join, from back to front. Pull the yarn up, but don’t pull too tight, or you will gather your work.
3. Now insert the yarn into the next loop, this time from front to back. Repeat across the entire seam.

It opens out flat to look like this. If you are not using contrasting yarn it makes a fairly invisible seam. When your seam is complete, sew a double stitch and weave in both ends of your sewing yarn.

2. Whip Stitch

1. Place right sides of your crochet fabric together, matching the loops of the stitches along the top of the work.
2. Join the yarn onto the work at one end. Leave 5-6” (12-15 cm) for weaving in afterwards.
3. Insert your needle into the first loop after the join, from back to front.
4. Lift the yarn over the top and insert the needle from back to front again. Keep going like this across the entire seam.
5. When your seam is complete, sew a double stitch and weave in both ends of your sewing yarn.

Joining Seams With A Crochet Hook

If you prefer not to do any sewing, it is also possible to join seams with your crochet hook.

1. Slip Stitch.

• Place right sides of your crochet fabric together, matching the loops of the stitches along the top of the work.
•  Join the yarn onto the work at one end. Leave 5-6” (12-15 cm) for weaving in afterwards.     
• Ch 1
• *Insert hook from front to back, through the next loop, on both pieces of fabric.
• Yo, pull through.
• You have now formed a slip stitch which joins both pieces of fabric together.
• Repeat from * all the way to the end of the seam.
• Fasten off the seam yarn, and weave in both ends.

2. Single Crochet Join

This is good for work where you want the join to be a feature of the finished work. In this case, you can even use a different color yarn for the seam. It gives a more chunky, but very secure seam.

• Place your pieces wrong sides together, matching up loops at the top of the fabric.
• Join the yarn onto the work at one end. Leave 5-6” (12-15 cm) for weaving in afterwards.  
• Ch1
•  *Insert hook from front to back, through the next loop, on both pieces of fabric.
• yo, pull through first 2 loops- the loops of your crochet fabric.
• yo, pull through second 2 loops.
• This makes a sc, which joins the 2 pieces together. Repeat from* to the end of the seam.

• You can see how very visible this seam is!
• Fasten off the seam yarn, and weave in both ends.

Dealing with Uneven Edges

What about the uneven edges, which don’t have such clear loops to work through? If you are joining the sides of a garment, the loops are more uneven and not as clearly defined. You can use any of the methods described above.

• Match up the sides as evenly as possible. Pin into place.
• Work your needle or hook under just 1 strand of yarn on each piece.

If you are seaming up a single crochet fabric, work one stitch for each row. If you have worked in double crochet, you will need to work 2 stitches for each row, the treble will be 3 stitches, and so on. 

How to Finish Off Crochet - In Conclusion

Each of these borders and joining techniques has its own style and look. You must decide which is the best for you to work, and which has the best appearance for your particular project. These instructions should help you turn all that hard work into a fabulous completed crochet item. Now you know how to finish off crochet items, there is no excuse for leaving all those half made pieces in your work basket!