Kitchener stitch is one of those things. You think you have it off pat, you sit down with your sock and your needle ready to go ..and can you remember the blessed way to work the stitches? Nope.

If you are anything like me you always have to look it up in your handy reference of choice (for me - it's Google every time) and before you know it your precious 5 minute window has disappeared and your attention is needed elsewhere..

So, let me introduce you to King Philip and you will never forget again. More precisely King Philip and his Purple Knickers - or the mnenomic Knit, Purl, Purl, Knit

K = knit (insert needle as if to knit on 1st stitch of front needle and slide off)

P = Purl (anchor next stitch on front needle - insert needle as if to purl & pull yarn through)

P = Purl (insert needle as if to purl on 1st stitch of back needle and slide off)

K = Knit (anchor next stitch on back needle - insert needle as if to knit & pull yarn through).

And there you have it. Simple, effective and slightly cheeky. The perfect mnemonic.

Incidentally, opinions vary about whether setup stitches are needed for Kitchener stitch or not. Some patterns ask you to work the 1st st on each needle in a different way, before you start sliding stitches off the needle. Personally I have tried both ways and find that I get slightly rounded and more comfortable corners by omitting the setup stitches. So in the interests of simplicity that's exactly what I do.