Waist Shaping that Works
This design element can make it or break it! Take a few minutes to plan your waist shaping for a super flattering sweater fit. Waist shaping is designed to highlight your… drumroll please… waist! The problem is, we don’t all have our waist in the same place and we certainly don’t all share the same figure. Without overcomplicating waist shaping, there are a couple of easy ways to modify it so that it works for your body.
Determine the location of your natural waist.
Choose your shaping style & location.
Compare your measurements to the pattern.
Modify your pattern, if necessary, to customize your project!
locate your natural waist
Determine where the smallest part of your waist is located to make sure that your garment shaping hits the spot. To do this easily and all by yourself, take a piece of scrap yarn and tie it around the small of your waist. Next, measure straight down from the back of your neck to where your tape measure hits the string. This is your Back-Waist Length measurement! When you’re working from the top down, you can use this measurement to make sure that all decrease rounds are completed prior to this length. If you’re working from the bottom up, you’ll want to subtract this length from the total length of your garment to calculate the length that should be worked before your decreases are completed. Keep in mind that you will want an inch or two of plain length surrounding the small of your waist. Meaning, there should be some space between your final shaping decrease and your first increase to avoid creating a point in your garment.
choose your shaping style & location
Your body shape should influence the style of shaping you choose! The most flattering knits will outline your natural shape, highlighting it. This is especially true when it comes to waist shaping. For curvier individuals, those born with that lovely hourglass shape, I recommend shaping towards the sides of your sweater. Anywhere in the underarm area is considered on the side. Individuals who are more straight-waisted can instead work shaping on the front and back of the garment instead of minimizing fabric in an area where the body is not getting smaller.
compare your measurements to the pattern
Take a look at how your pattern has set up waist shaping and calculate the total number of rows/rounds worked during the shaping repeat itself. For example, if your pattern calls for decreasing every 8 rounds a total of 4 times, multiply 8 x 4 = 32 rounds. You’ll then need to use your row gauge to translate rounds to inches (or cm!). Write this number down.
In a top down pattern, add up any measurements that take place prior to waist shaping repeats. This may include: Yoke/Armhole Depth and additional length after Sleeve separation, before beginning a shaping repeat. Add this length to the shaping length from above to calculate the Back Waist length measurement of the pattern.
In a bottom up pattern, add the length prior to shaping in the hip area. This would include the garment hem and any plain length before shaping. Subtract this length from the total length of your garment to calculate the Back Waist length measurement of the pattern.
modify your pattern if needed
Once you know the pattern’s Back Waist length measurement, compare it to your own. If it matches or is slightly smaller, you should be good to work the shaping as it is set up in the pattern. If the pattern Back Waist length is longer than yours, you’ll want to redistribute the shaping rounds to complete them so that they are located at the small of your waist. In a top down sweater, this means working shaping rounds more closely together and for bottom up sweaters, you’ll need to space the decreases further apart or work more plain length before beginning them. Typically, waist shaping is mirrored with Hip Increase Rounds depending on the total length of your sweater. Feel free to experiment with the spacing of these rounds based on the distance between the small of your waist and your hip circumference, just like you’ve done for the waist. There is no reason that you need to maintain the same distance between your increase rounds as you do for your decreases, do what works for your body!
placing shaping at the front & back
To work waist shaping on the front & back of your sweater, place 4 shaping markers so that they are symmetrically located somewhere between 1/4 and 1/3 away from the center underarm. For example, if your sweater has 200 stitches before shaping, this translates to 100 stitches on each front and back. 100/4 = 25 stitches and 100/3 = 33.3 stitches. Therefore, place your shaping markers somewhere between 25-33 stitches away from the center underarm on both the Front & Back, depending on where it makes sense for stitch patterns featured in the design. The sample rounds below are written with end-of-round located approximately at center back.
sample shaping rounds
Front & Back Waist Shaping Round: [Work in pat to marker, sm, k2tog, work to 2 sts before marker, ssk, sm] twice—4 sts decreased.
Front & Back Hip Shaping Round: [Work in pat to marker, sm, M1R, work to marker, M1L, sm] twice—4 sts increased.
placing shaping at the sides
To work shaping on the sides of your sweater, determine the location of the center underarm. If there are an even number of underarm sts, place 2 markers, one at each underarm. If there an odd number of underarm sts, place 4 markers total, 2 markers surrounding each center underarm stitch. The sample rounds below are written with end-of-round located approximately at center back.
sample shaping rounds
Side Waist Shaping Round (even underarm sts): [Work in pat to 3 sts before marker, k2tog, k1, sm, k1, ssk] twice—4 sts decreased.
Side Waist Shaping Round (odd underarm sts): [Work in pat to 2 sts before marker, k2tog, sm, k1, sm, ssk] twice—4 sts decreased.
Side Hip Shaping Round (even underarm sts): [Work in pat to 1 st before marker, M1R, k1, sm, k1, M1L] twice—4 sts increased.
Side Hip Shaping Round (odd underarm sts): [Work in pat to marker, M1R, sm, k1, sm, M1L] twice—4 sts increased.
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