Tip Tuesday: Dropped Stitches? Don't Panic...Here's How to Fix Them
We've all been there—you're knitting along, enjoying the process, when suddenly you notice that a stitch has slipped off your needles and your knitting has started to unravel. Before you begin ripping out rows, pause! There's no need to panic or frog.
Today, we're here to show you a quick and easy fix to save your dropped stitches and get back to your knitting faster.
Understanding Dropped Stitches
First things first, let's clarify what we mean by picking up a dropped stitch. Dropped stitches are those little mishaps where a stitch falls off your needle and begins to unravel. This is a slightly different process from intentionally picking up stitches as a pattern detail.
Today, we're focusing on how to fix this mistake.
Picking Up Dropped Stitches One Step At A Time
1. Locate the dropped stitch: The first step is to find the dropped stitch. This is the loop that is now dangling in your work. 
Tip of the day: If you are a few stitches away from this dropped stitch in your knitting, place a stitch marker on this loop to prevent it from falling further as you knit.
2. Stitch over to the dropped stitch: Carefully knit or purl your way over to the stitch in question.
3. Grab your crochet hook: Yes, even us knitters need a crochet hook in our toolkit. Trust us, it's the perfect tool for this job and maybe having it will inspire you to pick up another yarn craft…but that’s a tip for a different day.
4. Put that hook to use: Insert your crochet hook through the dropped stitch from front to back.
5. Hook the horizontal bar of yarn: Locate the horizontal bar of yarn that is closest to the dropped stitch. Use your crochet hook to pull this bar through the loop of the dropped stitch. This will create a new loop.
6. Repeat if necessary: If you've dropped more than one stitch or more than one row, make sure to start with the bottom-most horizontal bar and work your way back up to the row you are on.
Continue pulling each horizontal bar through the loop of the stitch until you reach the top of your fabric.
Note: it’s important to work one dropped stitch at a time. Get the stitch back up to the top row before picking up the dropped stitch(s) next to it.
Tips for Success
- Avoid Twisting Stitches: As you pull the bars through the loops, be careful not to twist your stitches. Twisted stitches can change the look and tension of your fabric.
- Mind Your Tension: Pay attention to your tension as you pick up your dropped stitches. You don't want to pull the yarn too tight.
Things to note: Yes, the tension of the stitch you are picking up is important, but the same can be said about the stitches on either side of your dropped stitch.
As you are picking up stitches, ensure your tension matches the surrounding stitches, and do not pull the horizontal bar too tight so that the stitches on either side are thrown off.
Practice Makes Perfect
Fixing dropped stitches can feel intimidating at first, but with a little practice, it will become second nature. You've got this!
Join the Conversation
Have any additional tips or tricks for fixing dropped stitches? Share them in the comments below! We love hearing from our knitting community and learning new techniques to make our projects even better.
Happy knitting, and see you next Tip Tuesday!
2 comments
This is a great way to learn the anatomy of a knit stitch vs a purl stitch. Make sure the leading leg of the picked up stitch is mounted on the needle the same way as your other stitches are.
Thanks for the very clear instructions.
