ABOUT THE PLANNER
When your pattern says “at the same time”.
A sleeve may need an increase every sixth row while a cable repeats every fourth row. PurlMind puts those separate instructions onto one checklist, so you can see which ones coincide and keep your place.
This is a free, independent tool for regular rows of flat knitting. No account is needed. It checks the row and stitch arithmetic you enter; it does not read a PDF or decide how a stitch should be worked.
Try the knitting row planner →Build a checklist in three steps
- Set the section. Enter the stitches already on your needle, the number of rows you intend to work, and whether its first row is right side (RS) or wrong side (WS). Our row 1 is local to this section.
- Enter each instruction separately. Choose the first row, how many rows apart the occurrences are, and the total number of occurrences. For shaping, distinguish a change at each edge from a total change across the row.
- Make your schedule. Compare the listed rows and final count with your original pattern. Switch to Knit to mark rows complete, undo a row, or resume at a known row. Save a copy for backup or another device.
Example: shaping and cables together
Our original example starts with 48 stitches and covers 32 rows. Add 1 stitch at each edge, beginning on row 5, every 6 rows, for 5 total occurrences. Add a cable reminder beginning on row 3, every 4 rows, for 8 occurrences.
| Instruction | Rows | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Sleeve increases | 5, 11, 17, 23, 29 | 2 added per occurrence; 10 in total |
| Cable reminder | 3, 7, 11, 15, 19, 23, 27, 31 | No stitch-count change |
Rows 11 and 23 contain both instructions. The final count is 58 stitches. Background stitches still come from your original pattern; a reminder does not replace the cable chart.
“Three times” versus “three more times”
Starting on row 5, every 2 rows, for 3 total occurrences gives rows 5, 7 and 9. If a pattern says to work the instruction once and then repeat it 3 more times, enter 4 total occurrences: rows 5, 7, 9 and 11. Always check whether your pattern counts the first occurrence.
“Every sixth row” means the occurrence rows are 6 rows apart. With a first occurrence on row 5, the next is row 11. Five rows lie between them. An odd interval alternates right-side and wrong-side occurrences; check whether that matches your pattern.
Where this tool stops
Rounds, short rows, cast-ons, bind-offs, gauge and size calculations are outside this release. The planner cannot validate garment fit, cable placement, yarn overs, stitch anatomy or the physical feasibility of your shaping. Use your original pattern and a knitter’s judgement for those decisions.
If the repeat spacing changes halfway through a section, add a separate instruction for each phase. If there is a turn, a different section or a change to row numbering, make a separate plan rather than forcing it into the flat-row counter.
Why this workflow?
Designer Sloane Rosenthal explains mapping simultaneous instructions onto rows as a way to untangle overlapping pattern directions. PurlMind offers a small interactive version of that workflow. The designer is not affiliated with this tool.
This is an early release. Calculation examples have automated checks; the tool has not been independently validated across a collection of real knitting patterns.
Feedback & contact
Do you have a suggestion for improvement? Or found a confusing instruction or stitch count that does not look right? Email thefuture.bybeek@gmail.com. Include the starting stitch count, repeat settings, row number and what you expected to see. Suggestions from knitters are welcome.