Kitchener Stitch
Kitchener Stitch is a technique for invisibly grafting live stitches together. It is essentially a set of sewing steps that you work with a length of yarn and a tapestry needle. In the end, you have a row of knit stitches that seamlessly graft together two sets of live stockinette stitches… Pretty amazing! (Note that sometimes Kitchener Stitch is used over other simple stitch patterns, but the steps for those stitches are in a different order.) Common places to use Kitchener Stitch are at the toe of top-down socks and at the shoulders and underarms of garments.
The instructions for Kitchener Stitch may seem a bit intimidating, but really, it’s super simple. The only real challenge is keeping track of where you are in the steps. A good tip: Say each step out loud as you do it, and soon, you’ll be in the rhythm!
Stitch along with our video or skip down to our step-by-step photo tutorial and you’ll be Kitchener-ing in no time!
Click To See Video Transcript
Hi, I’m Whitney from Purl Soho and I’m going to show you the Kitchener Stitch. The Kitchener Stitch is a technique that seamlessly graphs together two sets of live stitches by sewing new stitches between the two.
Here are two stockinette pieces, and to start, I’m going to hold the needles parallel to each other with the points facing to the right, the wrong sides of the fabric are together so that the right side of the pieces is facing me. Typically, when you work, Kitchener Stitch, you thread the tail of your work onto a tapestry needle. But I’m going to use this scrap yarn in a contrast color so you can really see what I’m doing. Kitchener stitch starts with two setup stitches.
To begin, insert the threaded tapestry needle through the first stitch on the front needle, pearl wise from the back to the front, as if you’re pearling, and pull the yarn through. Next, take the tapestry needle through the first stitch on the back needle knit wise from front to back, as if you’re knitting and pull the yarn through. These are the two setup stitches.
Now we’re going to do a series of four steps that you repeat over and over again. One, insert your needle through the first stitch on the front needle, knitwise from front to back. Pull the yarn through and let this stitch drop off the needle. Two, insert the needle through the next stitch on the front needle, purlwise, from back to front. Pull the yarn through and let the stitch stay on the needle. That’s the front needle. Now for the back needle, you insert the needle through the first stitch, purlwise, and drop this stitch off the needle. Then you insert your tapestry needle through the first stitch on the back needle knitwise from front to back, and allow this stitch to stay on the needle.
Let’s repeat these steps a few times. Come through the first stitch on the front needle knitwise, and drop that stitch off the needle. Come through the first stitch on the front needle purlwise, and leave that stitch on the needle. Come through the first stitch on the back needle purlwise, and drop that stitch off the needle. And then come through this stitch knitwise and leave it on the needle.
Again: Front needle knitwise, drop it off. Front needle purlwise, leave it on. Back needle purlwise, drop it off. Back needle knitwise, leave it on. Notice that I’m keeping my index finger between my two needles. This is so the tension of my kitchener stitch doesn’t get too tight.
I’ll show you that again in a second. But let’s do those steps one more time. Front needle knitwise, take it off. Front needle purlwise, leave it on. Back needle purlwise, take it off. Back needle knitwise, leave it on.
Okay, so you can see here that we really are making a new row of stocknette stitches that’s connecting these two pieces of fabric. But the tension right now is quite loose. It’s not matching the tension of the fabric. So all you do to fix that and you do this sort of every few stitches as you go along, is take your tapestry needle and pull the tension through so that it’s matching the stitches of your fabric, and will be a row of stockinette stitches that you can’t even discern from your regularly knit fabric.
So I’m going to continue to knit to the end of my row, and we’ll come back when I’m at the last two stitches, and I’ll show you what to do there.
Okay, so I’ve worked the Kitchener stitch across all the stitches to the last two to work these, you continue as before by inserting the needle knitwise into the first stitch on the front needle and taking that stitch off. And then you do the next step for the back needle, which is to insert your tapestry needle purlwise, and also take that stitch off. So that’s the Kitchener stitch. It’s a beautifully seamless technique. It is perfectly invisible and a little bit magic. I hope you use it a lot.
Kitchener Stitch: Step-By-Step
Set-Up Step 1: Thread a tapestry needle with the same yarn you used to work your project. Hold the needles with the live stitches parallel in your left hand. Insert the tapestry needle through the first stitch on the front needle as if to PURL. Pull the yarn through, leaving a tail that you will weave in later. Leave the stitch on the front needle.
Set-Up Step 2: Insert the tapestry needle through the first stitch on the back needle as if to KNIT, pull the yarn through, leaving the stitch on the back needle.
Step 1: Insert the tapestry needle through the first stitch on the front needle as if to KNIT, pull the yarn through, removing the stitch from the front needle.
Step 2: Insert the tapestry needle through the first stitch on the front needle as if to PURL, pull the yarn through, leaving the stitch on the front needle.
Step 3: Insert the tapestry needle through the first stitch on the back needle as if to PURL, pull the yarn through, removing the stitch on the back needle.
Step 4: Insert the tapestry needle through the first stitch on the back needle as if to KNIT, pull the yarn through, leaving the stitch on the back needle.
Repeat Steps 1-4 until all stitches have been worked. Every few stitches, adjust the tension of your work, making sure not to pull too tightly. Remember, you are making an extra row of knitting rather than sewing together a seam.
Quick + Easy Written Instructions For Kitchener Stitch
Set-Up Step 1: Insert needle through first stitch on the FRONT needle as if to PURL. LEAVE stitch on needle.
Set-Up Step 2: Insert needle through first stitch on BACK needle as if to KNIT. LEAVE stitch on needle.
Step 1: Insert needle through first stitch on FRONT needle as if to KNIT. REMOVE stitch from needle.
Step 2: Insert needle through first stitch on FRONT needle as if to PURL. LEAVE stitch from needle.
Step 3: Insert needle through first stitch on BACK needle as if to PURL. REMOVE stitch from needle.
Step 4: Insert needle through first stitch on BACK needle as if to KNIT. LEAVE stitch from needle.
Repeat Steps 1-4 and that’s it!
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This is a great tutorial. Thank you so much! I am going to practice with a couple of squares before I use it on a project, but I think it's awesome!
Very good idea……
Thanks for the tutorial. Can you use one of the working yarns to do the stitching?
Hi EAS,
YES! You certainly can, if it’s long enough.
Thanks for writing in. Apologies for the delayed response. I’m not sure how it slipped through the cracks.
Best,
Laura
this was very helpful. Thank you.
Thank you so much for such wonderful instructions. I already used your technique for casting on and now that the knitting is complete, I’m off to try this stitch.
excellent! The first time it actually made sense, even after watching many other explanations of the kitchener stitch. Thank you!
Thanks for the really clear video. I’m using it on the Vite Cowl (http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/vite-cowl). For purl stitches do we just reverse the stitches (stitch knitwise where the directions say to stitch purlwise, and vice versa)?
Hi Claudia,
Thank you for your very good question. Yes, if you do the reverse stitches then your seam should read as a purl row.
Happy Knitting!
Jake
Thank you for this video tutorial! I just successfully used the kitchener stitch to finish a project (that is going to be a gift) by following this video. Thank you so much!
After watching many videos, I found your it’s the more complete and easy way to do it, I am making 17 pairs of socks! My first attemp with your instructions, was a complete success, beautiful finish. A little explanation what to do with the last stich will be helpful. I did it my way put it in inside and hidden the end? Thanks a million.
Hello Maria!
Continue the steps as instructed until you can no longer! You will slip off the last stitch onto your darning needle and then make sure to weave in your end securely. That step can always help you mask any imperfections at the edges.
Glad you like the tutorial! Happy stitching! -Alyson
Really helpful ,I can see you have lots of other hints.Thank you! Sarah
Excellent video and instructions but very hard to see because of a box that floats down as I scroll asking about saving to favourites and the previous and next posts which I think is the website not my computer. It obscures the left hand side of everything and I am left reading the top inch of the screen where I can see the whole width (I’m doing this as I type now). Any idea as to how can I get rid of this? Thanks.
Hi Tara,
Thanks so much for your comment. We are aware of this problem and are working on fixing it. We’re so sorry it’s rendering this way, please check back soon! Joelle
I am having the same problem as Tara — where this annoying box for “save to favorites” blocks my view. Have you figured out why it is doing this?
Hello, Katherine!
Thank you so much for writing in! We are very sorry about this inconvience! We have taken care of this issue, but you’re still having trouble please let us know!
Take care,
Kumeko
I am left handed, so do I switch directions and go over and under. Do you have a left handed tutorial?
Hello Cela!
Which hand do you normally hold the yarn is as you knit? Left handed knitters should usually be able to follow the same instructions but just using your left hand. If you prefer to knit everything in mirror image, we don’t have a tutorial for that technique at the moment. Some left handed knitters hold up a mirror to the tutorials to help them visualize the instructions!
Thanks for your question! -Alyson
Is there an alternative bind off that gives a similar level of elasticity? I knit left-handed continental and cannot find useful instructions for the Kitchener stitch. I carry stitches on the left needle and “pick” the stitches with the right needle, holding the yarn in my right hand. I’ve had knitting teachers tell me that they have absolutely no idea what I’m doing, but my work comes out as it should. However, not so with Kitchener stitching. I end up with twisted stitches.
Hi Jan,
Thanks for writing in! If the only problem with your kitchener stitch is that your stitches look twisted, that is not a big problem at all. It’s my assumption that you are inserting your tapestry needle as if to knit through the back loop instead of through the front of the stitch. If you knit through the back loop naturally then you will twist your stitches when inserting your tapestry needle the same way for kitchener. I hope I’ve shed some light!
Best,
Adam
I’d love to see how this works in other stitches, such as ribbing or seed stitch where there is a mix of knit and purl stitches.
Hello Diane!
That is a wonderful question. For the purl stitches, all you should have to do is reverse the steps from the order that you normally would proceed if they were knit stitches. Here is a video that helps you graft stitches in 2×2 rib. I hope this helps! Please write in again if you have any other questions! -Alyson
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wb5nfkgZ-Kc
I got to the last 2 stitches and I’m not sure what to do. Could you please explain how to finish the last 2 stitches? Thank you!
Hello, Kali!
Thank you so much for wriing in! You will continue the steps as instructed until you can no longer! You will slip off the last stitch onto your darning needle and then make sure to weave in your end securely. That step will help you mask any imperfections at the edges. Happy knitting!
Best wishes,
Kumeko
Thanks for the tutorial! Both the video and the written explanation are very helpful. This may be a silly question, but can kichener be used to join together a garter stitch piece? If yes, would it be worked any differently than what is in your tutorial? Thanks in advance!
Hello Sarah!
Its definitely possible, take a look at how we completed the grafting in this post: https://www.purlsoho.com/create/2011/04/10/whits-knits-striped-cotton-cowl/ Thanks for your question! -Alyson
I’m working on finishing up my shawlette. It has ha me work a knitted cord cast off across the center lace panel stitches as follows: *k2, ask,return stitches to the left needle and repeat from * until only the two sets of three I-cord stitches remain. I am at this point. It saws to cut yarn and GRAFT the knitted cord sections together. I can not seem to find any info on grafting two sections of I cord. Kitchener Stitch? Don’t want to spoil the project at this point. Thank you for you help.
Hello Kathleen!
Yes, grafting is often used interchangeably with Kitchener stitch in certain patterns. It will be a little odd to be doing Kitchener in the round, but the technique is the same. Best of luck and please let us know how it turns out! -Alyson
Thank you for the tutorial. I used it for your seamed socks pattern.
Hello, do you think kitchener stitch would work on your chevron scarf? I would like to knit two separate pieces and graft them together in order to have the same look at both ends. I’m worried that by grafting it may destroy the chevron design, perhaps that is why your pattern does not attempt this idea.
Thank you.
Hello, Bill!
Thank you for writing in! Sorry about the delayed response! I am not sure I know what scarf you’re thinking of. I believe that as long as the two pieces of fabric that your are grafting together fit together like pieces of a puzzle you should be able to kitchener them together without destroying the chevron design. Please let us know if you have further questions.
Best wishes,
Kumeko
I’m doing an attached i-cord with a provisional cast on. When joining the two ends of the i-cord do I treat the yarn used for the cast on as a needle and carefully unravel it where it says to remove the stitch from the needle?
Hello Edward,
That is a great question, that you for reaching out. You will want to carefully unravel the provisional cast on and slip those live stitches onto a spare double point, or any kind of needle for that matter. You will then kitchener the 2 i-cord ends together. I hope that helps. Let us know if you have any other questions.
Happy knitting,
Allison
Thanks. Little nervous about this slipping and unraveling but I’ll just have to be careful.
Thank you.
So helpful.
very easy to understand but i need to know how to do this on a provisional cast on and live stitches on another that are both circular needles in the round. making a knitted headband with a lining and suppose to graft together the cast on and cast off stitches but confused on how to hold the needles would you beable to explain that to me? i will be grateful!!
Hello Rebecca,
Thanks for writing us! Firstly, pick up your stitches from your provisional cast on and remove the scrap yarn. Divide your stitches in half and put one half on a double pointed needle and then do the same for the other half, starting with your beginning of round stitch. Repeat this for your “cast off”, starting with your beginning of round stitch. Now you will orient the two tube ends together so they “kiss”. Make sure that your beginning of round stitches match up and that you are not twisting the tube. Holding the two “beginning of round” double points together (cast on and cast off), start your kitchener stitch, continuing on to the second double point when the time arrives. I hope this was clear. It’s much easier to show than to type!
Best,
Adam
Hi, do you have any suggestion on how to adapt this for crochet edges?
Hi Sarah,
Thanks for writing us! I don’t know of any technique that is like kitchener for grafting crocheted edges. This technique is just for knitting. Good luck on your search though!
Best,
Adam
Thank you so much for this tutorial. I was looking at your 3 needle cast off, where you suggested kitchener stitch instead. Really clear instructions, I would have struggled to understand otherwise. Thank you
I’m about to start the Kitchener stitch on your Lovely Lace Leaf scarf but I’m not sure what to do with the two live yarns from the two separate pieces. I’ll use the yarn from the back section, but don’t know what to do with the front. Thanks!
Hello Marlene,
That is a very good question! Once you have stitches the 2 ends together you can simply weave the other end into the work as you do with any other end. I hope that helps. Please let us know if you have any other questions.
All the best,
Allison
I used a different tutorial to do a Kitchener stitch and the results were bad enough that the project ended up in my frogged pile. Thanks for this tutorial! Kitchener stitching makes sense and a rescued pair of socks. Success
Can I use a variation of Kitchener stitch to bind off the top of a hood that is worked in k1, p1 moss stitch? If so, what is the sequence of stitches/ Many thanks.
Hi Sue,
Thanks for writing in! We do not have a seed stitch kitchener tutorial, but there are many videos for seed/moss stitch grafting and 1×1 ribbing grafting on YouTube. I would start there. Since there are so many videos, I rather you pick which one you understand best rather than me giving you one video. Good luck and happy knitting!
Best,
Adam
I need to do a Kitchener stitch on ribbing to join final stitches, 8 in all. Thank you!
Hi Francine,
Thanks for writing in! We don’t currently have a 1×1 rib kitchener tutorial, but I’m sure there are plenty of examples on YouTube! Good luck on the search!
-Adam
THIS IS THE VERY BEST TUTORIAL ON KITCHENER STITCH EVER! I CANNOT THANK YOU ENOUGH FOR THESE WONDERFULLY CLEAR INSTRUCTIONS AND DEMONSTRATION!
I am knitting an old fashion hat for a toddler – the last step is to weave 2 rows of ‘live’ stitches together using weaving/Kitchener stitch. After a last knit row of the hat, I was to leave a long tail for weaving and cut it at about 18″. I am using 2 regular needles – the tail is at the end of one of the needles where the flat end is – not the point….how do I use the tail to weave when – from all the information I’ve read, the weaving is supposed to start at the pointed end of the needles? Should I just leave the tail and begin with another length of wool at the pointed end of the needles? Help!
Hi Janet,
Thanks for your question! If you are cutting your yarn at the end of your last row, then your 18″ tail should be at the point of your needle because it was cut from your working yarn. However, if it’s not, then you can certainly do kitchener stitch with unconnected yarn. You’ll just need to eave in your yarn ends into the inside of the hat. I hope this helps!
-Adam
I have finished a beautiful lace shawl called “Lace Shawl” by Alice Halbeisen. She says to use a Kitchener Stitch to graft the two pieces together, but I want to make it totally invisible. The problem is that at that spot the two sides will be mirror images instead of continuing the pattern. Hmmm….any suggestions?
Thanks! Happy to be learning a new technique.
Sue
Hi Sue,
Thanks for writing us! I would trust in the designer’s pattern and follow it exactly. Maybe, with the way the lace forms, the shawl will come out seamless. The only way to know is by doing a few inches of kitchener stitch to see how it forms. If it isn’t seamless, then there is no sure-fire way to graft lace together since every lace pattern is a little different. Let us know how it goes though!
-Adam
A previous comment says you can use the working yarn for this. Is it different than the tutorial? Or do you start the same? I have a beanie knit in the round from the base up and it requires a Kitchener stitch to close the top for a squared look. I did one beanie and cut a long piece of yarn for the Kitchener stitch, but it’d be nice if I could figure out how to use the working yarn so I don’t have so many ends to weave in. Thanks!!
Hi Rebecca,
Thanks for writing in! You can certainly use your working yarn for the kitchener. Here we used a contrast yarn to illustrate the technique more concretely. You can use your working yarn, just follow our instructions as written with the attached yarn!
Best,
Cassy
I’ve always been more than slightly afraid to try this, but I just knitted up the Gilmore Girls A Year in the Life MKAL and needed to finish the cowl. These instructions are amazing! My cowl finished up beautifully. #GGMAKL16
Hi Ann,
Thank you so much for the kind words! We are so glad that this tutorial was helpful!
Best,
Cassy
Hello, I want to knit a scarf, but how do I start it, to get stitches at both ends to use this wonderful stitch, my scarf is in gafter stitch.
Hi Debbie,
Thank you for writing in! You’ll want to use a provisional cast-on to keep your cast-on stitches “live” so that they can be knit later. This will allow you to use the kitchener stitch! We’ve got two tutorials that cover provisional cast-on’s, the first is a Two-Step Method and the second is a One-Step Method. Please let us know if you have further questions!
Best wishes,
Kumeko
Thank you for simple, clear and concise instructions of the kitchener along with helpful illustrations!!
Other instructions I found were useable but tedious to follow.
I have seen some tutorials that do not include the set-up steps for the first stitch on each needle. Have you heard of that?Rather, they start right in with the knit off/purl on for the front needle then purl off/knit on for the rear needle. Is the set-up optional? What purpose does it serve?
Thanks for helping sort out this confusion.
Hi Karen,
Thanks for writing us. The set up steps are essential for a better edge or seamless join when grafting. I’ve tried not doing the set up steps in my work and find that it doesn’t give me as neat of an edge. Hope this helps!
-Adam
I’m knitting a fox for my granddaughter and have come across this stitch for the very first time. Thank you for a clear video and instructions. Had a few goes but finally mastered it. Very loose at first but managed to tightened it up in the end. Have bookmarked your site for the future.
Very clear instructions. Thank you.
Just viewing your tutorial; I’m knitting socks on three needles. Do I need to put the stitches on two needles to finish them with this stitch? It’s my first pair of socks!
Hi Linda,
Shifting your stitches onto 2 double pointed needles helps the stitches to line up exactly and lay flat. When you’re ready to kitchener I would highly recommend shifting stitches onto 2 needles!
Happy knitting,
Carly
Awesome tutorial! Thank you!
hai… this article very helpful for me. thank you ?
Hi there
I have finally finished knitting my Purl Soho sweater and have to use the Kitchener stitch for the armpits. Can you tell me how to finish this new row of stitches? What do you do when you get to the end?
THANKS
Hi Clara,
Thanks for writing in! The kitchener stitch will close up the gap and finish off the underarm. It will not create a a new row of stitches that need to dealt with. Rather at the end, you will have just a tail that needs to woven in on the inside of the sweater!
I hope that this clears things up!
Cassy
Hi there, I’m finally grafting the underarm stitches using Kitchener for the Lightweight Raglan Pullover. If I did this correctly, the working yarn is on the right side of the live stitches for the left sleeve (when looking at the sweater as pictured), but the working yarn is on the LEFT side for the right sleeve. Since the tutorial shows working the Kitchener stitch from right to left, do I use a separate piece of yarn to graft instead of the working yarn on the left? Please help!
Hi Fran!
Thanks for writing in! I find it so much easier to kitchener stitch from right to left so if that is easiest for you too I would recommend doing it that way! The only difference is that you need to weave in an extra tail.
I hope this helps!
Carly
I am sewing up under a sleeve of a cardigan that was all knitted as one, the stitches have all been decreased and cast off. Will this work if I pick up stitches on two needles and proceed as per your instructions? I have a yarn tail as I’ve just grafted the side seam to the arm pit .
Hi Jenn,
Thanks for writing in! I would not recommend kitchener stitch for this particular situation, since your stitches have already been cast off. It would work, but you will still have a visible and palpable seam due to picking up stitches from the cast on and cast off edges, so I would skip the extra work and use mattress stitch to join the edges together.
I hope that helps!
Julianna
Excellent instructions. I was able to finish my first sock! Thank you
Thank you! So easy to understand now.
I may have missed the question above but if so, here it is again.
I am finishing an infinity scarf. I am at the point to do the kitchner stitch. How much of a tail do I allow in order to have enough yarn to get all the way across the edge. Twice the amount of the edge or three times or more?
Hello Victoria,
Thank you for reaching out! I would reccomend measuring out a generous three times length. This should give you plenty.
Happy stitching!
-Marilla
Congratulations. You explain everything so simple and accurate that we cannot fail. Thanks
To Kitchner together the edging, that is the icord on the Eleventh Hour Blanket, does it still come out looking like a round tube on the two ends if I follow your directions exactly, or is there something else I need to do so the two ends don’t flatten out and look yucky. Do I have to slide anything to keep the ends round ? Is there a video about using using the kitchner on a attached icord ? This step seems scary to me.
Thanks in advance for your help !
Hi Ali,
Great question! Although you don’t have to do anything different when actually working kitchener on two ends of I-cord, it does turn out a bit flat at that spot, so you will have to pull the two edges together and tack them down when you weave in your ends so that the kitchener stitches match the shape of the rest of the I-cord.
I hope that clears things up!
Julianna
Excellent video, but how do I do this for grafting purl—to-purl ( garter stitch)?
Hi Joan,
Thanks for reaching out! Although it is possible it work kitchener stitch in garter stitch, we unfortunately do not have instructions for this technique. If you search for “Garter Kitchener Stitch” you should find quite a few guides and videos!
Best,
Julianna
This is the best video and written instructions I have ever seen for Kitchener stitch. I have shied away from socks for so long because I could never understand the kitchener stitch…now I do and I will knit on!!
Thanks
I am knitting Purl Soho’s faceted yoke pullover. It has been a challenge, but I am enjoying it. However, I’ve reached the stage of casting off the rib at the bottom of the body. I’ve successfully divided the stitches onto 2 needles – knit on the front needle, and purl on the back. Do I use the standard Kitchener stitch? I don’t want to spoil what I have achieved so far. Help! Isobel, in coastal NE Essex, UK
Hello Isobel,
Thank you for reaching out and congratulations on your new sweater! You are exactly right, the last step to the tubular bind off is kitchener stitch.
Happy knitting!
-Marilla
Thank you so much for this tutorial, the last times I tried this stitch and followed a different tutorial I kept giving up half way through out of frustration!
best instructions
Hi do you slip the stitches off one needle to the other to begin. I understand the stitch process but not the starting .
Thank you.
Hi Cheryl,
Thanks for reaching out! If your stitches are all currently on one needle, you can move half of them to another needle by slipping them purlwise; or, if you are using a circular needle, you can fold the circular needle in half so the needle tips are parallel to each other.
I hope that helps!
Julianna
these are the best instructions for this stitch I have seen! And I have been knitting a looooong time.
ME TOO!! I will find myself coming back to the instructions whenever I’ve lost them in between projects. Thank you so much, Julianna.
Thank you so much for this tutorial. It’s not the first time I’ve used it. It works better for me written out as steps – the video is a bonus, too!
When using the Kitchener stitch, can this be used when putting together pieces that are finished on all sides, for example , I am making a cable stitch blanket and doing it in columns…. now I need to attach each column. Do I use the edge stitches by putting them on a needle or would that not work as a flawless seam?
Hi Linda,
Thanks for reaching out! In this situation, it sounds like using Kitchener Stitch would add some unnecessary steps and not result in a “seamless” seam. Kitchener stitch works best in a situation where you have two sets of live stitches on your needles, but since you are joining the sides of two panels, you will have to first pick up stitches and then kitchener them together. Picking up stitches always creates a ridge on the wrong side of your work, and kitchener stitch creates a purl ridge on the wrong side, so your seam will be visible on the wrong side. Instead, I would recommend using Mattress Stitch or our tutorial for Seaming Garter Stitch to assemble your panels – when worked carefully, both methods should look almost seamless!
Best,
Julianna
Could you show us how to attach finished pieces to ensure a flat seamless end product?
Hi Linda,
Thanks for reaching out! I think you may be interested in our Mattress Stitch, Seaming Garter Stitch, and Seaming Stockinette Horizontally tutorials – these methods for seaming knits are quite tidy and nearly invisible from the right side of the work!
Happy knitting!
Julianna
Thank you for the tutorial. Does this work for 1×1 rib? I have tried, but it doesn’t look like ribbing
Best regards Anette
Hello Anette,
Thanks for reaching out! You are correct it is a different process for a ribbed stitch. Unfortunately we don’t currently have a 1×1 rib kitchener tutorial, but I’m sure there are plenty of examples on YouTube! Good luck on the search!
Best,
Marilla
Thanks so much for this video! I finished the underarms of a children’s sweater using it, and found it to be very easy to follow.
I always enjoy your tutorials and this is no exception. My problem came from my not realizing the difference between grafting stockinette and a 1/1 rib. I had to look up another video on YouTube to find one. The technique worked, so I am happy with the outcome. You all provide clear instructions with no distractions. I always choose to look to Purl SoHo first!
Thank you for your brilliant video on how to do kitchener stitch.
Best wishes,
Eileen
A very clear explanation and demonstration of kitchener stitch. Now I am not afraid to try it. Thank you do much.
Great tutorial! One question – Why are you saying to use a separate piece of yarn when Kitchenering? I understand YOU choosing to, to make it easier to see on the video, but why us? That’s one more end to weave in, in an already sensitive area of the sock. Just wondering…
Hi Macy,
Thanks for reaching out! As you mentioned, we’re using a different color yarn to demonstrate the steps in the tutorial; when you’re working on your project, we recommend using the same yarn that you used for your project (you can find this noted in Step 1 of the written tutorial instructions found just under the video). Often, patterns will tell you to leave a longer tail that you can use for the Kitchener Stitch, so you don’t have to introduce a new strand of yarn, but this does somewhat depend on the project!
I hope this helps!
Warmly,
Kelsey
Great tutorial. I about to finish the Lovely Leaf Lace Scarf using this technique I am giving the wrap to a deaf friend who is from NY and has always been a great supporter of the knitting community even though she isn’t a knitter.
Hi Carissa,
Thanks for reaching out and for your kind words! I am so glad to hear that you enjoyed our tutorial, and I love to hear that our beautiful Lovely Leaf Lace Scarf will be a gift for a dear friend! We would love to see your finished work, so please feel free to send a photo to our email [email protected] or tag us on Instagram using @purlsohobusyhands or the hashtag #purlsohobusyhands
Happy knitting!
Gianna
Thank you for your instructions. Will the infamous dog ears appear on socks?
Hi! I’m not sure how to set up your double knitting blanket at the end to start binding off with kitchener stitch-Can you help?
Thanks!
Hi Alice,
Thanks for reaching out. The first thing you’ll need to do before beginning the kitchener stitch is to get half of your stitches onto your spare set of circular needles! To do this, slip each stitch purlwise onto either the other end of your working needles or onto the spare needles. If the stitch is attached to the side of the fabric facing you (the knit side), then slip it onto your working needles. But if it’s attached to the side of the fabric further away from you (the purl side), then slip it onto your spare needles. Once you’ve done this across the entire width of the blanket, your blanket should separate into two halves, and you’ll be ready to begin grafting the sides together using the kitchener stitch! I hope this helps!
All the best,
Lili
As always, thanks for the great tutorials. I have my stitches (28) on two needles (14 each) but, when I put the stitches from the “shorter” of the three needles (7 on each; 14 from the “longer” set of stitches) my yarn end is in the middle of the second set of stitches. It’s like a puzzle! Is there a way to get the yarn end at the end of the line of stitches or do I just “weave” it over? Or add another piece of yarn? Befuddled and I haven’t even started the kitchener! :/ Thanks .
Hi Beverly,
Thanks for writing in. Can you let me know what pattern you’re working from? Generally, the instructions will be written so that your working yarn ends up in the correct position to begin the kitchener stitch. It seems to me like your stitches were in the perfect position when you had them on two needles, divided in half. That’s normally what I’d expect before working the kitchener stitch, so it strikes me as odd that you then have them on three needles. I’ll keep an eye out for your reply!
All the best,
Lili
Lili, I apologize for the delay in getting back to you; couldn’t get your site to cooperate. (I think I was asking your comment section to do too much importing.) Thank you for your response and for your insightful comments.
The pattern I am using is:
https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/cascade-christmas-stocking
I’m going to try to import a photo so you can seen where I am now.
Thank you for your continued support! Beverly
Hi Beverly,
It might be best to move this conversation over to email, so you can easily send me photos of your work! Just send them along to [email protected], and I’ll take a look.
All the best,
Lili
Thank so much for the instructions – I could actually understand them. Thank you
I don’t understand how this technique is applied to join the ends of an icord, as required for the Gentle Cardigan. Can you please explain how this is done?
Hi Sadie,
Thanks for reaching out! To do Kitchener stitch to join 2 i-cords, first make sure you have the ends you want to graft together on separate needles. Then, hold these parallel to each other, with at least one working strand of yarn coming out from the right end of one of the i-cord ends. You’ll only have a small number of stitches on each needle, so it may look a little funny, but you can actually follow the instructions in our tutorial as written! Since you have so few stitches, it will also go very quickly!
All the best,
Lili
I’ve never done the Kitchener stitch, but your directions are great! I’m a bit nervous but will give it a go; however, I do have one question: My stitch number is odd 45 stitches – so do I do the 44 just like your video and then what do I do with the last one? The directions say “after grafting 44, pick up the last stitch, pull tight and knot”? I’m not sure what that means . . .
Also do you recommend using the working yarn or a separate piece of the same yarn?
thank you!
Hi Alison,
Thanks for reaching out! It sounds like the pattern you’re working from is indicating to thread your working yarn through that final stitch and tie a knot with it. It would help to have a bit more context though! Would you be able to send us the pattern you’re working from, so we can take a closer look? Feel free to send an email to [email protected], and we can go from there!
All the best,
Lili
Do you also have a tutorial for Kitchener in the round, for example, joining two ends of a tube cowl? For that, there are no setup stitches. I wonder if anyone is confused because I see some designers linking to this page, when they really don’t need the setup stitches for their particular design.
Hello,
Thanks for writing in! I’m afraid that we haven’t made a tutorial for Kitchener in the round ourselves, but I know that some other knitters have done so. I’d recommend searching “Kitchener stitch in the round” in your favorite search engine, and lots of videos will come up, if you want to see this in action!
All the best,
Lili
Hi, this is such a great tutorial! I’m using it to graft the underarms of a sweater but there are holes on either side of where I’ve used Kitchener on the “live” stitches. How can I close those up without losing elasticity and keeping it relatively invisible? Thank you!
Hi ZOE,
Thanks so much, glad to hear it was so helpful! The holes you’re seeing are super normal, and fortunately there’s an easy way to close them up. You can take the yarn ends that are present at the underarm and use them to work duplicate stitch on the wrong side of the fabric over the holes. This will cinch them up really well and be invisible from the right side of the fabric!
All the best,
Lili
Thank you so much for this tutorial! I have struggled with Kitchener stitch for years and didn’t realize why until I watched the video. I have even torn pieces apart because I hated how the seam looked. Your tip about putting the left index finger between the needles and adjusting tension (mine was too tight) made all the difference! Now I can’t wait to use the technique again,
thank you very much . I was glad that I found your site when I was looking how to do this stitch since you were the only one I could understood your instruction and the fact the written was the best yet I will subcribe to your channel I know I will learn better from it I am very hard of hearing and some letter I do not hear so its very hard to hear what people are saying so many thank for helping me.
It took me 12 years to get the guts to finish a cowl I shelves because the Kitchener stitch was too intimidating. Today is the day I finished it. You made it so easy! Thank you!!
By far the best and clearest instructions I’ve seen for this technique. Thank you SO much!