How to Knit The Lateral Stitch (Estonian Braid) – Videos Included!
- 2 days ago
- 2 min read
The lateral stitch in knitting, often called the Estonian braid, is a decorative knitting technique that creates a horizontal, rope-like braid across your fabric. This traditional Baltic-inspired stitch is commonly used in textured knitting patterns to create a break in stitch patterns or just add visual interest.
This tutorial post will walk you through how to work this 2-stitch pattern and show you how join in the round avoiding a jog in your knitting. You can also follow along with my video tutorials below for a visual demonstration.
How to Work the Lateral Knit Stitch in the Round
Work one round of the lateral stitch (Estonian braid) as follows:
Knit 2 stitches.
Insert the tip of the left needle purlwise into the second stitch on the right needle.
Slide both stitches (the one last knit and the one secured by your left needle) off the right-hand needle, being careful not to let the stitch secured by the left needle drop.
Re-insert your right-hand needle into the first knit stitch, inserting it from behind the stitch secured on your left needle.
Now, knit the first stitch on the left needle. (This is the one that you previously secured with your right hand needle)
Knit the next stitch.
Repeat steps 2–6 across all stitches until you reach the end of your row or the beginning of your round.
This forms the characteristic horizontal braid effect across your knitting.
How to Avoid a Jog When Knitting The Estonian Braid in the Round – VIDEO HERE
When working the lateral stitch in the round, you may notice a small jog where the round begins. To avoid this little flaw in your knitting:
Locate the first lateral stitch of the round.
Insert the right needle under, in an upwards motion, through both legs of this stitch.
Lift this stitch so you can then knit it. You are now going to work the two stitches on your right hand needle as you would for the Estonian Braid, so:
Insert the tip of the left needle purlwise into the second stitch on the right needle.
Slide the first two stitches off the right-hand needle, being sure not to drop the second stitch off of your left needle.
Re-insert the right needle into the first knit stitch from behind the secured stitch.
If working the above steps correctly, you will have added one extra stitch to your knitting on the left needle. Look below at how you can adjust your stitch count if necessary.
Adjusting Stitch Count
You can correct your stitches as follows:
To remove the extra stitch: Work the next two stitches as a K2TOGTBL to decrease neatly.
To keep the stitch count the same: Knit the next two stitches as normal.
Need to increase by one further stitch for some reason? You could work a KFB which will end up relatively invisible.
You can practise this stitch pattern in my Honey & Salt Capelette knitting pattern releasing soon! It features the lateral stitch as a defining decorative detail combined with cabling details for an elegant, yet cozy capelette, easily worn over coats and jackets, or as a stylish alternative to a jumper!
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