Testing gauge/ease of yarn/knitted fabric

#1

I’m trying to determine how my knitted piece’s ease will look before commiting to a sweater size… the pattern calls for a 2" ease, and has measurements written in the pattern for it. Unfortunately, there is no size for ME. It’s been recommended to me by the designer to knit the size that is 4" smaller than my actual size, and she says that I should have a nicely fitting sweater with no ill affects.

Before I choose a size though, I’d REALLY like to see for myself what the fabric will look like stretched 4"… So, tell me if you think this is a plausible test.

What if I knit up a circular swatch that is 4" smaller in diameter of say, a soda can, slipped the swatch on the can, and observed how the fabric looks stretched out 4"? Would this give me an idea of how the fabric will stretch across my bust (the size for the pattern is written in bust measurments)?

#2

That sounds like a good idea. I’m not entirely certain it will work, though. The soda can I have sitting here is 8 3/8", which means your swatch would be stretched almost double. Proportionally, that would be like knitting a sweater half your size and then squeezing into it. I think. The 4" would be distributed over the entire width of your chest and back, so I wouldn’t think that the stretching would be as dramatic as all that.
If I’m correct in this case, you’d want to do a bit of number crunching, I think. Let’s give it a whirl with my measurements. My bust is 36", which means I would want my sweater to have a chest size of 32". So the sweater would be stretching to about 1 1/8 times its usual size to fit over me properly. If I wanted to do a swatch for a soda can, I’d want it to be just short of 7.5", provided I can still do math.
Disclaimer: I have no experience with things like this. I have the potential to be completely wrong. Listen to me at your own risk. :wink:

#3

I don’t know a lot about this, but I’m thinking that the can is flat whereas your bust isn’t (I’m assuming) so the way it stretches would be different. Just a thought… :thinking:

#4

Denise,

Tab has the right idea. Figure out the percentage the knitting will have to stretch to go around you, then make your swatch so it will need to stretch by the same percentage to fit. Also, as Jan noted the amount of stretch won’t be the same ALL over, since women have greater shape changes than soda cans, (to say nothing about WAISTS). Also we’re a LOT softer than that soda can too, but it should give you a “worst stretch” scenario. If the item has to stretch TOO tightly remember it will also be squeezing you IN at the same time.

I’d love to see your swatch on the soda can when you get done!

Happy Swatching! :XX: :XX:

Mary