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Increases and Decreases for Lace Knitting

May 12, 2014 by Sarah White

candle flame cowlBecause I can do that, I decided that this week ought to be devoted to lace knitting. Lace is great for summer, and it’s fun to knit any time. Even just a little bit of lace as an edging or a panel on a garment can make it look fancier, but it doesn’t have to be difficult.

Lace comes down to the strategic placement of holes (we call them eyelets and they’re made by a technique known as the yarn over) and decreases that usually serve to keep the stitch count the same from row to row.

While we usually see yarn overs before a knit stitch, there are different situations where you might encounter yarn overs and it’s good to be comfortable with them if you’re going to knit lace.

There are lots of different decreases you may encounter because they, too, are used for decorative effect. A knit two together, for example, slants to the right, while a slip, slip, knit goes to the left. Lace knitting is also the most common place to find what’s often called a “centered double decrease” because that’s what it is, or an s2kp (slip two, knit 1, pass the slipped stitches over) because it’s that, too.

How do you feel about lace knitting? I like it but I don’t have the patience for difficult/big projects. Which is why we’ll stick with the pretty easy stuff this week.

(The project pictured, by the way, is one of my favorites, the Candle Flame Cowl, which looks fancy but only uses yarn overs and knit two togethers.)

Next Pattern:

  • Your Guide to Knitting Decreases
  • Play with Cables and Lace in this Wrap Knitting Pattern
  • A Simple Lace and Cable Stitch Pattern
«
»

Comments

  1. KateMet says

    May 13, 2014 at 2:26 am

    I just tonight finished the Zepherine cardigan from Interweave Knits Spring 2014. It has a lace yoke, which is the last thing you knit before it’s done. If I hadn’t promised this sweater to my grandma, it probably would have been put in the naughty corner. The bottom is simple, but boring. The top is fun, but apt to stretch with the weight of the whole sweater. But. Done and dusted, I just have to sew buttons and block it tomorrow.

Have you read?

Add a Little Lace to Your Knitting Patterns

If you’re new to lace knitting or just aren’t sure how to incorporate the technique into garments, check out these tops and sweaters that use lace as a decorative element.

The easiest lace out there is eyelets, and you can practice them plenty with this eyelet covered sweater from Knitcro Addict. It uses light/DK weight yarn and is worked in four pieces knit flat. It’s intended to be a little cropped and a little oversized, and includes sizes XS to XXL in the pattern.

If you’re in parts of the world where it’s getting colder as you read this, the Nora sweater from Bummbul might be a good choice. This is actually a great one for learning lace because it’s worked in super bulky yarn, which makes it easier to see what you’re doing and makes the lace super graphic. This one just comes in one size, with a 42 inch (106) cm bust, but that could fit a variety of people depending on how much ease you like.

Minimi Knit Design has a cute allover lace cardigan worked in one piece from the bottom up. It’s worked in lace weight mohair held double, which maybe isn’t the best for those new to lace (because it can be hard to rip out) but it sure is pretty. Sizes range to fit from 30 to 66 inches/76 to 168 cm bust measurements.

If you’d rather not have lace all over your sweater, you can knit the Lumi sweater from Originally Lovely, which has a chevron lace pattern on the yoke and is otherwise worked in reverse stockinette stitch. (It’s worked inside out so you don’t have to purl every stitch.) The pattern has 9 sizes from XS to 5XL and uses worsted weight yarn.

Or try the super romantic sookie blouse from Trust the mojo (available on Ravelry). This sweet top is started working flat from the bottom up and has a V-neck and I-cord edgings. The sleeves are worked separately in the round, and the pieces are all joined together to work in one piece to finish off the top. It comes in eight sizes and is available in English and French.

You can also pair lacy sleeves with an otherwise plain top, like on the Starflower Wrap from Annelise Driscoll Gingrow. This intermediate pattern makes a wrap sweater with generous lacy sleeves and a double wrap belt. The pattern has nine sizes, from XS to 5XL, and is available for free from Hobbi.

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