Stop Swatching Flat and Knitting in the Round

I’m sorry, but it’s time for me to speak out.

Because, well, I suspected this was a thing.

But I didn’t really know.

I didn’t want to believe.

But I have recently confirmed and must now acknowledge.

Knitters—knitters in THE YEAR OF OUR LORD 2021!—are still making flat swatches for garments knit in the round.

If I had pearls, I’d be clutching them.

Folks. Pals. Knitters.

No.

Please.

Stop doing this.

Or, at least pause.

And listen to me.

This is a BAD idea.

BAD BAD BAD.

And desperate times call for desperate measures.

This is a topic covered in my Swatch Master e-course, and just because I’m so desperate to make sure this practice comes to an end, I’m going to give you guys an abbreviated lesson on why this is a terrible idea, and how to solve the swatching-in-the-round-is-a-giant-pain-in-the-ass dilemma.

First: why is this is a problem?

Because it is entirely likely that your knit stitches and purl stitches are different sizes. It can go either way, but most knitters tend toward purl stitches that are larger than their knit stitches.

When you knit stockinette flat, you’re alternating knit rows with purl rows. But when you’re knitting in the round, every round is knit. This makes it very likely that your gauge working flat and your gauge working in the round—even with the exact same yarn and needles—will be different. Most—though certainly not all— knitters will have a tighter gauge working in the round, because their knits are smaller than their purls.

How different could it really be? Well, maybe just a quarter of a stitch per inch—doesn’t sound like much, does it? But let’s do the math for a sweater:

•Pattern gauge given: 20 sts and 24 rnds = 4” in stockinette; 5 sts and 6 rnds per inch.

•Sweater designed for a 36” bust and 8” armhole depth will have 180 sts at the bust (36 inches x 5 sts per inch) and 48 rnds worked for armhole.

•Your actual gauge: 21 sts and 25 rnds, or 5.25 sts and 6.25 rnds per inch--.25 st per inch/rnd difference.

•180 sts / 5.25 sts per inch = 34 ¼”.

•48 rnds / 6.25 rnds per inch = 7.68”

•A difference of just ¼ stitch per inch makes a sweater that’s nearly 2” smaller, and shrinks the armhole depth by nearly .5”!

And the larger your sweater is, the greater the difference will grow. A 48” sweater knit at 5 sts/inch will have 240 sts at the bust; if your gauge is 5.25 sts/inch, your sweater will come out at 45 3/4”, 2 1/4” smaller.

So please. Please do not do this to yourself. Please swatch in the round for things knit in the round.

Second: How can we do that without knitting a large circumference and using up all our yarn, or alternately swatching on DPNs and trying to measure our gauge over a tube?

Check out my video on swatching flat in the round. This is an excerpt from my e-course and I’m giving you special access for FREE because this is so important.

And please: spread the word. Save a sweater.