I’ve been knitting on and off for a long time but I’m yet to really sink my teeth into it because everything I knit turns out too big. I have more over-oversized jumpers and cardigans hidden in the back of my closet than I care to admit! The thing is, I really truly honestly knit a swatch first! Inevitably I need to change the needle at least one size, usually two, until I can knit a swatch to correspond with the gauge as specified in the pattern but when my project comes off the needles, it grows at least one size, usually more. I know my purl is looser than my knit but most recently I knitted a winter skirt on circulars (all knit stitches) and it grew too. I even had the bright idea to make it a Small (I do NOT wear a small) and the finished product falls off my hips. What am I doing wrong? Any advise would be gratefully accepted, I’m feeling very discouraged. :shrug:
I have 2 suggestions for you.
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wash your gauge swatch.
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your gauge can be different when you first pick up your needles than it after you have been knitting for a while. I’ve heard the suggestion that you should knit for 10 to 15 minutes before you make a swatch.
did you look at the sticky threads at the top of each topic?
they have a kinda BLOB in front of them instead of a post it note
one is about stitches growing while knitting
I cannot explain it as well as the post does
ecb
You mean about getting extra stitches? I don’t think that’s her problem.
sue
I checked that sticky post but I have the right number of stitches, it’s the finished dimensions of the garment that are giving me grief. The cardigan I made is a perfect example: I followed the directions to make the size 10-12 and the finished product would easily fit a size 18. I haven’t washed it (it went straight into the back of the closet because it’s too big to wear) so I’m not sure how washing my swatch would change things.
I’m sure the problem is to do with tension, I just don’t know how to fix it.
You probably concentrate on the swatch and then relax when you start knitting. All I can suggest is that you check the gauge on your knitting after you’ve been going for a while.
You could start with a sleeve and check your gauge after a few inches. If it’s off, you won’t have so much to rip out as if you start on the body and knit till it’s mostly done.
You do measure as you go along, right?
sue
Ingrid, I think you’re onto something. I started another project last week and I’ve noticed that for the first hour or so, my knitting tension is very uniform but after that it gets much looser. I tend to knit for hours and hours at a time, often late at night (the fun never stops at my house!) and this is probably compounding the problem. I guess I’ll either have to curb my night owl knitting sessions or wait until I’m tired before swatching! :teehee:
No, never and you’re the first to ask! This is such an obvious thing to do (makes complete sense) and I’m ashamed to admit that I hadn’t even considered doing so. I’ll definitely measure as I go along from now on. Thank you, thank you, thank you! 
Out of curiosity, what do you do with your swatches? I’ve always unravelled mine - a habit I picked up from the yarn miser that taught me to knit. I started a cardigan last week and I’ve kept the swatch but am now feeling a little paranoid incase I run out of yarn. :S
The only swatches I knit are CO 16-20 sts, figure out how many sts/inch I get and how many I need to CO for the project, then rip out and start. Or I CO with what I think I need and measure after a few inches to see if I’m on the right track. I never use the needles and yarn called for in a pattern, so I’ve always knit by tape measure, rather than gauge, and figure out how many stitches I need. Right now, I’m starting a tank top for the 3rd time and I think I have it right this time…
sue