Transcript
So, seed stitch is really fun because you get to move the yarn after every single stitch.
Essentially, what we’re doing is we’re going to be doing a knit one purl one. So, I’m going to knit one, move the yarn to the front and purl one, and move the yarn to the back. And you continue to knit one, purl one across the front of your work, remembering that you have to move the yarn in between each stitch or you get an accidental yarn over.
So, you may be thinking but, knit one, purl one makes ribbing and it would, if we were to stack the stitches up with knits on top of knits and purls on top of purls, that would give us a one by one ribbing. But, in seed stitch we’re going to alternate on every row.
So, I’m finishing up the end of my row, move the yarn, knit one, move the yarn, purl one, move the yarn, knit one and there’s the end of my row. Now, on the other side, you can see that what we’ve got is a fabric that’s alternating, on this side it looks like purl, knit, purl, knit, purl so what we want to do is, we want to work the stitches the opposite that they present. So because this presents as a purl stitch, we want to knit it.
I’m going to knit my purls. Look, here comes a knit stitch which means we’re going to purl it. So, we’re basically checker boarding across, meaning whatever you see, do the opposite. I see the purl bump here so I’m going to knit it. Move the yarn, purl, move the yarn, knit, move the yarn, purl, across so that what you’re doing is, you are switching it up every single stitch, switching what it was before, to what it is now.
And, what you get is this wonderfully bumpy, textured, surface that doesn’t curl on the edges, lays really nice and flat, and just has a great texture. And, if you were to follow it down you would see a purl bump and a knit V, a purl bump and a knit V and then alternatingly, you would see a knit V and a purl bump. So, it’s kind of like a checkerboard.
And I’ll show you on a slightly bigger, puffier fabric. Here it is in a bulky yarn, so we’re going to knit the first stitch and then, here I see a knitted V, so I’m going to move the yarn and purl it.
This is the type of stitch that is really helpful to be able to tell a knit from a purl. So, if you see that open V, that’s a knit stitch which means in seed, you need to purl it. And, if you see that purl bump, that means it’s a purl stitch and you need to knit it. Always remembering to move the yarn between every stitch. So, it takes a little bit of thinking but it’s really fun and it gets into a rhythm.
And that is the seed stitch.
