The purl stitch is the reverse of the knit stitch. Just turn around your knitted work, and you will see purl stitches on the back. Look at stitchguide.com for illustrated help.

Purling is almost like knitting. You just put the needle into the stitch at a different angle and into the front of the needle. If you knit, you put the tip of the right needle behind the needle on the left needle, loop the yarn around it, and pull the new loop through the stitch, pulling the old stitch off the left needle.

To purl, bring the yarn end between the needles to the front of the needles; put the tip of the right needle under the front edge of the stitch in the front of the left needle and angle the tip down across the stitch from the right to the left. Then you wrap the yarn around the tip of the needle, pull the loop through the stitch, and pull the old stitch off the left needle.

When you start a new row, you turn your work around first, putting what was the right needle into your left hand. Now the empty needle goes into your right hand. Just put the tip of the right needle through the first stitch on the left needle and knit away.

Purl stitches are bumpy when you look at them from the front. Knit stitches are smooth.

The bestest online resource ever for learning to knit!

See link.

~ Kit

Here is a link that might be useful: Knitting Help

The purpose of purling is to be able to do more interesting stuff, including the commercial looking V's in your work.

Its just different. You will be happy once you learn it!