HookedEvery crocheter knows the moment: the phone rings, the cat jumps on your lap, and suddenly you have no idea whether you're on row 34 or 37. Guess wrong on a shaped piece and you'll be frogging (rip-it, rip-it — pulling out your work) an hour later. Here's how to count rows reliably — and how to make losing count impossible.
1. Read the fabric: ridges and dashes
Lay your work flat. On single crochet fabric, each row creates a visible horizontal line — count the ridges on the back or the dash-like “V”s on the front from bottom to top. Taller stitches (hdc, dc, tr) are even easier since each row is taller and more defined.
2. Use the starting tail as an odd/even check
Stuck between two numbers? Look at the tail from your foundation chain. For right-handed crocheters working flat: tail on the left = you just finished an odd row; tail on the right = even row. (Reverse it if you're a left-handed crocheter.)
3. Place a stitch marker every 10 rows
Clip a locking stitch marker (or a bobby pin) into the edge of every 10th row. Counting 6 markers beats counting 63 rows — and if you ever do need to frog, the markers give you safe checkpoints.
4. Mark the first and last stitch of each row
Most accidental increases and decreases happen at row edges. Marking the first and last stitch of the current row keeps your edges straight and your stitch counts honest.
5. Count stitches, not just rows
Rows tell you where you are; stitch counts tell you whether you're right. Patterns state the expected count per row — verify every few rows so one missed stitch doesn't compound into a trapezoid-shaped scarf.
6. The tally systems (and their limits)
Pen-and-paper tallies, clicker counters, and abacus row-counter bracelets all work — until you forget to click, or can't remember whether you already clicked. Physical counters track numbers, but they can't remember which instruction you were on, and they reset to ambiguity every time you put a project down for a week.
7. Use a smart row counter that remembers everything
This is the category a row counter app was made for — and where Hooked goes further than a digital clicker.
Quick answers
How do I count rows in single crochet?
Lay the fabric flat and count the horizontal ridges on the back of the work from bottom to top — each ridge is one row. Single crochet rows are short, so a stitch marker every 10 rows makes large pieces much easier.
How do I keep my place when I put crochet down for weeks?
Physical counters lose context. A project app like Hooked saves your row, your next pattern instruction, and your progress automatically, so you resume exactly where you stopped.
What does frogging mean in crochet?
Frogging is ripping out stitches to undo a mistake (“rip-it, rip-it” — like a frog). The best cure is prevention: verify stitch counts every few rows so errors are caught while they're one row deep.