Mistakes by Design
What to do when you find mistakes in your knitting.
2/2/20263 min read
Everyone makes mistakes, especially knitters. I think we have all had one of those frustrating moments where we find a mistake several rows down in our work. It can be hard to determine whether or not it’s worth fixing or leaving it. There are some other options for covering up mistakes, though.
Common Knitting Mistakes
Dropped stitches are one of the most common knitting mistakes, and the problem isn’t just cosmetic, they can unravel the entire column of stitches below it. If the dropped stitch isn’t too far down from your current row, you can use a crochet hook to mimic the stitches in that column where they would have been if you hadn’t dropped the stitch. Work your way up to the current row and place on the needle. If it’s further down, doing this fix may impact your tension. Use your best judgment about whether to ladder up or sew it in place.
Extra yarnovers are another common mistake, they happen often when switching between knits and purls if you accidentally move the working yarn over the needle instead of between the needles. Dropping the stitch in the column above the yarnover and letting it unravel may fix your stitch count, but the tension around that column will often be too loose. You can do an extra decrease to get to the right stitch count, then use a piece of extra yarn to close up the hole on the wrong side of the fabric.
If you’re not careful, it is easy to accidentally twist a stitch by knitting through the back loop or wrapping your working yarn around the needle the wrong way. If this happens too often, it can greatly affect your gauge, and may need to be frogged. Similar to fixing dropped stitches, you can ladder down to the twisted stitch, fix it, and ladder back up with a crochet hook.
To Fix Or Not To Fix
When we first notice a mistake, we usually want to fix it, but it’s not always necessary. Some people use the “3 foot rule” which says if you can’t spot the mistake from 3 feet away, it’s fine to leave it as is. Some of us struggle with perfectionism, but I assure you, following this rule, no one will notice but you. If it’s a project for yourself, I like to ask if the mistake is something that will bother you. If you think you won’t use the item as intended because of the mistake, it might be worth taking the time to fix it. A few other questions to ask yourself before deciding whether to fix a mistake or not are: Does it affect the structural integrity of the item (will it unravel)? Will it affect the fit of the garment? How visible will it be to other people? How long will it take me to fix it and is it worth the extra time?
Coping Emotionally
We’ve all been there, we find a mistake and get frustrated with ourselves; the emotions can be intense. What I have found helpful is to quickly assess the situation, put stitch markers around stitches that could unravel, this also makes it easy to find the problem again later. I suggest putting the project aside for a little while, overnight is best before making any drastic decisions. Give yourself space to cool off, and come back to it with a clearer head. You might find it helpful to show it to someone who doesn’t knit, they likely won’t be able to spot the mistake. You can even decide a frogging limit before you start so that you don’t need to make that decision in the moment when tensions run high.
Cover-up Techniques
If it’s not worth the time to frog or tink back to a mistake, consider covering it up instead. Duplicate stitch can hide a multitude of sins, while reinforcing or redrawing the problem stitch. With this technique, you use the same yarn to sew a pattern that mimics the stitches you knit. Sometimes people use this technique to add a design in a contrasting color that might be too difficult to add with stranded knitting or intarsia. You can also use the same yarn for darning techniques to replace a small problematic section of knitting. This could be done in a contrasting color, similar to visible mending techniques. Embroidery is a great way to add colorful motifs that hide issues, too. Buttons, beads, patches, or applied I-cords are all excellent ways to cover up mistakes in knitted fabric after you’ve bound off. You may want to add more strategically throughout the fabric to make it look more intentional. If your edges look untidy, adding borders, edgings, or decorative seams can help.
I hope these ideas are helpful in the inevitable moments when you find mistakes in your knitting. Try not to beat yourself up, you have lots of options! Remember that we knit for joy, and mistakes can’t take that away from us. Happy stitching!
