How to Fix Dropped Stitches Part V: Edge Stitches

The best way to pick up dropped stitches is to not have to! That's why Julie designed the Stitch Stoppers. She noticed her students often dealing with dropped edge stitches due to failed tip protectors. Made out of a squishy EVA foam material, our Stitch Stoppers are different because they slide onto the needle rather than just sitting on the tip. They have such a strong and secure hold that dropped edge stitches will be a thing of the past (or a very rare accidental slip.)

But alas, you're reading this to fix your dropped stitches and it happens to the best of us. So let's move on to the instructions. 😊

"Catch" the dropped stitches so you can work on them one at a time. The goal here is to organize the mess and make sure that the other stitches don't drop any further as you work on each stitch individually. You can use a variety of tools to hold the stitches such as CABLE NEEDLES, OPENING STITCH MARKERS, or SPLIT RING MARKERS. If you want a super secure hold, you can also use Claw Clips. 

Believe it or not, the next step is to grab your Knitter's Block. You'll need your blocking boards and T-Pins from the kit. If you don't own this, you can sub these items with your own pins and a cork board (or something similar to pin onto). We'll also use our Stitch Fixer. If you're working stockinette and don't own one you can sub with a crochet hook, but this tool really comes in handy if you have to pick up purl stitches. 

The heavy lifting of picking up edge stitches is simply organizing the loops. Something particularly confusing about these stitches is the loops that are formed at the outer edge of your project. Organize them by laying your project on your Knitter's Block and pining these loops down (see video at 3:45 for a visual). Each loop has a top and bottom that may be twisted. Make sure that you unfurl any loops that need it so the top is clearly at the top and the bottom is clearly at the bottom. 

Now it's time to start picking up stitches. We think it's easiest to start from the innermost dropped stitch and work your way out. In this video Julie is fixing stockinette, so we'll continue the directions in stockinette. Put your hook through the innermost stitch from front to back.

If you're picking up garter or a patterned stitch you can follow these instructions, steps 3-8. 

It's just like fixing any other dropped stitch, but the outer edge loops are the "ladders" we normally have in the middle of the live stitches. Making sure you have the bottom of the very next outer edge loop, use your hook to pick it up: scoop up from behind and pull it forward through the stitch on your hook. It may be helpful to repeat this out loud "scoop up from behind and pull it forward through the stitch." 

Continue picking up stitches until you get to the end of your pinned loops.

Once you have pulled through the last stitch in the column, you'll want to twist it a little to the left and put it back on the needle. To do this place your left needle through the front of the loop. Take your hook out and ta-da! You've fixed your first dropped stitch. Now it's time to move on to the next. 

Free your next dropped stitch from its holder and repeat steps 5-7 until all of your stitches are picked up. As you get the hang of everything you may feel okay about getting rid of the pins, but they are nice to start with to keep things tidy so it's clear what you need to pick up next. 

See? Dropped edge stitches aren't so bad...you'll be clicking away with your needles again before you know it!