A slip stitch barely adds height. That makes it useful when you need to join a round, move across a few stitches or finish an edge without building another full row. It is also easy to tighten too much because there is so little visible fabric in the movement.
US patterns commonly abbreviate it as sl st; UK patterns may use ss. Always read the abbreviation key supplied with the design.
Make the stitch in one continuous movement
With one loop on the hook, insert into the place specified by the pattern. Yarn over and draw that yarn through the fabric and straight through the loop already on the hook. One loop remains.
If you pull up a loop, pause with two loops on the hook, then yarn over again to finish, you have made a single crochet instead. For a slip stitch, the same drawn-up loop passes through the loop that was already there.
Practice without a project attached
Make a short chain with smooth yarn. Slip stitch into the second chain from the hook, then into a few more chains. Stop before the strip becomes difficult to handle. Look for the small Vs left by the stitches and compare their height with a row of single crochet.
Now try another short strip with a more relaxed grip. Let each completed loop reach the full shaft of the hook before inserting again. This comparison helps you feel the difference between a compact stitch and an over-tightened one.
Joining a round: choose the destination first
“Join with a slip stitch” is incomplete without knowing where to join. A pattern may ask you to join to the first actual stitch, or to the top of a starting chain that counts as a stitch. Those are different targets.
- Find the first counted stitch before working the last few stitches of the round.
- Check that the round has its expected stitch count.
- Insert into the stated joining point and make the slip stitch.
- Follow the next round’s starting instructions. Do not assume the joining slip stitch becomes an extra stitch.
A marker in the first counted stitch is especially helpful. Without it, the join can creep sideways as you accidentally work into an old joining stitch on each round.
Why the join looks like an extra stitch
A joining slip stitch has visible loops even when the pattern excludes it from the count. If you count every small shape at the top without understanding the join, you may report one stitch too many.
Before undoing the round, locate the marker and count only the stitches the pattern says to count. Then inspect the starting chain and join separately. This is easier while the join is still loose enough to distinguish.
Moving across the fabric
Some instructions use several slip stitches to move the working yarn to another position, such as a corner space. Work into each specified destination in order. Do not stretch one long slip stitch across all the skipped fabric unless the pattern explicitly calls for that.
These travel stitches can be tight. Keep them relaxed enough that the section stays flat, particularly if a later row must work into them. A hook forced through a tight stitch can split the yarn rather than solve the tension problem.
A slip-stitch edge can draw a blanket inward
Before edging a whole blanket, work a short section and lay it down. If the border pulls the fabric into a curve, loosen your tension and check placement. A larger hook may help, but it cannot compensate for missing stitches or an unsuitable stitch count.
Slip stitch is useful precisely because it stays low. Treat it as a controlled movement, not as a final tug to tighten the work. That small change makes joins easier to read and edges easier to finish.
Keep learning
Starting a round · Counting around joins · Planning a border