Technique: Adding a Button Band to a Cardigan

From Fruity Knitting, how to construct vertical buttonholes in a button band. Pick up stitches along the cardigan front and knit just less than half the width of the button band. eg where the button band will end up 11 stitches wide, make the buttonholes at eg 5 rows. Being a bit closer to the body of the cardigan will make it more stable and not stretch out the button band edge so much.

When constructing buttonholes the traditional way, the first round is a series of bound-off stitches and the next row a series of (an equal number) of cast-on stitches. This technique is different.

Barbara Walter uses a 1-row buttonhole technique which is detailed here. It can be worked from either the RS or the WS of the knitting but looks neater when worked from the WS. 

For example, where we want the buttonhole to be 3 stitches long.

1. Work the buttonhole in row 5 of the band with each buttonhole being 3 stitches wide.
2. Work to the position of the buttonhole then bring yarn to the front, slip 1 stitch purlwise, bring yarn to the back, slip another stitch purlwise, then pass 1st slipstitch over the 2nd.
3. Slip next stitch purlwise then PSSO. Repeat to the last stitch cast off, here it is 3
4. Put the last stitch back onto the left needle. Turn work to the other side and hold yarn to the back.
5. Cast on the number of stitches bound off + 1 (so here, cast on 3 + 1 = 4 stitches) using the Cable Cast-on method.
6. Turn work to the other side and hold yarn to the back.
7. Slip one stitch from the left needle to the right, and pass the last cast-on stitch over this stitch

Place the buttonhole closer to the body side of the band rather than the edge of the band for greater stability

Technique - Buttonhole Band

 

Buttonhole Bands

The buttonhole band is worked with straight needles, back and forth.

The buttonhole band always has less stitches than the number of stitches in the body of the garment so that it is pulled taut. eg for a cowl with 60 stitches you would pick up 50 stitches along the outer edge stitch of the steek for the buttonhole bands.

After picking up the correct number of stitches along the steek edge, work one row of ribbing. In the second row of ribbing, work the buttonholes (below), then in the 3^rd and 4^th rows, continue the ribbing.

Buttonholes:

·        Knit 1, slip 1 PSSO, slip 1 PSSO, slip 1 PSSO. (or as many as needed).

·        Slip last bound off stitch onto L needle and turn work.

·        Cast-on 3 + 1 stitches, wrapping the two yarn colours (if using) between each cast-on stitch to ensure there are no floats across the buttonhole.

·        Turn work, slip the last stitch cast-on onto the L need. Work this and the next stitch together so that the rib remains correct. Ie stitches bound off = stitches cast-on.