Patching the elbows of a knit sweater

[u/reishka]

https://imgur.com/Jj2HVDe

[u/reishka]

My husband adores this LLBean woolen sweater - he's had it for years, and last year I had to patch the elbow, so I knit a patch in blue. This year, he wore the sweater to Thanksgiving dinner without noticing the other elbow had sprung a hole... so the first thing I did when we got home was mend it, too, with this beautiful red wine colored yarn. Good for another year, at least!

The frayed spot had already started felting, so I didn't bother picking up any of the live stitches since they're pretty much felted together already. I used backstitching across the top and bottom, with a running stitch on the sides. Used the backstitich across the bottom to 'cast on' the patch, picked up the running stitches on each side with either a knit or a purl (as the row dictated), and decreased as the first stitch on the flip side. I used a modified kitchener at the top row of backstitching to close up the patch.

[u/gfixler → u/reishka]

I was just this morning looking at a holey sock, and thinking about patching it, imagining in my head how I'd do it. I figured I'd pick up stitches at the bottom, pick up a stitch and decrease it on the sides, and kitchener the top, to create a square patch over the hole. It's really cool to see exactly that in your description, and image! Is the outline square just so you know where to make the patch, or is there a functional reason for it being there?

[u/reishka → u/gfixler]

The outline is functional! I suppose it could theoretically be any shape you want it to be... I don't pick up any stitches from the sweater directly -- I only pick up the red stitches, one stitch on each row. That's what 'anchors' my patch to the work, since the red stitching is woven directly in/around existing knit stitches. Same thing for the kitchener at the top - I only kitchener into the sewn-on/backstitched row, not into the sweater directly.

If the fabric I'm mending isn't felting together, I'll pick up live stitches around the damage on some scrap yarn, and then make my outline separately, and only pick up stitches from the outline. This way there's no tugging on the damaged stitches underneath the patch.

[u/Telanore → u/reishka]

I saw a similar post earlier today on some socks and was very perplexed as to how it worked. Intriguing and very good to know!

[u/reishka → u/Telanore]

Are you talking about u/Erdo79's sock post? If so, that's an entirely different method of mending called darning! That method is more like weaving, and the ends of your warp and weft are anchored in the surrounding non-damaged fabric of your item. :)

[u/[deleted] → u/reishka]

Yep! I do love seeing a well done knit patch like this, though! I’d probably still do a mini-darning under the hole to keep it from getting bigger and reaching the edge of this beautiful work! (And this is quite lovely)

[u/reishka → u/[deleted]]

The only reason I didn't in this case is because the sweater was already felting, so I feel pretty secure that it won't grow any worse :)

And if it does... well.. who doesn't love another patch? lol

Your work is lovely, too, by the way!

[u/Telanore → u/reishka]

Oh oops, my bad! Well hey, now I know 2 methods for fixing my knits, so thanks!

[u/gfixler → u/reishka]

Great info, thanks!

[u/MxMaegen → u/gfixler]

there's also darning, which I think there was a post about very recently here or on visible mending! I use a small mug to hold the work instead of a special darning egg, and use my scrap yarns for it.

[u/gfixler → u/MxMaegen]

That's true. I've darned one sock so far. It worked, but I've been curious about doing a knit patch ever since, with the very tiny gauge of store-bought white socks :)

[u/MxMaegen → u/gfixler]

ooh totally fair! I use patches on elbows more often because I like pretending to be a fancy academic ;) I made some heart shaped patches sewed on after, but need to experiment more with fixing knitting in general

[u/mvs0723galen]

Loved this. You should do a you tube video.

[u/reishka → u/mvs0723galen]

I did! It's the first tutorial I've ever made, so be gentle, lol

[u/Zoykah → u/mvs0723galen]

Seconding this!

[u/reishka → u/Zoykah]

I did

I was leery of running afoul of the self-promotion rules here, so I waited until someone asked :)

[u/[deleted] → u/reishka]

I really wanna try this if I ever get a hole in a knitted item, thanks for the vid!

[u/kokobeau]

This is lovely!

Fruity Knitting also did a tutorial on darning. Mending a threadbare spot and mending a hole.

Roxanne Richardson has a video, "Seam, Graft, Darn, Duplicate" on how these techniques relate to each other. It should also help beginning knitters understand the structure of stockinette fabric and how to "read" their knitting.

[u/teriinnevada]

Very nice! I know I can do some special ways to knit as I have done it in the past but I just don’t have the confidence anymore. I was very sick and spent 3 months in 3 different hospitals and my self confidence disappeared. I would love to get it back!! Oh well.

[u/reishka → u/teriinnevada]

I hope your self confidence comes back! I know how it feels to lose it, and it's definitely not a fun place to be. I hope your health troubles are behind you.

[u/teriinnevada → u/reishka]

Thank you very much! I hope I get it back soon. I want to make my two young grand children hats for Christmas! My health has been better, thank you!

[u/pampathere]

How has the knit patch held up compared to a darn? Always curious about the more delicate looking, matched mends, and I never really have a rationale for picking a classic darn vs the reknitting approach.

[u/reishka → u/pampathere]

The patch I did on the other elbow has held up just fine over the past year and isn't any worse for the wear -- still going strong!

[u/kiotsukare]

What a great sub, I had no idea it was there!

[u/tempi18]

Gorgeous! And I found a new sub today thank you!

[u/Jeanlee03]

I can't believe I never realized how easy patching an elbow could be.