Why Does Stockinette Curl and Can You Fix It?

Around the beginning of the year I joined a Facebook group for beginner knitters, both because I thought I could help people and because I wanted to see what kinds of questions people were asking so I could produce posts around them.

One of the biggest questions a lot of new knitters have is around stockinette stitch (aka knit one row, purl one row). First they want to know what they’re doing wrong that causes it to curl, and then how to fix it.

The first part of the answer is that you’re not doing anything wrong. I have read that stockinette stitch curls because of the difference in size between knit stitches and purl stitches (knit stitches are shorter and narrower) or because of a difference in tension between knit stitches and purl stitches when you work them.

That doesn’t account for why stockinette still curls when you work it in the round, though, so I can’t say that’s 100 percent the reason, but the result is the same regardless. Stockientte stitch tends to curl to the knit side on the cast on and bind off edges an toward the purl side on the sides.

So how do you stop it? One way is to add a border that will help to keep the edges flat. Ribbing is commonly used for this purpose on the edges of hats, socks and sweaters, but you can also use garter stitch or any combination of knit and purl stitches that’s relatively balanced (such as moss stitch or seed stitch).

You can also add a hem to a project, which helps weigh down the edge and can keep it from curling. Nimble Needles shows one way to do that by sort of picking up stitches along the back of the work and knitting them together with the live stitches, but you can also do this by knitting an inch or so, working a row of purls on the knit side and then knitting on. When you’re finished with the project you can fold it along that purl row and sew the hem down along the back.

Or you can use a purl row to stop the edge from curling beyond that point and use the rolled hem as a style feature.

Do you have any tips for reducing curl or working with the curl in stockinette stitch? I’d love to hear them!

[Photo: Nimble Needles]

Learn a New Stitch: Stockinette Chevron

A Scarf Knitting Pattern for Learning How to Knit

Next Pattern:

It’s been well documented that I love a knitting pattern with a bit of whimsy, so when I saw the Mine! Pullover from Sarah L. Kelly recently I knew I had to share it with you.

I mean, who wouldn’t want to knit a sweater with a yoke full of seagulls? And another seagull at the waist? Chasing little crabs?

The story behind the sweater (and you knew there had to be one, right?) is that while Sarah was traveling around Europe there were a lot of cheeky seagulls about. They reminded her of the scene in Finding Nemo where the seagulls say “mine, mine, mine” and thus the Mine! series of patterns was born.

Oh yes, there’s a whole set. It was the sweater I saw first but there’s also a pair of socks (and the pattern says there’s a cowl, too, but I couldn’t find it as of this writing. If you see it let me know and I’ll add the link here!) so you can totally deck yourself out in pesky seabirds if you want.

But back to the sweater for now. This is worked in DK weight yarn from the top down in the round. The yoke and a section at the bottom are worked in stranded colorwork, with stripes on the body, though you could make the body a single color if you wanted. Details like the beaks and eyes are added with duplicate stitch to make the knitting a little easier.

The colorwork sections are charted. The pattern comes in 10 sizes, with a finished chest circumference ranging from 32 to 68 inches, or 80 to 170 cm.

The socks are worked in sock yarn and come in three sizes. There worked from the cuff down and change needle sizes to accommodate the less stretchy nature of stranded colorwork. You can choose from a side profile or a seagull that’s looking out from the sock. Make a matching pair or mix it up.

Both patterns are available on Ravelry: sweater and socks. If you make them I’d love to hear about it!

[Photo: Sarah L. Kelly]

Next Pattern:

Have you read?