The Backward Yarn Over (byo) is a great way to add an extra stitch to your work!

You’ll likely see this abbreviated BYO (backward yarn over). Pretty simple, right?

You do need to take care on the row after that though, and we give you a few ways to do this in our tutorial below.

How to work a BYO

Step 1: Work up to the BYO

Just work whatever stitches are specified. You don’t need to do anything unusual or different.

Step 2: Work the BYO by wrapping the stitch from back-to-front (in the opposite way of a regular YO).

This means that you wrap the needle in a CLOCKWISE motion. For comparison, here’s a regular YO. Again, DO NOT do this!

Step 3: Work the rest of the row as specified.

When you’re working on the WS, the stitch will be mounted the other way. But, don’t knit it any differently.

What does a BYO look like?

Here’s how it looks after you’ve worked the next row. It does NOT create a hole!

It’s very easy to do it! Just make sure that you work it like all other stitches in the next row.