BLO — Back loop (Abbreviation)

BLO stands for "back loop(s) only" — the mirror instruction to FLO, inserting the hook through just the back loop of a stitch and leaving the front loop untouched, exposed as a visible horizontal ridge on the fabric's surface instead.

Why BLO is the more common choice for crochet ribbing

Because the untouched loop sits toward the crocheter when working BLO, the resulting ridge tends to read more prominently on the fabric's public-facing side than an FLO ridge does under the same conditions — this is a large part of why BLO, specifically, is the standard technique behind most crocheted ribbing effects, like a hat brim or cuff meant to visually and functionally mimic knit ribbing's columns.

Working an entire row or round in BLO

A single row worked entirely in BLO produces one ridge line running across that row; alternating BLO and normal (both-loop) rows, or combining BLO with front-post and back-post stitches, builds up more elaborate ribbed or textured effects than a single row of BLO alone achieves.

Where it shows up

Ribbed hat brims and cuffs worked in crochet, amigurumi pieces wanting a specific textured band, and any pattern using the exposed-loop ridge as a deliberate structural or decorative line.

Related abbreviations

• FLO — front loop(s) only, BLO's direct counterpart
• inc / dec — shaping instructions sometimes combined with BLO for a textured decrease or increase row

FAQ

Is BLO crochet ribbing as stretchy as knit ribbing? Not quite, though it comes reasonably close — front post and back post stitches are the other common route to crochet ribbing, and neither fully matches knit rib's elasticity, just gets functionally close enough for most cuffs and brims.

Does BLO work at any crochet stitch height, or only single crochet? Any height — the back-loop-only principle applies the same way to half double, double, or taller stitches, producing the same ridge-and-texture effect scaled to whichever stitch height is being worked.