quote:

Originally posted by KT:
I don't know what your swatch instructions tell you to do but what you need to do is maintain those stitches you already have in a k2p2 pattern, in pattern. For example, if you are going to increase evenly across your ribbing so you can then go into the body of your work with either a stockinette or some other stitch pattern, I personally like to incorporate my increases in a purl ditch so I would do a bar increase (k in front and back) of the second knit stitch before a purl stitch, then p2, k2, p2, until I get to my next increase.

If I were adding to a k2p2 rib for shaping purposes, again it is important to maintain the stitches. I might experiment with doing k2, p1, increase, p1. On the next row I would p2, k1, p1, k1, the coming back I would probably k2, p1, k1, increase 1, p1, so that I would develop my pattern by getting a column of 2 knit stitches to rise out of my p2 ditch. When I have the k2 in place, I would do the appropriate increases so that I have a p2 on either side of it.

What I would not want to do is just assume I continue a k2, p2 patterning because then I would be knitting over purl stitches and purling over knit stitches.