How to Add Duplicate Stitch to Knitting Patterns

I write these posts up to a month in advance, so I hope by the time this post goes live it won’t be a lie to say I recently finished what was probably the most intense knitting experience of my life so far (at least in terms of an individual project; books are way more intense): knitting an argyle vest.

(As I write, I just need to sew the pieces together and finish the armholes and neckline, so it’s definitely possible it will be done by the time you read this!)

This project was a challenge for a lot of reasons: the pattern wasn’t well written, my gauge was a little off so I sort of worked parts of a couple of different sizes (plus eliminating most of the waist shaping and making it longer), I had for most of the body 14 strands of yarn so I could do the intarsia diamonds.

And once the knitting was finally done, I had to do a ton of duplicate stitch to make the second part of the diamond pattern.

Mistakes aside it looks amazing, and I’m super proud of it. One of my goals for the year was to do some projects using skills I’ve never done before, and an intarsia project of this scale was definitely something I’ve always wanted to do (proof: I’ve had this yarn, the exact yarn and colors used for this project in the book I got it from, since 2008).

But it also gave me a great opportunity to write up a tutorial on how to do duplicate stitch, which is useful for so much more than making diamond shapes. It’s great for fixing mistakes in colorwork, adding little details like facial features or a small area of color you wouldn’t want to work while you’re knitting. You can also use it for bigger motifs, say, if you don’t want to do intarsia but want to add a design you can’t do with stranded knitting. Say you wanted a big heart on a hat worked in the round, which wouldn’t be easy to do as stranded knitting or intarsia. Duplicate stitch to the rescue!

If this is a technique you’ve used before, I’d love to hear how you used it and if you have any tips. And if it’s new to you head over to Our Daily Craft to see how its done.

Next Pattern:

Blankets are a great blank slate project that you can change up in a million different ways. From color to stitch pattern to size, the possibilities are almost endless.

Jared Flood, the designer behind Brooklyn Tweed, was inspired by a log cabin quilt his mother made in 1995 to re-create that design in knitting, which led to more blankets and ultimate Brooklyn Tweed’s Knit and Crochet Blankets, which includes 25 patterns from an array of designers using different skills and techniques to make cozy, pretty blankets.

The patterns are divided into three aesthetic themes: traditions, minimalism and colorplay. The patterns are rated on a scale of one to five, with one being the easiest, and there aren’t any pieces rated five. Two blankets are rated one, 14 are two, eight are three and one is four.

In addition, three of the 25 patterns are crocheted, but they either use single crochet or granny stitch, so they are pretty easy even if you don’t do a lot of crochet. You can see all the patterns on Ravelry.

Some of my favorites include Rattan by Rastus Hsu, a chunky blanket worked in knits and purls with simple crossing stitches to make a raised woven look; Homewood by Seth Richardson, covers in dramatic, loopy cables; Ainur Berkimbayeva’s Tessellate, one of the beginner projects that doesn’t really look beginner but is totally worked in knit and purl stitches; Warp + Weft by Aist? Butkevi?ien?, which is mostly knits and purls but makes a fun woven look fabric that blew my mind a little bit; and the same designer’s Canyonland, a multicolored blanket with wavy stripes.

The patterns tell you how to resize them for different dimensions and include information on pattern repeats where it is possible to make a totally custom size.

Many different techniques are included here such as cables, lace, shadow knitting, intarsia and other colorwork techniques, as well as modular knitting and lots of sewing pieces together. The patterns are all presented with charts, but there are line by line written instructions available on the Brooklyn Tweed website if you need them.

The book ends with a deep dive into log cabin knitting, telling the story of the quilt Jared’s mom made and how he made it in knitting, as well as the multitude of variations you can make if you want your own log cabin style design.

The back of the book includes a little written information about some of the special techniques needed, but there are no photos.

This is a lovely book full of inspiration for knitting and crochet blankets for any skill level. If you like to make blankets as gifts or aspire to have a handmade blanket in every room of the house, these designs would be a great place to start.

About the book: 192 pages, paperback, 25 patterns. Published 2024 by Abrams Books, suggested retail price $24.99.

Next Pattern:

Have you read?

Leave a Reply