Popcorn Stitches

Popcorns are decorative stitches that add dimension to a project. They protrude from the fabric nicely, and, unlike bobbles that can easily be pushed from the right side of the fabric to the wrong, popcorn stitches are locked in place. They are great textured stitches.

You can vary the look of popcorns by using more or fewer stitches to create them. A popcorn made with three stitches will be skinny, while a seven-stitch popcorn will be very puffy. You can also work a popcorn using any basic crochet stitch. The examples below use double crochet, but not all popcorns have to be made with double crochet.

Note: Crochet does not have standardized naming conventions for special stitches. Designers may call stitches by whatever name they prefer. For this reason, it is difficult to search online for how a particular special stitch is created. Another reason it is hard to find the “correct” way to work a particular special stitch is because each designer might work a special stitch in their own unique way. Be sure to follow the directions stated in your pattern for how to work the stitch.

 Popcorn Stitch (abbreviated as pc)

*[Yarn over, insert the crochet hook in the indicated stitch or space, yarn over, pull the loop through, {yarn over, pull through 2 loops} twice], repeat from the * 5 times, drop the loop from the hook, insert the hook from the front to the back through the top of the first stitch made, place the dropped loop on the hook and pull through the stitch, chain 1.

Or, you might see it written:

5 double crochet in the indicated stitch or space, drop the loop from the hook, insert the hook from the front to the back in the top of the first double crochet, pick up the dropped loop, draw through the loop on the hook, chain 1 (to close the stitch).

Reverse Popcorn Stitch (abbreviated as reverse pc or rpc)

The reverse popcorn is worked when you are on a wrong-side row and you want the stitch to pop out on the right side of the work. The reverse popcorn stitch can be created with a varying number of stitches.

*[Yarn over, insert the hook in the indicated stitch, yarn over, pull the loop through, (yarn over, pull through 2 loops) twice], repeat from the * 5 times, drop the loop from the hook, insert the hook from the back to the front through the top of the first stitch made, place the dropped loop on the hook and pull through the stitch, chain 1.

Or, you might see it written:

5 double crochet in the indicated stitch or space, drop the loop from the hook, insert the hook from the back to the front in the top of the first double crochet, pick up the dropped loop, draw through the loop on the hook, chain 1 (to close the stitch).