Gauge

[Tammy Leggetter]

Hello All…. HELP!!!!

I used Yarnsub to buy yarn close to the one recommended on a pattern.  
The one recommended on the pattern was 3.5oz/100g/317yds/290m/#3 fine weight.  
50% Cotton 50% Acrylic. 23sts/10 cm (4”) and 29 rows.

My yarn is 3.5oz/100g/50% Cotton 50% Acrylic, DK mix, 23 stitches, 32 rows to 10cm/4".

The pattern writer calls for a gauge:  G hook = 13sc x 17sc rows = 4”.  I just can’t see how this gauge is achieved with this size hook.  I would need to go up to an L size hook to achieve anywhere near this and the pattern writers gauge is no where near the gauge for the yarn recommended.

Can anyone help?

Thank you

Tammy

 

[Granny Square]

I have been crocheting a long time and have run into designers' gauges that are WAY different from mine or the suggested gauge on the yarn label.  So your situation is unfortunate, but I think your choice is either find a new pattern or perhaps do some math and redesigning to make it work, depending on what you are making.  

13 stitches across 4" means 1 stitch is between a quarter and a third of an inch wide (0.3"), so you are right, an L size hook sounds in the right neighborhood for that.

However, what does the end thing LOOK like in the pattern photo?  Is the end fabric supposed to be open and lacy looking--maybe that is how the designer achieved that look?  Is it something that is suppose to fit you, like a hat or sweater?

For a wearable, I do the math if I don't hit gauge.  Example, I usually fall in the 'medium' size for patterns, so for a sweater I look at the number of stitches 'around', and do the math for a small or large depending on which way my gauge hit, and work to the wrong size for width but the right size for length and it usually works out (I'm usually looking for a comfortable amount of ease, so fit doesn't need to be TOO precise).  And, you'd have to factor in how the fabric looks with that change; it may not work well with everything, and you may or may not need more yarn.

 

 

[Tammy Leggetter]

Thank you ever so much Granny Square for taking the time to send me such a detailed reply, I am so grateful.  Here is a picture of the cardigan, and just so I am not misunderstanding, details of the suggested yarn gauge and the designers gauge.  Do you think it still possible I can make this with my own math?  Again many thanks for your help and time.

Tammy

[Granny Square]

Standard US yarn weight and associated info (like, typical size hooks that work with the yarn size) per the US Standards Organization that sets these standards.  Just throwing this out there, it might be handy for other things.

US fine (per this site) says 16-20 stitches per 4 inches, with a recommended hook size of 3.5-4.5 mm, which would be a US size F or G hook.

The pattern says 13sts x17 rows=4".

(note, there is a menu on the right side of the link above that tells US hook and needle sizes; this is a good site to bookmark, all sorts of good things there, I refer to it a lot).

The pattern isn't THAT far off from the standard, I should have looked this up before I answered the first time.  You might have to go up to an H hook to get gauge, but not an L.  Have you actually swatched yet?  Swatching is annoying, but it is essential.  I'm going to try a swatch with some leftover baby yarn (fine weight) with a G hook and see what I get (my tension is on the tight-ish side, FWIW). 

 

[Granny Square]

I decided to start with an I hook instead, and the same size yarn that your pattern calls for, I got 18 stitches =4", and (extrapolating on the rows) 20 rows =4", and it didn't look too bad, just a bit airy.  So yeah, it would take a couple more hook sizes (for me) to hit the designers' gauge, and then the fabric would look ridiculous.

I have run into some designers whose stitch gauge is SO different from mine that I either avoid them, or know I'm going to have to redesign the item to get it to work (usually having to do with stitch height; it depends on what you are making, and whether it is made in the round or rows, to know if it will work, or how to tweak).  A case in point on gauge - my sister in law is not a designer, but she crochets, and a couple of times when she visited we get together and crochet something - example when the 'Incredibles' movie came out, I found a free Incredibles mask pattern and we each worked on one, for each of her 2 grandkids.  Somehow, we hit he same gauge that the pattern called out, when we were 5 hook sizes apart; same thing happened when I volunteered to help her make squares for a blanket on another visit.

In your case, you might be able to use the pattern by following a different size, IF you are familiar with clothing construction to know what adjustments will work or not.