German Short Rows

blog.tincanknits.com/2015/05/14/german-short-rows/

By alexaludeman May 14,

2015

The Rocky joggers make use of short rows to create

room for a diaper bum

Well, I think this tutorial is long overdue! I have struggled with short rows, often having a
little hole where I don’t want one, or uneven stitches that needed to be re-distributed. It
seemed nearly impossible to get a perfect tension on them. But now I have found a
method I love! It is very easy once you get the rhythm and the stitches come out more
even, creating a more seamless short row.

Creating Short Rows:

Step 1 (right side): work to the stitch specified in your pattern (for my swatch I worked to
5 sts from the end)

Step 2: turn the work so the wrong side is facing

Sept 3: slip the stitch from the left needle to the right needle purlwise with yarn in front

Step 4: Pull the yarn to the back of the work OVER TOP of the right needle. This will
distort the stitch, making it look as if there are 2 stitches instead of 1.

Step 5: Bring the yarn to the front BETWEEN the needles to begin purling.

Step 6: keeping a tighter tension than usual for the first few sts work to the stitch
specified in your pattern (again I worked to 5 sts from the end)

Step 7: turn the work so the right side is facing

Step 8: bring the yarn to the front BETWEEN the needles

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Step 9: slip the stitch from the left needle to the right needle purlwise with the yarn in
front

Step 10: pull the yarn to the back of the work OVER top of the right needle. This will
distort the stitch making it look as if there are 2 stitches instead of 1.

Continue in this fashion as specified in your pattern, creating your ‘wrapped’ or ‘doubled’
sts.

Step 1 (right side): work to the st specified in your

pattern (for my swatch I worked to 5 sts from the end)

Step 2: turn the work so the wrong side is facing

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Sept 3: slip the st from the left needle to the right needle
purlwise with yarn in front. You can see that the yarn is
in the front of the work. Insert your needle as if you were
going to purl, then slip the stitch from the left needle to
the right without working it.

Step 4: Pull the yarn to the back of the work OVER TOP of
the right needle. This will distort the stitch, making it look
as if there are 2 sts instead of 1.

Step 5: Bring the yarn to the front BETWEEN the needles

to begin purling.

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Step 6: keeping a tighter tension than usual for the first
few sts work to the st specified in your pattern (again I
worked to 5 sts from the end)

Step 7: turn the work so the right side is facing

Step 8: bring the yarn to the front BETWEEN the needles

Step 9: slip the st from the left needle to the right needle
purlwise with the yarn in front

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 Step 10: pull the yarn to the back of the work OVER top
of the right needle. This will distort the stitch making it
look as if there are 2 sts instead of 1.

This is how you work your short rows, back and forth, creating extra fabric.

Picking up the wraps / double stitches:

Step 1 (on the right side): Work to the doubled stitch

Step 2: work the the doubled stitch as if it were one (like a knit 2 together)

Step 3 (on the wrong side): work to the doubled stitch

Step 4: work the doubled stitch as if it were one (like a purl 2 together)

Doubled St

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Voila! You have worked German Short Rows!

Substituting German Short Rows for w&t instructions:

When substituting German short rows for a classic w&t you just want to remember that a
wrapped stitch in the w&t version is the same as the ‘turned’ or ‘doubled’ stitch in
German short rows.
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 An example:

Instruction: knit to 3 sts before wrapped st, w&t

What you want to do for German short rows is to knit to 3 sts before the last turned stitch,
work 1 more stitch and turn your work etc.

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More TCK patterns with short rows:

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