Learn how to pick up stitches in knitting with easy steps to fix edges, add borders, or shape your project neatly.
If you are learning knitting, you may come across patterns that ask you to “pick up stitches.” This might sound not very clear at first, but it is a handy skill. Picking up stitches means adding new stitches to your project along an edge, seam, or neckline so you can continue knitting without starting over. It helps you make neat borders, collars, button bands, and even repair mistakes.
What Does Picking Up Stitches Mean?
When you knit, the loops on your needle are called stitches. Sometimes you need more stitches along a finished edge. Instead of casting on again, you can “pick up” stitches. For this, insert your needle into the edge of the fabric, pull a new loop of yarn through, and place that loop on your knitting needle. These new loops become live stitches, ready to be knitted.
Where to Pick Up: Which Edge
You can pick up stitches in three main places: along the cast-on or bind-off edge, along the sides, or around a curve or angle. For each type of edge, you’ll need to decide two things: where to put your needle in, and how many times to do it.
What You Need
- Your knitted piece
- A knitting needle (use the size recommended in your pattern or one slightly smaller for neat edges)
- Yarn (same or contrasting, depending on your project)
Step-by-Step Guide to Pick Up Stitches
Hold Your Work Correctly
Lay your knitted piece flat with the edge where you want to pick up stitches facing you. Hold your yarn in the same way you do when knitting, usually.
Insert the Needle
Now, start at the corner or edge, insert your knitting needle into the edge stitch or the space between stitches. Make sure you go under at least one strand of yarn so the stitch will hold firmly.
Wrap the Yarn
Wrap the working yarn around your needle just like you do when making a knit stitch.
Pull Through a Loop
Draw the loop of yarn through to the front and slide it onto your needle. This loop becomes your first picked-up stitch.
Continue Along the Edge
You have to move to the next spot along the edge and repeat the process. For this, insert the needle, wrap the yarn, pull through, and place the loop on your needle. Continue until you have the required number of stitches.
