Increasing stitches
It’s often necessary to increase the number of stitches for various reasons: for
shaping (e.g. for a waist), in structured or Ajour patterns, when changing patterns or
yarns within one piece or simply as a decorative element.
Increasing in sleeves is dealt with in its
own Knitting Tip.
Various possibilities
Depending on how distinctive you want the increasing to be, you can choose from
various methods: picking up the cross stitch between two stitches, yarn round needle,
knitting into the back of stitches and
knitting into a lower stitch.
 Here you can see the difference: to the right of the centre 4 stitches one
stitch is picked up from the cross stitch (= pick up the cross stitch on the left needle
and knit). To the left of the centre 4 stitches a stitch has been picked up through the
back of the loop of the cross stitch (=pick up the cross stitch on the left needle and
knit through the back of the loop).
 Here you can see the difference: to the right of the centre 4 stitches there
was a yarn-round- needle stitch in the right-side row, which was then purled in the
following wrong-side row. To the left of the centre 4 stitches there was a
yarn-round-needle stitch in the right-side row, which was then purled through the back of
the loop in the following wrong-side row.
The most inconspicuous way to increase is picking up
the cross stitch through the back of the loop, then knitting through the back of the loop
of the yarn round needle, then the simple cross stitch pick-up and finally the simple yarn
round needle.
Ribs
If you’re changing from stocking stitch to rib with the same width of the piece of
work, it’s better to use another method. In our example we need two purl stitches
instead of a knit stitch, so the knit stitch has to be doubled.
 Knit (plain) the stitch that is to
be doubled in the row before (wrong side). In the next right-side row first purl the
stitch, then pick up the purl ‘head’ of the same stitch in the previous row on
to the left needle and purl this.
 The result is a discreet increase
which is also decorative on the wrong side of the work.
Another tip
Cables also require more stitches than stocking stitch over the same width. Increase these
stitches from the cross stitches at the first cable and then decrease them at the last
cable, distributed equally over the upper and lower halves of thecables. This way, the
edges of the knitted pieces stay straight and don’t bulge at the ends of the cables. |
