Reading a repeat: asterisks, brackets, and rep from *

The asterisk: the unit and the instruction

The asterisk marks where a repeat begins. Everything from the asterisk to the instruction "rep from *" is one unit; you work the unit, then go back to the asterisk and work it again, until the row runs out or the pattern says otherwise.

Sometimes stitches come before the asterisk or after the repeat ends ("…rep from * to last 3 sts, k3"). Those edge stitches are worked once only — they're the frame, not the picture. When a row doesn't divide neatly by the unit, it's usually because the frame is doing the balancing.

Brackets: a repeat inside the repeat

Square brackets group a smaller unit that repeats a stated number of times, often inside an asterisk section:

Crochet patterns use the same nesting, sometimes with parentheses or "in next st" groupings instead of brackets. The logic is identical: the smallest group repeats first.

Parentheses: two jobs, and context tells you which

• A stitch group worked into one place. (K1, yo, k1) in next st means all three actions happen in a single stitch — an increase. If the parenthesis carries its own little repeat count, treat it like a bracket.
• Sizes. In garment patterns, K 24 (28, 32) gives the stitch count or measurement for the first size, then the others in brackets order — the sizes are listed at the top of the pattern. Circle or highlight your size's numbers everywhere before you cast on; size parentheses never tell you to repeat anything.

"Multiple of 4 + 2": the cast-on instruction

Stitch patterns often open with the arithmetic they need: the pattern repeats every 4 stitches, plus 2 extra stitches worked once for balance or edges. So your cast-on must be a multiple of 4, plus 2:

If your cast-on doesn't fit the formula, the pattern will drift out of alignment a few rows in — which is why this line, dull as it looks, is worth thirty seconds with a pencil before you start.

Repeats run in two directions at once

The stitch repeat runs horizontally — the units across a row. The row repeat (or pattern repeat) runs vertically — the sequence of rows after which the design starts over. Real patterns usually have both. A cable panel might repeat every 10 stitches across, with the cable crossing on row 5 of an 8-row repeat:

This is why experienced makers count two things at once: the row, and where they are inside the repeat. A row counter that only knows "row 37" is missing half the information. Row 37 is also "row 5 of the repeat — cross the cable now."

The four marks, summarised