A magic ring or circle is the best way to start crocheting in the round because it leaves no hole in the middle of your work, unlike the traditional way of starting a crochet project with a ring of chains.
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Crochet Magic Ring Video Tutorial
This short video explains how a crochet magic circle works & shows you a quick and easy way to do it. There’s also step by step instructions with pictures below if you prefer a written guide.
Step by Step Instructions
How to Make a Crochet Magic Ring (or Magic Circle)
Step 1: Make a loop with your yarn tail
With your yarn ball to the right, take your yarn tail & lay it over itself to make a big loop. This loop will be your magic ring. You will crochet stitches into it and then pull the yarn end tight to make a circle with no hole.
Step 2: Pinch the top
Pinch the top of the loop with your left hand to make a round shape.
Step 3: Pull your working yarn through
With your right hand, put your crochet hook through the ring, grab your working yarn and pull a loop back through on your hook.
Nearly there. Now you just need to make a chain with this loop to secure your ring.
Step 4: Make a chain
Put your right index finger on the loop on your hook to keep it safe and grab your ring with your right hand.
Now move the yarn ball back to the left, tighten up the loop on your hook & make a chain.
Magic Circle Complete
Your magic circle is now set up. Open up your hand and you’ll see you have your chain, your magic ring to crochet into and your yarn tail to pull it closed later on. Now you can start crocheting in the round by making single crochet into this ring.
Crocheting into a Magic Circle: Beginner Tips
Keep your magic ring nice and big
It’s much easier to make the first round of crochet stitches when your ring is nice and big with plenty of room to crochet into. You can tighten it right up to make a neat circle at the end of round 1.
Always put your hook under both strands of the ring
Make sure you put your hook under both yarn strands in your ring when crocheting your first round of stitches into it. Otherwise the magic ring won’t close properly.
How to Single Crochet Round 1 in a Magic Circle
Making your first round of single crochet stitches into a magic circle is similar to crocheting into a ring of chains.
Crochet in the round patterns usually start with a first round of single crochet stitches (or double crochet in the uk). Here’s how to do this step by step, or watch the video demo above to see it in action:
- Tighten up the loop on your hook if needed before you start crocheting.
- To make your first single crochet stitch: push your hook through the ring, under both yarn strands, yarn over hook and pull a loop through. Yarn over hook & pull it through both loops on your hook.
- Repeat step 2 until you have the number of single crochet stitches you need in round 1 of your pattern instructions. Remember to put your hook under both strands of the ring every time.
Once you have made all the single crochet stitches for round 1, it’s time to close your magic circle.
How to close your crochet magic circle
After making your first round of crochet stitches, gently pull on the yarn tail to close your magic ring.
This is where the magic happens. As you pull the yarn tail, you will see the ring start to get smaller and smaller. And your row of crochet stitches turn into a cute circle shape.
If you’re crocheting in a continuous spiral, e.g. making amigurumi, you would just start round 2 by crocheting into the next stitch. Or if you are joining rounds, you can slip stitch into the first stitch to finish round 1 as usual.
How do I Keep my Magic Circle Tight?
There’s still a teeny hole in the middle after crocheting round 1, and that hole will get bigger as you crochet more rounds.
Don’t worry, it’s easy to fix this and have no hole in the middle of your crochet as promised. The trick is to pull the yarn end tight again later. This makes the hole vanish and keeps your magic circle tight.
Top tip: don’t weave in your yarn tail until near the end of your project, so you can tighten further if needed.
Here’s a picture showing the slightly bigger hole after 2 rounds (left), but after pulling the yarn end tight again the hole disappears (right).
Is there a Difference between a Magic Circle and Magic Ring in Crochet?
No. The crochet terms magic circle, magic ring, magic loop, magic knot and magic hole all mean the same thing. They are just different names for the method used to start crochet in the round projects without a hole in the middle. Magic circle and Magic Ring are the 2 most popular names for this crochet technique.
Note: there is also a magic loop technique in knitting, but that’s something completely different altogether!
Can I use a Magic Ring for all Crochet in the Round Projects?
Yes you can start any crochet in the round pattern with a magic circle instead of a ring of chains (aka a foundation ring). Here’s how to modify any crochet pattern to start with a magic circle:
- Ignore the first pattern instruction to make a small number of chains (usually 4) and then slip stitch to the first chain to make a ring.
- Make a magic circle instead.
- Crochet round 1 of your pattern, by making the single crochet stitches into your magic circle instead of a ring of chains.
- Pull your yarn tail at the end of round 1 to close your magic circle.
- Follow the rest of your crochet pattern as usual from round 2 onwards.
I hope you found this tutorial helpful. Magic circles are pretty nifty & an easy way to give your crochet in the round projects a neat, professional finish. Got any questions? Just leave a comment below and I’ll try to help.