Berroco Zippy cardigan pattern help please

How-to Questions
1

I’m back again with another question. I actually hoped the next time I would be posting on here it would be to show off my finished sweater I made for my mom, but that will have to wait until tomorrow (hopefully) when I can put it on and have hubby take a pic.

On to my problem. I am working on the Berroco Zippy childrens cardigan (free pattern from berroco.com) and I am on the right front and am supposed to start shaping the raglan armhole but am totally confused as to what to do next. I will just put the directions on here in a different color font and then put my questions.

I need to give you directions starting from working on the front right part then the front left, the pattern directions will explain why.

[color=blue]LEFT FRONT
With smaller needles, cast on 27(29-33-35) sts.
Row 1 (RS): K1, * p1, k1, rep from * across.
Row 2: Sl 1 st purlwise, * p1, k1, rep from * across. Rep these 2 rows until piece measures 1” from beg, end on Row 2. Change to larger needles.
Next Row (RS): K to last 6 sts, (p1, k1) 3 times.
Following Row: Sl 1 st purlwise, (p1, k1) twice, p to end. Rep these 2 rows until piece measures 6(6 1/2-7 1/2-8)” from beg, end on WS.
Note: As you shape armhole, continue to work 6 st border at front edge up to the neck.
Shape Raglan Armhole: Bind off 3(4-4-5) sts at beg of the next row – 24(25-29-30) sts. Work 1 row even.
Dec Row (RS): K3, KSP, work to end. Rep this dec every RS row 10(12-14-15) times more, end on WS – 13(12-14-14) sts. Armhole should measure approximately 3 1/2(4-4 1/2-5)”.
Shape Neck: Next Row (RS): K3, KSP, k to last 6 sts, sl these sts to holder. Work 1 row even. Continue to dec 1 st at armhole edge as before every RS row 4 times more. AT THE SAME TIME, dec 1 st at neck edge every other RS row 1(0-2-2) times. When all decs have been completed, fasten off last st.
RIGHT FRONT
With smaller needles, cast on 27(29-33-35) sts.
Row 1 (RS): Sl 1 st knitwise, * p1, k1, rep from * across.
Row 2: * K1, p1, rep from * to last st, end p1. Rep these 2 rows until piece measures 1” from beg, end on Row 2. Change to larger needles.
Next Row (RS): Sl 1 st knitwise, (p1, k1) twice, p1, k to end.
Following Row: P to last 6 sts, (p1, k1) twice, p2. Complete to correspond to Left Front, reversing all shaping. Work armhole decs as SSK, k3. To shape neck, work 6 sts and sl them to holder, work to last 5 sts, SSK, then k3.[/color]

So, I am having a wicked time figuring out how to start the binding off and working from there. When I tried to do it on the knit row, I ended up with one stitch left attached to the working yarn and I didn’t know how to bind off so I didn’t have that stitch.

I think I may have given way to much on here, sorry if I am blabbering endlessly, I just want to make sure I give you all the information you could possibly need.

Thanks so much for your help!

Desiree

2

You can’t bind off stitches at the end of a row, and this is what it sounds like you did. You’ll have to bind off at the beginning of the row, so it will be on the purl side for the right side of the sweater.

3

Thank goodness I am not nuts, I didn’t think you could do it but I figured I just wasn’t doing it right. Where it says to [color=blue][/color][color=blue]work the armhole decs as SSK, k3 [/color] is where I got confused. I am assuming I am not supposed to do the SSK stitch (sl 2 sts knitwise, insert point of LH needle through fronts of these 2 sts and k2 tog) if the rest of the row is purl right? Would you be able to tell me what I should do instead or where I should look to figure it out? I am stumped! Thanks again!

Desiree

4

When they say to work the armhole decreases as ssk, k3 it’s the mirror image of the raglan decreases on the other side. The decreases lean different ways, so you need to do them differently.

You’ll still do your decreases with the right side facing you, just toward the end of the row rather than the beginning. Once you orient yourself to working on the right side of the sweater and you can picture which side you’re working on, it’ll be much clearer. Hold it up to your body if you’re confused.

You will need to do the underarm bind offs on the purl side, though.

5

Okay, I think I am still a little confused. I have already done the right side of the sweater and I know what the left side is supposed to look like. I think I understand now that the bind offs will have to be on the purl side, but then do I start doing the raglan shaping on the knit rows or will I be doing it on the purl rows with the SSK k3 stitches?

I hope these aren’t totally stupid questions :oops: , but I have never had to figure this out before and I have only done one other raglan sweater that I just finished and that was totally spelled out for me. Ugh, I am so easily confuserated sometimes. :??

Thank you Ingrid for your help! I appreciate your patience with me.

Desiree

6

Now I’m a little confused. I thought you had done the left side and were working on the right side, but in this post you said the opposite. :thinking:

I’m going to assume that that was a typo since the ssk dec apply to the right side of the sweater.

Do your decreases on the knit side of the sweater. Work across to the last 5 stitches, ssk, k3. Your decreases will lean in the correct direction. Just the fact that the stitch you’re doing is a ssk rather than an ssp tells you that it’s done on the front of the sweater.

NO questions are stupid! When something is new, there are always questions. Better to ask them now than make a mess and have to figure out how to fix it all. :wink:

7

Ha, ha! Sorry about the side mix-ups, I knew I was starting to get all turned around in the pattern. :doh: :smiley: Yah, I am working on the right (I said the correct side this time right?).

Okay, I think I get what you are saying to do now, I just wanted to make sure it sounded the same way I was thinking it sounded. I am just going to put all this to work now and see what happens.

I have one more question though, when I bind off the stitches and the pattern says to work one row even after binding off the stitches, would I actually end up starting the decreases on the next knit row or do I finish the purl row that I bound off the stitches on, do a full knit row, then do another purl and on the next knit start the decreases? Uh-oh, I am starting to question whether I did the first side correctly. When the pattern says to work a row even it means to do a whole row without any different stitches or anything right?

Thanks!
Desiree

8

When a pattern says to work one row even, do a row without any decreases.

HOWEVER, here’s the confusing part. When you did the left side, you bound off on the knit side. You had to work one row even in order to begin your decreases on the front of the sweater, right?

On the right side, you’ll be binding off on the purl side. If you work one row even after that row, you’ll be back on the purl side. I would bind off the first stitches and finish that row. DON’T work one row even. Begin your raglan decreases on that next knit row.

9

Okay, thank you, thank you, thank you for all your help! :notworthy: I am off to tackle this sweater now. :XX: