How To Knit The Purl Stitch: 10 Steps (with Pictures) - WikiHow

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How to Knit the Purl Stitch Download Article Co-authored by Jen Webber and Jessica Gibson

Last Updated: March 10, 2025 Approved

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• Learning the Purl Stitch
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• Trying Basic Patterns
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• Video
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• Q&A
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• Tips
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• Things You'll Need

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This article was co-authored by Jen Webber and by wikiHow staff writer, Jessica Gibson. Jen Webber is a Knitting Specialist and the Manager of The Quarter Stitch, a crafting store based in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Louisiana. With over 17 years of knitting and crafting experience, Jen helps educate customers and the public on best knitting practices for their DIY projects. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. This article received 20 testimonials and 80% of readers who voted found it helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. This article has been viewed 2,298,993 times.

You probably learned the knit stitch when you first picked up your knitting needles. In order to follow patterns or make knitted projects, it's important to know how to purl. Fortunately, it's easy to create this basic stitch that has a small bump at its base. Once you know the purl and knit stitch, try simple patterns, such as the stockinette or seed stitch.

Steps

Method 1 Method 1 of 2:

Learning the Purl Stitch

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1. 1 Cast on as many stitches as you like. Since you're practicing the purl stitch, you can work with as many stitches as you want. To make it easier to see your purl stitches, you might want to knit with larger needles and bulky yarn.
   • Once you're comfortable with making the purl stitch, you can use any size of needles and yarn.
2. 2 Bring the working yarn to front. Instead of holding the yarn behind the left needle, bring it in front so it's close to you. If you forget and put the yarn behind, the stitch on your left needle will look like 2 stitches instead of 1.
   • Don't worry about making mistakes as you work on this practice swatch. Pay attention to the mistakes you make, so you know how to prevent them in the future.
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3. 3 Insert the working needle into the front of the first stitch on the left needle. Slide the tip of the working into the front loop of the first stitch. Your needles should now look like a large X with the working needle in front.[1]
   • Keep in mind that when you're making a knit stitch, you want to insert the needle into the back of the stitch.

   Variation: If you're left-handed, you could hold the working yarn in your left hand. This continental style of knitting is thought to be faster since it minimizes your hand movements.

4. 4 Wrap the yarn counterclockwise around the needle. Use your thumb and index finger to hold the needles in place while you hold the working yarn taut with your other hand. Wrap the yarn counterclockwise around the needle that's closest to you.[2]
   • The yarn will still be in the front once you've wrapped it around the needle.
   • Ensure that you're only wrapping the yarn around the working needle and not both of the needles.
5. 5 Pull the loop down and off of the needle to complete the purl stitch. Keep your left index finger on the first stitch so the yarn doesn't slide off of your needle. Then, slowly bring the working needle down so the tip is at the base of the stitch. Move the tip of the needle to the back of the stitch and keep moving up so the stitch slides onto the working needle.[3]
   • The working yarn should still be at the front of the needle.
   • The purl stitch on your right needle will look like a knit stitch that has a small bump at its base.
6. 6 Tug on the yarn before starting your next purl stitch. To keep your stitches tight, pull on the working yarn so the purl stitch on your right needle is secure. Then, keep the working yarn in front and insert the right needle into the front of your next stitch on the left needle. Remember to wrap the yarn counterclockwise around the needle before pulling off the purl stitch.[4]
   • Follow your pattern or just practice making a few rows of purl stitches so you become comfortable.
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Method 2 Method 2 of 2:

Trying Basic Patterns

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1. 1 Practice alternating between knit and purl stitches. Before you start a pattern that uses both of these basic stitches, you need to know how to move the working yarn. When you're purling, the yarn is held in front. If you'd like to knit a stitch, you'll need to move the working yarn to the back before you knit. To make another purl stitch, bring the yarn in front.[5]
   • Remember that the working yarn is close to you for a purl stitch and away from you for a knit stitch.
2. 2 Make a simple rib stitch for scarves or blankets. To make a stretchy ribbed pattern on your fabric, cast on a multiple of 2. Then, knit 1 stitch and purl 1 stitch. Repeat this across the entire row and do it for each row. This will make a reversible pattern that has ribs on both sides of the fabric.[6]
   • For a double rib, knit 2 and purl 2 for every row. This will create a slightly wider rib.
   • If you're reading a pattern for a 1x1 rib stitch, it will look like this:
     • Row 1: *k1, p1* (repeat)
3. 3 Create a stockinette stitch by alternating knit and purl rows. The stockinette stitch is one of the easiest patterns to make once you've learned the purl stitch. Cast on as many stitches as you like and knit every stitch on your first row. Turn the work and purl every stitch of the following row. Keep alternating the rows so your fabric has a bumpy side and a smooth side.[7]
   • The smooth side will show the knit stitches while the bumpy side shows the purled stitches.
   • The stockinette stitch is referred to as "St st" in most patterns.

   Tip: Keep in mind that stockinette tends to curl along the edges, so you may want to block the fabric or add a border so your fabric lies flat.

4. 4 Make the seed stitch by alternating knit and purl stitches. If you'd like to try a pattern that's slightly more challenging and has great texture, work on a seed stitch. Cast on an even number of stitches. Then, knit the first stitch and purl the following stitch. Continue to knit 1 and purl 1 all across the row. Turn your work and knit 1, purl 1, across the entire row. Keep working until you've made as many rows as you like.[8]
   • If you're using a British knitting pattern, the seed stitch is the same as the moss stitch.
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Community Q&A

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• Question What else beside knit goes with purl? Community Answer There is also garter stitch. Knit and purl and garter stitch. All others are based on them. Different combinations of these stitches create patterns. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 10 Helpful 52
• Question I did a regular knit for the first 10 rows, and then I did a purl/knit/purl/knit to have the flat side with the v's on the front. Then I did 10 more regular knit rows and am trying to purl again, but the flat side is now on the back. How can I make it on the front again? Community Answer The easiest fix would be to alternate your pattern. Do knit/purl/knit rather than purl/knit/purl. A knit stitch on one side is a purl on the other, so alternating it will switch the side it is on. Otherwise add or subtract one more knit row to change sides of the piece. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 13 Helpful 40
• Question Every time I try to purl stitch I end up adding an extra stitch. I don't have this problem with knit. What's the reason for the extra stitch? Community Answer Make sure the extra yarn is in the front (between your two needles) as opposed to in the back like a knit stitch. Thanks! We're glad this was helpful. Thank you for your feedback. If wikiHow has helped you, please consider a small contribution to support us in helping more readers like you. We’re committed to providing the world with free how-to resources, and even $1 helps us in our mission. Support wikiHow Yes No Not Helpful 7 Helpful 28

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Tips

• The purl stitch is often referred to in patterns as "p." Purling a stitch means the same thing as knitting a purl stitch. Thanks Helpful 5 Not Helpful 2

Submit a Tip All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published Name Please provide your name and last initial Submit Thanks for submitting a tip for review! Advertisement

Things You'll Need

• Knitting needles
• Yarn
• Scissors

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References

1. ↑ https://www.craftyarncouncil.com/mar06_purl.html
2. ↑ https://www.craftyarncouncil.com/mar06_purl.html
3. ↑ https://www.craftyarncouncil.com/mar06_purl.html
4. ↑ https://youtu.be/lkb0YyrzPWA
5. ↑ https://youtu.be/xc1nolkBY8A
6. ↑ https://newstitchaday.com/how-to-knit-the-1x1-rib-stitch/
7. ↑ https://blog.tincanknits.com/2013/06/14/basicstitches/
8. ↑ https://theknittingspace.com/seed-stitch-vs-moss-stitch/

About This Article

Co-authored by: Jen Webber Knitting Specialist This article was co-authored by Jen Webber and by wikiHow staff writer, Jessica Gibson. Jen Webber is a Knitting Specialist and the Manager of The Quarter Stitch, a crafting store based in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Louisiana. With over 17 years of knitting and crafting experience, Jen helps educate customers and the public on best knitting practices for their DIY projects. This article has been viewed 2,298,993 times. 54 votes - 80% Co-authors: 41 Updated: March 10, 2025 Views: 2,298,993 Categories: Featured Articles | Knitting Stitches Article SummaryX

To knit a purl stitch, first cast on as many stitches as you'd like. Then, bring the working yarn in front of your needle. Slide the tip of the working needle into the front loop of the first stitch so your needles make an "X." Wrap the working yarn counterclockwise around the working needle, or the needle that's closest to you. Now, keeping your left index finger on the first stitch so it doesn't slide off, bring the working needle down so the tip is at the base of the stitch. Move the tip of the needle to the back of the stitch and move the needle up so the stitch slides onto the working needle. Finally, pull on the working yarn to tighten the purl stitch on your right needle. To learn how to use the purl stitch to make different patterns, scroll down! Did this summary help you?YesNo

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  "The wikiHow knit and purl tutorials were the only thing that I could learn from. I tried people, books and YouTube..." more Rated this article:

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Yes No Advertisement Cookies make wikiHow better. By continuing to use our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Co-authored by: Jen Webber Knitting Specialist Co-authors: 41 Updated: March 10, 2025 Views: 2,298,993 80% of readers found this article helpful. 54 votes - 80% Click a star to add your vote

Tina M.

Dec 22, 2017

"The wikiHow knit and purl tutorials were the only thing that I could learn from. I tried people, books and YouTube..." more Rated this article:

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Jan 9, 2018

"Ive seen a few videos on how to knit and couldn't get it right. With this guide I literally learned how to to..." more

Fi Robertson

Sep 21, 2021

"My first knitting since primary school... over 40 years ago! Knitted a scarf for a friend using normal knitting..." more

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Mar 7, 2017

"I think this tutorial is great. It is step by step, and slow for beginners. I am a beginner and I haven't..." more

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May 29, 2017

"I am trying to learn to knit, because I enjoy it. I was taught how to cast off, now I am learning to purl stitch. I..." more Share yours! More success stories Hide success stories

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