How to Knit Plaid

Knitting plaid fabrics can seem like a daunting task when you consider that they could involve not only two or more colors, but intarsia work as well. And how do you keep the tension even in an intarsia section that is only one stitch wide? Why not skip the intarsia all together with some cleverly placed purl ravines and the use of a crochet hook! Work the horizontal stripes of your plaid normally and wherever you’d like to have the vertical stripes just work a purl stitch in that vertical column of stitches. Once you’ve finished knitting the piece you can go back with your crochet hook and slip stitch a line of stitches into the vertical purl ravine. The slip stitches will lie even with the surface of your knitting. With this technique, it’s easy to create multi-colored plaid by changing the colors of your vertical stripes. You can stick to two colors, or get creative with as many as the color wheel can hold. Looking for more knitting content? Browse our knitting playlist: S