I’ve developed a slight obsession with the SKYP stitch ever since I knit my first pair of Simple Skyp socks by Adrienne Ku, over a year ago. The SKYP stitch is relatively easy to learn, knits up quickly, and produces a lovely texture.
SKYP stands for:
Slip one, Knit one, Yarn over, Pass slipped stitch over
Considering how much I fell in love with this stitch, I was surprised to find relatively few patterns on the web that feature it (other than the Simple Skyp socks).
Question for you: Have you ever came across this stitch in any of your knitting patterns (besides the Simple Skyp socks)? If so, where?
I decided to take matters into my own hands when I designed my first toque pattern (toque means hat, for all you non-Canadians out there) which features the SKYP stitch (Please note: I’ve since realized the importance of swatching since writing that last post many months ago.).
I am now working on a second design, a pair of mittens that also feature the SKYP stitch as the main centerpiece. Since I’ve been using the SKYP stitch so frequently in my knitting, I figured I might as well create a tutorial for those of you who aren’t as familiar with it.
This tutorial will show you how to create a basic swatch using a slight variation of the simple SKYP stitch. The swatch will have a garter stitch border and features a simple SKYP stitch pattern.
To knit this swatch, you’ll need:
- Sport weight yarn (I used Drops Baby Alpaca)
- Size 6 (US) knitting needles
Abbreviations:
- k – knit
- p – purl
- st – stitch
- SKYP – Slip 1, Knit 1, Yarn over, pass slipped stitch over the
- CO – Cast on
- RS – Right Side
- WS – Wrong Side
Instructions:
- 1 – Cast on 31 stitches.
- 2 – RS: Knit to end of row.
- 3 – WS: Knit to end of row.
- 4 – RS: k2, *[skyp,p]* Repeat between * until four st before end of row, skyp, k2.
- 5 – WS: k2, *[p2,k]* Repeat between * until four st before end of row, p2, k2.
- 6 – Repeat Numbers 4 and 5 until swatch is near desired length.
- 7 – Knit last two rows to complete garter stitch border.
- 8 – Bind off using desired method.
I’ve also created a short Youtube video for the visual learners among us. Part I shows you how to knit the right side of the swatch, and Part II shows you how to knit the wrong side of the swatch.
This is also my first Youtube video so I would love to get some feedback from you. How did you like it and/or how can it be improved? Let me know what you think and if you’d like to see more of these in the future!
You might also like: Stitch Art in the Streets of Penang, Part I
