How to measure your tension/gauge

It`s important to check your gauge:

Make sure that the measurements on your project will be according to the pattern. Always make a little swatch.

If it says in the pattern that the gauge should be 17 stitches and 22 row equals 4 x 4 inches (10x10cm) on needle 5mm/ US 8, cast on 20 stitches on needle 5mm/US8 and knit stockinette back and forth over 24 rows in height.

Place a ruler on top of your swatch and count the number of stitches pr 4 inch/10 cm vertically and horizontally. If you have more then 17 stitches, the stitches er to small. Try with a bigger needle. If you have less 17 stitches, the stitches are to big. Try with a smaller needle.

When you have figured out what needle to use you are ready to start. Remember it`s smart to check your gauge several times while you are knitting to.

Comments (294)

Melody Parkes wrote:

Now you get my point if you don't know what the sizes relate to then how is any one else to know at a glance. If you give the sizes that you know knit the yarn knits up to then I will go from there any Small, Medium and Large This is what I asked for yesterday. Thanking you in anticipation.

12.05.2023 - 11:19:

Melody Parkes wrote:

I find your response to my question inadequate. I have been knitting and purchasing patterns for over 60 years and have never until now ever purchased a pattern without a size chart relating to the sizes in brackets that you have given on your pattern. Surely you have an idea of what the sizes should come out at and I certainly wouldn't measure any other garment and take the measurements from that reasons being that all yarns wash differently and I have not used Drops yarns before .

12.05.2023 - 10:13:

Melody Parkes wrote:

Can you please advise your sizing. You just put XS-S-M-L-XL - XXL What do the sizes relate to chest sizes? If my assumption is correct what size is L in cms

11.05.2023 - 20:11:

DROPS Design answered:

Dear Mrs Parkes, measure first a similar garment you have and like the shape then compare these measurements to those in the chart you will find at the bottom of the pattern, this will help you finding which size you should choose. Read more here. Happy knitting!

12.05.2023 - 08:13:

Nikoline wrote:

Nu har jeg lavet min strikkeprøve, som skulle hedder 17 masker i bredden og 22 pinde i højden med glatstrik = 10 x 10 cm. På pind 4, får jeg 22 og gik derfor op til 5, her får jeg stadig for mange. Allerede med en pind 5 er prøven meget gennemsigtigt og vil derfor være ked af at gå endnu en pind op. Kan det være fordi jeg skal bruge dobbelttråd af mit bomuldsgarn? Og bliver det ikke for tykt til en top? :)

11.05.2023 - 05:00:

DROPS Design answered:

Hej Nikoline, hvilken opskrift skal du strikke og hvilket garn står i opskriften?

11.05.2023 - 12:23:

Kaye Mitchell wrote:

Why can I never get the free patterns to show in English even after selecting country. Or actually to print.

11.05.2023 - 02:55:

DROPS Design answered:

Dear Mrs Mitchell, to edit language, click on the scroll down menu below the pictures and choose the appropriate language by selecting it. Then launch printing by clicking on the button "print". Happy knitting!

11.05.2023 - 07:58:

Nancy wrote:

Holaaaaa buenos dias estoy haciendo la muestra de tension del patron 212-5 que me dice debe ser con aguja 3 y me da 26 puntos. He cambiafo a ls 3.5 y me sigue dando 26 puntos y tambien cambia para la no. 4 y su total sigue siendo el mismo. Que debo hacer?

26.04.2023 - 10:24:

DROPS Design answered:

Hola Nancy, si la tensión se mantiene igual incluso cambiando el número de aguja, entonces estás trabajando cada vez más tenso. Recuerda trabajar todas las filas de la muestra antes de medir, y no medir los puntos de las esquinas, que suelen quedar más flojos.

30.04.2023 - 19:28:

Lis wrote:

Hej. Min strikke prøve siger 10 i brede men kun 9 i højden. Jeg har brugt pind nr 3. Skal jeg op/ ned i pindestørrelse? Mvh Li

19.04.2023 - 07:36:

DROPS Design answered:

Hei Lis. Om du bytter til større pinne er det mulig at maske antallet ikke vil stemme i bredden. Om du har riktig antall masker og det gir deg 10 cm i bredde ville jeg ha sett i den oppskriften du strikker etter om det det er mulig å legge til noen rader uten at det vil forandre på f.eks økninger/fellinger for å få riktig mål. mvh DROPS Design

24.04.2023 - 06:56:

Patricia Findlay wrote:

I do a lot of your Yarn Group A lace patterns. Do you block the swatch first before measuring?

11.04.2023 - 07:54:

DROPS Design answered:

Dear Mrs Findlay, some knitters always block while some other never do. Feel free to ask your DROPS store, they will help you even per mail or telephone. Happy knitting!

11.04.2023 - 15:03:

Henrike wrote:

Hallo, ich stricke die linken Maschen im Vergleich zu rechten Maschen lockerer. Wenn ich jetzt eine glatt rechte Maschenprobe mache, aber das Strickmuster für Rundstricken ausgelegt ist, dann stimmt die Maschenprobe eigentlich nicht, weil beim Rundstricken nur rechts gestrickt wird. Wie kann ich eine Maschenprobe für Rundstricksachen machen? Viele Grüße, Henrike

09.04.2023 - 07:42:

DROPS Design answered:

Liebe Henrike. Für exakte Maschenprobe empfehlen wir die Anfertigung einer Rundprobe. Viel Spass beim stricken

09.04.2023 - 12:25:

Simona wrote:

Buongiorno, vorrei fare il modello woodland sparkle swrater. Il modello che ho fatto usando 4 fili di drops alpaca ha 12,5 maglie in larghezza e 18 in verticale nei 10 cm. Ho usato punta 8 come suggerito. Devo usare punte più grandi per il lavoro? Come faccio a capire la mia taglia? Grazie

29.03.2023 - 08:06:

DROPS Design answered:

Buonasera Simona, dovrebbe provare con una misura di ferri più grande, tenendo conto però che dovrà correggere la lunghezza del lavoro. Per le misure deve guardare il diagramma in fondo alla pagina. Buon lavoro!

11.05.2023 - 21:14:

Lilian Hagens wrote:

Goedemiddag, Ik heb de trui klaar☺hij is heel mooi geworden. Alleen is de bovenkant van oksel tot col veel te groot. Nu wil ik hem uithalen en vanaf start oksel/pas opnieuw breien. Hoe moet ik dit aanpakken, zodat ik minder steken voor de pas heb en ook korter in de hoogte? Hoop dat het duidelijk is. Met vriendelijke groet, Lilian Hagens

28.03.2023 - 17:50:

DROPS Design answered:

Dag Lillian,

Zou je zo vriendelijk willen zijn om je vraag bij het betreffende patroon te plaatsen? Hopelijk kunnen we je dan beter helpen. Algemene reactie is dat je minder naalden moet breien voor de col en dus ook de minderingen voor de pas/raglan anders moet verdelen.

04.06.2023 - 10:57:

Rita wrote:

I'm starting the drop jumper spring song. Iv knitted the tension square a d on 4mm have to many, tried 4.5mm and have 4sts to many, tried 5mm and still slightly too many and quite loose. So what can you suggest. I would usually knit somewhere between small and medium. Also the dimensioned drawing, eg...... Is the measurement for 1 side. Tks Rita

27.03.2023 - 17:09:

DROPS Design answered:

Dear Rita, the pattern is based on the tension of 21 sts x 28 rows in stocking stitch, you might have to use a larger needle - are you working with DROPS Belle? - to get the finished measurements as in the chart, you should have this tension. All measurements are taken flat, from side to side. Happy knitting!

28.03.2023 - 10:33:

Maëlle wrote:

Bonjour, je fais un échantillon sur Cheers to Life et on me dit de faire un échantillon "10 mailles en largeur et 24 rangs en hauteur". Je me retrouve avec un échantillon de seulement 12 mailles en hauteur sur 10 cm...Est-ce que cela veut dire que je dois prendre une aiguille 4 au lieu de 8 ? Cela vous paraît-il logique ? Est-ce que la quantité de laine changera ? Est-ce que j'aurais toujours l'effet "grosses mailles" du modèle ?

23.03.2023 - 20:01:

DROPS Design answered:

Bonjour Maëlle, attention aux côtes anglaises, lorsque l'on tricote des côtes anglaises, les mailles "endroit" sont visibles à raison d'une seule maille pour 2 rangs tricotés; autrement dit, dans les côtes anglaises, quand vous tricotez 24 rangs, vous ne voyez que 12 mailles endroit en hauteur. Pensez à bien compter votre nombre de rangs si besoin, il est possible que votre échantillon soit juste en fait. Quoi qu'il en soit, si vous tricotez avec une tension différente de celle d'un modèle (en largeur ou en hauteur), il vous faudra faire les ajustements nécessaires car les explications correspondent aux mesures de l'échantillon. Bon tricot!

24.03.2023 - 08:46:

Emily Liljebro wrote:

Har själv storlek xs och vill sticka "September rose" i garn Drops Muskat, men är rädd att den kommer bli för stor för mig. Vilken stl på stickor ska jag välja?

21.03.2023 - 21:34:

DROPS Design answered:

Hei Emily. Du må bruke den pinne str. som du må ha for å få den oppgitte strikkefastheten (vi har brukt 4 mm). Om du ønsker genseren mindre ved å velge en annen pinne str. kan vi ikke garantere at målene som er oppgitt i oppskriften vil stemme. mvh DROPS Design

27.03.2023 - 08:12:

Elly Van Den Hurk wrote:

Mijn proeflapje klopt maar na de halsrand is de 80 cm kabel vd rondbreinaald veel te lang voor het aantal steken en de 60 cm lijkt mij erg kort voor een hele trui omvang. Hoe moet ik verder?

17.03.2023 - 15:12:

DROPS Design answered:

Dag Elly,

Hiervoor kun je de zgn. 'magic loop' techniek gebruiken. Dit wordt uigelegd in deze video.

24.03.2023 - 19:48:

Ylva Nybäck wrote:

Angåe0nde stickfasthet: Vilken sticka gäller när det är två olika stickstorlekar för Urban forest herr tröja

13.03.2023 - 12:05:

DROPS Design answered:

Hei Ylva. Det er den pinne str. man strikker plagget med. I Urban Forest bruker man pinne 4 kun til vrangbord, mens det brukes pinne 5 til resten av plagget (som strikkes i glattstrikk, og som strikkefastheten er oppgitt i). mvh DROPS Design

13.03.2023 - 14:18:

Judith Dent wrote:

After a recent accident I cannot knit with small needles, only with needles 8 or above and I have a full collection of 8's thru 15's. I need help with making this pattern workable for me (Tender Dreams/Drops Designs/ Baby 18-3) and knowing what yarn to use and how much of that! Thank you so very much!

12.03.2023 - 04:37:

DROPS Design answered:

Dear Judith, you can't work this pattern with your necessary needle size, since the gauge will be very different to the original one and you won't be able to adjust the pattern to such a thick yarn and needle. You can find here all of our knitting patterns for babies and select in "knitting tension" the needles you want to use (the needle sizes are indicated in mm, not US sizes): https://www.garnstudio.com/search.php?action=browse&c=baby&mt=1&lang=en. Happy knitting!

12.03.2023 - 16:40:

Sandra wrote:

Wenn bei einem Strickstück verschieden Nadelstärken gebraucht werden, brauche ich dann für jede Nadelstärke eine Maschenprobe?

08.03.2023 - 09:58:

DROPS Design answered:

Liebe Sandra, meistens ist es die Größere Nadelstärke, im Zweifelsfall stellen Sie gerne Ihre Frage unter die Anleitung, die Sie stricken möchten. Viel Spaß beim stricken!

08.03.2023 - 13:17:

Jane Rasmussen wrote:

Hvis man går op i pind størrelse, går antal pinde (i forhold til strikkefasthed) på 10 cm ned - men det betyder vel ikke noget i forhold til valg af størrelse af produktet, da højden som regle bliver anført i cm ? - så når bare maske antallet passer i forhold til strikkeprøve, er det det man går udfra Hilsen Jane

02.03.2023 - 08:37:

DROPS Design answered:

Hei Jane. Om ikke strikkefastheten stemmer i høyden, kan det få konsekvenser i en oppskrift, men det kommer jo an på hva man strikker. Stor forskjell på f.eks en jakke der ermene/ermhullene skal passe og et teppe. Har du for få pinner i høyden til et bestemt mål må du strikke flere pinne. Står det i f.eks i en oppskrift at det skal økes x-antall masker x-antall ganger til ferdig mål, og passer ikke strikkefatheten i høyden må man passe på å ikke øke for mange/for få masker til ferdig mål osv. mvh DROPS Design

06.03.2023 - 07:48:

Nicole Lachaîne wrote:

Bonjour!\r\nJe dois prendre des aiguilles 7 mm pour être conforme à l’échantillon \r\nLe patron indique 6 mm pour les aiguilles principales et 5 mm pour l’encolure\r\nEst ce que que j’augmente le calibre à 6 mm pour l’encolure pour conserver le même ratio?\r\nMerci beaucoup 😀

01.03.2023 - 18:41:

DROPS Design answered:

Bonjour Mme Lachaîne, tout à fait. Bon tricot!

02.03.2023 - 11:12: