Making a Gauge Swatch
There isn’t a knitter who would start a project by first making a gauge swatch. It’s no use - there is no way around it: your sweater, jacket or any other knitted wear simply must fit after completion. First of all, use the same wool, same needle size and length, and pattern of your choice. Knit the first 30 stitches (with thick wool 24 stitches are enough) and knit approximately a 10 cm length. Finish by binding off. The swatch should not be too small because stitches near the edges turn out, according to experience, quite variably. Before measuring your work, spray lightly with water and then allow to dry.
Don’t use a tape measure to measure your swatch; use instead a T-square or a triangle straightedge. Both are heavy enough to make an accurate measurement of your swatch. Measure right down the middle, along the row in width and in height. This minimizes the risk of inaccuracy. Count the number of stitches and rows in a 5cm length. Do count the half stitches too! These are important for gauging your completed knitting piece. Have you ever tried using the wrong side to count the rows? You’ll quite agree that this makes the counting of rows much easier! After you calculated the height in terms of row and the width in terms of stitches, compare your count with the suggested gauge. Please note that the count must be converted to 10cm. If your calculation does not match what the gauge suggests, try a different size needle. Should you have more stitches and row, take a thicker needle. Should you have less stitches, take a thinner one.
By all means should you not forget to re-measure your knit piece before starting to knit the first sleeve. Unfortunately, it is a common mistake to make larger stitches than what the gauge suggests when working with bigger pieces, such as a sleeve. The stitch conversion table helps you to calculate the correct number of stitches.
An example: You made a swatch gauge that contains 14 stitches in a 5cm width. In the table, look up the weight under 14 stitches = 5cm. It should be 134 stitches at 48 cm. For knitted pieces from a pattern, gauge swatches should also be knitted. Always measure the pattern slightly stretched so that your sweater wouldn’t be too wide.
Gauge Swatch