Need help shaping raglan sweater -

#1

Hi: I am knitting a woman’s shaker sweater with raglan sleeves -
my 1st project. I am having trouble understanding the pattern.
The sweater is knit bottom up, and front and back of the sweater are knitted the same (if I understand correctly).
Can you please explain the following instructions with a little more
detail? Thank you

Cast off 4 sts beg next 2 rows.
Next row (RS) K3, Sl1, K1, psso. pat to last 5 sts. K2tog, K3.

I understand the direction for the “next row,” but I don’t know what row to cast off the 4 sts.

The pattern then says work 3 rows even in pat. I know what this means, but then the pattern says to - rep last 4 rows 7 (4-1) times more. The last 4 rows would not be the same because the pattern says to work 3 rows even in pat.

> The link for the sweater pattern is
http://www.bernat.com/data/pattern/pdf/Bernat_Camouflage007_kn_pullover.en_US.pdf
>
> Thank you very much!

#2

First you BO 4 sts at the beginning of the next 2 rows; that will form a ‘notch’ that’s the underarm. Then the next RS row k3, do a decrease, work in the shaker st pattern to the end, dec and k3. To work in the st pattern, you will work the sts as they appear in your knitting. You’ve just decreased 5 sts so you can’t begin it with the same st you did when you had all of them. Looking at your work, you should be able to see that ‘this is the next st, so it begins here’.

#3

thank you for answering so quickly. I am so eager to continue knitting, but I still am not understanding. Are you saying, to BO 4 sts and continue with K3, Sl1, K1, psso. pat to last 5 sts. K2tog, K3 on the same row. And, then repeat this for 1 other row. I am so sorry, but I don’t know
where I decreased 5 stitches unless you mean the 4 sts I BO at the beginning of the row and the last K2tog. I wish patterns were written for beginners.

#4

Bo 4 sts on a RS row, continue across in the pattern st, turn.
BO 4 sts on a WS row, continue across in the pattern st, turn.
Now do the k3, skp on the RS row, work across in the pattern to the last 5 sts k2tog, k3. Then do a WS row, a RS row with no decs, a WS row, then do another dec rows - k3, skp, knit to last 5 sts, k2tog, k3.

What I meant about the decs was when you do the 3rd row that begins with the k3, you will have lost 5 sts at that point - 4 from the BO and 1 from the dec at the beginning of the row. So you can’t start with the first st of the st pattern, you have to start it where stitch 5 would be. But it’s much easier to look at your knitting and tell where you are than try and calculate it from the stitch pattern.

#5

wow!!! I think I got it now! Thanks for simplifying things.
It is so amazing how things become clearer when a little more
instructions are added. Being a new knitter, it’s just not good
to assume we know anything!!
I just might have to come back as I proceed with the sleeves.
Thanks a million!!!

#6

After you do a couple sweaters, you understand how they’re shaped. Most are generally the same - BO for the underarms, then do decs at the armhole edge to shape it. You’ll get down.