Beginner · free small project
Knitted name bookmark
Knit a slim bookmark with a stockinette centre and garter edges, then embroider a name along its length. Enter your measured gauge and print the complete pattern.
Original Purlgrid recipe · engine-checked counts · diagrams are previews, not photographs of a physically made sample.
Supplies and skills
Smooth fine yarn, a contrasting amount of the same yarn, suitable knitting needles, a blunt yarn needle, scissors and a ruler.
- Cast on and bind off
- Knit and purl worked flat
- Duplicate-stitch embroidery
How to make it
- Make a sample with a stockinette centre and garter edges. Wash and dry it, then count stitches and rows per 10 cm. Replace the example gauge below with your measurements. A thin yarn makes a less bulky bookmark.
- Cast on the calculated count. Follow the written rows: knit the first and last two rows, and keep two knit stitches at each side on the intervening rows. The centre alternates knit and purl rows.
- Bind off after the listed fabric rows, weave in the background ends and block gently. The garter edges reduce rolling but cannot guarantee flatness in every yarn.
- Enter a name or initials and follow the duplicate-stitch chart below after knitting. Rotate the bookmark to read the lettering along its length. Keep the embroidery relaxed and secure the ends on the back.
The grid includes the garter edges; all marked embroidery cells stay inside them. A blank name field gives a plain bookmark.
- Stitches across
- 12
- Fabric rows
- 64
- Calculated rectangle
- 5 × 20 cm
- Cast on
- 12
The target size is 5 × 20 cm. Whole stitches and rows give the calculated size shown above, before finishing.
Gauge used: 24 sts and 32 rows per 10 cm in this fabric.
Working instructions
Cast on 12 stitches. Turn after every row. Knit and purl abbreviations use the stitch count of the complete row.
- Rows 1–2: k12 (12 sts in every row).
- Rows 3–61 (odd rows only): k12 (12 sts in every row).
- Rows 4–62 (even rows only): k2, p8, k2 (12 sts in every row).
- Rows 63–64: k12 (12 sts in every row).
After the listed fabric rows, bind off on the following row. The bind-off edge is outside the calculated fabric-row count.
Duplicate-stitch lettering
Lettering: READ. Finish the background first, then add the marked cells in a separate contrasting yarn. Each cell is one fabric stitch across and one fabric row high. The chart is a placement diagram viewed from the front.
The complete name is turned a quarter turn to fit along the bookmark. Turn the finished strip to read it; do not mirror the letters.
72 embroidered knit stitches; keep the outer 2 stitches and rows clear. Yarn for lettering is additional to the background estimate.
How to add the letters
- Thread a blunt yarn needle with contrasting yarn. Bring it up from the back at the bottom point of the knit V you want to cover.
- Slide the needle under both legs of the V directly above that stitch, then take it down through the starting point. The new yarn follows both legs of the existing knit V.
- Repeat for each marked cell without pulling the fabric tight. Secure the ends on the back and check the lettering from the knit side.
Every marked position
Rows count from the bottom. Columns count from the right as you look at the front, on every row. These are embroidery positions after finishing, not colour changes while making the fabric.
- Fabric row 22: columns 5, 6, 7, 8, 9.
- Fabric row 23: columns 4, 10.
- Fabric row 24: columns 4, 10.
- Fabric row 25: columns 4, 10.
- Fabric row 26: columns 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.
- Fabric row 28: columns 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.
- Fabric row 29: columns 4, 7.
- Fabric row 30: columns 4, 7.
- Fabric row 31: columns 4, 7.
- Fabric row 32: columns 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.
- Fabric row 34: columns 4, 10.
- Fabric row 35: columns 4, 7, 10.
- Fabric row 36: columns 4, 7, 10.
- Fabric row 37: columns 4, 7, 10.
- Fabric row 38: columns 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.
- Fabric row 40: columns 5, 6, 10.
- Fabric row 41: columns 4, 7, 9.
- Fabric row 42: columns 4, 7, 8.
- Fabric row 43: columns 4, 7.
- Fabric row 44: columns 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.
No yarn quantity is assumed. Add a weighed, measured swatch below for an area-based estimate.
- ✓ Every row keeps the same stitch count.
- ✓ The instructions cover every row exactly once.
- ✓ The optional lettering fits inside the edges.
- ✓ The written embroidery positions match every marked chart cell.
Questions about this project
How do I duplicate stitch letters?
Finish the background first. Each marked cell in the separate chart is one existing knit V to cover with contrasting yarn. Follow the written positions and the embroidery steps below; practise on a swatch before working on the bookmark.
Can I use a longer name?
The name runs along the bookmark. Increase the target length or use fewer letters if the complete chart will not fit. The engine leaves the garter edges clear and never cuts off a letter.
Terms and next steps
k = knit; p = purl; sc = US single crochet; MC = main colour; CC = contrast colour. A number after a stitch abbreviation is the number of stitches to work. Read repeat instructions as written.
Abbreviation references: Craft Yarn Council knitting terms · Craft Yarn Council crochet terms and US/UK comparison.
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