Watch how to knit the bird's eye lace pattern

A delicate yet sturdy overall lace stitch that's great for making hats or market bags, the bird's eye lace will turn you into a professional knitter of yarn overs!
Knitting into double yarn overs can be finicky at first, but once you get the hang of it, your needles will fly. And yes, I did say double yarn overs. But don’t be scared! This is an invaluable skill to have in knitting and is one of the building blocks of lace, so this stitch pattern is worth practicing. If you drop one of the loops of your double yarn over, well, you’ll just get a little more practice with another must-have knitting skill: picking up stitches!
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The bird’s eye lace is knit over a multiple of four stitches, over four rows. The offset yarn overs result in one of the most open and airy fabrics you can knit. It almost has the appearance of crochet or macrame.
Bird’s eye lace pattern
Abbreviations
CO - Cast on
k - Knit
p - Purl
yo - Yarn over
k2tog - Knit two stitches together
CO 20 stitches (or any multiple of 4)
(Because it can be really tricky to k2tog straight off a cast-on edge, which tends to be a bit tight, I recommend knitting two rows of stockinette or garter stitch before beginning the actual bird’s eye lace pattern.)
Row 1: *k2tog, (yo) twice, k2tog; repeat from * to end of row
Row 2: *k1, (k1, p1) into the yo from previous row, k1; repeat from * to end of row
Row 3: k2, *k2tog, (yo) twice, k2tog; repeat from * to last 2 stitches, k2
Row 4: k2, *k1, (k1, p1) into the yo from previous row, k1; repeat from * to last 2 stitches, k2
Pro tip: For fabric that remains open and super lacy after blocking, knit the bird’s eye lace in a cotton, silk or bamboo yarn, use needles that are at least two sizes larger than those recommended on your yarn label, and wet block your knitting when complete.
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