Grandmother’s Pattern Book

Dec – Decrease

St St – Stockinette Stitch

G St – Garter Stitch

Inc – Increase

K – Knit

P – Purl

Sl – Slip

Yo – Yarn Over

Other Terms and How-Tos

Tools and Gadgets

As with any craft, the right tools can make the task easier and gadgets can make it
more fun. The basic tools for knitting are the needles, either straight for back-andforth
knitting or circular or double-pointed for tubular pieces without seams, such
as socks, mittens and skirts. The needles are usually aluminum or plastic with a few
odd sizes available in wood. Sizes range from very small, No. 00, to very large, No.
15, with extra large sizes up to No. 50 sometimes used for special yarns. Straight
needles come in lengths from 7 to 14 inches; use the longer ones for pieces with more
stitches. For pieces with too many stitches for straight needles, use circular
needles. Use them, too, when you want to eliminate seams and have the greatest
elasticity. Double-pointed needles take some getting used to but they are useful for
small seamless areas for which there are no circular needles short enough.

Your basic knitting bag should also include a no-stretch tape measure or ruler; stitch
holders which look like large safety pins; yarn or tapestry needles for sewing;
straight pins and scissors. Other handy items are a row counter, a stitch and needle
gauge to check the gauge and the sizes of double-pointed and circular needles which
have no size markings (straight needles are marked on the flat end piece), point
protectors, yarn bobbins if you plan to work argyle-type color patterns, and plastic
ring markers and short lengths of yarn to mark rows and stitches.

About the Yarn

Yarn will be the first thing you will consider when you plan a knitting project. In
fact, it may be the color and texture of the yarn that inspires it. The amount of yarn
a particular project will take will be determined by the thickness and the number of
yards or ounces in a ball or skein of the yarn you choose. Types of yarn include, but
are not limited to: baby and fingering yarns, which are very fine and soft; sport
weight yarns, about half the thickness of knitting worsted; knitting worsted, the
most popular and widely-available yarn, medium weight and 4-ply; rug yarns;
bulky yarns; and novelties such as mohair, chenille and metallics.

Ply is the term used for the number of spun single strands that are twisted together to create the
finished yarn. The weight or thickness of the yarn is determined by the thickness of
each ply, not by the number of plies, because a single strand can be spun to any
thickness. For example, the bulky Lopi yarn is single-ply but quite thick compared to the 2-ply Natuurwol. Most yarns, however, are 2-ply, 3-ply, or 4-ply and may be natural or synthetic fibers or a blend of both.

The more you knit, the better your instincts will become about the amount of yarn needed for a particular project. If you are designing your own, check written patterns for a similar style and use the amount of yarn indicated there as a guide.

Remember that yardages vary greatly and all yarns are not interchangeable. You
can use a yarn other than the one suggested by a pattern, but only if it will give you
the same gauge.

It is better to buy too much, rather than too little. If you run out of yarn, you may
not be able to match the color dye lot. The difference between dye lots may not be
noticeable on the skein, but it can be very obvious on a finished sweater. Also, most
stores and yarn shops will accept unopened balls or skeins of yarn for return or
exchange. Or you can keep extra yarn for use in other needlecraft projects or to
exchange with friends. Yarn is one of the most versatile materials around—it need
never go to waste.

Inches do count. You can know the basic knit and purl stitches, but if a knitted
garment is to fit properly you must also know your inches — the inches in your
measurements. You can try on ready-to-wear to check the fit before you buy; with
your own knitting, you need to be sure of the fit before you start. It can be very
frustrating to put a lot of time and love into a project, only to find when it’s finished
that the size is all wrong. Once you learn to knit to fit, and it’s really quite simple,
you’ll never have that problem again. What you will have is great freedom to create
your own designs, to copy clothes seen in expensive shops or magazines, and to
make any written directions seem like they were written just for you.

Know Your Measurements

You need to take two sets of measurements: your actual body measurements and
the measurements of a similar-style sweater or skirt that fits the way you like.
Everything you make will have an allowance for ease which is added to your body
measurements; if you measure something that fits you well there will be no
guesswork involved, the ease will have been taken into consideration. The amount
of ease depends on the style and the way you like your clothes to fit.

How To Take Your Measurements

Accurate measurements are essential for knitting that really fits. Always measure
your knitting and compare the strategic measurements shown below. If you are knitting in the round, take the total measurement; if you are knitting flat pieces to be joined later, take the total
measurement and divide for front and back or left and right sides, then add no more than 1/2 inch for seams. In either case, be sure to add an allowance for wearing ease to actual body measurements
or measure a favorite pair of pants, sweater, dress or skirt.

When designing your own or changing the written directions for knitting with a color or stitch pattern, always consider the pattern repeat. If the number of stitches needed to make the change do
not equal the number of stitches in the repeat, adjust to the nearest number of complete pattern repeats, unless the repeat is very large or intricate. You can always take a larger or smaller seam
allowance or compensate when blocking.

Knit fabric is very flexible, but it is easier to make a piece larger by blocking than to try to make it smaller. If the pattern repeat is too large or intricate, it is simplest to choose another pattern with a
repeat that is adaptable to your size.

Plan Ahead
It’s a good idea to plan your sweater or other project ahead of time, using graph
paper, to avoid last minute mistakes and ripped stitches. Use one square to
represent one stitch and one line of squares for a row of stitches. Your drawing will
not be worked to scale or life-size—it will simply be a guide to indicate changes of
pattern, increases or decreases or other shaping, and changes of color. With such a
guide, you may not even need written directions; you will be able to work directly
from the plan.

A favorite sewing pattern that is designed for sweater knits can also be used as a
life-size guide for shaping your knitting. If you work on circular needles, eliminate
the seam allowances altogether; if you use straight needles and plan to have seams,
narrow the allowances to 1/4 inch.

It may seem like a nuisance to knit a 4-inch square swatch that won’t be part of the
finished project, but this gauge swatch is the most important piece of knitting you
will do. Besides, you can put all your gauge swatches together for a patchwork
throw someday.

Once you choose the yarn and the stitch, experiment with different size needles
until you find the ones that give the effect you want. Some yarn labels suggest
needle sizes; generally the yarn and the needles are in direct proportion—the
thicker the yarn, the larger the needles. You may vary from this rule of thumb for a
special effect, or you can combine several yarns of varying thicknesses for a tweedy
or multicolor look. Just be sure to use the exact yarns and stitch for the gauge
swatch that will be used for the finished project.

Knit your gauge swatch 4 inches square—any smaller and the gauge may prove
inaccurate. Any discrepancy of even 1/4 inch will show up in a swatch 4 inches
square. Press the swatch lightly and pin to a flat surface. With a tape measure or
ruler and straight pins, find both the number of stitches and the number of rows per
inch. In most cases, there will be more rows per inch than stitches per inch. Measure carefully—a fraction of an inch or half a stitch may seem insignificant, but it can make a big difference over the width of a sweater.

If you are following written directions, rather than creating your own, the gauge
swatch will indicate whether or not you will achieve the same results as the
designer. If your swatch does not measure up to the given gauge, change needle
sizes until you find the correct one. Do not try to adjust the tension of your knitting
to suit the gauge; this will be difficult to maintain for more than a short time. If you
have more stitches per inch than given in the gauge, use larger needles; fewer
stitches, use smaller needles. When the stitch gauge is correct, the row gauge
usually follows. If not, you can always add or subtract a few rows to make up the
difference. Write the gauge on the back of the yarn label and pin this to the gauge
swatch for future reference.

(Number Of Inches) x (Stitches Per Inch) = Knitting That Fits

It’s simple multiplication—you want a sweater to measure 38 inches around the
hips and the gauge you’ve worked out is 5 stitches to the inch, so you cast on 190
stitches. Some patterns call for smaller needles to be used on ribbing or border
stitches for a snug fit; the gauge then applies only to the body of the sweater
worked on larger needles. Double check written directions to see if the gauge will
give you the measurements you want. The pattern may allow more or less ease
than you like and it is best to find that out before you start to knit, so adjustments
can be made. Be sure to read through all the directions and note in writing any
changes in number of stitches or inches before you start—you may forget later.