Learn to Knit with All About Ami: Stockinette Stitch

Stephanie over at All About Ami has been publishing a learn to knit series. It is a great resource for anyone who is looking to give needles a try after years on the hook. She already covered the knit stitch, so it’s time to learn to purl — which means you’ll be able to do stockinette! Once you know that you can move on to learn just about anything.

With enough practice, it’s easy to transition between crafts. The awkwardness of holding different tools and doing new stitches will subside, and it definitely helps to have well-written instructions.

As with her knit stitch post, her purl directions are also super easy to follow. This installment teaches stockinette stitch — meaning knit for one row, then purl for one row. This combination is what creates the V-shaped stitches that are most commonly associated with knitting.

Stephanie’s written and photographic directions do a really good job showing the different stitches, as does her video how-to.

(Trouble viewing? Click here.)

Stockinette Project

Once you’ve got the purl stitch down, you can put it to use. Stephanie published a pattern for her Simple Stockinette Hat to accompany this lesson. It’s a good beginning project — you already know everything you need to to make it!

You need one skein of Wool-Ease® Thick & Quick®. The sample is knit in the color Fisherman, but you can do any shade you want. You’ll need size US 13 (9.0 mm) needles. Optionally, you may want to make or buy a pom-pom for the top.

You don’t need to know increases or decreases for the hat — you knit the whole thing flat and straight, then do everything else when you’re done. After you’ve knit your stockinette piece, you’ll sew up the seam and gather up the top, then add the pom if you want.

Stephanie walks you through all the steps in her post. If you want to try knitting, especially if you’re already a crocheter, this is a great series to do so.