Sirdar 5921 help please!

Please can anyone help me with this!
I am knitting the firs size on Sirdar 5921 lace cardigan and cannot understand a part of the instructions.
I know I am trying to decrease, but feel that the increasing counts it out. This paragraph is probably the key, but I don’t quite understand it:
Note when increasing stitches within pattern, the increased stitches and the stitch used will count as one stitch when decreasing, casting off and when number of stitches are stated at end of row.

This is where I am up to in the pattern:
4 rows to the pattern
Row 1 starts with 94 stitches increases to 106 stitches
Row 2 starts with 106 stitches remains at 106 stitches
Row 3 starts with 106 stitches decreases to 94 stitches
Row 4 starts wit 94 stitches and remains at 94 stitches

Row 13 (Row 1 of pattern): Dec 1st at each end of 13th and every following 12th Row to 88 stitches (I believe this first row decreases the stitch count to 104 stitches).
Row 14 starts with 104 stitches and remains at 104 stitches (just with the pattern of Row 2)
Row 15 starts with 104 stitches and decreases to 92 stitches (just with the pattern of Row 3)
Row 16 (Row 4 of pattern): Inc 1 st at each end of 16th and every following 12th row to 94 stitches.

As far as I can see I am decreasing two st on row 13 and increasing two st on row 16, so they cancel eachother out.

Then reading the opening paragraph I wonder if Row 16 I count the increased stitch and the next one as one stitch instead of two, but why would you increase to knit two together on the next row?

Welcome to KnittingHelp!


The note may only refer to increases within the pattern and not at the edges.

The instructions for rows 13 to 16 aren’t clear to me either. Where does this occur in the cardigan? Is it shaping the body before the armholes? I wonder if the decreases and increases are meant to happen in separate sections of the pattern, maybe decreases to 88sts then later increases to 94sts.

Thank you for your reply. I have only knitted 13 rows so it’s only an inch and a half. There is a section later for shaping the arms. This is the back and that paragraph is directly under the heading back. I will see if I can copy the pattern and post it. Thanks again. Lisa.

Ok, don’t give us a large portion of the pattern please. We can’t post these due to designer copyright. A few rows is fine, however.

To row 16 it measures 5.5 cm. So very confused…

Thanks for your help.

sent again, as it looks like it’s cropping the image on the right hand side

I think this is a case of needing to complete one set of instructions before moving on the next set of instructions.
I read it as to continue to decrease at the rows given until 88 sts are reached. No increases.
THEN
After you have finished all sets of decreases you will begin the next set of instructions, to increase 1 st at each end of the 16th row and every folding 12th row.

It looks like waist shaping, it goes in, then it comes out.

In addition , to me, “16th row” does not mean the 16th row of the pattern, it means 16 rows after which ever row you were on when the decreases finished. Just as “every following 12th row” does not mean row 12 of the pattern but rather 12 rows after the first increase, and again 12 rows later.

When directions have a period or full stop it usually means to stop reading there until that instruction is complete before moving on to the next instruction. When directions have something like AND AT THE SAME TIME it means you need to keep reading and do multiple things at once.

Hope this helps a little.

Yes, these are serial directions. Complete the first set (1 in blue) of decreases to 88sts and once there increase(red) to 94sts. Thanks for the pattern directions here.

It’s so obvious now…
Once I have reached 88 stitches which takes me to row 109, do I start the next row as row 1 then knit to row 16 to do the increases?

Thank you.

When you reach the 88sts continue with the pattern rows in order. Don’t skip any rows. It may help to write out the row numbers through 109 in one column and then in the second column note the pattern rows repeating 1-4. You can also mark the decreases. You can check off the rows as you work them. This will also help for the increases later on.

Thank you very much.