Dog Sweater Leg Holes Purl Confusion

How-to Questions
1

So I got this tiny chihuahua-minipin mix puppy recently and he’s constantly cold, so being the warm hearted knitter that I am I decided to try to knit him a nice warm sweater. :heart:

I picked this pattern: http://www.ptyarn.com/6plydoggiejacket.html
And a nice sportweight lorna’s laces yarn and…

Everything was going fine till I slammed into the following instructions:

LEG OPENINGS:
Row 1: k5 (7, 11) cast off next 6 (6, 10) sts, k46 (56, 80), cast off next 6 (6, 10) sts, k5, (7, 11).
Next row: k5 (7, 11, turn, cast on 6 (6, 10) sts, turn k46, (56, 80) turn, cast on 6 (6, 10)sts, turn, k7, (11, 13) Total: (68, 82, 122) sts.
Cont until work measures 5-3/4" (7-1/4", 10") or (14, 18, 25cm) ending with a purl row.

As I understand it I am still knitting flat (and joining into circular knitting at some point later) when I run into that part… which means every other row is a purl row… right? SO… i did row 1 there and was fine and then tried to purl my way back and hit the gap from those bound off stitches and then I was like :??

How on earth is this supposed to work??? HEEEEEELP!!! :shrug:

2

If it says next row, you do what the instructions say, which is to knit and cast on stitches to cover the gaps where you bound off. I think you’re supposed to join and work in the round now; the pattern only says to seam up the neck seam, not under the belly. However, it doesn’t mention circular needles… One of those lines is a typo.

3

ohhh ok thanks! I’ll try that

4

Belladonna,

I took the time to draw up a row by row graphic of what you do on this little dog coat. I figured you are making the smallest size but that doesn’t matter.:lol:

I don’t really understand why it says to knit those two rows one right after the other, on the leg openings. If you do that it will mess up the stockinette you have going, but you do not join into the round at that point. You do not join into the round until you get to the place where it mentions the dpns at the body band. The belly part is open underneath the doggie’s tummy. The only seam is from the beginning edge where you cast on your 47 stitches to the leg openings. (I’m not sure if you stop before or after the leg holes with that neck seam. Let the picture guide you and maybe your dog’s anatomy. :lol: ) That will be the neck. After you sew up the neck opening you then use the double points to pick up stitches from right behind where your seam is for the neck, all along the body back to the tail. Then you knit across the 36 stitches on the holder and then pick up 47 stitches along the other side of the body back to the place you have it seamed. You then work an inch of the green ribbing.

I’m not picturing completely how you are knitting in the round. I [U]think[/U] you are bringing the two sides of the body part together right behind where the neck seam stops. The part you do in the round is the part they call the “Body Band” which is the green ribbing that goes from under the tummy, along the sides and over the tail (of the dog).

After you do the Body Band you then pick up stitches in the round with the dpns and knit around the leg openings with the green trim.

On the row in question in the “Leg Opening” part when you are putting the stitches back on that you cast off the row before… I think I would just purl that row instead of knitting like it says to keep the stockinette going. You do all that turning and casting on so that you can use one of the knitted on cast-ons to get the stitches back after you cast them off for the leg hole. It is kind of like a simple buttonhole where you bind off and then cast back on the same amount on the next row, leaving a hole.

Dog sweaters can be confusing. Their anatomy is so different than a person’s, and we are used to knitting people sweaters. :lol:

I hope this makes sense. Reading through it I got kind of wordy. Sorry. Another clue that you are working flat at the leg opening is at the end of that section it mentions a purl row. You wouldn’t need any purl rows if you were working in the round.

Merigold

5

I wondered if the pattern had been `translated’ from knitting part of it in the round and part flat, and one of those rows was overlooked.

6

THANKS very very very very much to Marigold. :cheering: Things now make a lot more sense. LOL I was making the smallest size, but I’m getting nervous about how small the leg openings are looking. I might pull a viking and get creative with the sizing once I figure out the original pattern, but for now I’ll say my hail mary’s and follow the pattern. Thanks so much to all of you for taking the time to help me out! I’ve never made a human sweater before, so this is all new to me! Hehehe so far I’ve stuck to hats, scarves, socks, and shawls.

Oh and I just realized that the chest of the sweater is supposed to be garter stitch not “stocking” stitch if I follow the directions to the letter. I think I need to go to the frog pond and start over. LOL Maybe when I finish this sweater my doggie will let me have my blanket back. :roflhard:

I think the woman that wrote this pattern is in purl denial maybe… :??

7

Oh and I just realized that the chest of the sweater is supposed to be garter stitch not “stocking” stitch if I follow the directions to the letter. I think I need to go to the frog pond and start over. LOL Maybe when I finish this sweater my doggie will let me have my blanket back. ROTF

8

I think the woman that wrote this pattern is in purl denial maybe… :oo:

9

Belladonna,

This is all worked in stockinette except the ribbing at the beginning and the ribbing around the body and leg openings.

Look closely at the picture. It is little vees not garter bumps and… after the ribbing it says, change to size 5 needles… work in stocking st. The way the part about the increases is written may be confusing you, but they are done keeping the work in st. st.

At the back shaping it says: Next row slip 1, K2, PSSO; knit to last 2 sts. K2tog. Next row [U]Purl[/U]. Repeat last 2 rows until 36 sts. remain, then work until you have 12 3/4 inches. So you are repeating a knit row and a purl row all along. Simple stockinette.

That is why that one place where it indicates two rows worked in knit right after one another is confusing. You could knit those two rows and then immediately go back to stockinette if you want, or purl that 2nd row.

I wish I could show you the little drawing I did. Basically the whole piece is worked flat from the cast on to where you end up with the 36 stitches you put on a holder. Then you sew the edges of the part from the cast on to the leg holes together (that is the seam that goes right up the doggy’s chest). Then pick up 47 along the right side (starting right behind your seam), knit the 36 from the holder, pick up 47 more along the other side of the body, and work those 128 stitches in the round for one inch for the green edging. It will be joined into a round piece because the seam you sewed brings the two edges of the body together right in the center under the tummy, centered between the leg openings.

Maybe I can figure out how to post a picture or send you an e-mail of my little drawing when my DH gets home for lunch to help me. Maybe I’ve said enough now that it is making sense. I didn’t draw it very big, I was just trying to figure it all out for myself so I could convey it to you.

Let me know how you’re doing.

Merigold

10

I got mad and took it to the frog pond :shifty:… I’m gonna start casting on round two soon. For some reason the fact that she doesn’t mention the purl rows between the knit rows really screws with my head. :rollseyes:

11

You mean at that point in the pattern? Cause she does at other points in the pattern - purl a row or do stockinette. Maybe she just forgot at the leg openings…

12

Ok here’s what’s giving me issues…

In the transition between the “Begin Coat” and “Leg Openings” I get a little twitchy because in the Begin Coat section she says to inc at the end of every row, then purl the next. I got to the end of that part without my eye twitching. :cheering:

Then I read:
LEG OPENINGS:
Row 1: k5 (7, 11) cast off next 6 (6, 10) sts, k46 (56, 80), cast off next 6 (6, 10) sts, k5, (7, 11).
Next row: k5 (7, 11, turn, cast on 6 (6, 10) sts, turn k46, (56, 80) turn, cast on 6 (6, 10)sts, turn, k7, (11, 13) Total: (68, 82, 122) sts.
Cont until work measures 5-3/4" (7-1/4", 10") or (14, 18, 25cm) ending with a purl row.

Thus far I’ve been doing stockinette stitch… and now Row 1 of leg openings is knit and I’m ok with that… but then the next row says knit too and my little brain goes KABOOM and I’m like :waah:

Because clearly if you knit two rows without a row of purl between them it’s not stockinette.

I’m slightly obsessive complusive. Sometimes my friends (especially the ones that knit and believe in “design features” have strong urges to smack me). :angelgrin:

I’m going to cast on again tonight and see how it goeth. I am a little confused here too though…

Change to size 5 (4.00mm) needles. cut contrast yarn, join (A) and work 2 rows in stocking st. Inc at each end of every
row until there are 58 (72, 104) sts, then in alt rows until 68 (82, 122) sts.
Next row: Purl

In that section when it says “at each end of every row” should I purl between those rows? That would mean that the alternate rows go:

row 1 K1 make 1 K to the st before last make 1 K1
row 2 p
row 3 k
row 4 p
Repeat till 68 st

Is that right?

13

You could email her and point out the dilemma we’re all having with her instructions on the 2 knit rows together. My thought is to just purl on the 2nd row where ever it says knit, casting on where you come to the leg openings. The numbers work out whether you’re coming or going, so I still think it’s a typo and will work out if you p instead of k.

In that section when it says “at each end of every row” should I purl between those rows?

Yes.

14

Sadly there is no e-mail address on the pattern… but thanks for the suggestion.

I’ll just have to improvise. Thanks for all y’alls help!! I’ll stop buggin ya now. :slight_smile: I think I now understand her pattern well enough to create something useable.

15

Yes, improvise! I do that a lot.

16

We’d like to be able to just follow a pattern and not have to think, but we can’t always get away with that. :lol:

I would just purl that 2nd row where you are adding the stitches back. I thought maybe there was some reason she had you knit it, like you couldn’t do the cast on stitches unless you did or something. But I tried a little sample and you can do it as a purl row. Sue and I both vote for doing it that way. :happydance: Agreement, that’s always good. :thumbsup:

You’re not bugging us, we like these puzzles. :lol:

17

I too am working on a small dog sweater and have come upon a glitch in the pattern that I am not sure what I am supposed to do. It says:
Chest shaping: In est pattern,bind off 6 at the beg of next two rows.–then purl 1 row.
Dec Row ( this is were I get lost) k1, sl1, k1 ,psso ,k across to last 3 st ,k2tog, k1. Rep last 2 rows until 32 sts rem.
Mine also had similar directions as yours and I just used a extra ball of yarn or if you don’t have one I saw on a knitting show where they just used the other end of the skein ( neat little trick).

18

Belladonna…if you decide to use the other end of the same skein…be careful to keep it untangled or you will end up with a mess!