Machine knit neck, shoulder, and armhole shaping for sweaters with short row/holding

This video shows how I shape a neckline, shoulder slope, and armhole for a sweater with the holding position (short-row) and full-fashioned decrease.

The shaping of curve and slope is probably the reason why we don’t knit sweaters. It just looks so complicated. It might be tedious, but not difficult after you learn how to.

You can draw up your pattern based on your swatch gauge and an old sweater that fits you well. You can download some free knitting graph papers online and sketch your shaping increase and decrease.

Watch the video tutorial on Neck, Shoulder, and Armhole shaping

Drawing your own chart

It is hard to find a pattern that fits you well. It is actually easy to make your own chart. The slope and curve might look complicated, but once we draw it on the paper, it is straightforward.

There are many different types of knitting graph papers available for free download online. You can print out from a home printer. Some can even let you customize your proportion of the box based on your swatch. I like to enlarge them so it is easier to see on some complicated design.

Full Fashioned decrease

Full Fashioned decrease is one way to shape the curve of a sweater. You reduce 1 stitch at a time with 2 or 3 prongs transferring tool, so the overlapped stitch is not the outer most stitch. This creates a smooth edge and not steps.

Short-Row or Holding Decrease

The short-row is similar to the wrap and turn short-row in the hand-knitting. But, it is much easier on a knitting machine. The short-row shaping I showed in the video requires 2 rows for each decrease. So when we chart the decrease, it should reflect that.

For the short row, we select the stitches opposite to the carriage and place them on hold (D position), and change the Russel lever to 1. Knit across, and wrap the yarn below the needle adjacent to the working needles. Knit back. That completes one decrease. It takes 2 rows.

The needles in the holding position will not knit, and the rest will knit. That is how one side is growing longer than the other side.

You can decrease more than one stitch at the same time just by pulling them to the holding position.

Remember you need a lot of the weight below the area near the holding stitches just like all the short-row technique. It has a tendency to pop out of the machine. You can also just hold the fabric down with your hand.

The short-row or called holding position can create a smooth shaping without obvious steps or holes. The wrapping of yarn eliminates the hole.

There are many different variations of short row decrease or increase. This is just what works for me now. Always experiment and see what works best for you. I hope the shaping of a sweater is not that scary anymore.

Happy Knitting!