How to Dragon Skin Stitch

Learn the dragon skin stitch and add texture to your knitting.

The dragon skin stitch pattern produces a textured knitted fabric that resembles the scales on reptile skin. This stitch pattern is worked across 26 knit stitches and over 12 rows, and it features knit two together and slip-slip-knit decreases, as well as nearly invisible make one increases. The result is an elegant pattern suitable for hand-knit socks, gloves, mittens and even sweaters.

Things You'll Need

• Yarn
• Knitting needles

Instructions

1. Cast on 26 stitches.

2. Purl the first row.

3. Knit the first stitch in the second row, pick up the bar of yarn running between this stitch and the next stitch on the left-hand needle, place the bar of yarn over the left-hand needle and knit into it to work a make-one increase.

4. Slip the next two stitches from the left-hand needle onto the right-hand needle and knit these two stitches together (this is a slip-slip-knit).

5. Knit the next four stitches, then knit the next two stitches together (this is a knit-two-together).

6. Knit three stitches, work another make-one increase as in step 3, knit two stitches, work a make-one increase, knit 3 stitches, slip-slip-knit, knit 4 stitches, knit-two-together, work a final make-one increase and knit the last stitch.

7. Purl row 3.

8. Knit the first stitch in row 4, work a make-one increase, knit 1, slip-slip-knit, knit 2, knit-two-together, knit 4, work a make-one increase, knit 2, work a make-one increase, knit 4, slip-slip-knit, knit 2, knit-two-together, knit 1, work a make-one increase and knit the last stitch.

9. Purl row 5.

10. Knit the first stitch in row 6, work a make-one increase, knit 2, slip-slip-knit, knit-two-together, knit 5, work a make-one increase, knit 2, work a make-one increase, knit 5, slip-slip-knit, knit-two-together, knit 2, work a make-one increase and knit the last stitch.

11. Purl row 7.

12. Knit the first stitch in row 8, work a make-one increase, knit 3, slip-slip-knit, knit 4, knit-two-together, work a make-one increase, knit 2, work a make-one increase, slip-slip-knit, knit 4, knit-two-together, knit 3, work a make-one increase, knit the last stitch.

13. Purl row 9.

14. Knit the first stitch in row 10, work a make-one increase, knit 4, slip-slip-knit, knit 2, knit-two-together, knit 1, work a make-one increase, knit 2, work a make-one increase, knit 1, slip-slip-knit, knit 2, knit-two-together, knit 4, work a make-one increase, knit the last stitch.

15. Purl row 11.

16. Knit the first stitch in row 12, work a make-one increase, knit 5, slip-slip-knit, knit-two-together, knit 2, work a make-one increase, knit 2, work a make-one increase, knit 2, slip-slip-knit, knit-two-together, knit 5, work a make-one increase, knit the last stitch.

Tips & Warnings

• You can repeat the 12-rows to create a knitted item with an all-over dragon skin stitch pattern. When casting on for any item you wish to knit in dragon skin stitch, the number of stitches must be a multiple of 26.

References

• "A Second Treasury of Knitting Patterns;" Barbara Walker; 1998

Resources

• Knitting Help: Knitting Videos