How to Front Post Back Post Stitches (Crochet)
Front post and back post stitches change where the hook inserts, not which stitch is being worked — instead of going through the two top loops of the stitch below (the standard insertion point for virtually every basic crochet stitch), a post stitch wraps the hook around the vertical "post" of that stitch from either the front or the back, producing a raised, three-dimensional texture that plain double crochet worked the standard way can't achieve.
The insertion, step by step
For a front post double crochet (FPdc): yarn over, then insert the hook from front to back around the entire post of the target stitch (not through its top loops), coming back out to the front on the other side, then complete a double crochet as normal from that insertion. For a back post double crochet (BPdc): the same idea, but insert from back to front around the post instead, so the hook approaches from behind the work.
Why FPdc and BPdc pull in opposite directions
A front post stitch, worked from the front, pulls forward and sits raised toward the crocheter — it advances toward the working side of the fabric. A back post stitch does the opposite, receding and pulling the fabric backward, away from the crocheter. Alternating FPdc and BPdc columns, the same way knit ribbing alternates knit and purl columns, is exactly what produces crochet's raised, ribbed texture — each stitch type physically pulls its own column in a different direction, creating the visual and tactile ridges.
Post stitches for crochet ribbing
Because FPdc and BPdc columns alternate to create genuine dimensional ribbing rather than a flat printed texture, post-stitch ribbing is a common substitute anywhere a crochet project wants the stretch and structure of knit ribbing — a cuff, a hem, a hat brim — since plain crochet stitches worked in flat rows don't naturally produce the same elastic, columnar structure knit ribbing does.
Where it goes wrong
Inserting through the top loops by mistake instead of around the post. The single most common error, especially early on, since the top-loop insertion is the default motion for nearly every other crochet stitch and the post insertion requires deliberately overriding that habit — double-check the hook's insertion point specifically at the start of every post stitch until the motion becomes automatic.
Fabric that puckers or draws in tighter than the surrounding rows. Post stitches genuinely use more yarn and pull the fabric in more than a standard double crochet does, since wrapping around a full post uses more length of yarn than inserting through two loops — some puckering is structurally normal for post-stitch texture, but excessive puckering usually means the post stitches were worked at a noticeably tighter tension than the surrounding plain stitches.
A raised texture that looks flat or doesn't stand out clearly. Usually means front and back post stitches weren't consistently distinguished — check that FPdc and BPdc are genuinely being worked with hook insertion from opposite sides (not just worked as identical stitches with different names), since the contrast between the two directions is what produces the visible texture.
Post stitches beyond double crochet
The same front-post and back-post insertion principle applies to other stitch heights — front post single crochet, front post treble crochet, and their back post equivalents all exist, following the identical logic of wrapping around the post from a specified direction rather than inserting through the top loops. Double crochet is simply the most commonly used height for post-stitch texture, since it offers enough stitch height for the raised effect to read clearly without being as yarn-intensive as a taller stitch.
Yarn use for post-stitch fabric
Because post stitches wrap around a full stitch post rather than inserting through two loops, they consume noticeably more yarn per stitch than the equivalent plain stitch at the same height — a project using extensive post-stitch texture (a full ribbed panel, for instance) needs a real yardage allowance above what the same stitch count in plain double crochet would use, worth accounting for before estimating total yarn for a heavily textured design.
Combining post stitches with plain stitches in one row
A row doesn't need to be entirely post stitches to use the technique — many patterns mix a small number of FPdc or BPdc columns into an otherwise plain row, using post stitches specifically where a raised detail or subtle rib accent is wanted, rather than as the row's dominant structure. This selective use is common in garment cuffs and hems where only a narrow ribbed band, not the whole piece, needs post-stitch texture.
FAQ
Can front post and back post stitches be worked in rounds as well as rows? Yes — the same insertion principle applies regardless of whether the surrounding fabric is worked flat or in the round; post-stitch ribbing worked in the round is common for hat brims and cuffs specifically.
Does post-stitch texture work with any yarn weight, or does it need a specific one to read clearly? It works at any weight, though a smoother, more defined yarn (rather than a very fuzzy or highly textured one) shows the raised post-stitch structure more clearly — a very hairy novelty yarn can obscure the crisp ridge-and-valley texture post stitches are meant to produce.
Is FPdc/BPdc ribbing as stretchy as knit ribbing? It has genuine stretch and give, more than plain crochet fabric, but it's generally somewhat less elastic than knit ribbing worked in a comparably elastic fibre — a real functional substitute, not always a perfect one-to-one equivalent in terms of stretch.