Rowan Gigi Skirt Knitting Pattern

Rowan Gigi Skirts

What Is Being Made

The Rowan Gigi is an intermediate-level knitted skirt designed to fit hip circumferences ranging from 76-81 cm to 147-152 cm (approximately 30 to 58 inches). This garment features a fitted waist with an elastic casing and is constructed as a pull-on style skirt with a shaped waistline that tapers from the hips.

Knitting Techniques Used

This design employs the fairisle technique, a traditional colorwork method that allows knitters to create patterned designs by carrying yarn colors across the back of the work. The fairisle pattern is worked entirely in stockinette stitch and features an 8-stitch repeat that is repeated multiple times across each row, with an 8-row pattern repeat worked throughout the skirt length. The construction includes strategic shaping at the waist, with decreases worked at specific intervals to create a fitted silhouette that tapers from the hip measurement down to the waist.

Stitches and Construction Details

• Stockinette stitch (st st) forms the primary fabric structure, worked in knit rows on the right side and purl rows on the wrong side
• Cast-on is worked using 3½mm needles with yarn A, with stitch counts ranging from 105 to 211 stitches depending on size
• Waist shaping involves decreasing 1 stitch at each end of the work on a specific sequence: next row and following 12th row, then on following 10th row, then on following 8th row, then on 3 following 6th rows, then on following 4th row
• Seam construction uses back stitch or mattress stitch (knitter's choice) to join both side seams
• Waistband finishing involves folding the waistband in half to the inside and sewing it in place, with an opening left for threading elastic through the casing
• Elastic application requires threading 2.5 cm wide elastic (with 2 cm overlap) through the waistband casing and securing the ends before closing the opening

Materials Required

The Rowan Gigi is knitted using Rowan Alpaca Soft DK yarn, a worsted-weight yarn sold in 50-gram balls. Two colors are used: Simply White (color 201) and Trench Coat (color 202), with yardage requirements varying by size from 5 to 8 balls of each color. The project requires two pairs of needles: 3½mm (US 4) needles for the initial cast-on and ribbing, and 4mm (US 6) needles for the main pattern work. Additional materials include 2.5 cm wide elastic cut to the waist circumference measurement plus 2 cm for overlap.

Gauge and Tension

The pattern is designed to achieve a tension of 26 stitches and 27 rows to 10 centimeters when measured over the fairisle pattern using 4mm (US 6) needles. Achieving the correct gauge is essential for the skirt to fit properly at the specified hip and waist measurements.