English abbreviation · Knitting
What does m1 mean in knitting?
m1 means make one stitch.
In French: une maille augmentée
How to work it
M1 stands for “make one stitch”. It is an increase: it adds one stitch to the row without a hole, by making a new stitch from the thread that runs between two stitches. It is used to widen a sleeve, a sock or the body of a sweater.
Work up to the place the pattern shows. Between the stitch on the right needle and the next stitch on the left needle, a thread runs across from one to the other. Slip the tip of the left needle under that thread, from front to back, so that it sits on the left needle like a stitch.
Now knit that loop through the back: put the right needle into its back side, from right to left, wrap the yarn and pull the new loop through. Knitting through the back twists the strand, and that twist is what closes the hole.
Some patterns tell the increases apart by their slant and write them m1l and m1r. If yours does, it defines them in its notes: follow those notes.
In a pattern
Row 3: k1, m1, knit to last st, m1, k1.
Take the row “Row 3: k1, m1, knit to last st, m1, k1.” “Row 3” is the third row. “k1” knits the first stitch. “m1” makes a new stitch from the thread after it. “knit to last st” means to knit plainly until one stitch remains on the left needle. “m1” makes a second new stitch, and “k1” knits the last. This row gains two stitches, one near each edge, so the work widens evenly. If the row below had twenty stitches, this one has twenty-two.
US or UK?
Identical. American and British patterns both write m1, and mean the same increase. Only crochet differs between the two, not this abbreviation. French patterns usually write “1 augmentation intercalaire”.
Common mistakes
- Knitting the new loop through the front. The strand is not twisted, and a small hole appears. If you want a hole on purpose, as in lace, the pattern asks for a yarn over (yo), not an m1.
- Picking up the stitch below instead of the thread between the stitches. You then pull on the fabric, and the increase is crooked. Look for the thread that links the two needles.
- Forgetting that m1 adds a stitch to the total. Add it to your count at once, or the row will seem to be off.
A tip
Mark the place of each increase with a small marker, or by writing the new total on a sticky note. Increases at the same two places on every increase row line up and make a clean seam. If the increase pulls, work it with a slightly looser hand; see the knitting needle sizes page of this site if the fabric feels tight.
Try it with a row from your pattern
Here is a row that uses it. Replace it with a row from your pattern: every abbreviation the reader knows is underlined, and its meaning shows on hover.
Row 3: k1, m1, knit to last st, m1, k1.