Entrelac
Entrelac is a technique of knitting small, offset rectangles and triangles that give the fabric a woven, basket-like appearance.
Explanation
Entrelac produces an appearance reminiscent of woven basket strips, even though the entire piece is knitted as one continuous fabric. The technique is built up in tiers of small rectangles ('blocks'), where each new block is knitted by picking up stitches along the edge of the previous tier's blocks and working back and forth with gradual decreases or increases. Entrelac is especially well suited to showing off multicolor or variegated yarn, since each block can change color, giving a visually striking result without needing advanced colorwork skills.
Also known as: Entrelac knitting
Blocks worked one at a time
Entrelac is built from small squares or triangles worked one at a time, each picking up stitches along the edge of its neighbour. The result looks woven, as though strips had been laced through each other.
No two blocks are worked simultaneously. You work through one tier of blocks, turn, and build the next tier in the opposite direction.
Yarn that shows the technique
Entrelac shows best in self-striping or gradient yarn, because each block picks up its own phase of the color and the woven effect is amplified.
It uses a lot of yarn and goes slowly, but needs only knit stitches, purl stitches and picking up stitches.
Common mistakes
- Picking up the wrong number of stitches along a block edge, giving uneven blocks.
- Forgetting to turn the work between tiers.
Keywords
- entrelac
- entrelac knitting
- basket weave
Frequently asked questions
Is entrelac difficult?
The techniques are simple — knit, purl and pick up stitches. What is demanding is keeping track of which block comes next.
Why does entrelac use so much yarn?
Because every block has its own edges and pick-ups. Allow noticeably more than for the same area in stockinette.