DIY Network

To Hide and to Hold: Pocket Garter Designer Amy Finlay takes the knitted pocket headband idea a step further with this garter pocket design. From "Knitty Gritty" episode DKNG-506

Leave your purse at home! The garter pocket, worn on your upper leg, will hold your cell, cash, lipstick, and a small set of keys—all of the essentials! Show it off with a skirt that has a side slit. Or keep it totally hidden in use by cutting an opening in the pocket area of your skirt. Reach into your skirt's "pocket" to access your garter stash!

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This nifty, knitted garter pocket can be worn under a longer skirt or as shown with a short skirt or shorts.

Materials:
yarn
  2 balls of Cascade Fixation (#9349)
needles - size 5 needles (3-3/4mm). Any type will do, even double-pointed. Put a rubber band on the ends to keep your work from sliding off.
matching sewing thread
15 yards of elastic cord (optional - see details in last section)
tapestry needle
scissors

Gauge
6.5 sts per inch when knitting is relaxed. As an option, you can use whatever gauge you get if you don't mind a taller or shorter garter. Just make sure the height of the pockets will accommodate your lipstick, keys, etc.

Stretch Yarn Knitting Tips
With elastic yarn like Cascade Fixation, be aware of the tension on the yarn while you knit in order to keep the knitting consistent. When I knit this on size 5 needles, I kept the yarn mostly stretched, but not fully taught, while knitting. I changed the way I wrapped the yarn through my fingers for tension to keep it from becoming too tight and difficult to knit. Do whatever works for you.

Abbreviations
CO = cast on (use long tail cast on)
k = knit
p = purl
yo = yarn over
k2tog = knit 2 together
BO = bind off (basic knit bind off)
overcast stitch = sewing along the edge, the same path as wire in a spiral bound notebook

Garter Body
CO 36 sts, using long tail CO. Use an extra long tail, about 4 feet, so you have extra left over (for sewing pockets later).

Row 1: k1, (k2tog, yo, yo, k2tog) twice, knit to end of row.

Rows 2 and 4: knit every stitch, except when you work the 2 adjacent yo's (can't miss 'em), knit the first, but purl the second.

Row 3: k3, (k2tog, yo, yo, k2tog) twice, knit to end of row. Knit the first stitch of the row (don't slip it), and knit it with average tension. No worries if you forget here and there. It won't show, but it will give you a more stretchy side edge which works best for this pattern.

Repeat the above four rows until item is long enough to stretch around your leg. You'll want to stretch it out to as tight as it can reasonably be. Finish row 4 of the pattern, then BO 16 sts at the beginning of the next row.

Figure A

Overlapping Pocket Flap
Work remaining 20 stitches in garter stitch (knit every row), until this section is a third or more of the length of the body of the garter (or sufficient size to create the number of pockets you want) (figure A). BO all remaining stitches.

Sewing Side Seam and Pockets
Using tail from CO, sew the sides of the body of the garter pocket together, as if the pocket flap wasn't there. You can use a simple overcast stitch, backstitch or mattress stitc— whatever you like—but do use a loose overcast stitch for the bottom edge to allow stretch along the bottom.

The pocket flap is ready to sew down along the bottom edge. Overcast or whipstitch the bottom edge of the pocket to the bottom edge of the garter body. Line up the garter stitch ridges, and sew between the ridges, or wherever you like. Just be sure that the piece can stretch fully when you've done sewing this edge.

	Figure B
	Figure C

Sew up the side edge of the pocket to the body, weave in the end and cut to create one large pocket (figure B). Try on the garter, and put items that you wish to carry in the pocket. Note the size of these then sew vertical dividing lines at the notations using a loose backstitch to fashion the big pocket into several smaller ones (figure C). Weave in all remaining ends.

Figure D

Keeping the Garter Pocket in Place
There are a couple of tricks to making sure this garter pocket stays where you want it. The easiest is to simply sew the pocket to a favorite pair of leggings (figure D). It's guaranteed to stay where you put it and also be comfortable. Just loosely stitch it in place while wearing it in the position you want. With objects in it, the garter will stretch down a bit, so sew it high enough to generously clear your skirt. Stitch in a single line around the thigh, directly below the lacy pattern of the garter and run the needle alternately between the garter and the leggings, backstitching occasionally to keep the thread from shifting. It is okay if you can't reach the entire area in the back of your leg, the garter pocket should still stay up fine. The garter pocket can stay attached to one pair of leggings, or easily be sewn onto another pair.

Figure E

Another option is to run strands of elastic cord along the inside of the garter pocket through the garter stitch ridges(figure E). Do this with each strand so it forms a ring around the thigh, and leave the two ends dangling next to each other. Put on the garter, pull each strand's ends to comfortable tension, and knot them together. Since solo elastics distort the shape of the thigh, it looks best to use about a dozen of them, evenly spaced (1/2" to 3/4" apart) throughout the garter pocket. You'll want 10 to15 yards of elastic for it to look best (although half that would keep it up on the leg). The elastic cord should be nearly 1/16" thick. Match the color to your yarn, or it will show.

RESOURCES :
yarn
www.yarn.com

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