How the spacing is worked out
Divide the stitches you have by the number of increases or decreases. With 60 stitches and 6 increases, 60 ÷ 6 = 10, so each section is 10 stitches with one increase.
Most counts do not divide evenly. With 99 stitches and 8 increases, 99 ÷ 8 = 12.375. Five sections get 12 stitches and three get 13. A one-stitch difference is rarely visible in the fabric.
A decrease uses the last two stitches of its section. With 80 stitches and 10 decreases, each section of 8 stitches is k6, k2tog.
Worked flat, the row starts and ends with half a section, so the first and last changes sit away from the edges. That is why 60 stitches and 6 increases come out as K5, M1, [k10, M1] 5 times, k5. In the round there is no edge: every section ends with its increase or decrease.
Reading the instruction
Work what is inside square brackets as many times as the number after them. Then carry on with the rest of the line.
| Abbreviation | Meaning |
|---|---|
| k5 | knit 5 stitches |
| M1 | make one stitch, a single increase |
| kfb | knit into the front and back of one stitch, a single increase |
| k2tog | knit 2 stitches together, a single decrease |
| 2 sc in next st | work 2 single crochets into one stitch, a single increase |
| sc2tog | single crochet 2 stitches together, a single decrease |
The stitch count under the instruction is what you should have when the row or round is done. Count it before you start the next one.
Knitting increases: M1 or kfb
M1 makes a new stitch between two stitches, so it takes nothing away from the stitches you knit. M1L leans left and M1R leans right; either works in the instruction.
Kfb is worked into a stitch. Each kfb uses one stitch of the row, so a section for kfb has one plain stitch fewer than the same section for M1. With 60 stitches and 6 increases in the round, the round is [k10, M1] 6 times with M1, or [k9, kfb] 6 times with kfb. Pick the increase your pattern names.
Knitting decreases
The calculator uses k2tog, which leans right. Ssk is the left-leaning single decrease, and it uses two stitches the same way, so you can swap it in wherever the instruction says k2tog.
Each single decrease takes two stitches. That limits one row to half of its stitches: 40 stitches can lose at most 20 in one row, as [k2tog] 20 times.
Crochet increases and decreases, US and UK
A crochet increase puts two stitches into one stitch of the row below, so each increase uses one stitch. A decrease joins two stitches into one: work the first stitch until two loops are left, start the same stitch in the next stitch, then finish by pulling through all the loops on the hook. A dc2tog in US terms ends with three loops pulled through together.
UK patterns name the same stitches differently. Choose the terms your pattern uses and the instruction follows them.
| US | UK | US decrease | UK decrease |
|---|---|---|---|
| sc (single crochet) | dc (double crochet) | sc2tog | dc2tog |
| hdc (half double crochet) | htr (half treble) | hdc2tog | htr2tog |
| dc (double crochet) | tr (treble) | dc2tog | tr2tog |
The instruction covers the stitches of the row. Work the turning chain the way your pattern says, and follow your pattern on whether it counts as a stitch.
When one row is not enough
Single increases can at most double a row, with M1 between every pair of stitches or an increase in every stitch. Single decreases can at most halve it. If your pattern asks for more, it usually spreads the change over two rows or uses a double decrease such as SK2P (slip 1, k2tog, pass the slipped stitch over), which takes three stitches at once. The calculator tells you when a count goes past these limits.
Keep your place while you shape
An increase row is easy to lose halfway. On the row before, place a removable marker after each section; on the shaping row, make one change at each marker.
Shaping rows often come every few rows, such as "increase on every 4th row". The online row counter keeps the rows between them, with a repeat length that shows which row of the four you are on.