Crochet guide
Crochet border for blanket: easy styles, corners and stitch counts
Updated by Khokhar Sab
Start any crochet border for a blanket with a round of single crochet: 1 stitch in each stitch along the top and bottom, and 3 stitches in each corner. Along the sides, work 1 single crochet per single crochet row and 2 or 3 per double crochet row. If the edge ruffles, use fewer stitches. If it cups, add more. Then add a decorative round such as crab stitch, shells or picots.
Easy crochet borders for blankets compared
This table sums up how Raffamusa Designs, Sarah Maker, Treasurie, Attic24 and Nana's Crafty Home describe the simple borders. Every one of them starts on a round of single crochet.
| Border | How you make it | Stitch count needed | Good for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single crochet | One or more rounds of sc all around | Any | The base round for any border |
| Back loop sc | Rounds of sc in the back loop only | Any | A simple finish |
| Crab stitch | Sc round, then sc worked backward, left to right | Any | A neat last round |
| Shell or scallop | Sc round, then 5 dc in one stitch with skips and slip stitches between | Multiple of 5 or 6 | A scalloped edge |
| Picot | Sc round, then sc with a chain 3 loop every few stitches | Multiple of 5 in one version | A delicate edge |
| Granny stitch | Clusters of 3 dc in chain spaces, (3 dc, ch 2, 3 dc) at corners | 3 + 2 per side | Granny square blankets |
| Moss or linen stitch | Single crochet and chains only | See the pattern | A quiet texture next to a busy blanket stitch |
Raffamusa Designs gives the shell round two ways. For a multiple of 5, skip 1, work 5 dc in the next stitch, skip 2 and slip stitch in the next. For a multiple of 6, skip 2 at the start instead. Its picot is a chain 3 closed with a slip stitch in the first chain. Attic24's granny blanket edging uses two rounds of chain 5 loops and then a round of scallops, and works around any size of granny square blanket.
Start with a round of single crochet
Sarah Maker, Treasurie and Raffamusa Designs all set up a border with a base round of single crochet. That round evens out the edge and gives the decorative round a row of identical stitches to work into. This matters most on blankets made in rows or corner to corner, where Raffamusa Designs notes the sides of the stitches form the raw edge. Attach the yarn at a corner, work single crochet evenly along each side and join with a slip stitch at the end of the round.
For width, Treasurie suggests working as many single crochet rounds as you need before the patterned round.
How many stitches along the sides and the top
The top and bottom edges are easy: Crafting Happiness works 1 single crochet in each stitch. The sides are harder, because you work into row ends, and a tall row needs more than one border stitch. Raffamusa Designs gives this guide for the first single crochet round:
| Blanket rows in | Border sc per row end |
|---|---|
| Single crochet | 1 |
| Double crochet | 2 or 3 |
| Treble crochet | 3 or 4 |
Crafting Happiness places 2 per double crochet row: one around the post of the end stitch and one into its base. For a double crochet border on the sides, Jewels and Jones works 1 dc per row.
These are starting points, and the calculator's default gauge shows why you should check them. At 14 stitches and 16 rows per 4 inches, the 50 by 60 inch throw has 175 stitches across and 240 rows down. One border stitch per row end puts 240 stitches along each long side, or 16 per 4 inches. The top gets 14 per 4 inches. If your border stitches are as wide as your body stitches, the sides would carry extra stitches, which is the setup for ruffling. Your own swatch decides the real ratio, so work a few inches and look before you go on.
How to work the corners
A corner has to turn 90 degrees, so it needs extra stitches. Sarah Maker warns that a corner without them curls, and that the curl gets worse with every round.
- Single crochet rounds: 3 sc in the corner stitch, per Crafting Happiness, Treasurie and Nana's Crafty Home. Love Life Yarn also uses (sc, ch 1, sc) for a neater corner.
- Double crochet rounds: Jewels and Jones works 3 dc in the corner on the first round. On the next round it works dc, then 2 dc in the middle corner stitch, then dc, for 4 corner stitches.
- Granny stitch rounds: (3 dc, ch 2, 3 dc) in each corner space, per Nana's Crafty Home.
- Chain loop rounds: Attic24 lets the chain 5 loops carry straight around the corner, and the scallops follow them.
Jewels and Jones adds one more stitch if a corner looks rounded or tight. Bella Coco's prep round for its borders works 3 stitches in each corner space.
Keeping the border from ruffling or cupping
Sarah Maker and Love Life Yarn describe the same two problems, and both come down to stitch count:
| What you see | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Border ruffles or waves | Too many stitches | Work fewer per row end, or skip one every few stitches |
| Border cups or curls up | Too few stitches, or working too tightly | Add stitches, or go up a hook size |
| Blanket body pulls in | Too few border stitches | Add stitches in the first border round |
| Corners curl | No extra corner stitches | Work 3 stitches in each corner |
Sources disagree on the hook. Crafting Happiness uses a hook one size smaller than the blanket's for a tighter edge. Treasurie says the hook and yarn should ideally match the main piece. Love Life Yarn suggests trying a size up or down if the border still won't lie even. The crochet hook size chart lists the sizes in order.
Check the stitch multiple before a shell, picot or granny round. Love Life Yarn notes that some borders need an even or odd count. You can fix a count in the single crochet round by adding or skipping a stitch near each corner. Nana's Crafty Home skips 1 stitch instead of 2 at a corner when the count is off.
How to crochet a border on a blanket, step by step
- Join the yarn at a corner and chain 1.
- Work the single crochet round: 1 sc per stitch on the top and bottom, the row end counts above on the sides and 3 sc in each corner. Join with a slip stitch.
- Lay it flat and check. Pull back and adjust a side that ruffles or cups before you go further.
- Add more sc rounds if you want a wider border, with 3 sc in each corner every time.
- Work the decorative round, such as shells, picots or crab stitch.
- Fasten off and weave the tail into the first stitches of the round.
Crab stitch makes a good last round. Heart Hook Home describes it as single crochet in reverse: right-handed crocheters work left to right, putting the hook into the next stitch to the right. It also notes that the stitch is hard to crochet back into, so plan it as the final round.
Joining a granny square blanket first? The guide to joining granny squares covers the seams before the border goes on. For a corner to corner blanket, see how to crochet C2C.
Choosing border width and color
Sarah Maker suggests matching the border to the blanket's size. Small blankets look good with narrow borders, and large ones can carry borders up to a few inches wide. Raffamusa Designs adds that a wide border can fix a blanket that came out too narrow or too short. The blanket size chart lists standard finished sizes to aim for.
For color, Treasurie says a matching border blends in and a contrasting one stands out. For a blanket that already has many colors, Raffamusa Designs suggests a few rounds in a neutral or in the joining color. Another option it gives is a round in each blanket color, from lightest to darkest.
How much yarn a crochet border takes
A border adds area around the outside of the blanket. The blanket yarn calculator finds it as the bordered size minus the plain size. A 1 inch border on the throw adds (50 + 2) × (60 + 2) − 3,000 = 224 square inches. The table below runs that math for five blanket sizes with the calculator's default swatch: 15 yards in a 4 by 4 inch square, or 0.9375 yards per square inch. It leaves out the safety margin.
| Blanket | Body yards | 1" border adds | 2" border adds | 4" border adds |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stroller (30 × 35 in) | 985 | 125 yd (11%) | 259 yd (21%) | 547 yd (36%) |
| Crib (45 × 60 in) | 2,532 | 200 yd (7%) | 408 yd (14%) | 847 yd (25%) |
| Throw (50 × 60 in) | 2,813 | 210 yd (7%) | 427 yd (13%) | 885 yd (24%) |
| Twin (66 × 90 in) | 5,569 | 296 yd (5%) | 600 yd (10%) | 1,230 yd (18%) |
| Queen (90 × 100 in) | 8,438 | 360 yd (4%) | 727 yd (8%) | 1,485 yd (15%) |
The percentage is the border's share of the whole blanket's yarn. What the numbers show:
- A 2 inch border on a throw adds about an eighth. That is 427 yards, or 13% of the 3,240 yard total.
- Doubling the width more than doubles the yarn. On the throw, 2 inches takes 427 yards and 4 inches takes 885. Each extra round is longer than the one inside it.
- Small blankets feel a border most. A 4 inch border is 36% of a stroller blanket's yarn, but 15% of a queen's.
These figures assume the border uses as much yarn per square inch as the body. Shells, puffs and other textured rounds use more. Sarah Maker suggests crocheting a short sample of the border to measure its yarn. To scale the table to your own swatch, multiply each number by your swatch's yards divided by 15. For the full total with a buffer and skein count, use the blanket yarn calculator. The guide to estimating yarn from a swatch walks through the same math by hand.
Common questions
What is the easiest crochet border for a blanket?
A few rounds of single crochet. Raffamusa Designs points out it works with any stitch count, so there is no math. Crab stitch also works with any count and gives a neat finish.
Should a border be a different color?
Either works. Treasurie notes a matching color blends in, while a contrast stands out.
How wide should a blanket border be?
Sarah Maker keeps borders narrow on small blankets and up to a few inches wide on large ones. Use the yarn table above to see what each extra inch costs.
Why is my crochet border wavy?
Too many stitches. Take some out along the sides, or try a smaller hook, then check again after a few inches.
Sources and further reading
Raffamusa Designs gives row end counts and over 40 border patterns in its guide to crochet borders for blankets. Sarah Maker covers corners, cupping and border width in 27 Free Crochet Borders and Edgings for Blankets. Crafting Happiness shows side stitches on double crochet rows in its single crochet edging tutorial. Heart Hook Home explains the crab stitch. Attic24's Granny Blanket Edging shows a three round edging for granny blankets. Treasurie, Love Life Yarn, Jewels and Jones, Bella Coco and Nana's Crafty Home also publish border tutorials.
Video tutorial
"PREPARING YOUR CROCHET FOR A BORDER | Bella Coco Crochet | Easy Crochet" by Bella Coco, on YouTube. The video loads only when you press play.