Pattern Question

How-to Questions
1

I am about to start a pattern for a little doll sweater, and this part sounded a bit confusing:

“With US 6 needles cast on 40 sts, K2, P2 for 4 rows and, [B]at the
same time[/B], inc 12 sts evenly in the last row (52 sts).”
(That part is in bold in the pattern.)

This sounds like:
Row 1: K2 P2 to end
Row 2: K2 P2 to end
Row 3: K2 P2 to end
And then on row 4 increase 12 sts evenly, but…

  1. How do you increase evenly in rib without looking weird? I was thinking of just making row 4 in rib and then doing a row 5 in stockinette with the increases, because right after that step is going into cabling charts, so it wont look that off.
  2. What does it mean by “at the same time”? This seems to be important, because its in bold.
  3. Why does a sweater start smaller in the first place? Gloves and socks dont, but I have never made a sweater. (Btw it starts at the bottom, not the top.)
2

When you increase evenly on the last row of the ribbing, it doesn’t show since the next row starts the pattern. They say [B]at the same time[/B] in patterns so you notice it and you don’t complete a section and then see any further instructions.

You could, if you wanted, increase in a stockinette row, but, as I said, it doesn’t show.

Sweater ribbing is usually done on a smaller needle with increases on the final row. When you do cabling, there are usually even more increases since the cables tighten things up.

3

Evenly increasing from 40 to 52 in stockinette would go something like: K3, M1, K3, M1, K4, M1, K3 etc.

So in ribbing, do I do something like K2, P1, M1, P1, K2, M1, etc ?

And that wont look weird? Now there are 3 sts in the first “Purl” section rather than 2…

4

It won’t matter how many sts would be in the purl or knit ribs because the next row probably starts the stockinette which will be all knits or all purls so you won’t stay in the rib pattern. It will look okay, promise.

5

I often do what you suggest and make the increases in the first row of St st and that works too. I usually use a backward loop increase and have had good luck with that looking good.