Learn to knit brioche with Renée Callahan
Published on 28 January 2021 By merion 2 min readBrioche is the stitch that most knitters are nervous to learn - but don't worry, we've got the fabulous Renée Callahan from East London Knit to show you how to do it in two easy to follow tutorial videos. Take a deep breath, and grab those needles!
Brioche is a stitch that creates a beautiful, textured, squishy rib. It's a gorgeous looking, densely warm stitch that can be worked with one or two colours, and once you can do it, you'll want to knit brioche forever!
Brioche is created by using a slip stitch, a yarnover and knitting two together, and although we don't know when it was first devised, it has been spotted in a stitch dictionary dating back to 1842. Frances Lambert's The Handbook of Needlework contained a pattern for a doughnut shaped cushion that looked just like a French brioche. Whether this is where it found its name is a mystery - in fact it has gone by many names in the past, such as English Brioche, Turkish Brioche, Reverse Lace Stitch - but these days, it is known as simply 'brioche stitch', and the striking fabric it produces, either a flashy double colour finish or a single colour squishy rib. There are few stitches with such drama, and it's a great stitch to add to your skills!
To make the practise swatch in Renée's video you will need some Paintbox Yarns Simply Chunky yarn, and a pair of 5.5mm straight knitting needles.
Materials
Single Colour Brioche Patterns
Two colour brioche
Working the brioche stitch with two colours is great fun and now that you've mastered one colour, you're ready to try two! Knit along with Renée to create this iconic stitch.
