How To Attach a Pocket to a Knitted Sweater

Hey, folks! I thought I would work up a little photo tutorial on how to attach the pockets to my Gigi and Little Gigi cardigans. (This also works for the Potomac cardigan and Potomac worsted!) But, this tutorial would really work anytime you are attaching a knitted pocket to a knitted object. I hope you find it helpful!

If you prefer video tutorials, this one from Garnstudio uses the same techniques, but with a stockinette pocket instead of reverse stockinette.  Good luck, and leave a comment if  you have any questions/comments!

This is a rustic, simple sweater, and I liked the way the sewn on pocket looked. I chose this over knitting the pocket in the body of the sweater and joining the pocket lining later because I like the rustic look of the sewn on pocket and the reverse stockinette stitch. Also, it allows you to use your pockets as swatches! Let's get started!

Pocket Prep

Block your pockets separately from the rest of your sweater, and attach them after they have been blocked to the measurements you want.

First, decide where you want your pockets by placing them on the front of the sweater. You can measure from the button band or just eyeball it. Use a removable stitch marker to mark one leg of the "column" of stitches you will be grabbing to attach the side of the pocket.

Using thin contrasting yarn/embroidery floss, mark the row of stitches where the bottom of the pocket will be attached by weaving the thread over and under the legs of each stitch.  This is important for making the bottom of your pocket lie flat and straight, so don't skip this step!

Thread a tapestry or yarn needle with a length of yarn (approx. 5 ft.) for sewing on the pocket.
Start Sewing

For the  Gigi, Little Gigi, Potomac and Potomac Worsted, the stitches on the sides of the pockets are slipped stitches. This gives the pocket an awesome, rustic look, and makes sewing it up super easy. To achieve this look, you will be going through each slipped stitch twice, while sewing through the stitch legs on the sweater one time. So, for every two sweater body sts, you will go through the pocket slipped stitch one time.

Start at the upper right edge of the pocket, working from left to right, by lifting the left leg of the topmost pocket stitch, and the single leg in the "column" of stitches you marked with the removable stitch marker, and sew through. Leave a tail of about 6 inches for weaving in later.

Next, work from right to left, lifting the single leg of the column of stitches you marked and the left leg of the next stitch in the pocket.

Continue in this manner until you reach the bottom of the pocket.

Sew the bottom of the pocket by lifting the two bars of the first stitch on the bottom right of the pocket. These may be tricky to find because they are the "V" of the stockinette on the other side. That is, you are pulling them forward from the other side.  (See first picture below.) Pull your needle through.

Next, grab both legs of the marked stitch in the sweater body directly under the pocket stitch you just sewed, and pull the needle through.

As shown in the pictures, you will always be inserting the needle from right to left when stitching up the bottom of the pocket.

Continue stitching until you reach the bottom left corner of the pocket.

Place the removable stitch marker to mark the column of stitches you will be using to sew up this side, and continue up the left side of the pocket using the same technique as for the right side.

Good luck in your pocket sewing endeavors, and feel free to contact me if you have any questions!