How to Read Knitting Charts With Confidence
May 18, 2026 · 5 min read
A chart is a picture of the right side of your fabric. Each square is a stitch, each row of squares is a row of knitting, and the symbols tell you what to do.
Read right-side rows from right to left, and wrong-side rows from left to right — exactly the direction your needles travel. When knitting in the round, every row is read right to left.
Bold outlines mark the repeat. Work the stitches before the repeat once, then the boxed section as many times as needed, then the stitches after it.
Use a magnetic board or a sticky note placed above the row you are working, so you can still see the rows below and check your progress against the fabric.
Every charted pattern in the shop also includes written line-by-line instructions, so you can switch between the two whenever you like.
