How to Knit Yarn Over

In knitting, the yarn over is the technique that knitters use to create a hole in their knitting which can be decorative or make an increase to the stitches in the row of knitting. Knitted laces and knitted eyelets use a lot of yarn overs combined with decreases to create these decorative knitted fabrics.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Follow the instructions for your knitting pattern. When you need to make a yarn over, it will say "YO" or "yo." When you see that, it's time to make the yarn over in the next stitch.

2. 
   Yarn Over When Knitting

   Place the yarn behind the needle and bring it forward counterclockwise without inserting the right needle into the next stitch. The yarn will go over the right needle and make a loop over the needle. You want the yarn to be behind the needle when you are done.

3. 
   Yarn Over When Purling

   Place the yarn over the needle going clockwise so that the yarn is in the front of the work when the yarn over is done when you are purling and have to make a yarn over.

4. Continue knitting or purling the next stitches on the needle as you ordinarily would as the directions call for. If you are knitting a lacy item, you will have to either decrease before the yarn over or just after it. If you are using yarn overs for increases, you will not have to decrease at all.

5. Finish the row out. If you are purling the next row, knit the yarn over as a purl stitch as you normally would. If it's a knit row, knit the yarn overs as regular knit stitches.

Resources

• Video on Creating a Yarn Over