Work 5 rows in plain reverse stockinette stitch.
The first row of the motif is the 6th row which is a
wrong-side row. Work to the center 7 sts, knit 3,
yarn over, ssk, knit 2, and continue the rest of the
row. Then work 4 more rows plain.
If you study the right-side of the work you’ll see 2
sts between each tuck stitch loop (green arrows)
and from the wrong side the strands down to the
eyelet appear to be a half-stitch off, but there are
still 2 stitches between the gaps (pink arrows).
The tuck stitch
Working the eyelet
Now working across the wrong side of the fabric,
come to the center 7 stitches, [k1, purl the loop and
the next st together], repeat between [ ] twice more,
and then knit the last of the 7 sts, and continue
across.
Knit eyelet stitch, knit to the end of the row.
Identifying the tuck stitches and neighboring purl stitches.
Work 3 more rows plain and you're ready to make
another eyelash stitch.
Eyelet in reverse stockinette stitch
The next right-side row is where all the fun happens.
Here's where we work the tuck stitch. Work to the
center 7 sts, purl 2 sts, insert the right needle into
the eyelet 4 rows below and bring up a loop of yarn
quite loosely. The loop should be pulled up past the
height of the current row. See the photo for an idea
of what it should look like. If the loop is too tight the
fabric will pucker.
Then, purl 2 sts, repeat the tuck stitch and pull up
the loop to the same height as the other. Then purl
2 sts and repeat the tuck stitch once more; purl 1,
and continue across.
Completed eyelash stitch
And that’s all there is to this cute stitch motif. I hope
you enjoy knitting the eyelash stitch. The next time
I design something, I’m going to try this with a yarn
dyed in a long colorway to see if the eyelashes
contrast well against the stitches behind them.
KNITmuch | issue 2
19