Moving Stitch Markers

When knitting lace projects, many knitters find it useful to use stitch markers to indicate the repeats of lace stitches. While this method is great for keeping track of your stitches on the needles, there are moments when the stitch markers can cause confusion. Occasionally, the stitch markers may need to be repositioned. In this video, lace knitter Jen Lucas walks through a lace chart where the stitch markers must be moved and provides helpful tips to recognize when you may need to do the same in your own knitting projects. Jen begins by looking at the following chart.

Written Instructions for Chart:

Row 1 (RS): K4, *k2, k2tog, yo, k1, yo, ssk, k1; rep from * to last 5 sts, k5.
Row 2 (WS): K2, purl to the last 2 sts, k2.
Row 3: K4, *k1, k2tog, yo, k3, yo, ssk; rep from * to last 5 sts, k5.
Row 4: K2, purl to the last 2 sts, k2.
Row 5: K3, yo, *sk2p, yo, k5, yo; rep from * to last 6 sts, sk2p, k3.
Row 6: K2, purl to the last 2 sts, k2.

Rep Rows 1 – 6 for pattern.

Jen works through the first four rows of the pattern, slipping the stitches as she comes to them. When she begins Row 5, she notes that the markers will need to be rearranged as the row is worked. Once that row is complete, Jen shares some of the clues that you can look for in both the chart and the written instructions for a pattern that will indicate that it’s possible that the stitch markers need to be rearranged.