Casting on

Step 1

Make a slip knot, leaving a long tail. Each stitch to be cast on requires around 2cm of yarn so make sure you measure out enough lace For novice knitters the thought of deliberately making holes in your work can be hard to understand, but it quickly becomes clear when you see the gorgeous garments and accessories that can be made using lace techniques.The holes, or eyelets as they're more commonly called, are created by working increases, in the form of yarn overs, paired with decreases. This means you have the same number of stitches but end up with eyelets that can then be incorporated into various designs and teamed with stocking stitch to produce beautiful lacy knits. This tutorial provides you with a useful step-by-step guide to the basic stitches. Why not choose one of our four pretty lacy projects to practice your new-found skills? before making the slip knot. Hold the ball end in your right hand and stretch the tail end out to the left of the needle. Hook your thumb over and under the tail strand to create a loop