Yarn Over Calculator — Eyelet and Lace Pattern Placement

A yarn over (YO) is wrapping the yarn around the needle to create a new stitch and an eyelet hole. It adds one stitch to the count. In lace knitting, yarn overs are paired with decreases (k2tog, ssk, or s2kp) to maintain the stitch count while creating a decorative pattern.

Each yarn over adds one stitch. To keep the stitch count constant, you must pair each YO with a decrease. Common pairings: k2tog leans right, ssk leans left. Using both creates a balanced look. Without decreases, your fabric will widen with each lace row.

A central double decrease (s2kp, also written sl2-k1-psso) removes 2 stitches at once with the centre stitch sitting on top and no lean — neat and symmetrical, used where a lace pattern has 2 yarn overs flanking a single point (common in leaf and feather patterns). Do not confuse it with sk2p (sl1-k2tog-psso), which is a separate left-leaning double decrease where the centre stitch sits on the bottom; both remove 2 stitches.

If your total stitch count is not a perfect multiple of the repeat, the remainder stitches sit at the edges. You can work them in stocking stitch, add edge stitches to balance the pattern, or adjust the total stitch count to fit the repeat exactly.

In crochet, a yarn over is part of making taller stitches (treble, double treble, etc.) rather than a separate decorative element. Crochet lace uses chain spaces and skipped stitches to create openwork, not yarn overs in the knitting sense.