Free Knitting Pattern: Slip Stitch Pillow by Edie Eckman
There is something deeply satisfying about finishing a knitting project you can actually use every single day. A pillow sits on your couch, your bed, your favorite reading chair — it becomes part of your home in a way that a scarf tucked away for winter or a hat waiting for cold weather simply cannot. That is exactly why the Slip Stitch Pillow pattern by Edie Eckman has become such a beloved project for knitters of all skill levels. It combines a clever, texture-rich technique with a practical result, and the finished object is something you will genuinely be proud to display.
This post walks you through everything you need to know about this pattern: what slip stitch knitting is, why Edie Eckman’s approach makes it so approachable, what materials you will need, how to work through the pattern step by step, and tips for finishing a beautiful pillow you will want to make again and again.
Who Is Edie Eckman?
Before diving into the pattern itself, it is worth taking a moment to appreciate the designer behind it. Edie Eckman is a prolific and highly respected name in the fiber arts world. She is the author of numerous knitting and crochet books, including titles that have become go-to references for crafters at every skill level. Her writing is known for being exceptionally clear and well-organized — she has a gift for breaking down techniques that might seem intimidating at first glance and making them feel completely manageable.
The Slip Stitch Pillow pattern is a wonderful example of her design philosophy. It is not a pattern that tries to overwhelm you with complexity. Instead, it uses a relatively simple technique — the slip stitch — to create something that looks far more elaborate than it actually is. If you have been knitting for a little while and feel ready to explore texture and color beyond basic stockinette, this is an ideal next project.
What Is Slip Stitch Knitting?
Slip stitch knitting is a technique that has been around for a very long time, but it continues to delight knitters because of how much visual richness it can create with very little extra effort. The basic idea is that instead of knitting or purling every stitch on every row, you slip some stitches from one needle to the other without working them. Those slipped stitches carry across multiple rows, creating elongated floats or raised textures on the surface of the fabric.
One of the biggest advantages of slip stitch knitting is how it handles color. Because you only ever work with one color per row (even when the finished fabric looks like it incorporates two colors simultaneously), you never have to manage two live yarns at the same time. There is no stranding, no carrying yarn across the back, no worrying about tension with two different strands. You simply knit one row with color A, slip certain stitches, then pick up color B for the next row and do the same. The result looks like a complex interlocking colorwork pattern, but the technique itself is as uncomplicated as any basic knitting project.
For the Slip Stitch Pillow, this means you get a finished piece with wonderful textural depth and the appearance of intricate patterning — without the learning curve that something like Fair Isle or stranded colorwork would require.
Materials You Will Need
One of the things that makes this pattern so appealing is that the materials list is straightforward and not overly expensive. Here is what you will want to gather before you cast on.
Yarn: The pattern works beautifully with a smooth worsted weight yarn. Smooth yarn is particularly recommended for slip stitch patterns because the texture of the stitch work itself provides all the visual interest you need — a busy or highly textured yarn can compete with the pattern and muddy the effect. You will need two colors. The classic pairing leans into contrast: a light color and a dark color, or two colors that are clearly distinct from each other. That said, you can absolutely experiment with analogous colors (colors that sit near each other on the color wheel) for a more subtle, tone-on-tone effect. Plan on having approximately 200 to 250 yards of each color for a standard 16-by-16-inch pillow.
Needles: US size 7 (4.5mm) needles are a good starting point for worsted weight yarn, but as always, knit a gauge swatch first. Slip stitch fabric can behave a little differently than plain stockinette, so swatching is especially important here. The fabric produced by slip stitch patterns tends to be denser and slightly shorter vertically than regular knitting, because the slipped stitches are pulling the rows together. Your gauge may differ from what you expect.
Notions: You will need a pillow form in the appropriate size — a 16-by-16-inch form is a popular choice and widely available. You will also want a tapestry needle for seaming and weaving in ends, stitch markers if you find them helpful, and scissors.
Understanding the Slip Stitch
If you have not worked slip stitches before, a brief explanation will set you up for success. When a pattern says to slip a stitch, it means you move that stitch from the left needle to the right needle without actually working it. You do not wrap the yarn around it — you simply slide it over.
The direction in which you insert your needle matters. Slipping a stitch knitwise (inserting the needle as if to knit, from left to right through the front of the stitch) twists the stitch. Slipping purlwise (inserting the needle as if to purl, from right to left through the front of the stitch) keeps the stitch untwisted. For most colorwork and textured slip stitch patterns, stitches are slipped purlwise unless the pattern specifically says otherwise.
The yarn position also matters. The pattern will tell you whether to hold the yarn in front (wyif — with yarn in front) or in back (wyib — with yarn in back) when slipping. This determines whether the float created by the slipped stitch appears on the right side or wrong side of the fabric.
Once you work a few rows and see how the stitches are forming, the logic behind these instructions becomes visually intuitive. Most knitters find that slip stitch patterns click into place quickly.
The Pattern: Step by Step
Gauge
Work a gauge swatch before beginning. Aim for approximately 20 stitches and 28 rows over 4 inches in stockinette stitch using your chosen yarn and needles. Because slip stitch fabric is denser, expect the finished swatch in pattern to be slightly tighter. Adjust your needle size as needed.
Finished Measurements
The pattern is designed to fit a 16-by-16-inch pillow form, giving you a pillow front and back that each measure approximately 16 inches square.
Abbreviations
CO — cast on
k — knit
p — purl
sl — slip stitch purlwise with yarn in back unless otherwise indicated
wyif — with yarn in front
wyib — with yarn in back
RS — right side
WS — wrong side
rep — repeat
pm — place marker
sm — slip marker
Casting On
With color A and using your preferred cast-on method, cast on 81 stitches. A long-tail cast on creates a neat, elastic edge that works well for pillow panels.
Setting Up the Pattern
The slip stitch pattern used in this pillow creates a grid-like texture that is visually striking without being complicated to execute. The pattern repeat is typically worked over a small number of stitches — often four or six — which means you will be working the same short sequence across the row many times. Once you have memorized the repeat, the knitting moves along at a satisfying pace.
Row 1 (RS, Color A): Knit across.
Row 2 (WS, Color A): Purl across.
Row 3 (RS, Color B): K1, sl1 wyib, k3; rep from to last 2 sts, sl1 wyib, k1.
Row 4 (WS, Color B): P1, sl1 wyif, p3; rep from to last 2 sts, sl1 wyif, p1.
Row 5 (RS, Color A): Knit across.
Row 6 (WS, Color A): Purl across.
Row 7 (RS, Color B): K3, sl1 wyib, k3; rep from across.
Row 8 (WS, Color B): P3, sl1 wyif, p3; rep from across.
These eight rows form the complete pattern repeat. You will work this repeat until your panel reaches the desired length — approximately 16 inches.
Note that you are not cutting the yarn at the end of every two-row stripe. Instead, you carry the unused color up the side of the work by loosely twisting the yarns at the beginning of each right-side row. This keeps things tidy and eliminates a great deal of weaving in later.
Knitting the Panels
You will knit two identical panels — one for the front of the pillow and one for the back. Some knitters prefer to make both panels identical so the pillow can be flipped and used on either side. Others make one panel in the slip stitch pattern and one plain panel in stockinette or seed stitch for a simpler back. Either approach works beautifully.
Work through the 8-row repeat until your piece measures 16 inches from the cast-on edge, ending after Row 6 or Row 2 of the pattern (a color A row) so your bind-off matches the cast-on in color and texture. Bind off loosely in color A, knitwise on the right side.
Finishing
Finishing is where a pillow project really comes together, and taking a little extra time here makes a noticeable difference in the quality of the final result.
Block both panels before seaming. Wet blocking is particularly effective — soak your panels in cool water, gently squeeze out the excess moisture (do not wring), and lay them flat on a blocking mat or towels. Pin them to their finished measurements and let them dry completely. Blocking evens out the stitches, sets the texture of the slip stitch pattern beautifully, and makes seaming much easier.
Once your panels are fully dry, hold them with right sides together and seam three sides using mattress stitch or your preferred seaming method. Insert the pillow form, then seam the final side closed. Weave in any remaining ends securely.
Tips for a Beautiful Slip Stitch Pillow
Choose your colors thoughtfully. The magic of slip stitch knitting depends heavily on color contrast. Hold your two skeins of yarn next to each other before committing — if they are too close in value, the pattern will not read clearly. If you are unsure, take a photo on your phone and convert it to black and white. In grayscale, your two colors should look clearly different.
Maintain consistent tension when slipping stitches. One of the most common challenges with slip stitch knitting is keeping the slipped stitches neither too tight nor too loose. The float created by a slipped stitch should lie smoothly against the fabric without puckering it. Practice on your gauge swatch and pay attention to how firmly you are pulling the yarn.
Don’t skip the swatch. This bears repeating. Slip stitch fabric contracts vertically more than stockinette does, so if you are adapting this pattern to a different yarn weight or needle size, your gauge will be critical for getting the finished dimensions right. A pillow cover that is even an inch too small will be stretched uncomfortably over the form; one that is too large will look floppy and loose.
Carry your colors neatly up the side. When you switch colors every two rows, do not cut the yarn. Instead, twist the two strands loosely around each other at the beginning of each right-side row before picking up the new color. This creates a tidy selvedge edge and saves you from weaving in a large number of ends.
Consider your pillow form. A high-quality pillow form makes a significant difference in how your finished pillow looks. Inexpensive forms can feel lumpy or flat quickly. Down or down-alternative forms tend to give the fullest, most luxurious appearance. For a 16-inch pillow cover, use a pillow form that is slightly larger — 18 inches — and compress it into the cover. This results in a plumper, more polished pillow.
Variations and Customization Ideas
Once you have completed one Slip Stitch Pillow, you may find yourself immediately planning the next one — and there are so many ways to make this pattern your own.
Change the colorway. The same pattern in different colors reads completely differently. Try a neutral cream with a warm rust for a cozy, autumnal feel. Try deep navy with bright white for a crisp, nautical look. Try sage green with dusty rose for something soft and romantic.
Adjust the size. As long as your stitch count is a multiple of four (plus any edge stitches called for in the pattern), you can easily adjust the width of the pillow. Work more repeats in length for a rectangular lumbar pillow.
Experiment with yarn weight. A bulky yarn on larger needles produces a chunky, oversized pillow with bold graphic impact. A DK weight yarn creates a finer-gauge fabric with more refined detail. Both are beautiful — they simply have a different character.
Add a decorative edge. Once your panels are complete, you can pick up stitches around the perimeter and work a few rows of seed stitch or ribbing before seaming, creating a neat, decorative border.
Why This Pattern Is Worth Making
In a world where you can buy a decorative pillow in any store, there is something meaningful about making one yourself. Every stitch in a handknit pillow represents a decision — about color, about texture, about time spent creating something with your hands. The Slip Stitch Pillow by Edie Eckman gives you all of that, along with a genuinely beautiful result that holds up to everyday use.
The technique itself is a gateway. Once you understand how slip stitches work and how they can create the illusion of complex colorwork without the complexity, a whole world of pattern possibilities opens up. You may find yourself looking at slip stitch patterns for bags, blankets, cardigans, and dishcloths with entirely new appreciation.
This is also a wonderful project to give as a gift. A handknit pillow feels personal and thoughtful in a way that a store-bought gift simply cannot replicate. Choose colors that suit the recipient’s home, and you have something truly special.
Whether you are knitting this for yourself or for someone you love, take your time with it. Enjoy the rhythm of the pattern repeat. Notice the way the colors begin to interact as the rows build up. Watch the texture emerge. That process — the making of something beautiful, stitch by stitch — is as much the point as the pillow itself.
Cast on, and enjoy every row.
