Short Rows
Short rows are a technique of turning the work before finishing a full row, creating three-dimensional shaping without adding or removing stitches.
Explanation
Short rows are used to add extra fabric and three-dimensional shaping in a specific area, without changing the overall stitch count. Instead of knitting the full round, you turn the work at a certain point and knit back, repeating this so some areas get more rows than others. This is used to shape sock heels, add extra room over the bust, or create sloped shoulders and shawl shaping. The most common methods for avoiding holes at the turning point are wrap-and-turn and German Short Rows using double stitches.
Also known as: Short rowing
Working only part of the row
Short rows add height in one area without adding stitches. You work part of the way across, turn before the end, and work back. After several such turns one side has more rows than the other, and the fabric curves.
Every turn creates a potential hole, and the techniques differ in how they close it.
The common methods
German short rows create a double stitch by pulling firmly on the yarn after turning. Wrap and turn lays the yarn around the stitch and picks the wrap up later. Japanese short rows use markers to hold the strand.
German short rows have become the most common in modern patterns because they are simplest to work and leave the least visible trace.
Where short rows are actually doing work
Short rows add height to part of a row without adding stitches, which is how knitted fabric gets a three-dimensional shape without seams. Once you notice them you see them everywhere.
The three common uses are sock heels, sweater back necks — where a few short rows raise the back an inch so the neckline sits level rather than riding up at the front — and bust shaping, which adds length across the front only. They are also what makes an asymmetric shawl asymmetric. The various methods (German short rows, wrap and turn, Japanese short rows, shadow wraps) all solve the same problem: hiding the gap left where the work turned mid-row.
Common mistakes
- Forgetting to close the turning stitch on the next row, which leaves a hole.
- Mixing two different short row methods in the same garment.
Keywords
- short rows
- shaping
- wrap and turn
Frequently asked questions
What are short rows used for?
Sock heels, yokes that should sit higher at the back than the front, shoulders and shawl shaping — anywhere one side needs more height than the other.
Which method should I learn?
German short rows. They are the simplest and leave the least trace.
Which short row method should I learn first?
German short rows. They are the easiest to work and the easiest to knit over on the following row, and there is nothing to pick up or hide afterwards. Wrap and turn is the older standard and is what most older patterns assume, but the wraps have to be picked up and worked together with their stitch, which is fiddlier and more visible if done imprecisely.