The Knitting Fiend

This is the third in a series: How to read knitting charts. It discusses how to read a chart that describes seed stitch. The previous articles describe the general rules, and apply them to color patterns, and ribbing. In this article, I’m also going to explain more explicitly how to translate stitch patterns described for back and forth knitting to circular. That was one of the referer questions that actually motivated all this writing about charting!

On to seed stitch!

Seed stitch is often the fourth stitch knitters are taught. The first three are garter, stockinette and ribbing. Seed stitch is sometimes used in scarves, blankets and baby sweaters, and sometimes replaces ribbing in cuffs and hems of sweaters. Like ribbing and garter stitch, it does not curl.

The text directions for seed stitch are nearly identical to those for ribbing. I’ve included a photo of a buttonhole worked in a seed stitch border. You can see seed stitch looks very different from ribbing; this will become obvious if you compare the charts for the two stitch patterns.

Description 1:
Cast on over an odd number of stitches.

• Row 1: * k1, p1; repeat from *, end k1.
• Repeat rows 1.

Description 2:
Cast on over an even number of stitches.

• Row 1: * k1, p1; repeat from *.
• Row 2: * p1 k1; repeat from *.
• Repeat rows 1 and 2.

If you compare these text directions to those I provided earlier for 1 x 1 ribbing you will notice the first, an all odd rows are of ribbing and seed stitch are identical. The second and even rows are shifted 1 stitch. Shifting one stitch to the left or right prevents the knit ribs and purl bumps from lining up and results in a bumpy textured fabric. You’ll find insertions of seed stitch are often used on either side of cables since the smooth but twisted texture of the cables really stand out on this fabric.

Let’s see how this looks charted. Here is a 9 stitch wide chart for seed stitch:

Hey, don’t the chart and the stitch almost look the same? That’s the nice thing about charts. They sort of give you an idea about how the stitch will look before you knit it up.

Let’s now apply the “rules” summarized in my article on ribbing, and apply them to read the chart.

Row 1: This is right side facing. Reading from the right, knit all stitches shown as knit, purl all shown as purl. So: *k1, p1; repeat from * end k. If you are knitting in back and forth you turn the work at the end of row 1. That means row 2 is knit with wrong side facing, and you read from left to right, purl all stitches show as knit and knit all those shown as purl. So, *k1, p1; repeat from * end, k. The text instruction is exactly like row 1. Compare this to the text instructions for an odd number of stitches, and you’ll see the two agree.

But, what if you had been knitting in the round? In that case, you would not turn for round 2. It would be right side facing, and you would read from right to left, and knit all stitches shown as knit, and purl all shown as purl. So, round 2 becomes *p1, k1; repeat from * end p1! Hhmmm. That’s different.

The difference is how you read the chart. When knitting in the round, you don’t turn the work. The right side always faces you and you apply the “right side facing” rules when reading the chart. When knitting back and forth, you turn the work. So, you apply the “wrong side facing rules” I described in my first article on reading knitting charts.

Now, remember way back in the first article, I said one of my motives for discussing charting patterns was teaching people how to convert directions for knitting back and forth to knitting circular? Stitch patterns in various reference books are almost always described for back and forth knitting. Notice the chart for seed stitch is the same whether you knit circular or back and forth. If you can’t immediately understand how to knit the stitch in the round, chart one pattern repeat. After charting it, you’ll be able to knit from the chart or write out text directions for knitting in the round.

Now you don’t need to chase down stitch pattern books for knitting circular, or wait for someone to translate the directions. You can translate them yourself.

So, thinking in charts can be useful when you begin try to convert a knitting pattern from knitting circular to back and forth knitting or vice versa.

Now to finish up, I’ll address the confusing phrase you may sometimes see. Remember, in the article on ribbing, I discussed “knit all knit stitches and purl all purl stitches”? Well, that doesn’t happen in seed stitch. However, some patter writers might describe row 2 and above for seed stitch this way: “Purl all knit stitches, knit all purl stitches.” This means: When you are knitting row 2, and examine the stitch you are about to knit into. If you see a purl bump, right now, knit into it. If it looks like a knit stitch, purl into it. Don’t worry about what you actually did to create the stitch when working the previous row or round.

To check wether you understand the phrase, remember that garter stitch is a “knit all purl stitches and purl all knit stitches” type pattern. Stockinette and ribbing are not.

Now, I think I’ve exhausted “how to read charts” as applied to all the beginner stitches. Now that I’ve provided this beginner discussion, I think I can add charts to the descriptions of some of my stitch patterns and link back to help people who don’t know how to read the charts. So, you all will be seeing more charts, although fewer long winded discussions about them.