Steeks: The Crocheted Reinforcement

 

A steek is a bridge a ‘bridge’ of stitches over what will later become an opening for an armhole, cardigan front or neck. The purpose of a steek is to enable knitting in the round, thus staying on the right side, rather than having to knit back and forth with purl stitches on the wrong side. This is particularly useful when doing colour work or complex designs. The steeks are later cut up the centre, leaving a seam.

Don’t be daunted by the cutting. Everyone will tell you that it’s easy and that you’ll never look back, because it’s true. You will never look back, having tried it once.

Whilst knitted cloth unravels across the rows, rather than down the columns, slippery yarns will still fray and need to be dealt with before cutting.

Note: with sticky Shetland or Scandinavian type wools, you can felt the steeks or simply make a running stitch either side of the centre column before cutting, or do nothing at all until the garment is complete.

Search in the labels 'Glossary', 'Tutorials' or 'Knitting' or go HERE to see the post on Steeking With Sticky Wool. 

The crocheted method is to make a chain along both sides of the central stitch. It's drawback is that you make a slightly bulkier seam, which can be averted somewhat by using a finer yarn than in the garment.

I have added 7 steek sts.

The reinforcement line is made through one leg of the centre stitch (column 4) and one leg of the stitch beside it (column 3 or 5). That is, you crochet together half of the centre stitch and half of the adjacent stitch, with the hook pointing into the centre as shown in the diagram above.

To secure the beginning, make a slip knot, then pop it on the hook. Put the hook through at position (5), then wrap the yarn around so you encompass the cast on edge. Hook it through the slip knot, making the first chain stitch. Now, following the arrows, slip the hook through one leg of column (5) and 1 leg of the central stitch (4), wrap the yarn around and pull it through. Continue up the column, with the hook pointing towards the centre as you see on the diagram.

When you reach the top, catch the cast-off edge.

Cut the yarn with enough tail to sew in and pull through the remaining loop to secure. Turn and repeat down the other side.

The centre steek stitch now has been reinforced, with half of it in each row of crochet. When you pull these rows apart a little, you will see a ladder between them. With care not to snip the reinforcement, cut through this ladder.

Trim or tidy excess after blocking. Once the sleeves are finished, you can stitch the seam in place, being careful to allow room for movement and not stitch through to the right side. For this, a light whip stitch will suffice.

Note: You could work the crochet lines one column across on each side, to give a narrower seam. Pick up one leg of column 6 & 5 or 2 & 3 instead, leaving column 4 free. You will still cut up the middle of column 4, then trim what will be a little more debris, after blocking.

Steeking With Sticky Wool

A steek is a ‘bridge’ of stitches that joins what will later become an opening for an armhole, cardigan front or neck.  The purpose of a steek is to enable knitting in the round, thus staying on the right side, rather than having to knit back and forth with purl stitches on the wrong side. This is much easier when knitting colour work.

With Shetland or Scandinavian, or any other sticky wools, you can felt the steeks, simply make a running stitch either side of the centre column (down positions 3 & 5) before cutting, or... do nothing at all until the work is complete, as I do. 

A super wash or otherwise slippery yarn will need extra reinforcement and I will add a post titled: The Crocheted Steek Reinforcement. Look in labels under glossary, tutorials, knitting or crochet.

Column 4 (above) is the beginning and end of a new round (you can see the jog in the photo, below left). I join my yarn here and may end up with a lumpy stitch of 4 strands. Otherwise, it is the darker of your colours. Switch from dark to light to dark as shown, giving you a darker edge column on each side of the steek. This makes it easier to distinguish the steek from the garment and makes a distinct line to follow when picking up stitches.

If the steek is for a sleeve and the shoulders are grafted together, include the steek in the shoulder graft, folded at the arrows so that columns 1 & 7, 2 & 6 and 3 & 4 are grafted together, with the centre steek (grey arrows on diagram or red at left) set aside on a stitch holder.

Some prefer to cut the steek before picking up new stitches and this may be easier at times. I tend to pick up along one side, then cut the steek to make picking up down the other side easier. 

To cut the steek, carefully snip up the middle of column 4. That is, cut the column in half lengthwise. All of your joined ends will either fall away or can be trimmed, which means there is no need for sewing in along a steek. Yay!

Having 7 steek stitches, rather than 5, gives a little wiggle room for neatening. Half of the next columns (3 & 5) will also be trimmed away, later.

Use the edge steek stitch to pick up new stitches for the sleeve or front button band, as shown on the diagram. Note: Pick up 1 stitch for every row, with adjustments/decreases made on the first row of knitting or ribbing. This makes a smoother seam than if you were to pick up 3 then skip one, for example.

Steek with Herringbone stitch: Once the sleeves or bands are finished, trim the steek back to the centre of column 3 or 5. Don't trim too far ahead of your stitching (to avoid fraying): 

Thread a needle with fine yarn or thread in a similar colour and secure, without going through to the fronts. Working from left to right, take a little back stitch (or scoop) along top line (1 to 2), then another along bottom line (3 to 4), in repeat, with the trimmed seam inside. You can press it flat with your fingers. Continue in this way, tucking in the trimmed raw edge as you go. This method is neat, elastic and sits flat. The seams blends into the fabric and will hardly be noticeable.

If, however, you have an unsightly machine-sewn reinforcement as I needed on this adaptation of Alice Starmore's 'Thoroughbred', or just want to hide the seam, you might like to sew a ribbon down the inside as shown. Again, be careful not to stitch through to the front and allow room for a little stretch. A finer Herringbone stitch is still a good option.

Geansai Gaelach - An Irish Jumper. My First Ever Garment Knitting Pattern is Live. 19 sizes.

The Geansaí Gaelach pattern is inspired by an exquisite Aran gansey, or geansaí, held at the National Museum of Ireland (obtained 1942). Showcased in the ‘Is Fashion Modern?’ exhibition at New York’s Museum of Modern Art (2017) and in the ‘Changing Ireland’ gallery in Dublin’s Collins Barracks (2025), it was and has remained an iconic representative of the Aran style.

 

The fishermen and the Herring Girls took their knitting wherever they worked. In this way the gansey style spread and developed all around the British Isles and Ireland from around the 19^th Century. The all-over combination of central panels, bobbles and cables that we now recognise as the Aran style, developed as recently as the early 1900’s in Ireland and has a well-documented history. Borne of the old ganseys, the Aran style became and remains colloquially Irish.

 

“The jerseys that the women knit are white or indigo... and on these square shaped garments they improvise, as a musician will improvise on some simple melody, their own individual fancies. There are circles and ellipses and zigzag lines and dots like a chain of pearls, and loops and lovers’ knots and lines like rippled water”.

 

This design is compiled by adapting just a few of the original motifs. It is an homage to the Ireland of my ancestors and to the knitting traditions I am so fortunate to have inherited through my mothers and grandmothers.

 

Geansai Gaelach is made using 5 ply (sports weight) Propagansey Corriedale wool. It comes in 19 sizes from (a): 47 cm to (s): 178 cm chest. Adult sizes are given in both female and male proportions.

The children’s sizes broadly equate to: 

(a): 0 to 6 months, (b): 6-18 months, (c): 1 to 2.5 years, (d): 2 to 4 years, (e): 4 to 6 years, (f): 6 to 8 years and (g): 8 to 10 years.

Sizes: (a to g): 240(280,330,440/520,640,760) metres. 

Sizes (h to s): Women’s:(930/1030,1130,1230,1360/1480,1640,1840,2070/2290,2450,2630)metres & Men’s: (1020/1150,1245,1300,1480/1640,1830,2030,2285/2520,2680,2860) metres.

Gauge: 28 sts x 36 rows = 10 cm.

Needles: 3.5 & 2.75 mm circular or double pointed needles and cables to suit (or those to obtain gauge).

Available at my Etsy store or at Ravelry. All sizes are within this pattern.

 

 This is the original, held at the National Museum of Ireland. Link HERE to a lovely story about Aran knitting.