Learn how to make a DIY Chain Stitch Garland with chunky yarn using our simple how-to guide. The garland is perfect for adding a cozy touch to your mantel or home decor!
We love any yarn craft, and crochet is no exception.
Crochet can get incredibly ornate and complicated if you want it to - the sweaters, blankets, and stuffed animals people create are mindblowing!
Today, we are going to use the most simple crochet stitch there is - the chain stitch - and use only that one stitch to make a beautiful yarn garland for the mantel!
Let's make one!
DIY Chain Stitch Garland with Chunky Yarn
Step 1. Gather Supplies
Supplies Needed:
- Chunky Yarn
- Large Crochet Hook - (check your yarn wrapper to determine the best hook size for your type of yarn)
- Scissors
Step 2. To begin, make a slip knot with the yarn.
You can use our basic tutorial on how to make a slip knot which is more simplified, or you can do what we did in the photos below.
Start by making a "4" with the yarn.
Reach your fingers into the top of the "4" and pull the long section of yarn up.
This loop you're holding is where you will slide the crochet hook into.
Carefully pull the yarn ends to tighten up the slip knot.
(If that didn't work for you, go look at this slip knot tutorial and try it step by step. Then come back here and continue on.)
Step 3. To do a chain stitch, start by wrapping the yarn around the back of the hook, and then around the front of the hook.
Step 4. Carefully pull the lower loop (the slip knot loop in this case) up over the loop above it, and off of the hook.
You will have only one loop on the hook once you complete this step.
Step 5. Repeat steps 3 and 4 - wrap the yarn around the back and then around the front of the crochet hook.
You'll once again see two "loops" on the hook. (One is an actual loop toward the bottom of the hook, and the top loop is created when you wrap the yarn around the front of the hook.)
You'll lift the bottom loop up and over the top loop, and off the top of the crochet hook, leaving only one loop on the hook.
Step 6. Repeat this chain stitch process of wrapping the yarn around the back and front of the hook, and lifting the lower loop up over the upper loop and off of the hook, until you see your garland start to form.
Each chain stitch makes the garland a little big longer.
You can pull gently on the yarn tail end of your garland and you'll see the stitches become defined and beautiful.
Continue adding to your chain stitch garland until it's as long as you want it to be.
How to end your crochet chain stitch garland:
Once your garland is as long as you want it to be, it's time to end it properly so it doesn't unravel.
Step 8. Cut the yarn, leaving a 12" tail.
Step 9. Slide the loop off of the crochet hook carefully.
Step 10. Thread the end of the yarn tail you just cut through the loop you removed from the crochet hook, and gently pull tight.
That's it! You have casted off your chain stitch crochet garland and it is complete!
Using super chunky yarn to make a chain stitch garland
You can also use super chunky yarn and a jumbo crochet needle to make an oversized chain stitch garland for your mantel.
The process is exactly the same as we did above with the green yarn.
The thicker the yarn, the thicker your crochet garland will be.
I love making any kind of garland!
These chain stitch garlands made by crocheting a simple chain stitch using chunky yarn are some of my new favorites though.
They are super fast to make, and they require the most basic of crochet stitch skills. They're perfect for a beginner, and I think they would be fairly easy for a child to catch on to too.
If you don't have a crochet hook, you can make a similar garland with finger-knitting! You can also use t-shirt yarn to make an eco-friendly garland out of old t-shirts.
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