Pin: Make knitting magic! Eliminate thumb gaps in knitting. See tutorial at mysecretwish.ca.

Eliminate Thumb Gaps: 3-in-1 or 5-in-1 Pickup Method

Use this technique around fingers and thumbs for a lovely gap-free finish.

Gaps and holes around thumb gussets are the bane of any civilized knitter. But what is a knitter to do besides leave a super-long tail and weave them all closed after?

Here is my solution, a stitch that I call the 3-in-1 or 5-in-1 Pickup in my patterns. Use the 3-in-1 Pickup for bulky or worsted-weight yarns, and the 5-in-1 pickup for lighter worsted weights and thinner.

Video Tutorial

How to Do It

Basic Principle:

You’ll be knitting extra stitches above the thumb gusset where you’d normally pick up only one, then quickly decreasing them over the next several rounds.

What Should It Look Like?

Most thumbs are increased from a single stitch, and when you put those thumb stitches “on hold” and cast on to create the rest of the hand, you cast that stitch back on. Then, when you are ready to create your thumb, you pick up your held stitches, including a single stitch where you cast one on. Unfortunately, this method tends to leave gaps on either side of the cast-on stitch.

This technique fills in those gaps with some extra stitches that you quickly decrease to the single stitch originally called for. There will be a small gap where you first joined the yarn to begin knitting the thumb, which you can easily close when you weave in your end.

This may also be used between fingers on gloves, though it does add a little extra bulk.

The result looks like this:

What the 5-in-1 Pickup looks like on a Worsted Weight mitten. There is a centre chain in the middle of the decreased stitches.

For this Bulky Weight 3-in-1 Pickup, I used the Double Central Decrease (DCD) instead of the Central Chain Decrease demonstrated in the video. Either one works, it just depends what look you are going for.

5-in-1 Pickup on a fingering weight mitten using the Central Chain Decrease. (This thumb had stitches decreasing along its length, which is why the centre chain continues to the end of the thumb.)

Method

Stitch Glossary

CCD (Central Chain Decrease): slip two stitches together knitwise, k1, pass two slipped stitches over stitch just worked.

k2tog: knit two stitches together as one

ssk (slip, slip, knit): slip two stitches one at a time knitwise, place tip of stitch-holding needle into both stitches from the tip end of working needle, knit slipped stitches together as one. (In other words, you are slipping the stitches individually to put their left legs in front, then knitting both together in the back loop.)

5-in-1 Pickup

Round 1: After placing thumb gusset stitches on needles, knit thumb gusset stitches around thumb to the gap created by the cast-on stitch above the gusset. On edge of gap where you are supposed to pick up stitches (where most patterns indicate picking up a single stitch), pick up the bar from the row below the one you are working. Place on non-working needle with leading leg in front and knit into the back loop so it twists. Knit three stitches across cast-on edge. (Be sure middle stitch is picked up from the cast-on stitch). On the other edge of the gap, pick up the bar from the row below, place on non-working needle with the leading leg in front, and knit into the back loop so it twists. (5 stitches picked up.)

Round 2: Knit around. When you reach the five picked up stitches, ssk, k1, k2tog.

Round 3: Knit.

Round 4: CCD. Continue as per pattern.

3-in-1 Pickup

Round 2: Knit around. When you reach the three stitches you picked up, work a CCD. Continue as per pattern.

Weave in your end to close the small gap that remains.

Happy gap-free knitting!

Location of the bar you pick up when working the 5-in-1 Pickup.

Image shows a mitten in progress with double-pointed needles through the thumb stitches. The near side of the mitten is the top. Two double-pointed needles hold the picked-up stitches from the thumb gusset, which have been knit into, and one double-pointed needle is going through the bar on the side of the gusset following the last picked-up stitch. The next step would be working into the bar, picking up three stitches across the top of the open thumb gusset, then picking up and working into the bar on the other side.

Try my patterns

Adventure Socks

CA$9.00

A spread of knit gloves of various sizes, yarn weights, and colours on a wooden tabletop. Gloves have ribbed cuffs and plain stockinette bodies, and are knit in bulky, worsted, and fingering weight.

Just Plain Gloves (Multi-Pattern Bundle)

CA$15.00

Brennan Hat

CA$9.00

View All

Talena Winters wears a textured scarf and smiles at the camera.

About My Secret Wish Knitting

Hi! I’m Talena Winters (a.k.a. the Yarn Mermaid).

I started My Secret Wish Knitting in 2010 to empower and delight knitting heroes like you who want to elevate your knitting and make magic with yarn. When I’m not concocting new yarn potion recipes, I’m creating story magic as a fantasy and romance author and fiction editor (at talenawinters.com). I live with my family and pets in the Peace Country of northern Alberta, Canada, where sweater weather lasts at least nine months a year and my closest neighbours are bears and wood nymphs.

This website is a labour of love by a team of one (me!). If you found value here, please support the effort by purchasing a pattern. If you want more knitting magic, check out my community events and newsletter in the Knitting Circle. We’d love to have you!