Thank you so very much for explaining all this. Have *NEVER EVER" heard about how to make sure your gauge was "correct." This video really helped me with that. You also explained it in a way that beginners could learn how to easily work out a swatch. Thank you so much for sharing your techniques. 🥰
Thanks for the very clear explanation. I almost never knit a swatch for socks. That's because I try them on so often and because I don't care how many times I have to rip out and start again. It's all about the knitting! However, recently I did knit a swatch for socks I plan to knit for my granddaughter. I wanted to get a gauge for myself in the stockinet stitch and I wanted to get gauge and show her how the yarn would look in the two patterns she had selected. I did knit it in the round and then cut it down the middle to block. I always knit a swatch for larger projects both to get my gauge and to see if I actually like the pattern once it is knit and blocked. I have lots of fun with this doing baby blankets. Knitting candy!
Oh, and thanks for that trick in strandes colourwork fake round swatching, to knit the first and last few sts of the swatch with both yarns - I had developed quite serious hand and finger contortions tring to trap the first out-of-use yarn across\below\around the other yarn while making those looong floats on the wrong side.
Great video! I taught myself to knit as an adult (have been crocheting since 9) and after making a sweater for my daughter that was 6 sizes too big, I stayed away from knitting garments. These days, I swatch when it matters, the full 4" x 4". A recent example, I was working a swatch in a strechy pattern; about 1.5" in the swatch was way too wide. But, by the time I got to 4", it tightenend up just right.
9:00 - finally, finally, finally I found this! At some point in my knitting life I changed my swatching approach - but I forgot where I got the inspiration from. It could well have been your video, Rox! I nowadays swatch like this (unless I have bulky or bigger yarn, which hardly ever happens): working 28sts in seed stitch for 4 rows, then 20 rows of 20 stockinette sts flanked by 4-stitch seed stitch borders, followed by another 4 rows of seed sts, binding off. I take measurements what height and length the 20 rows and 20 stitches give me before and after washing and blocking. I then end up with a hassle-free accurate gauge for 10cm after applying the rule of three; no estimates whether I am looking at 2\3 of a stitch or 3\4 etc - just nice maths; an accurate basis for calculating sweaters, hats and socks alike. I will only round up or down once I have converted all measurements and instructions into sts and rows ds. That is also the way I check gauge in progress - mark 20 sts in my project a few rows ounds below, measure it, calculate its 10cm equivalent, check against original before washing and blocking measurements.
And - to add a third positive comment: I once wanted to knit socks that have crocodile or alligator in their name and have a great patterned leg. The pattern involved quite a bit of stranding, lifting and slipping of stitches in multiple ways. After I managed to get through 2 pattern repeats (taking me the best part of an hour, 2 mugs of coffee and the result measuring less than an inch in height) I was like "thank you, but no thank you". To work a sock leg all around in this pattern (not very stretchy, so I would have had to work a 72 stitch leg) for several inches in height would have taken me ages and would not have been fun at all.
I bet you decided to quit that pattern. If there was that much stranding, can you imagine trying to get feet into those socks without getting your toenails caught?!?
Yes cool shirt ;-) I am a real swatcher as I spin my own yarn. Sometimes I don't make anything of my handspun yarn, but a swatch. You explained it very clearly. The only thing that puzzels me is the calculating at the end of the video. Can you please try to explain what you are trying to say with the calcs? I love to watch your video's. I like the way you explain things. It makes it all so much easier.
If you give me a specific time in the video where you are having trouble, it'll be easier for me to answer your question. It's been about a year and a half since I made that video, so I'm not sure what you're referring to.
This not swatching when you know your natural gauge, I do this too. Like I know that my stockinette gauge on US 8 needles and worsted weight yarn is 5 sts/inch so if I'm knitting in stockinette on US 8, I can just take the desired measurement, multiply it by 5, and there's the number of stitches I need to do in stockinette. I also know that I get a row gauge that's very close to 5 rows/inch in stockinette on those same needles, but I generally just knit to measurement when it comes to rows, unless I'm wanting the last row of x number of repeats to be at a certain measurement, that's when I pay attention to my row gauge. But for something like ribbing or garter or stockinette or some other very simple stitch like that, I just knit to measurement regardless of what row count results.
Do I need to cut the back Loops for fake ITR swatch? Wondering if I can unravel and use again. Also, if I do have to cut them should I do that before or after I wash when I block the swatch? Ty for tutorial!
It would also depend on how a certain yarn behavea, and how much drop you would get especially with a longer garment or bulkier yarn, wouldn't it? So if you knit a long line cardigan how would you know the resulting gauge if the yarn is heavy and gauge influenced by the drop you would get from the weight? So many variables?
When l someti@es have to swatch, l make this with the pattern l use and l messure time by time if it's ok what l chose! So l began with swatching every time but time after time l began to feel the yarn to know how it would "behave:)! Yes, l can say YES to all you told here, again, like always since l know and enjoy your videos! Thank you and, please, go on! Be blessed!
Line up a row of stitches using a ruler, and then count stitches using a knitting needle, poking the tip of the needle into the center of each stitch as you count across.
I love swatching because that's where I "play" (design, colors, short rows, etc.). However, it is no use t me for "guaging" for size😭 because I cannot distinguish between stitches. I actually go blind after counting 2 to 4 stitches. Any tips for me to accurately distinguish (see) each individual stitch when counting. (I'll jump for joy if it works for me). Thanks for your tutorials--love them!
Measure across a known number of sts, rather than trying to count the number of sts within a particular measurement. For example, if you have a garter stitch border and you know how many sts are between the borders, just measure how wide that span of sts is. If you want to avoid the first and last st, then exclude the first and last (you should still know how many sts that is). For example, if you know you have 24 sts, and it measures 4.25'', then your gauge is 24/4.25 sts/in. You can then multiply the result by 4'' to get the number of sts in 4''. Alternatively, just count 2 or 3 sts from each edge and mark with a pin, and measure the sts between the pins. (Again, you should be aware of how many you CO to begin with, and can subtract the number of sts you are excluding.)
@@RoxanneRichardson Thank you s-o-o much for pulling/leading me out of the "bone yard" of the guage swatch damned with your perfect common sense (yes, I'm jumping for joy).😁😁😁😁😘
The idea is to replicate how you will knit the actual project, with the right side of the work always facing you. Many knitters have a different tension when they knit back and forth, purling the wrong side rows, than they have when knitting in the round. You want to know what your tension is going to be when you're knitting in the round, so this technique allows you to fake that process. You're going to be a beginner for a fairly short time, as long as you seek to learn new things with each project. There will always be more to learn, but that absolute beginner phase is pretty short.
@@RoxanneRichardsoni too am a beginner (a few years lol). i dont have dbl pointed needles. i have a kit with interchangeable circulars and feel like you can't do this b/c the needles are short and the cord is in the way lol. i'm just not coordinated. was trying a chunky (6) yarn and am challenged
Yes. You need to find the right needles required to give you the the gauge required for the stitch pattern. Often, patterns will list stockinette or garter stitch gauge in addition to the gauge for the stitch pattern. If you know what needle you need to get that stockinette gauge, that tells you what needle you are *likely* to need to get the stitch pattern gauge, but you still need to swatch the stitch pattern to confirm your gauge. You get a lot more information out of a gauge swatch than simply the sts/in. You'll find out if the yarn and stitch pattern work well together, whether or not you like the fabric, and whether or not you enjoy working the stitch pattern.
Kathy Santangelo For me it’s both. Often gauge will be given for stockinette even if the pattern is done in a stitch pattern. In that case I knit a few inches in stockinette and a few in pattern. That way I can see how the fabric looks and feels in pattern and measure gauge. If gauge isn’t important like in a scarf, a baby sweater which will fit the baby at some point or if I’m creating the pattern myself, after I’ve knit up the swatch in one needle size I do a row or two of YO, K2tog to free the tension of distorting the gauge and then repeat with the next size needle either up or down. I recently did this for Elizabeth Zimmerman’s February Baby sweater that’s knit in gull stitch. I found that with the yarn I was using knitting to the gauge required made the fabric stiff and lacked stitch definition in the lace. I went with the bigger needle. The sweater is only slightly larger making it perfect for when the baby is 4-6 months old.
I understand why we swatch, but I do not understand why you do not just turn the work, it would be so much more simple. If you cut all those strands, it is a terrific waste of yarn. I have some VERY EXPENSIVE sock yarn and am not about to waste an inch. Thank you for all these great videos. I have learned a lot already. Bless you.
If you turn the work, you would have to purl, (for stockinette stitch) Purls are often a different tension than knit stitches and that definitely affects your gauge. But when you knit in the round (stockinette) there are NO purl stitches. So by not turning your work, the tension (therefor the size/gauge) is most similar to ITR. I totally understand not wanting to waste yarn!! Maybe try not cutting the back. Im not sure you could block it that way, but skip blocking &That way you can unravel later. this will still give you a more accurate swatch than knitting flat. Hope this helps! Happy Knitting
Thank you so very much for explaining all this. Have *NEVER EVER" heard about how to make sure your gauge was "correct." This video really helped me with that. You also explained it in a way that beginners could learn how to easily work out a swatch. Thank you so much for sharing your techniques. 🥰
Thanks for the very clear explanation. I almost never knit a swatch for socks. That's because I try them on so often and because I don't care how many times I have to rip out and start again. It's all about the knitting! However, recently I did knit a swatch for socks I plan to knit for my granddaughter. I wanted to get a gauge for myself in the stockinet stitch and I wanted to get gauge and show her how the yarn would look in the two patterns she had selected. I did knit it in the round and then cut it down the middle to block. I always knit a swatch for larger projects both to get my gauge and to see if I actually like the pattern once it is knit and blocked. I have lots of fun with this doing baby blankets. Knitting candy!
Oh, and thanks for that trick in strandes colourwork fake round swatching, to knit the first and last few sts of the swatch with both yarns - I had developed quite serious hand and finger contortions tring to trap the first out-of-use yarn across\below\around the other yarn while making those looong floats on the wrong side.
Thank you Roxanne, swatching is very new to me but you explaned it very well.
Great video! I taught myself to knit as an adult (have been crocheting since 9) and after making a sweater for my daughter that was 6 sizes too big, I stayed away from knitting garments. These days, I swatch when it matters, the full 4" x 4". A recent example, I was working a swatch in a strechy pattern; about 1.5" in the swatch was way too wide. But, by the time I got to 4", it tightenend up just right.
9:00 - finally, finally, finally I found this! At some point in my knitting life I changed my swatching approach - but I forgot where I got the inspiration from. It could well have been your video, Rox!
I nowadays swatch like this (unless I have bulky or bigger yarn, which hardly ever happens): working 28sts in seed stitch for 4 rows, then 20 rows of 20 stockinette sts flanked by 4-stitch seed stitch borders, followed by another 4 rows of seed sts, binding off. I take measurements what height and length the 20 rows and 20 stitches give me before and after washing and blocking. I then end up with a hassle-free accurate gauge for 10cm after applying the rule of three; no estimates whether I am looking at 2\3 of a stitch or 3\4 etc - just nice maths; an accurate basis for calculating sweaters, hats and socks alike. I will only round up or down once I have converted all measurements and instructions into sts and rows
ds.
That is also the way I check gauge in progress - mark 20 sts in my project a few rows
ounds below, measure it, calculate its 10cm equivalent, check against original before washing and blocking measurements.
Thank you for the tip on knitting the two yarns together at the ends of the swatch, this will really help me with my swatches
Glad it was helpful!
I'm happy to have run across this video. Thanks again for the helpful information.
And - to add a third positive comment: I once wanted to knit socks that have crocodile or alligator in their name and have a great patterned leg. The pattern involved quite a bit of stranding, lifting and slipping of stitches in multiple ways. After I managed to get through 2 pattern repeats (taking me the best part of an hour, 2 mugs of coffee and the result measuring less than an inch in height) I was like "thank you, but no thank you". To work a sock leg all around in this pattern (not very stretchy, so I would have had to work a 72 stitch leg) for several inches in height would have taken me ages and would not have been fun at all.
I bet you decided to quit that pattern. If there was that much stranding, can you imagine trying to get feet into those socks without getting your toenails caught?!?
Thank you, I appreciate you sharing your expertise and I love your T-shirt! 😀
Love your t-shirts, thank you for your tutorials, very usefull
Love your T-shirt, been caught in one of those situations. Love your tutorials
When I was 8 I learned to make pompons with cardboard circles. Still doing it that way today. 😄
5:55 Yes! Lace is fun to just knit square, but figuring out how to shape it -- oh boy! It'll be a while before i try that again.
Very helpful. Love the T-shirt. 🙏🏻❤️
So useful! I need this for a cable pattern ITR :)
Thank you so much! This is very helpful. Need to swatch that way!
I looove your Shirt! I never swatch ( sock knitter)
Yay! I hate swatching. I just want to get knitting 😝😂😂😂
Yes cool shirt ;-) I am a real swatcher as I spin my own yarn. Sometimes I don't make anything of my handspun yarn, but a swatch. You explained it very clearly. The only thing that puzzels me is the calculating at the end of the video. Can you please try to explain what you are trying to say with the calcs?
I love to watch your video's. I like the way you explain things. It makes it all so much easier.
If you give me a specific time in the video where you are having trouble, it'll be easier for me to answer your question. It's been about a year and a half since I made that video, so I'm not sure what you're referring to.
Roxanne Richardson it is at 11:24. i get very confused by digits, im sorry.
This not swatching when you know your natural gauge, I do this too. Like I know that my stockinette gauge on US 8 needles and worsted weight yarn is 5 sts/inch so if I'm knitting in stockinette on US 8, I can just take the desired measurement, multiply it by 5, and there's the number of stitches I need to do in stockinette. I also know that I get a row gauge that's very close to 5 rows/inch in stockinette on those same needles, but I generally just knit to measurement when it comes to rows, unless I'm wanting the last row of x number of repeats to be at a certain measurement, that's when I pay attention to my row gauge. But for something like ribbing or garter or stockinette or some other very simple stitch like that, I just knit to measurement regardless of what row count results.
Very helpful, thanks.
Do I need to cut the back Loops for fake ITR swatch? Wondering if I can unravel and use again. Also, if I do have to cut them should I do that before or after I wash when I block the swatch? Ty for tutorial!
It would also depend on how a certain yarn behavea, and how much drop you would get especially with a longer garment or bulkier yarn, wouldn't it? So if you knit a long line cardigan how would you know the resulting gauge if the yarn is heavy and gauge influenced by the drop you would get from the weight? So many variables?
Like your explaining the gauge but still find it difficult
When l someti@es have to swatch, l make this with the pattern l use and l messure time by time if it's ok what l chose! So l began with swatching every time but time after time l began to feel the yarn to know how it would "behave:)! Yes, l can say YES to all you told here, again, like always since l know and enjoy your videos! Thank you and, please, go on! Be blessed!
Thanks, good info.
Why are you stretching the yarn across the back?
To simulate knitting in the round, which is all worked on the RS.
I have such trouble counting stitches across...my eyes bounce around. It's so hard for me. Do you have any tricks?
Line up a row of stitches using a ruler, and then count stitches using a knitting needle, poking the tip of the needle into the center of each stitch as you count across.
Roxanne Richardson I will try it! Thanks!
I love swatching because that's where I "play" (design, colors, short rows, etc.). However, it is no use t me for "guaging" for size😭 because I cannot distinguish between stitches. I actually go blind after counting 2 to 4 stitches. Any tips for me to accurately distinguish (see) each individual stitch when counting. (I'll jump for joy if it works for me). Thanks for your tutorials--love them!
Measure across a known number of sts, rather than trying to count the number of sts within a particular measurement. For example, if you have a garter stitch border and you know how many sts are between the borders, just measure how wide that span of sts is. If you want to avoid the first and last st, then exclude the first and last (you should still know how many sts that is). For example, if you know you have 24 sts, and it measures 4.25'', then your gauge is 24/4.25 sts/in. You can then multiply the result by 4'' to get the number of sts in 4''. Alternatively, just count 2 or 3 sts from each edge and mark with a pin, and measure the sts between the pins. (Again, you should be aware of how many you CO to begin with, and can subtract the number of sts you are excluding.)
@@RoxanneRichardson Thank you s-o-o much for pulling/leading me out of the "bone yard" of the guage swatch damned with your perfect common sense (yes, I'm jumping for joy).😁😁😁😁😘
@@andromeda4141 I'm glad this got you past the sticking point. :-)
😀
I don’t understand
I don’t understand why you strand the yarn across the back at all. I am new, so . . . This might be advanced channel
The idea is to replicate how you will knit the actual project, with the right side of the work always facing you. Many knitters have a different tension when they knit back and forth, purling the wrong side rows, than they have when knitting in the round. You want to know what your tension is going to be when you're knitting in the round, so this technique allows you to fake that process.
You're going to be a beginner for a fairly short time, as long as you seek to learn new things with each project. There will always be more to learn, but that absolute beginner phase is pretty short.
@@RoxanneRichardsoni too am a beginner (a few years lol). i dont have dbl pointed needles. i have a kit with interchangeable circulars and feel like you can't do this b/c the needles are short and the cord is in the way lol. i'm just not coordinated. was trying a chunky (6) yarn and am challenged
@@nyogacafe005 Use a long cord so that it's not in the way.
Do you always swatch in the stitch called for in the pattern?
Yes. You need to find the right needles required to give you the the gauge required for the stitch pattern. Often, patterns will list stockinette or garter stitch gauge in addition to the gauge for the stitch pattern. If you know what needle you need to get that stockinette gauge, that tells you what needle you are *likely* to need to get the stitch pattern gauge, but you still need to swatch the stitch pattern to confirm your gauge. You get a lot more information out of a gauge swatch than simply the sts/in. You'll find out if the yarn and stitch pattern work well together, whether or not you like the fabric, and whether or not you enjoy working the stitch pattern.
Thank you so much! I have been knitting for a few years and never saw this suggestion before. Also, I appreciate the timely response,
Kathy Santangelo For me it’s both. Often gauge will be given for stockinette even if the pattern is done in a stitch pattern. In that case I knit a few inches in stockinette and a few in pattern. That way I can see how the fabric looks and feels in pattern and measure gauge.
If gauge isn’t important like in a scarf, a baby sweater which will fit the baby at some point or if I’m creating the pattern myself, after I’ve knit up the swatch in one needle size I do a row or two of YO, K2tog to free the tension of distorting the gauge and then repeat with the next size needle either up or down.
I recently did this for Elizabeth Zimmerman’s February Baby sweater that’s knit in gull stitch. I found that with the yarn I was using knitting to the gauge required made the fabric stiff and lacked stitch definition in the lace. I went with the bigger needle. The sweater is only slightly larger making it perfect for when the baby is 4-6 months old.
I understand why we swatch, but I do not understand why you do not just turn the work, it would be so much more simple. If you cut all those strands, it is a terrific waste of yarn. I have some VERY EXPENSIVE sock yarn and am not about to waste an inch.
Thank you for all these great videos. I have learned a lot already. Bless you.
If you turn the work, you would have to purl, (for stockinette stitch) Purls are often a different tension than knit stitches and that definitely affects your gauge. But when you knit in the round (stockinette) there are NO purl stitches. So by not turning your work, the tension (therefor the size/gauge) is most similar to ITR.
I totally understand not wanting to waste yarn!! Maybe try not cutting the back. Im not sure you could block it that way, but skip blocking &That way you can unravel later. this will still give you a more accurate swatch than knitting flat. Hope this helps! Happy Knitting