Everything you need to know to knit perfect Stockinette stitch every time. How to work Stockinette stitch flat and in the round, count your rows and more.
Anatomy of Stockinette Stitch Knitting
Stockinette stitch pushes all of the loops to the back of the fabric, resulting in a smooth right side. If you look at a piece of knitting made in Stockinette, you will see that one side looks like “V’s” and the other side is very bumpy.
The smooth “V” side is always the right side, unless you are working reverse Stockinette, in which the bumpy side is showing.
Before we begin… let’s get Social.
I would love for you to come follow me on
Instagram (get sneak peeks of what’s coming up!)
My Facebook Page (come join the fun!)
Follow me on Pinterest (I pin tons of free patterns to my boards!)
Also, you can find me on Ravelry or join more than 14K subscribers on YouTube.
How to Knit Stockinette Stitch
If you know the basic knit and purl stitches, it is super easy to knit this stitch. These are instructions for working flat.
This stitch pattern can be worked over any number of stitches.
Row 1: Knit.
Row 2: Purl
Repeat rows 1-2 as desired.
Stockinette Stitch in the Round
Working this stitch in the round is even easier!! What?? How can that be?
Well, you just knit every row! Talk about easy!
How do you count the rows in Stockinette knitting?
With this stitch it’s fairly easy to count rows. You will look for the “V” of a stitch and count the number of V’s in a column.
Remember to always count the stitches that are active on the needle.
Also, something that I didn’t know starting out was when to knit or purl a row once I put it down and came back to it.
If the V’s are facing you as you work, you will knit. If you are looking at the bumpy side, you’re ready to purl.
Stockinette Stitch Video Tutorial
The Most Common Problem with Stockinette Stitch
It curls on the edges. This is part of the nature of Stockinette. It curls, and no amount of blocking is going to help it lie flat for long.
If you are going to seam it, then it is fine to leave it as is. When you seam Stockinette, the edges will be hidden in the seam and it will stop curling.
But what if you’re making something that needs to lie flat, such as a blanket or a scarf?
The only option you have in this case is to knit a border in a pattern that doesn’t curl. The most common option is Garter Stitch, but you could also use a rib pattern.
Patterns that use Stockinette stitch
