Raglan help!

I am currently knitting the Sixtine Cardigan back section, and I’m stuck at the raglan shaping! The part that I’m confused about is the following paragraph:

When work measures 37cm from beg, on each edge, cast off 3 sts, then cast off: * 1 st 5 times and 2 sts once *, repeat from * to * once more, then cast off 1 st 22 times - * 1 st 5 times and 2 sts once *, repeat from * to * 3 more times, then cast off 1 st 11 times - * 1 st 4 times and 2 sts once *, repeat from * to * 5 more times, then cast off 1 st 7 times - * 1 st 3 times and 2 sts once *, repeat from * to * 6 more times, then cast off 1 st 11 times - * 1st twice and 2 sts once *, repeat from * to * 11 more times, then cast off 1 st 5 times. When work measures 59 cm from beg, cast off rem 32 sts.

I’m not sure where the new rows begin, I’m not sure if I’m casting off throughout the row, I’m not sure if it’s continuous. I currently have 110 sts on my needle, and it doesn’t make sense to make each decrease time a new row because then that’s decreasing more stitches than I have? It also doesn’t say how to keep the pattern going throughout the decreases, so I’m not sure if these are edge decreases or throughout the row. Any clarity would be greatly appreciated!

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First question – this cardigan comes in multiple sizes. Are these the instructions you have typed out just the ones for your size?

Sorry if that sounds like a silly question, but best to double check before going any further as it is rather complicated looking.

You will be casting off at the beginning of right side and wrong side rows to create the sloped edges that will be sewn into the raglan seams.

I can tell you that on the first right side row of the raglan shaping, you will cast off 3 stitches. Ditto for the first wrong side row.

As to maintaining the lace pattern as you decrease, that is up to the knitter. Writing out row by row instructions for that in multiple sizes would be too difficult. Plus, people like to take different approaches.

Basically, after each decrease, you need to check whether you have enough stitches to work full repeats of the lace. If you don’t, then the simplest option is to knit the “spare” edge stitches as stockinette. Make sure to keep the lace aligned with the row below once you have done the edge stitches.

The reason for this is that if you try to knit a partial repeat, you may not have enough stitches to balance out the increaes and decreases needed to keep the stitch count constant. (If you have a look at your stitch pattern repeat, you will see that the same number of stitches are added and removed, cancelling each other out.)

Hope that helps for a start. It sounds complicated but once you start doing it you will see how the raglan decreases “bite into” the lace and it should start to make sense.

Lovely design!

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Yes the numbers are for the smallest size, which I am knitting! I got the whole cast off 3 on the right side and then wrong side, but then after that, it gets fuzzy. Do I decrease at the edges? Is it saying essentially decrease one at each edge for six consecutive rows or however many it states? Or do I decrease six throughout one row?

I may be wrong here but this looks like instructions for all the available sizes otherwise this is a mammoth amount of decrease rows. Having said that if the piece had very large arm holes, like a bat wing design, then maybe it would indeed have a very large number of decrease rows.

You have done this
Next part

You are casting off at each edge and as you can’t cast off at the end of a row you will cast off at the beginning of each row, RS and WS instead.
Imagine next row is row 1
Cast off 1 st at beginning of 1,2,3,4,5,5,6,7,8,9,10
(That’s 1 st each edge 5 times)
Then
Cast off 2 at beginning of rows 11, 12
(That’s 2 stitches once each end)

Then

Then

I suspect this is where you stop for your size.
The cast off numbers don’t add up correctly though… can you check on the pattern if there is a range of different instructions for this part:

You are not casting off through the row, itmis shaping for the raglan arm holes. As @kushami said you will need to look at the lace repeat to see how much to keep and which to work as stocking stitch near the edge.

If you get stuck on keeping the lace you can ask.

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I agree with Creations that only the first set of directions apply to the smallest size (see magenta instructions) with only one dec on row 5.
The decreases add up to 78 sts total decreased. Starting with 110sts minus 78sts leaves you with 32sts as the pattern states.

Really delicate and pretty lace pattern. Enjoy working it!

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Thank you for this, I don’t know why I wasn’t getting the right number on this one. Sometimes my maths head goes out the window!

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Okay it’s making more sense, I suspected it was way too many decreases as a whole.

I’m still getting lost in the numbers though. Salmonmac said it adds up to 78 total decreases, but I just wanted to clarify the numbers.

So let’s say for the first two rows, you CO 3 at beg. That’s 6 decreases. Then CO 1 for 5 RS and WS rows as you explained, then that’s 10 total decreases. Then CO 2 at the beginning of the next two rows, that’s another 4 decreases. So total we have 20 decreases so far. Then repeat the 10 decreases and 4 decreases, that’s 34 total decreases.

Is it because for the next part, I CO 1 st at each edge for the next 44 rows? And that adds up to 78?

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Yes that’s right.
As salmonmac said the numbers DO add up, I just kept adding wrong even though I knew how many cast offs you have.

You’ve got it now.

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Perfect, thank you all so much, you’re all life savers!!! Happy new year to you all!!!

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