This Tunisian crochet full stitch shawl is possibly the most fun shawl I’ve ever made. And it is kind of shaped as lightning!
The pattern is very easy and perfect for Tunisian crochet beginners.
But those increases, and decreases? – you might be wondering. Well, they’re all fake!
There is literally not a single increase or decrease that you’ll have to make.
The forward pass of this shawl is always a basic row made in Tunisian crochet full stitch.
The thing that changes is the return pass, which is either done the classical way or by directly yarning over and pulling through two. But we’ll see this in the pattern, no worries!
Find more shawls and accessories with Tunisian crochet here…
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AquiLana
The yarn that I used for my Tunisian crochet full stitch shawl is AquiLana 2 Capi hand-dyed by Valeria, the all-around yarn expert at AquiLANA.
Valeria only uses natural colors for dying her yarn, and the yellow of the yarn I used comes from the flowers of the Genisteae. The accent purple comes from blackwood.
If you’d like to try this beautiful yarn, don’t hesitate to contact Valeria on her Facebook page. She will gladly ship yarn all around Europe!
Yarn Substitutions
Feel free to use Sport or DK (3, Light) Yarn.
- If you’re using Sport-weight yarn, I suggest you use a 6.5-mm crochet hook.
- If you’re using DK yarn, I suggest you use a 7.0-mm (2 UK) Tunisian crochet hook with a Cord Extension of at least 24″ (60 cm).
Also, make sure to go up in hook size for the border!
For the shawl you see below, I used a 7-mm hook and the following yarns:
- 1 skein King Cole Bamboo Cotton DK, Sea Breeze (3331)
- 1 skein King Cole Bamboo Cotton DK, Cream (538)
- 1 skein Stylecraft Naturals Bamboo & Cotton DK, Citronelle (7125)
AD-FREE PDF PATTERN
The ad-free pattern of the Lightning Shawl is available as a printer-friendly PDF pattern in my Ravelry, LoveCrafts, and Etsy stores.
Materials
- Fingering Weight (1 Super Fine, 20 wpi) Yarn
- 6.0-mm (10/J USA, 4 UK) Tunisian Crochet Hook with a Cord Extension of 24″ (60 cm) or Longer
- 4.0-mm (6/G USA, 8 UK) Crochet Hook
- Tapestry Needle
Yardage
984-1093 yds (900-1000 m)
Abbreviations (US Terms)
Ch – Chain
Bobble – Bobble Stitch
Sc – Single Crochet
Sk – Skip
Sl St – Slip Stitch
St – Stitch
Tfs – Tunisian Full Stitch
Trs – Tunisian Reverse Stitch
Yo – Yarn Over
Special Stitches
Bobble Stitch (Bobble) – Regular Crochet
(Yo, insert your hook into the indicated st, yo, and draw up a loop. Yo, draw yarn through 2 loops on your hook) 5 times (6 loops on your hook). Yo, and draw yarn through all 6 loops on your hook.
Decreasing Return
*Yo, pull through two loops. Repeat from * for all the loops on your hook until you only have one loop on your hook.
Standard Tunisian Return
Yo, pull through the first loop on your hook, *yo, pull through two loops. Repeat from * for all the loops on your hook until you only have one loop on your hook.
Tunisian Foundation Row
Take a look at this step-by-step tutorial on how to start your Tunisian crochet projects.
Tunisian Crochet Full Stitch (Tfs)
You can find a step-by-step tutorial on how to crochet the Tunisian full stitch here.
Tunisian Crochet Reverse Stitch (Trs)
Check this step-by-step tutorial on how to crochet the Tunisian reverse stitch.
Size
55.5″ (141 cm) wide and 19.5″ (50 cm) deep.
Construction
The main body of the shawl is created by alternating 2 types of stitch repetitions:
- Increasing sections (black arrows in the picture below. If you printed in black and white, then they are the arrows that point up)
- Constant stitch count sections (pink arrows or arrows pointing down)
The last 5 rows are crocheted in Trs, which helps to fix the curling of the Tfs.
Finally, the pom-pom border is crocheted with regular crochet.
Lightning Shawl – Tunisian Full Stitch Shawl Pattern
With your Tunisian crochet hook, make a Tunisian Foundation Row of 3 sts. (3 sts)
Increasing Section
Row 1. Insert your hook in the first space between the first and the second st of the foundation row, yo, and pick up a loop. Pick up a loop in each of the remaining spaces, including the last space between the semi-last and the last st of the foundation row. Work the last st by inserting your hook under both loops on the side of your foundation (photos 1-2). (4 sts)
Return. Standard Tunisian Return.
Row 2-12. Repeat Row 1 (Photo 3). (One increase per row; 15 sts on Row 12)
Return. Standard Tunisian Return.
Constant St Count
Row 13-22 (10 rows). Repeat Row 1. (16 sts)
Return. Decreasing Return (See the Special Stitches Section) (15 sts).
Notice how in this “Constant Section”, you add one st in the forward pass and decrease one in the return pass! That results in a constant number of sts (Photo 4).
Successive Rows
Row 23-47. Repeat the increasing section until you have 40 sts on your hook.
Row 48-62. (15 rows) Maintain a constant st count. (41 sts on the Forward pass, 40 sts in the return pass)
Row 63-87. Repeat the increasing section until you have 65 sts on your hook.
Row 88-107. (20 rows) Maintain a constant st count. (66 sts on the Forward pass, 65 sts in the return pass)
Row 108-132. Repeat the increasing section until you have 90 sts on your hook.
Row 133-157 (25 rows) Maintain a constant st count. (91 sts on the Forward pass, 90 sts in the return pass)
Row 158-182. Repeat the increasing section until you have 115 sts on your hook.
Row 183-212. (30 rows) Maintain a constant st count. (116 sts on the Forward pass, 115 sts in the return pass)
Row 213-237. Repeat the increasing section until you have 140 sts on your hook.
Row 238-283. (46 rows) Maintain a constant st count. (141 sts on the Forward pass, 140 sts in the return pass)
Row 284-288. (5 rows) Yo to add one loop on the hook (counts as 1 inc), Trs in each st across.
Return Pass. Decreasing Return.
Fasten off by sl st in each st across as for a Trs.
Border
(Right side facing) With your 4.0-mm crochet hook, join yarn in the first st of row 288.
Row 1. Sc in each st across. (140 sts)
Row 2. Ch 1, turn. Sc across. (140 sts)
Row 3. Ch 1, turn. Sc 1.
(Ch 7, bobble in the third from your hook, ch 3, sl st in the same ch where you made the bobble. Sl st in the remaining 4 ch. Sk 1 st, sc 5) 23 times.
Sc 1, ch 1, sc 1 (on the side of row 2 of the border).
Ch 7, bobble in the third from your hook, ch 3, sl st in the same ch where you made the bobble. Sl st in the remaining 4 ch. Sk 1 st (the side of row 1 of the border), sc 5 (keep crocheting on the sides of rows 288-238 of the shawl).
(Ch 7, bobble in the third from your hook, ch 3, sl st in the same ch where you made the bobble. Sl st in the remaining 4 ch. Sk 1 st, sc 5) 7 times.
Ch 7, bobble in the third from your hook, ch 3, sl st in the same ch where you made the bobble. Sl st in the remaining 4 ch. Sk 1 st, sc 3.
Fasten off and weave in all your ends.
Your Tunisian Crochet Lightning Shawl is ready!
I hope you liked working on this pattern and I’d love to see your version of it! Please, share your shawls on Facebook or Instagram using the hashtag #raffamusadesigns
Check out more shawl patterns here on the blog…
Bring on Spring Blog Hop
The pattern of this Tunisian crochet full stitch shawl was featured in the Bring on Spring Blog Hop hosted by the wonderful Ashley, super-power mama and blogger at Through the Loop Yarn Crafts.
Make sure to check the main page of the event on Ashley’s blog to find some great spring inspiration!
Beautiful!! Thank You!!!
You’re welcome 🙂
Such a lovely pattern and thanks for sending it out. I have wanted to learn Tunisian crochet but haven’t had the chance to learn yet. Can you please tell me which of your patterns is the best for an absolute beginner. I can do the normal crochet.
Carol
Hi Carol,
If you’re new to Tunisian crochet, I’d definitely recommend you start with something small, such as the Diagonal Lattice headband, or you could also make a simple scarf with one of the basic stitches (you can find a few in the Tunisian Crochet –> Tunisian Crochet Stitch Guide menu)
Let me know if you need any help. You can also send me an e-mail in case, and I can send you links 🙂
Raffaella