How to use the calculator
- Choose whether you are increasing or decreasing.
- Enter how many stitches are on your needle and how many you want to add or remove. You can also type the number you want to end with.
- Choose flat or in the round.
- Follow the instructions from left to right. Square brackets show a group to repeat, and the number after them is how many times.
How the spacing is worked out
The calculator first counts the plain stitches you will knit. For increases that's every stitch on the needle, because a make one doesn't use up a stitch. For decreases it's the total minus two for every k2tog, because each one knits two stitches together.
Those plain stitches are then split into equal sections. In the round there's one section per increase or decrease, each ending with the shaping stitch. Flat, there's one extra section, so the row begins and ends with plain knitting and no shaping lands on the edge stitch. When the numbers don't divide evenly, some sections are one stitch longer. The calculator groups those together, and on flat rows splits them between the two ends, so the instructions stay short enough to follow without losing your place.
Formulas
- Plain stitches = stitches on needle (increasing), or stitches − 2 × decreases (decreasing).
- Sections = number of increases or decreases, plus one when working flat.
- Stitches per section = plain stitches ÷ sections, rounded down. The leftover stitches add one to that many sections.
Worked examples
Flat: 80 stitches, adding 12. All 80 stitches are plain, split into 13 sections. 80 ÷ 13 is 6 with 2 left over, so eleven sections have 6 stitches and the two end sections have 7. The row is K7, M1, [K6, M1] 11 times, K7, which leaves 92 stitches.
In the round: 60 stitches, removing 10. Ten k2togs use 20 stitches, leaving 40 plain stitches in 10 sections of 4. The round is [K4, k2tog] 10 times, which leaves 50 stitches.
Increase evenly table: adding 10 and 20 percent
Ready-made rows for common stitch counts, worked out by the calculator. The 20 percent rows show how much shorter the plain sections get when you double the number of increases.
| Stitches | Add | Flat row | In the round |
|---|---|---|---|
| 64 to 70 | 6 (10%) | [K9, M1] 6 times, K10 | [K10, M1] 2 times, [K11, M1] 4 times |
| 64 to 77 | 13 (20%) | [K5, M1] 4 times, [K4, M1] 6 times, [K5, M1] 3 times, K5 | K4, M1, [K5, M1] 12 times |
| 80 to 88 | 8 (10%) | [K9, M1] 4 times, K8, M1, [K9, M1] 3 times, K9 | [K10, M1] 8 times |
| 80 to 96 | 16 (20%) | [K5, M1] 6 times, [K4, M1] 5 times, [K5, M1] 5 times, K5 | [K5, M1] 16 times |
| 100 to 110 | 10 (10%) | [K9, M1] 10 times, K10 | [K10, M1] 10 times |
| 100 to 120 | 20 (20%) | [K5, M1] 8 times, [K4, M1] 5 times, [K5, M1] 7 times, K5 | [K5, M1] 20 times |
| 120 to 132 | 12 (10%) | K10, M1, [K9, M1] 10 times, K10, M1, K10 | [K10, M1] 12 times |
| 120 to 144 | 24 (20%) | [K5, M1] 10 times, [K4, M1] 5 times, [K5, M1] 9 times, K5 | [K5, M1] 24 times |
To decrease instead, the plain sections get two stitches shorter for every k2tog. For example, 96 stitches less 16 in the round is [K4, k2tog] 16 times, leaving 80.
Using kfb, yarn overs or other increases
The instructions assume a make one, which adds a stitch between two stitches without using one. Kate Atherley at Modern Daily Knitting points out that any increase of that kind works, such as a lifted bar, a backward loop or a lifted increase. Kfb is different because you work it into a stitch. She gives 48 stitches plus 6 in the round as (K8, m1) 6 times, the same as our [K8, M1] 6 times. With kfb it becomes (K7, kfb) 6 times: one stitch fewer in each plain group, because the kfb uses it.
For decreases the calculator uses k2tog. You can swap in ssk, or alternate the two, without changing any numbers, since both turn two stitches into one.
Two ways to lay out a flat row
Dummies and Modern Daily Knitting both keep shaping off the edge stitches of a flat row, but they place the plain stitches differently. Dummies adds one to the number of increases to get the number of spaces, which is what this calculator does. Modern Daily Knitting puts the increase in the middle of each group instead. So 48 plus 6 worked flat is (K4, m1, k4) 6 times, with 4 plain stitches at each end. The calculator gives [K7, M1] 3 times, K6, M1, [K7, M1] 2 times, K7, with 7 at each end. Both rows end with 54 stitches and keep the edges clean. Pick the one that is easier for you to follow.
Large remainders and big increases
When the stitches don't divide neatly, some sections must be a stitch longer. Lion Brand handles 110 stitches with 10 increases by increasing after every 9th stitch nine times and after the 10th once. Atherley's second article works through a much harder case, 197 stitches plus 41. She writes it as (K4, m1) 12 times, (k5, m1) 29 times, k4. The calculator gives [K5, M1] 14 times, [K4, M1] 13 times, [K5, M1] 14 times, K5. The numbers differ because it spreads the longer sections between both ends of the row, but each version has sections of only 4 or 5 stitches and ends with 238.
When you add a lot of stitches in one row, the sections get very short. We found no source that sets a limit, so try the row on your swatch before you commit. The guide to the math of increasing evenly shows the arithmetic step by step if you want to check a pattern by hand.
Tips
- Place a stitch marker before each increase if the row is long. It makes it easy to check you haven't lost count.
- Count your stitches at the end of the row. The total should match the "Stitches" line in the results.
- For a very gradual change over several rows, spread the increases across more than one row instead of all in one.
- Use a paired increase or decrease (left and right leaning) on visible fabric for a neater look.
