I’m Marie from Underground Crafter and over the next few weeks, I’ll be sharing a series of knitting stitches designed to help you take your knitting skills beyond the basics.
To make it a little bit more fun, I’ll be sharing the stitches as 6″ (15 cm) squares, and at the end of the series, I’ll show you how to join them together into a decorative sampler pillow. If you can cast on, knit, purl, and bind off, you can make these!
Let’s get started with one I like to call Diamonds on Stockinette. This stitch pattern has the texture of argyle without the added challenge of colorwork. If you don’t want to make a sampler pillow, you can use this stitch for many other great projects, including a blanket or scarf. I think it would also make a wonderful knit washcloth in cotton yarn!
Diamonds on Stockinette
Knitting Pattern by Underground Crafter
The first square in our sampler combines knit and purl stitches to create a traveling pattern.
Materials
- Approximately 45 yd/41 m in any medium weight yarn. I used Cascade Superwash 220 in 1915 Banana Cream for the sample.
- US Size 7/4.5 mm straight needles, or any size needed to obtain correct gauge.
- Yarn needle.
Gauge
- Finished square = 6″ (15 cm) in pattern. Exact gauge is not critical for this project.
Abbreviations Used In This Pattern
- BO – bind off
- CO – cast on
- k – knit
- p – purl
- rep – repeat
- RS – right (front) side
- sl 1 – slip 1 st, knitwise
- st(s) – stitch(es)
- *Rep instructions after asterisk as indicated.
Pattern Note
- The sl 1 at the beginning of each row and the p 1 at the end of each row creates a nice edge that makes it easier to join to squares together. If you’ve never slipped stitches before, it’s very straightforward. To sl 1 st, knitwise, just insert your needle into the first stitch as if you were going to knit and then slide the stitch onto the right needle.
Pattern Instructions
- CO 32 sts (or any multiple of 12 sts, + 8 sts for border).
Bottom border
- Row 1: Knit to last st, p1.
- Row 2: Sl 1, k to last st, p1.
- Rows 3 & 4: Rep Row 2 twice.
Diamonds on Stockinette stitch pattern
- Row 1: (RS): Sl 1, k3, *k6, p1, k5. Rep from * to last 4 sts, k3, p1.
- Row 2: Sl 1, k3, *p4, k1, p1, k1, p5. Rep from * to last 4 sts, k3, p1.
- Row 3: Sl 1, k3, *k4, p1, k3, p1, k3. Rep from * to last 4 sts, k3, p1.
- Row 4: Sl 1, k3, *p2, k1, p5, k1, p3. Rep from * to last 4 sts, k3, p1.
- Row 5: Sl 1, k3, *k2, p1, k7, p1, k1. Rep from * to last 4 sts, k3, p1.
- Row 6: Sl 1, k3, *k1, p9, k1, p1. Rep from * to last 4 sts, k3, p1.
- Row 7: Sl 1, k3, *p1, k11. Rep from * to last 4 sts, k3, p1.
- Row 8: Rep Row 6 once.
- Row 9: Rep Row 5 once.
- Row 10: Rep Row 4 once.
- Row 11: Rep Row 3 once.
- Row 12: Rep Row 2 once.
- Rep Rows 1-12 until square measures approximately 5.5” (14 cm), ending after Row 1 or Row 7.
Top border
- Rows 1-4: Rep Border Row 2, 4 times.
- BO in pattern for Border Row 2. Fasten off with long yarn tail (approximately 3 times the width of square) to use for joining squares later.
What color will you be making your sampler pillow in?
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