How to Crochet Delphinium Tunisian Version | Crochet Pattern

If you’ve been looking for a stitch pattern that feels both elegant and achievable, the Tunisian crochet delphinium pattern is exactly what your hook hand has been waiting for. This stunning floral design draws inspiration from the tall, spire-like blooms of the delphinium flower — those gorgeous clusters of petals that rise dramatically in cottage gardens every summer. When translated into Tunisian crochet, the result is a textured, layered fabric that mimics that same upward-reaching, petal-stacked beauty in yarn.

Whether you’re new to Tunisian crochet or a seasoned maker looking for your next satisfying project, this guide will walk you through everything you need to know: the tools, the stitches, the pattern itself, and plenty of tips to help you finish with confidence. Let’s dive in.

What Is Tunisian Crochet?

Before we get into the delphinium pattern itself, it’s worth taking a moment to understand Tunisian crochet if you haven’t worked with it before. Tunisian crochet is a hybrid technique that sits somewhere between traditional crochet and knitting. You use a special elongated hook — called a Tunisian crochet hook or Afghan hook — to pick up multiple loops across a row, holding them all on the hook at once, and then work them back off in a return pass.

Each row in Tunisian crochet consists of two passes: the forward pass (picking up loops) and the return pass (working them off). This two-pass system creates a dense, stable fabric with a beautiful grid-like texture. Depending on the stitch variations you use, Tunisian fabric can look like woven cloth, ribbed knitting, or in the case of this pattern, a delicate arrangement of floral motifs.

The Tunisian crochet delphinium version uses a combination of the Tunisian simple stitch, Tunisian purl stitch, and some specialized yarn-over and skip techniques to create the raised petal shapes that give this pattern its name. It sounds complicated, but once you’ve worked through the first pattern repeat, your hands will find their rhythm quickly.

Materials You Will Need

Getting your materials together before you start makes the whole process smoother. Here’s what you’ll need for this pattern.

Hook: A Tunisian crochet hook in the size recommended for your yarn. For a worsted weight yarn, a 5.5mm or 6mm Tunisian hook works well. If you’re working with a DK weight, try a 4.5mm or 5mm hook. Because Tunisian fabric tends to be denser than regular crochet fabric, you may want to size up slightly from the yarn’s recommended hook size.

Yarn: This pattern works beautifully in a smooth, plant-fiber yarn or a wool-blend that shows stitch definition clearly. Cotton, bamboo-cotton blends, or merino wool are all excellent choices. Avoid overly fuzzy or textured yarn for your first attempt, as it will obscure the delicate petal details you’re working hard to create. Choose a color that feels true to delphiniums — a dusty cornflower blue, a soft lavender, a deep violet — or subvert expectations with a warm peach or cream for a different but equally lovely effect.

Notions: A yarn needle for weaving in ends, scissors, stitch markers if you’d like to track your pattern repeats, and a ruler or measuring tape to check your gauge.

Understanding Gauge

Gauge matters in this pattern because the petal shaping depends on consistent stitch proportions. Before you begin your project, crochet a gauge swatch of at least 15 stitches by 15 rows using your chosen yarn and hook.

For worsted weight yarn on a 5.5mm hook, a typical gauge is approximately 16 stitches and 14 rows to 4 inches in Tunisian simple stitch. Your gauge may differ, and that’s completely fine — just note it and adjust your stitch counts accordingly if you’re scaling the pattern up or down.

Stitch Glossary

Here are all the stitches and abbreviations used in this pattern. If any of these are new to you, take a few minutes to practice them on a small swatch before starting the main project.

Tss (Tunisian simple stitch): Insert hook from right to left under the front vertical bar of the next stitch, yarn over, pull up a loop. Leave on hook.

Tps (Tunisian purl stitch): Bring yarn to the front of your work, insert hook from right to left under the front vertical bar of the next stitch, yarn over, pull up a loop. Leave on hook.

TKs (Tunisian knit stitch): Insert hook from front to back between the front and back vertical bars of the next stitch, yarn over, pull up a loop. Leave on hook.

Yo (yarn over): Wrap yarn over the hook and leave the resulting loop on the hook.

Skip: Skip the indicated stitch without picking up a loop.

FP3tog (front post 3 together): A cluster stitch worked around the post of stitches in a previous row to create petal shapes. Insert hook around the front post of the indicated stitch, yarn over and pull up a loop; repeat for the next two indicated stitches; yarn over and pull through all four loops on hook. This creates the characteristic gathered petal at the center of each delphinium motif.

Return pass (RP): Chain 1, yarn over, pull through 2 loops; repeat from to end of row.

SP (slip stitch pickup): Insert hook as for Tss, yarn over, pull up a loop and pull it through the loop on hook immediately (slip stitch style, used at the edges to stabilize).

Pattern Notes

This pattern is worked flat on a Tunisian hook, back and forth in rows. The fabric does not turn between rows in the traditional sense — you always face the same side for the forward pass. This means the right side of your work is always facing you during the forward pass.

The delphinium motif repeat is worked over a multiple of 8 stitches plus 2 for the edge stitches. A good starting width for a dishcloth, small panel, or swatch is a foundation of 34 stitches. For a wider piece like a shawl panel or blanket section, simply add additional multiples of 8 stitches to your foundation.

The pattern repeat is 16 rows tall, creating one full delphinium “bloom” from base to tip before repeating. You can work as many repeats as you like to reach your desired length.

Foundation Row

To begin, make a foundation chain. For the sample swatch, chain 34.

Foundation Forward Pass: Skip the first chain (this counts as the edge stitch). Insert hook into the second chain from the hook, yarn over, pull up a loop and leave it on the hook. Continue across, picking up one loop in each chain. You should have 34 loops on your hook at the end of the forward pass.

Foundation Return Pass: Chain 1, yarn over, pull through 2 loops; repeat from until 1 loop remains. This single remaining loop is always your first stitch of the next forward pass.

The Delphinium Pattern

Now comes the beautiful part. The following rows create the delphinium floral motif. Row numbering refers to pattern rows after the foundation.

Rows 1–3 (Stem and Leaf Base): These rows establish the base of the bloom and the impression of a sturdy stem rising through the fabric.

For these rows, work the entire forward pass in Tss across all stitches, followed by the standard return pass. This plain section creates a calm, even ground from which the floral detail will emerge. Three rows of Tss at this stage gives the fabric a sense of stability and lets the upcoming texture pop with greater visual contrast.

Row 4 (First Petal Placement Row): Forward pass: Work 1 Tss in the first stitch (edge). Work 1 Tps, 1 Tss, 1 Tps, 1 Tss, 1 Tps, 1 Tss, 1 Tps, 1 Tss; repeat from to last stitch, work 1 Tss (edge). Return pass as standard.

The alternating purl and simple stitches in this row begin to suggest the rounded shapes of individual florets along the stem.

Row 5 (Raised Center Row): Forward pass: Work 1 Tss (edge). Work 1 Tss, yo, skip 1, 1 TKs, 1 TKs, 1 TKs, skip 1, yo, 1 Tss; repeat from to last stitch, work 1 Tss (edge). Return pass as standard.

The yarn-overs and skip stitches in this row create small openwork spaces at the sides of each motif, and the three TKs stitches in the center begin raising a column that will become the petal cluster.

Row 6 (Petal Cluster Row): Forward pass: Work 1 Tss (edge). Work 1 Tss, 1 Tps, FP3tog worked around the three TKs stitches from the previous row, 1 Tps, 1 Tss, 1 Tss; repeat from to last stitch, work 1 Tss (edge). Return pass as standard.

This is the signature row of the delphinium pattern. The FP3tog cluster gathers the raised column stitches into a single raised petal shape. When you look at your fabric, you’ll see distinct petal-like raised bumps beginning to form — these are your delphinium florets.

Rows 7–9 (Inter-Petal Rest Rows): Work 3 rows of Tss across all stitches with standard return passes. These plain rows allow the petal clusters to stand out distinctly and visually separate the layers of the bloom, just as delphiniums have clusters of flowers spaced slightly apart along the spike.

Row 10 (Second Petal Placement Row): Forward pass: Work 1 Tss (edge). Work 1 Tss, 1 Tps, 1 Tss, 1 Tps, 1 Tss, 1 Tps, 1 Tss, 1 Tps; repeat from to last stitch, work 1 Tss (edge). Return pass as standard.

Notice that this second placement row is offset by half a repeat from the first one. This staggering is intentional and critical — it creates the alternating, spiraling arrangement of florets that makes a real delphinium bloom look so full and dimensional.

Row 11 (Second Raised Center Row): Forward pass: Work 1 Tss (edge). Work 1 TKs, 1 TKs, skip 1, yo, 1 Tss, yo, skip 1, 1 TKs, 1 TKs; repeat from to last stitch, work 1 Tss (edge). Return pass as standard.

Row 12 (Second Petal Cluster Row): Forward pass: Work 1 Tss (edge). FP3tog worked around the first three available TKs stitches, 1 Tps, 1 Tss, 1 Tps, FP3tog worked around the next three TKs stitches, 1 Tss; repeat from to last stitch, work 1 Tss (edge). Return pass as standard.

A second tier of petal clusters now appears, offset from the first. Your fabric is beginning to look unmistakably floral.

Rows 13–14 (Upper Stem Rows): Work 2 rows of Tss with standard return passes. This gives the bloom a slight breathing room before the tip section.

Row 15 (Tip Petal Row): Forward pass: Work 1 Tss (edge). Work 1 Tps, yo, 1 TKs, 1 TKs, 1 TKs, yo, 1 Tps, 1 Tss; repeat from to last stitch, work 1 Tss (edge). Return pass as standard.

Row 16 (Tip Cluster Row): Forward pass: Work 1 Tss (edge). Work 1 Tps, 1 Tps, FP3tog, 1 Tps, 1 Tps, 1 Tss, 1 Tss, 1 Tss; repeat from to last stitch, work 1 Tss (edge). Return pass as standard.

This final row completes one full delphinium bloom repeat. The tip clusters are slightly narrower than the lower clusters, tapering just like the actual flower’s spike. After Row 16, return to Row 1 and repeat the entire 16-row sequence for as many blooms as your project requires.

Finishing Your Piece

Once you’ve completed as many pattern repeats as desired, it’s time to bind off and finish your work.

Bind Off Row: With your loops still on the hook after the final return pass, work a slip stitch bind off: insert hook under the first vertical bar, yarn over, pull up a loop and through the loop on hook. Continue across all stitches. This creates a clean, stable edge that mirrors the foundation edge.

Weave in all yarn ends using your yarn needle, taking care to secure the end yarn in several directions so it doesn’t work loose. Weaving in Tunisian fabric is wonderfully easy because the dense structure holds ends securely.

Blocking: Blocking transforms Tunisian crochet. Wet block your finished piece by soaking it in cool water for 10–15 minutes, gently pressing out excess water (never wring), and laying it flat on a blocking mat. Pin it to your desired dimensions. As it dries, the petal clusters will open up beautifully, the yarn-over openwork spaces will become more defined, and the whole piece will take on the airy, dimensional quality you imagined when you first started.

Project Ideas for This Pattern

One of the best things about a stitch pattern this versatile is that it can travel across so many different project types. A small swatch in cotton makes a gorgeous washcloth or face cloth, and the petal texture is gentle enough to feel wonderful against skin. Work it in a linen-cotton blend and you have an elegant table runner that will draw compliments every time you set the table.

For something more wearable, this pattern makes a stunning scarf or cowl when worked in a soft merino or alpaca blend. The floral texture reads as sophisticated rather than cutesy in a neutral or muted tone, so it translates easily to adult accessories. If you’re ambitious, the delphinium pattern works beautifully as an insert panel in a larger Tunisian blanket, either as a central medallion-style strip or as repeating columns separated by plain Tss panels.

Advanced makers sometimes use this stitch as a yoke pattern for a Tunisian crochet pullover, where the blooms travel across the shoulders and upper chest in a way that genuinely looks like something you’d find in a high-end boutique.

Tips for Success

If you’re finding your fabric pulling inward along the edges, try using a longer Tunisian hook so you have more room to maintain even tension, or work your edge stitches slightly more loosely than the body stitches.

If the FP3tog cluster feels awkward at first, practice it separately on a scrap piece before attempting it in the main pattern. Once you feel the motion — the way the three post loops gather together under a single yarn over — it becomes intuitive and even satisfying.

Pay close attention to which rows are staggered. The offset between the Row 6 clusters and the Row 12 clusters is what creates the dimensional, spiraling look of the bloom. If both sets of clusters line up vertically, you’ll get a different (and still beautiful) effect, but it won’t read as a delphinium specifically.

Keep your return pass tension consistent throughout the project. Uneven return passes are one of the most common challenges in Tunisian crochet and can cause rows to look wavy or inconsistent. Take your time on the return pass and aim for smooth, even loops pulled through at the same tension every time.

Why This Pattern Is Worth Your Time

There’s something deeply satisfying about crochet patterns that look far more complicated than they are. The Tunisian crochet delphinium is one of those designs — a pattern that will make people ask “how did you do that?” when they see it, even though once you’ve worked through the first repeat, you’ll know exactly how every element fits together.

Tunisian crochet already has a reputation for producing fabric that doesn’t look like “ordinary” croc