A hopefully helpful tutorial for chart beginners

My stitch night pal Arielle asked for help recently to "translate" a chart because she didn't know how to read them. I whipped up a tutorial and sent it over to her, but then figured I should put it on my blog in case it could help anybody else. So here it is.

The pattern she was making is the XOXO Headband by Amy O'Neill Houck. It's a free pattern, and I have rewritten the chart and chart-related instructions for this tutorial, so I'm neither undercutting her sales nor violating her copyright. (In case anyone was wondering. :) I do quote one small snippet of text from her pattern, but it's fair use for illustrative purposes.

So here we go!

What is a chart? And why should I care?

A chart is a way to communicate instructions to a knitter in a way that gives you a sort of visual “preview” of what the knitting is going to look like when it's viewed from the right side of the work. So let’s look at the specific chart we're dealing with:

It's not as complicated as it initially seems if you break it down:

1. Each "box' in that chart (whether square or rectangular) represents ONE set of knitted instructions that you have to perform. (Usually in charts, one box equals one stitch, but this is not always the case, which is why I say a set of knitting instructions.)
   
   
   
2. Each row of boxes in that chart represents one ROW in your knitting. For instance, here’s the chart again, with three of the rows highlighted:
   
   
   
   
   
   The bit highlighted in green represents all the instructions for the first row.
   
   
   The bit highlighted in red represents all the instructions for the second row.
   
   
   The bit highlighted in blue represents all the instructions for the third row.
   
   
   And so-on.
   

You will notice that the rows are numbered, to help you keep track. You’ll also notice that odd-numbered rows have their numbers on the RIGHT side, whereas even-numbered rows have their numbers on the LEFT side. This is to help you remember which side to start reading your row from.

Say what?!?

Yep, when you’re working flat, you will need to read the chart starting from a different side depending on whether you’re working on the right side (RS) or the wrong side (WS). This is because when you start working a right side row, the first stitch you work is on the right. But when you start working a wrong side row, the first stitch you work is on the left, if you’re looking at the knitting from the right side. Therefore, since the chart is meant to represent the knitting as seen from the right side, you have to:

• read the chart from right-to-left when you’re working a right side row, and
  
• read the chart from left-to-right when you’re working a wrong side row.
  

So, you can appreciate that the placement of the row numbers on the chart is a good reminder of which direction to read in.

(Also in case you were wondering: Yes, if you're working in the round, that makes chart reading less complicated because in that case, you're only ever working with the RS facing you, which means you only ever have to read the chart rows from right-to-left.)

Let’s start working the pattern!

After the initial ribbed start-up, the pattern asks you to begin the chart work. Note that on each row of the headband, you’re supposed to do some knitting work before the chart and after the chart. (This makes sense, since the chart only contains instructions for 12 stitches and you’ve got 22 stitches on your needles. You’ve got to do something with those extra 10 stitches!)

The pattern itself says:

“On RS Rows knit 3 p 2, work chart, p 2, k 3; On WS Rows, p 3, k2, purl across, k2, p last 3. Repeat until headband measures 18 inches.”

This is a very comprehensible instruction for those knitters with lots of experience with patterns and charts, but to beginners it's probably pretty murky. Here are those same instructions, translated out with more step-by-step detail:

• Row 1 (a RS row): Knit 3 stitches, then purl 2 stitches, then work the first row of the chart, then purl 2 stitches, then knit 3 stitches.
  
• Row 2 (a WS row): Purl 3 stitches, then knit 2 stitches, then work the second row of the chart, then knit 2 stitches, then purl 3 stitches.
  
• Row 3 (a RS row): Knit 3 stitches, then purl 2 stitches, then work the third row of the chart, then purl 2 stitches, then knit 3 stitches.
  
• Row 4 (a WS row): Purl 3 stitches, then knit 2 stitches, then work the fourth row of the chart, then knit 2 stitches, then purl 3 stitches.
  
• Row 5 (a RS row): Knit 3 stitches, then purl 2 stitches, then work the fifth row of the chart, then purl 2 stitches, then knit 3 stitches.
  
• Row 6 (a WS row): Purl 3 stitches, then knit 2 stitches, then work the sixth row of the chart, then knit 2 stitches, then purl 3 stitches.
  
• Row 7 (a RS row): Knit 3 stitches, then purl 2 stitches, then work the seventh row of the chart, then purl 2 stitches, then knit 3 stitches.
  
• Row 8 (a WS row): Purl 3 stitches, then knit 2 stitches, then work the eighth row of the chart, then knit 2 stitches, then purl 3 stitches.
  
• Row 9 (a RS row): Knit 3 stitches, then purl 2 stitches, then work the ninth row of the chart, then purl 2 stitches, then knit 3 stitches.
  
• Row 10 (a WS row): Purl 3 stitches, then knit 2 stitches, then work the tenth row of the chart, then knit 2 stitches, then purl 3 stitches.
  
• Row 11 (a RS row): Knit 3 stitches, then purl 2 stitches, then work the eleventh row of the chart, then purl 2 stitches, then knit 3 stitches.
  
• Row 12 (a WS row): Purl 3 stitches, then knit 2 stitches, then work the twelfth row of the chart, then knit 2 stitches, then purl 3 stitches.
  
• Row 13 (a RS row): Knit 3 stitches, then purl 2 stitches, then work the thirteenth row of the chart, then purl 2 stitches, then knit 3 stitches.
  
• Row 14 (a WS row): Purl 3 stitches, then knit 2 stitches, then work the fourteenth row of the chart, then knit 2 stitches, then purl 3 stitches.
  
• Row 15 (a RS row): Knit 3 stitches, then purl 2 stitches, then work the fifteenth row of the chart, then purl 2 stitches, then knit 3 stitches.
  
• Row 16 (a WS row): Purl 3 stitches, then knit 2 stitches, then work the sixteenth row of the chart, then knit 2 stitches, then purl 3 stitches.
  
• And then just keep repeating these 16 rows over and over again until the headband measures 18 inches.
  

The question now, of course, is how to follow that part of those instructions which says “work the Xth row of the chart”.

Here’s how, starting with row 1 of the chart. Let’s look at it:

Notice that the row number is on the right, so we know this means you have to read the row starting from the right. Therefore, here’s the order of the instructions you’re supposed to follow:

1. So the first instruction you need to follow is one of those plain white squares. The legend for that plain white square tells you:
   
   
   
   
   You’re currently working on a right side row, so you will knit one stitch.
   
   
   
2. The second instruction you need to follow is another one of those plain white squares. So you will knit a second stitch.
   
   
   
3. The third instruction you need to follow is this:
   
   
   
   
   
   It’s an instruction that will have you working a total of four stitches.
   
   
   
4. The fourth instruction you need to follow is this:
   
   
   
   
   
   This instruction also has you working a total of four stitches all together, but NOTICE that in this case, you’re holding the cable needle at the front of the work while you knit the first two stitches, not the back like you did in the previous cable cross.
   
   
   
5. The fifth instruction you need to follow is one of those plain white squares, and the sixth instruction you need to follow is another one of those plain white squares, so to follow the fifth and sixth instructions, you knit two stitches.
   

And that’s it for row 1 of the chart! This means that the instructions for the whole of row 1 over the entire headband (not just the chart) are:

Knit 3 stitches, purl 2 stitches, knit 2 stitches, work a right-leaning cable, work a left-leaning cable, knit 2 stitches, purl 2 stitches, and knit 3 stitches.

Now let’s look at the second row of the chart:

Notice that the row number is on the left, so we know this means you have to read the row starting from the LEFT. Therefore, here’s the order of instructions you’re supposed to follow:

1. So the first instruction you need to follow is one of those plain white squares. The legend for that plain white square tells you:
   
   
   
   
   
   You’re currently working on a wrong side row, so you will purl one stitch.
   
   
   
2. The second instruction you need to follow is another one of those plain white squares. So you will purl a second stitch.
   
   
   
3. The third instruction you need to follow is another one of those plain white squares. So you will purl a third stitch.
   
   
   And at this point, it should be pretty darn obvious that you need to purl all the chart stitches for this row, so do that. :)
   

And that’s it for row 2 of the chart! This means that the instructions for the whole of row 2 over the entire headband (not just the chart) are:

Purl 3 stitches, knit 2 stitches, purl 12 stitches, knit 2 stitches, and purl 3 stitches.

In fact, if you take a look at the chart, the instructions are the same for ALL even numbered rows, which means that the above (italicized) instructions for row 2 of the entire headband also apply to rows 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14, and 16. So it’s really just the right-side (odd-numbered) rows which get a little tricky.

Let’s move on to another one of those right-side (odd-numbered) tricky rows, then!

Next up is the third row of the chart:

Again, the row number is on the right, so we know this means you have to read the row starting from the right. Accordingly, here’s the order of the instructions you’re supposed to follow:

1. So the first instruction you need to follow is this:
   
   
   
   
   
   It’s an instruction that will have you working a total of four stitches.
   
   
   
2. The second instruction you need to follow is one of those plain white squares. The legend for that plain white square tells you:
   
   
   
   
   
   You’re currently working on a right side row, so you will knit one stitch.
   
   
   
3. The third, fourth and fifth instructions are also plain white squares, so you will knit three more stitches.
   
   
   
4. The sixth instruction you need to follow is this:
   
   
   
   
   
   This instruction also has you working a total of four stitches, but NOTICE that in this case, you’re holding the cable needle at the front of the work while you knit the first two stitches, not the back like you did in the previous cable cross.
   

And that’s it for row 3 of the chart! This means that the instructions for the whole of row 1 over the entire headband (not just the chart) are:

Knit 3 stitches, purl 2 stitches, work a right-leaning cable, knit 4 stitches, work a left-leaning cable, purl 2 stitches, and knit 3 stitches.

Continuing on by yourself

I think from here you can see how you are supposed to move your way up the headband.

Be sure to pay very careful attention to the chart, because on chart row 9, you will start doing the LEFT-leaning cable first and the RIGHT-leaning cable second. (Whereas on chart rows 1, 3, 5 and 7, it was the right-leaning cable that came first.) Be sure to pay very careful attention again when you come back around to chart row 1, because you will switch again (i.e. it will no longer be the left-leaning cable being worked first but the right-leaning cable).

Once you’re finished the chart part of the headband, the pattern goes on to say how you’re supposed to finish it off

Hope this helps!