How to Knit a Purled Ladder Stitch
The great thing about knitting is once you've mastered the knit and purl stitches, you've opened up a world of possible patterns. The purled ladder stitch is a great way to show off your knit and purl skills. It looks complicated to the uninitiated and produces an attractive reversible pattern that looks great on dishcloths, scarves, baby blankets, afghans and even socks.
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Instructions
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1
Pick yarn in a light color so you can watch the purled ladder pattern develop. Worsted, double-knit (DK) or baby weight is the best for practice. Wool or wool blend is preferable to cotton, which can be stiff when you're learning a new pattern.
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2
Use the needle number indicated on the yarn ball band. You don't have to worry about gauge at this point, but be sure to make at least a five-inch swatch if you knit something in the future where size matters.
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3
Calculate the purled ladder pattern at a multiple of four stitches plus two extra. For your practice swatch, loosely cast on 22 stitches.
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4
Knit the first two rows. This isn't a garter stitch border. Instead, you'll be making "ladders" of knit and purl stitches and separating them with a garter row.
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5
Begin the pattern by purling two stitches. Then knit two and purl two, alternating across the row. You should end with two purled stitches.
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6
Start the next row with two knit stitches. You'll alternate between two purl and two knit stitches until you finish the row with two knitted stitches.
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7
Do Step 5 and Step 6. You should see alternating knit and purl stitch "ladders" that are two stitches wide and four stitches long.
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8
Make the next two rows garter by knitting all stitches, just as in Step 4.
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9
Repeat Step 6, starting with two knit stitches. Once you've reached the end, repeat Step 5 for the next row. Then do Step 6 and Step 5 over. You should get alternating "ladders" of knit and purl of two stitches wide and four stitches long.
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10
Create your purled ladder stitch swatch by repeating Steps 4 through Nine. Remember you're making alternating knit-and-purl "ladders" separated by a garter stitch row to keep you on track.
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