The short answer: read the whole pattern before you cast on, pick your size and highlight its number in every line, check the yarn and tension, then follow the shorthand: abbreviations like k, p and k2tog, a star (*) for a repeat, brackets for a group worked a set number of times, and a number at the end of a row as a stitch count to check against.
1. Read the whole pattern before you cast on
Reading it all first tells you what techniques you’ll meet, how much yarn to buy, and whether there’s a “Notes” surprise, like “work the first stitch of every row as a slip stitch”. Mark anything you don’t understand and look it up in the pattern’s abbreviations. Then search the pattern name plus “errata”: errata is the designer’s list of corrections. Ravelry pattern pages and designer websites usually show them.
2. Start at the top: what, how hard, what size
Most patterns open with the skill level and the finished measurements. The finished measurement is the size of the finished item, not the size of the person. Compare it with your own measurement plus the ease you want. A hat usually has negative ease: it’s about 2–6 cm smaller than your head so it stays on. A jumper usually has positive ease.
3. Find and highlight your size
Multi-size patterns write numbers like Cast on 80 (90, 100) sts. The first number is the smallest size, and the brackets hold the other sizes in order. Every number after that follows the same order. So if you’re making the second size, you cast on 90.
- Highlight every number for your size all the way through a printed copy (or use the highlighter tool on a PDF) before you cast on. This one habit prevents most pattern mistakes.
- If only one number is given, it applies to all sizes.
- A 0 or – means “skip this for your size”.
4. Check the yarn and tension before you buy
The materials section tells you how many metres you need for your size. Work out your balls from the metres, not the grams. It also lists the needles: two sizes are common, a smaller one for rib and a larger one for the main fabric.
The tension (US gauge) tells you how many stitches and rows fit in 10 cm, for example “18 sts and 24 rnds = 10 cm in stocking stitch on 5 mm needles”. If the finished size matters (a hat, a jumper), knit and wash a swatch first. If your swatch has more stitches per 10 cm, your item will come out smaller, so change to a bigger needle. More stitches → bigger needle. Fewer stitches → smaller needle.
5. The abbreviations
These are the ones you’ll meet first. If you meet one you don’t know, look in the pattern’s own abbreviation list first: designers sometimes define things slightly differently.
| Abbreviation | Meaning |
|---|---|
| k / p | knit / purl |
| st(s) | stitch(es) |
| CO | cast on |
| cast off / BO | cast off (BO is the US “bind off”) |
| RS / WS | right side / wrong side |
| rep | repeat |
| rnd(s) | round(s), when knitting in the round |
| k2tog | knit 2 together |
| ssk | slip, slip, knit |
| kfb | knit front and back |
| M1L / M1R | make 1 left / make 1 right |
| pm / sm | place marker / slip marker |
| BOR | beginning of round |
| sl1 pwise | slip 1 purlwise |
| tog | together |
| st st | stocking stitch (US stockinette): knit RS rows, purl WS rows |
| C4F / C4B | cable 4 front / cable 4 back (often 2/2 LC and 2/2 RC in US patterns) |
6. Repeats: stars and brackets
- *k1, p1; rep from * to end: work what comes after the star, then keep repeating it until you run out of stitches.
- rep from * to last 3 sts: stop repeating when 3 stitches are left, then do what comes after.
- (p1, k1) 4 times or [p1, k1] 4 times: work the bracketed group exactly 4 times.
- rep from * 4 more times: you’ve already worked it once, so the total is 5.
- rep rows 1–4: go back to row 1 and work rows 1, 2, 3, 4 again.
Stitch counts are your friend. Numbers in square brackets or after a dash at the end of a row, such as [24 sts] or — 24 sts, are stitch counts. Count your stitches and compare. If yours are different, fix it now. A repeat like “to last 3 sts” only works if your count matches the pattern’s.
Patterns also say how many stitches a stitch pattern needs, such as “a multiple of 4 sts + 2”: the stitch count must divide exactly by 4, with 2 extra.
7. Phrases that trip people up
| The pattern says | It means |
|---|---|
| Work straight (UK) / work even (US) | Carry on in the pattern with no increases or decreases. |
| Work as set / keep pattern correct | Carry on with the stitch pattern you’ve already started, lined up the same way. |
| Ending with a WS row | Stop after a wrong-side row, so the next row you knit is a RS row. |
| With RS facing | Hold the work so the right side is towards you. |
| Until work measures 20 cm | Measure from the cast-on edge, flat, unless it says otherwise. |
| At the same time | Two instructions happen together, for example shaping a neckline while also decreasing at the armhole. Read ahead and mark both on a row-by-row list. |
Garment patterns usually include a schematic too: a flat line drawing of each piece with its measurements for every size. Use it to compare with a jumper you already own that fits well.
8. Reading a knitting chart
A chart is a pattern drawn as a picture instead of written in words. Each square is one stitch and each row of squares is one row (or round). The bottom row is worked first. The key tells you what each symbol means; always read it, because designers sometimes use their own symbols.
- Find where the row begins. The row number is on the side where that row begins. Right-side rows start at the right and are read right to left, the same direction you knit. Wrong-side rows start at the left and are read left to right.
- Remember the one rule that trips everyone up. Symbols show how the stitch looks from the right side. So on a WS row, a blank square (knit on the RS) is purled, and a dot (purl on the RS) is knitted.
- In the round, it’s simpler. You never turn your work, so you always see the right side. Every round is read right to left, and symbols mean exactly what the key says.
- Work the repeat box. A repeat box (usually red or bold) marks the stitches you work again and again. It’s the chart version of *…; rep from *. Work any stitches outside the box once, then repeat the boxed section as many times as the pattern says.
- Never lose your place. Put a sticky note or highlighter tape just above the row you’re working, so the rows you’ve done stay visible below it. Move it up when you finish a row, and write the row number in pencil when you stop for the day.
Stuck on a chart row? Write it out in words. For example, Row 2 (WS), read left to right: 3 blanks → p3; 3 dots → k3. So: p3, k3.
Questions people ask
What do the numbers in brackets mean in a knitting pattern?
In a multi-size pattern, a line like “cast on 80 (90, 100) sts” gives the smallest size first and the other sizes in brackets, in order. A number in square brackets or after a dash at the end of a row, like [24 sts], is a stitch count to check against.
What does * mean in knitting?
The star marks the start of a repeat. “*k1, p1; rep from * to end” means work what comes after the star, then keep repeating it until you run out of stitches.
What does “work as set” mean?
Carry on with the stitch pattern you’ve already started, lined up the same way the last few rows showed you.
Which way do you read a knitting chart?
From the bottom up. Knitting flat, right-side rows are read right to left and wrong-side rows left to right. In the round, every round is read right to left.