This pattern is written assuming that the yarn will be unmercerized cotton, and that the length will shrink about 15%. It will work in any worsted weight yarn, if the lower body, armholes, and sleeves are all made 15% shorter.

Gauge after shrinking: 19 sts/32 rows = 4 inches in stockinette stitch after shrinking

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Other appropriate yarns: Rowan Denim, Elann’s Den-M-Knit Pure Indigo Cotton, Texere Freedom Denim (from Knitty.com)

From the designer

“Sideways Stitch Re-Explained, Because So Many People Didn’t Understand What’s Written!”

“The first row is just a set-up row. You continue around in the same direction on your (smaller) circular needle, just the way you were doing, knitting the knit stitches and purling the purl stitches. However, you wrap your yarn clockwise instead of counterclockwise so that the stitches are facing the opposite way from how they usually sit on the needle. The left side of the stitch will be in front of the needle and right side in back.

Then, you actually turn the work inside out and go back the other way, as if you were knitting back and forth. You are working on the wrong side of the piece.

The first stitch is a “make one” by knitting into the front and back. After that, you are actually working the sideways stitch. Slip the first stitch on the right needle back to the left needle; knit the second stitch tbl on the left needle, knit the first stitch tbl on the left needle, then discard both.

At the end of the round, turn it back rightside out and work 1 row in pattern, knitting 2 tog at the beginning, where you turned it, so you won’t have a big fat hole.

I have one more suggestion: at the point where you have just discarded the stitches and slipped the first stitch back to the left needle, go ahead and put the right needle into the back of the second stitch on the left needle. At that point, give a little tug on your yarn to snug it up a bit. You’ll feel the slack when you do this. Even using the smaller needle, the sideways stitch tends to be very loose.

If you swatch this to work out the tension before you get into doing it on the actual sweater, you may be happier with the results. In fact, if you swatch it with 2 straight needles on a flat piece of stockinette, you will get the mechanics of the right side/wrong side down.“