er it.

[Illustration: FIG. 348. CASTING ON WITH PICOTS.]

Cast on as many stitches as you want in this manner and then pick up the
picots thus formed, with an auxiliary needle, and knit them off like
ordinary stitches.

This method of casting on may be varied thus in the following manner:
having cast on the stitches as in fig. 348, throw the thread over the
needle and knit two stitches together.

PLAIN STITCH (fig. 349).--This is the easiest stitch and the first
which a knitter has to learn. It is executed as follows: Put the
right-hand needle in, upwards from below, under the front part of the
first stitch on the left-hand needle, lay the thread from right to left
under the needle, draw it through the loop, and drop the loop off the
left needle.

[Illustration: FIG. 349. PLAIN STITCH.]

Plain knitting is employed wherever a perfectly smooth, even surface is
required. It looks quite differently on the wrong side from what it does
on the right where it presents the appearance of vertical rows of
plaiting.

BACK, OR SEAM-STITCH (fig. 350).--You may intentionally knit the wrong
side of plain knitting. This is called purling and is done, in the
following way: lay the thread over the left needle, and put the right
one, downwards from above, behind the thread, into the loop on the left
needle, lay the thread upwards from below, over the right needle, draw
it through the loop, and drop the loop off the left needle. This stitch
is used in knitting patterns, and for marking horizontal lines in
smooth surfaces, such as the seam of a stocking, for instance.

[Illustration: FIG. 350. BACK OR SEAM-STITCH.]

PLAIN STITCH TAKEN FROM BEHIND (fig. 351).--Put the needle in from
right to left, under the back part of the stitch; leave the thread
behind the needle, then pass it from right to left over the needle and
draw it through the stitch.

[Illustration: FIG. 351. PLAIN STITCH TAKEN FROM BEHIND.]

BACK, OR SEAM-STITCH TAKEN FROM BEHIND (fig. 352).--Put the needle
into the second part of the stitch, upwards from below, and knit it as a
back or seam-stitch.

[Illustration: FIG. 352. BACK OR SEAM-STITCH TAKEN FROM BEHIND.]

In plain stitch, taken from behind, the two threads of the loop are
crossed, instead of lying side by side, as they do in plain knitting.

Back-stitch taken from behind, is only used for certain open-work
patterns.

OVERS (fig. 353).--These form holes in plain knitting, and are used
for open-work p