Knit Stitch

The knit stitch is usually the first stitch that most beginning knitters learn. It seems to be easier then the purl stitch for most knitters.

Sally Melville in the book entitled The Knit Stitch: Inspiration and Instruction, states “The knit stitch is formed by taking yarn around the right-hand needle and drawing it through a stitch on the left-hand needle.” Her book has great step-by-step instructions with pictures on how to do the knit stitch using the right-hand carry as well as the left-hand carry. Read a review of The Knit Stitch (The Knitting Experience, Book 1).

To create a knit stitch, cast on stitches on to a knitting needle. Then put the needle in your left hand. Using another empty needle in your right hand, insert the needle from front to back into the first stitch on the left needle. Wrap the yarn from the ball under and over the right needle and pull the yarn through the stitch on the left needle. Then slip the stitch you went through of the left needle off.

Garter Stitch Pattern

When you knit back and forth on both sides of your knitting, this forms the stitch pattern called garter stitch. Each side is considered a row and in garter stitch two rows forms a bump or ridge.

You can make a great scarf whose edges won’t curl by using the knit stitch to form the garter stitch pattern.

Stockinette Stitch Pattern

When you knit in the round you are able to knit the stockinette stitch pattern without having to do the purl stitch.

You can make a simple rolled edge hat using the knit stitch in the round to form stockinette stitch.

Abbreviation

The abbreviation often used in patterns for knit is k.