35 Free Tunisian Crochet Stitches (Easy Tutorials)

The Tunisian simple stitch is the most basic and widely used Tunisian crochet stitch, perfect for beginners. 

It creates a smooth, grid-like texture that looks slightly woven and lies flat with minimal curling. 

TSS is great for dishcloths, scarves, and blankets, offering a sturdy and consistent fabric. If you are crocheting for the first time, this is the first stitch you will learn. 

The tutorial includes step-by-step photos. 

The Tunisian knit stitch mimics the look of knitted stockinette, with V-shaped stitches that resemble traditional knitting. 

It’s an intermediate stitch, requiring you to insert the hook through the front vertical bar and the loop behind it. 

This stitch is ideal for sweaters, hats, and accessories where you want a knit-like appearance with crochet flexibility.

The post includes a video tutorial to help you along. 

The Tunisian purl stitch creates a soft, textured fabric with horizontal ridges, similar to the purl stitch in knitting. 

It’s an intermediate-level stitch that adds contrast and depth when paired with TKS or TSS. 

TPS is great for scarves, cowls, and textured patterns that need dimension or a cozy, stretchy feel.

The Tunisian reverse stitch is worked from the back of the fabric, creating a subtle ribbed texture and excellent elasticity. 

This intermediate stitch helps reduce curling, making it a good choice for edgings and panels. 

TRS is ideal for blankets, cuffs, and sweaters that need flexibility and structure.

The post includes step-by-step photos and two video tutorials.

The Tunisian full stitch (gobelin stitch) is created by alternating vertical bars between stitches, giving an airy, open look. 

It’s an intermediate stitch that works up quickly and drapes beautifully. 

It's a great choice for lightweight shawls, summer tops, or lacy scarves where you want a breathable, textured fabric.

​The post includes photos and a video tutorial. 

The Tunisian honeycomb stitch alternates the Tunisian simple stitch and Tunisian purl stitch to create a beautiful, woven texture. 

It’s an intermediate stitch that lies flat and adds a stunning two-tone effect when using multiple yarn colors. 

It's a gorgeous stitch for blankets, cushion covers, and home décor projects.

The post includes a video tutorial. 

The Tunisian mesh stitch combines simple stitches and chains to form an airy, openwork design. 

It’s an easy-to-intermediate stitch that produces a lightweight, flexible fabric. This stitch is excellent for shawls, market bags, and summer garments where breathability and texture are key. 

The post includes a step-by-step tutorial. 

This stitch creates a beautiful diagonal crossed pattern by working vertical bars over different posts. 

It gives a bold, structured texture that’s ideal for accent panels or decorative borders. 

Intermediate level — perfect when you want to add visual interest.

The twisted simple stitch adds a subtle spiral twist to the classic TSS by working into a different part of the vertical bar. 

It yields a delicate, rope-like texture that’s still fairly flat. Great as a step up from basic stitches — intermediate difficulty.

The post includes step-by-step photos. 

The smock stitch produces gathered “puffs” that resemble smocking or ruching, adding a fabric-folded effect. 

It’s decorative and works beautifully for yokes, cushions, or panels with dimension. 

Intermediate to advanced — you’ll need to count and manage stitch groups.

This stitch alternates simple and reverse stitches to create a pebbled, nubby texture that’s reversible. 

It’s excellent for projects needing texture on both sides, like blankets or scarves. 

Intermediate difficulty — the alternating pattern keeps things interesting.

The rib stitch forms vertical ribs by alternating front- and back-facing stitch work, giving a stretchy, corrugated fabric.

 It’s perfect for cuffs, socks, or any edge needing elasticity. 

Intermediate level — a useful and practical textured stitch.

This classic textured stitch mimics woven baskets by working blocks of vertical and horizontal elements. 

It gives a thick, structured fabric that’s ideal for home décor, afghans, or bags. 

Intermediate to advanced, especially when managing color changes.

The waffle stitch (or sometimes called Brick Stitch) yields deep, grid-like ridges, giving strong dimension and texture. 

It’s excellent for blankets, heavy scarves, and textured throws. 

Considered intermediate, the pattern rhythm is steady, but the structure is bold.

The puff stitch builds soft, raised puffs by pulling multiple loops through the same stitch before closing them together. 

It’s decorative and works well for accent panels or textured motifs. 

Intermediate to advanced — managing loop height and consistency is key.

The bobble stitch forms round, three-dimensional bumps by working multiple partial stitches in one base stitch and joining them at the top. 

It adds bold texture and sculptural elements to your projects. 

Advanced level — a fun challenge for more confident crocheters.

The Tunisian cluster stitch combines several partial stitches worked together into one, creating a raised, textured cluster. 

It adds volume and visual depth, similar to puff or bobble stitches, but with a softer drape. 

This intermediate to advanced stitch is perfect for blankets, cushions, and decorative panels that need a cozy, dimensional texture.

The Tunisian lace stitch uses chains and skipped stitches to create light, open spaces in the fabric. 

It’s an amazing stitch for projects where breathability and drape matter, such as a shawl, a wrap, or a summer top. 

This intermediate stitch blends Tunisian structure with delicate lacework, adding elegance without complexity. 

The Tunisian eyelet stitch features small, evenly spaced holes that form a subtle openwork pattern. 

It’s ideal for lightweight scarves, market bags, and airy garments, providing texture and ventilation. 

This easy to intermediate stitch gives a decorative touch while maintaining the stability typical of Tunisian crochet.

The Tunisian shell stitch forms fan- or shell-like groups of stitches that create beautiful 

curves and arches across the fabric. 

It adds decorative flair and texture, making it ideal for edgings, blankets, and accent panels. 

Difficulty: intermediate — you’ll need to manage grouping and spacing consistently.

The Tunisian double crochet stitch is taller and more open than standard Tunisian stitches, giving your fabric a looser, airier texture. 

It’s great for projects where you want a lighter, drapey feel—like shawls or summer garments. 

Difficulty: intermediate — because the stitch is taller, you’ll need to maintain even tension to prevent distortion.

The Saloniki stitch alternates textured ribs with open stitches to produce a stretchy, rib-like fabric. 

It works beautifully for garments, cuffs, or anything needing elasticity and structure. 

Difficulty: intermediate to advanced — you’ll be working alternating patterns and managing rib formation.

The arrowhead stitch creates chevron or V-shaped motifs in your fabric by combining increases and decreases across each row. 

It’s striking for garments, shawls, and decorative blankets where you want directional texture. 

Difficulty: intermediate — count your stitches carefully and follow shaping instructions closely.

The pebble stitch yields a bubbly, raised texture that resembles little stones scattered across the fabric. 

It’s excellent for adding tactile interest to blankets, cushions, or accent panels. 

Difficulty: intermediate to advanced — managing loop heights and cluster formation is essential for consistent pebbles.

The Tunisian cable stitch mimics the twisting cables of knitwear by crossing groups of stitches over one another. 

It’s terrific for sweaters, hats, and textured garments where you want that cable effect in crochet. 

Difficulty: advanced — you’ll need to manipulate stitch placement carefully and often use a cable needle or stitch-holding technique.

The chevron stitch forms a zigzag or chevron pattern by combining increases and decreases in a repeating motif. 

It’s well-suited for blankets, shawls, and scarves that benefit from bold geometry. 

Difficulty: intermediate — maintaining symmetry and stitch counts is key.

The chill stitch alternates different height stitches and dropped loops to create a relaxed, textured “chill” pattern.

 It’s great for cozy throws, cardigans, or projects where you want softness with subtle interest. 

Difficulty: intermediate — you’ll need to pay attention to dropped stitches and order of operations.

The Tunisian lattice stitch is a decorative stitch that alternates blocks of Tunisian simple stitch (TS) with lattice stitch (LS) to create a criss-cross, lattice-like texture. 

It requires you to work into groups of vertical bars (e.g. three stitches) for the LS portion, giving the fabric a striking, open-grid effect. 

Difficulty: intermediate — because you’ll need to manage stitch groupings and counts to keep the lattice pattern aligned.

The Tunisian top stitch (also called the Tunisian bump stitch) is worked into the “top bump” (the back bump of the return pass chain), creating a looser, more drapey fabric than the standard simple stitch. 

Because of its relaxed structure, it resists curling and yields a softer hand—ideal for shawls, wraps, scarves, or light garments. 

Difficulty: beginner to easy intermediate—it’s a good next step after you’ve mastered the basic Tunisian stitches.

The Tunisian lozenge stitch forms diamond or lozenge motifs by alternating worked stitches and open spaces (skipped stitches or chain spaces), giving your fabric a geometric lace-like appearance. 

It works beautifully in shawls, lightweight blankets, and decorative panels where you want both structure and airflow. 

Difficulty: intermediate — you’ll need to keep track of shaping and pattern repeats carefully.

The Tunisian lacy shells stitch combines shell clusters (groups of worked stitches) with chain gaps to produce an airy, elegant, openwork texture. 

It’s perfect for summer wraps, beach cover-ups, shawls, or decorative overlays that need drape and lightness. 

Difficulty: intermediate — the lace effect comes from careful stitch placement, especially in the return pass.

The Tunisian drop stitch uses elongated loops that are dropped or released in later rows, creating dramatic vertical openwork columns. 

This results in an airy, lace-like fabric that’s perfect for shawls, scarves, or breezy wraps. 

Difficulty: intermediate — you’ll need to manage elongated loops and ensure even tension to maintain neat openings.

The Tunisian extended stitch involves inserting the hook a certain number of rows below the current row to “extend” the stitch vertically, giving a decorative, elongated bar effect. 

It adds visual interest and texture without too much bulk, making it suitable for panels, borders, or decorative accents. 

Difficulty: intermediate — you’ll need good stitch counting and the ability to reach lower rows cleanly.

The Tunisian ocean stitch creates waving, undulating patterns reminiscent of ocean waves, through clever increases, decreases, and combinations of taller stitches. 

It’s great for blankets, afghans, or shawls where you want flowing, dynamic movement in fabric. 

Difficulty: intermediate to advanced — since you’ll deal with shaping, stitch multiples, and maintaining symmetry.

The Tunisian treble crochet (TTC) stitches are taller and more open, similar to treble (triple) crochet, giving fabrics more drape and softness. 

It’s ideal for lighter, breezier pieces like wraps, shawls, or lightweight garments. 

Difficulty: intermediate — because of the height, tension becomes more critical, and you’ll need to keep your loops and passes consistent.