How to Slip the First Stitch for Neater Knitting Edges (Step-by-Step)

The Secret to Professional Edges: Slipping the First Stitch

If you’ve been following my patterns for a while, you’ve probably noticed a small but persistent instruction at the beginning of almost every row: “Slip the first stitch.” It might seem like a tiny detail, but this simple move is one of the most effective ways to transform your knitting from “homemade” to “handmade professional.” Whether you are working on a textured dishcloth or a block for a large blanket, a clean edge is the foundation of a beautiful finish.

Today in the Oh La Lana! Knitting Academy, we are going back to basics to master the “Slip Stitch Edge.” I’ll show you exactly how to do it, why it matters, and how to avoid the most common beginner mistakes.

Let’s dive in!

Read more: How to Slip the First Stitch for Neater Knitting Edges (Step-by-Step)

The “Why”

When knitting something flat in any of my patterns, I always advise to slip the first stitch without knitting it. This simple step creates a sturdier and more good-looking border. See the comparison:

Some people slip the first stitch knit-wise (as if to knit it), others do it purl-wise (as if to purl it), and some others vary between doing it purl-wise or knit-wise depending on how that stitch was worked on the first row. In the photos of this post I will show you how to do it knit-wise, my preferred way. Which is yours? Let me know in the comments!

The “How”: The slipped stitch edge

1) Slip the first stitch from your left-hand needle to your right-hand needle, as if you were to knit it but without doing it (you won’t wrap your yarn around the right-hand needle). This is usually referred to as “slip knit-wise“.

2) Release the stitch from your left-hand needle and give the yarn a gentle pull. We need to do this to ensure that the slipped stitch does not sit too loose on the needle (and defeat our whole purpose!).

3) Work the following stitches normally. In the images below you can see the next stitch being knitted. Do you see the difference? Now there is the middle, usual step of wrapping the working yarn around the right-hand needle (the step we omitted to slip the first stitch).

Why I don’t do it in the first row

I’ve found that, each time I tried, the result was a somewhat tight corner in my first row, with a shrink appearance.

Frequently Asked Question: Should I need to add extra stitches to a pattern to use this technique?

No. In Oh La Lana! patterns, the border stitches are already included in the total cast-on count. If at the beginning of a row the pattern says “knit 4 stitches” and you want to follow my advice, slip 1 stitch and knit normally the next 3.