There are many cautionary tales of hand-made blankets that are lacy being unsafe for babies’ fingers. Current guidelines for how to care for sleeping babies include no blankets in the crib or bassinet, but they don’t stipulate that babies can be injured by hand-knit blankets. Statistically, babies and toddlers have finger accidents that involve doors, and pets, not hand-knit items.
Even so, we are always looking after our wee ones and have their best interest in mind and at heart, so I thought I would experiment ways to knit a lace eyelet that isn’t so ‘open’ as a typical yarn-over hole. Naturally, the weight of the yarn and the needle size can also play a big role in the space between stitches and the size of lace eyelets, so using Fibra Natura Dona yarn, a #3 or DK weight yarn, was a good fit. For the last 2 days, after sharing the design for knitted baby booties out of Fibra Natura Dona yarn yesterday, I want to share how to work this new micro-eyelet.
Tomorrow we’ll work on the blanket pattern.
This micro-eyelet allows for lace patterns in knitting that are more compact.
Unlike a typical lace eyelet, it takes three rows to make this stitch combination. In the usual lace eyelet, a yarn over (or even multiple yarn overs) makes the eyelet. Then on the following row this yarn over strand is either knit or purled, which raises the yarn strand up, creating an eyelet below it. This micro-eyelet takes 3 rows to make. I’ll get to the micro-eyelet instructions soon, but for now let’s look at how this stitch combination looks from different angles than the face-on appearance pictured above.
Looking at the left side of the micro-eyelet stitch.
From the right side, the texture is slightly less raised.
From both sides, you can see angled strands of yarn. These wrap stitches and also fill in the eyelet from the back of the work.
The micro-eyelet creates a small opening surrounded by intricate twists of yarn.
Here’s how to make the micro-eyelet stitch combination. Try a yarn like Fibra Natura Dona, which clearly shows stitch definition.
- When you approach the 2 stitches you’d like to use for the micro-eyelet, insert RH needle into right leg below next st and lift onto LH needle, knit into lifted strand and slip from LH needle.
- Yarn over, insert RH needle under front leg of first st on LH needle and bringing 2nd st through, knit into 2nd st, sliding both loops off LH needle. This makes 3 stitches out of 2.
- On the return row, knit the yarn-over strand, and purl the next 2 stitches together.
- On the third row, knit through the back loop of the stitch that was made with the p2tog.
Tomorrow, please come back for the baby blanket pattern beautifully knit up using the very soft, Fibra Natura Dona yarn.
Here’s a sneak peak of the baby blanket.
