The Camel stitch is a ribbed crochet stitch that only uses double crochet stitches to create the beautiful texture on the front of the fabric. In this stitch guide I will show you how to crochet the Camel stitch with all the pictures that you need along with a video guide that you can follow along with too.

This article contains affiliate links, I may receive a commission for purchases made through these links. As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

I first used the Camel stitch in the 50 Stitches Crochet Along, a 50 piece sampler blanket where each piece was made with a different crochet stitch. You can access the whole pattern for free here.

The Camel stitch is just half double crochet worked into the 3rd loop – That lovely and very useful extra loop created when making half stitches. Working into this 3rd loop only creates a lovely texture that looks like you have a crochet chain running along the front of your piece. This stitch is usually made in the round, but can look just as stunning made in rows too, albeit with a slightly different look.

The Camel stitch when made in rows is a 2 row repeating pattern, where all the texture will be on one side only. The other side should be a nice flat surface with no additional texture at all. If we were making this stitch in the round it would only be a single row repeat.

For the sample in the picture below I used Rico Creative Cotton Aran yarn that comes in a huge range of colours and is a great budget cotton option. I used this yarn to create all the squares in my 50 Stitches crochet along and found it to be a lovely soft cotton to work with, although it does take a bit of getting used to as this cotton yarn isn’t mercerised so can split easily if you’re not used to these types of yarn.

This how to guide is part of Froggity Frog’s Stitch Vault collection. Have you seen all the other stitches in there? You can take a look here all the guides are free to access and maybe you will discover some new stitches to create for yourself.

The yarn I used in the pictures of this stitch guide below is Stylecraft Cotton Classique DK, a 100% cotton yarn. It’s a non mercerised cotton that is lovely and soft, but it can get a bit splitty if you frog it a couple of times. It does makes lovely cosy blankets though and is the yarn that got me hooked on cotton as my fibre of choice. I think I first got a ball of this yarn in a mystery bag I got off ebay, and it was a great yarn discovery for me and I’ve been loving using this yarn ever since.

I also used my trusty Clover Amour hooks which are perfect if you are looking for a good value ergonomic crochet hook that won’t cause your hand to ache if you are crocheting for long periods of time. I’ve tried many different crochet hooks over the years, but I always end up coming back to my trusty Clovers. They just sit so well in my hand and never let me down.

How To Crochet The Camel Stitch

Click here for the left hand video

Abbreviations

• ch = Chain
• St = Stitch
• Hdc = Half Double Crochet

For this stitch you can make a foundation chain in any number of stitches that you wish (plus 1 for your turning chain)

Row 1. In the 2nd chain from your hook make a hdc. Make a hdc in each chain across 

Row 2. Turn and chain 1. Make a hdc  in the first stitch – make this stitch in the 2 loops to stabilise the edges. Make a hdc in each stitch across USING THE BACK LOOP ONLY. Make the final hdc stitch of the row through 2 of the loops to stabilise the edge 

Row 3. Turn and chain 1. Make a dc turning chain in the first stitch (this will count as a hdc) – make this stitch in the 2 loops to stabilise the edges. Make a hdc USING THE 3RD LOOP ONLY in every stitch across. Make the last hdc of the row through 2 of the loops to stabilise the edge

All of the ribbed texture should be on one side of your fabric only.

Repeat rows 2 and 3 until you have as many rows as you need

A quick check to make sure you are using the right loops for each row is that in the even numbered rows you will be using the back loop to make all of your stitches. In the odd numbered rows you will be using the 3rd loop to make all of your stitches. You will have the same number of stitches in every row that you make.

I used the Camel stitch as one of the pieces in my very first crochet along, the sampler blanket The 50 Stitches – find out more about this free pattern here, and join in and access the entire pattern for free.

You can find more free crochet stitch guides here in Froggity Frog’s stitch vault. Come on over to our Facebook group – Froggity Frog’s Ribbit And Stitch and show us what you made with the Camel stitch. I’d love to see what you created with this unusual crochet stitch. 

Don’t forget to sign up to our newsletter to be the first to know about new stitch guides and new crochet pattern releases. You can sign up here and be the first to see what I’ve got cooking behind the scenes here at Froggity Frog.