Here are 8 free Norwegian knitting charts: 3 eight-pointed Selbu stars from 13 to 21 stitches wide, worked flat with a border of background around them, and 5 in-the-round repeats (Star band, Lice, Small crosses, Cross and diamond border and Spruce trees). Every chart uses no more than 2 colors in any row or round, and the repeats keep the longest float to 5 stitches.
Each card shows the chart as it is worked, a preview in real stitch proportions, and the numbers that decide how to knit it.
13 sts × 13 rows · Fingering 4.6 × 3.6 cm (1.8 × 1.4 in) · DK 5.9 × 4.3 cm (2.3 × 1.7 in) · Worsted 7.2 × 5.4 cm (2.8 × 2.1 in) · duplicate stitch: 72 stitches · stranded: longest float 5 stitches
The smallest star that still reads as eight points: mitten backs, hat fronts and child-size sweaters.
17 sts × 17 rows · Fingering 6.1 × 4.7 cm (2.4 × 1.9 in) · DK 7.7 × 5.7 cm (3.0 × 2.2 in) · Worsted 9.4 × 7.1 cm (3.7 × 2.8 in) · duplicate stitch: 128 stitches · stranded: longest float 7 stitches
The classic size for the back of an adult mitten, a hat front or a cushion.
21 sts × 21 rows · Fingering 7.5 × 5.8 cm (3.0 × 2.3 in) · DK 9.5 × 7.0 cm (3.8 × 2.8 in) · Worsted 11.7 × 8.8 cm (4.6 × 3.4 in) · duplicate stitch: 200 stitches · stranded: longest float 9 stitches
The big star for an adult sweater front, a pillow or the middle of a blanket square.
one 16-stitch unit × 13 rounds · cast on a multiple of 16 · every round uses 2 colors · longest float 5 stitches
A band of stars worked in the round, for a hat, a sweater yoke or the body of a cowl.
one 6-stitch unit × 6 rounds · cast on a multiple of 6 · every round uses 2 colors · longest float 5 stitches
The dotted body pattern of a lusekofte, for sweater bodies, sleeves and mitten palms.
one 6-stitch unit × 6 rounds · cast on a multiple of 6 · every round uses 2 colors · longest float 5 stitches
A busier all-over pattern for hats, mitten palms and cowls.
one 8-stitch unit × 7 rounds · cast on a multiple of 8 · every round uses 2 colors · longest float 3 stitches
A narrow border for a cuff, a hem, or between a lice body and a star band.
one 8-stitch unit × 7 rounds · cast on a multiple of 8 · every round uses 2 colors · longest float 5 stitches
A band of trees in the snow for a hat brim, a sweater hem or a winter cowl.
The 3 stars are flat charts with the background border shown; the 5 repeats are worked in the round. The letters in the PDF’s written instructions name the colors, A being the main color. These are original charts drawn for this page in the traditional two-color style, free to knit, change and use in your own projects and patterns.
On graph paper a star is a square: the 21-stitch Selbu star is 21 stitches wide and 21 rows tall. Knitting is not square, because a stitch is wider than a row is tall. At DK gauge (22 stitches and 30 rows per 10 cm) the same 21 by 21 square knits to about 9.5 cm wide and 7.0 cm tall (3.8 × 2.8 in), so it comes out 1.36 times as wide as it is tall. The eight points spread sideways while the height is compressed, which is why a star that looks square and even on paper looks flatter once it is knitted.
| Yarn | Gauge per 10 cm | 21-stitch Selbu star | Width ÷ height |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fingering | 28 sts × 36 rows | 7.5 × 5.8 cm (3.0 × 2.3 in) | 1.29× |
| DK | 22 sts × 30 rows | 9.5 × 7.0 cm (3.8 × 2.8 in) | 1.36× |
| Worsted | 18 sts × 24 rows | 11.7 × 8.8 cm (4.6 × 3.4 in) | 1.33× |
For a chart with as many rows as stitches, the width divided by the height is simply your rows per 10 cm divided by your stitches per 10 cm, so the closer those two numbers are, the rounder the star. Of the 3 gauges in the table, Fingering comes out roundest, at 1.29. The editor previews every chart at your own gauge with true stitch proportions, so you can see the stretch before you knit; keep the preview on while you change the width or the yarn, and print knitting graph paper at the same gauge if you want to draw beside it.
The free snowflake knitting charts take the other approach: their straight arms are drawn with extra rows, so all six arms knit to the same length. The Selbu stars here keep the traditional square chart, and the preview shows how wide each one will come out.
The 5 repeats are knitted in the round, so each one has to fit a whole number of times around the cast-on. Their widths are Star band (16 stitches), Lice (6 stitches), Small crosses (6 stitches), Cross and diamond border (8 stitches) and Spruce trees (8 stitches). The smallest count that holds all of them is their least common multiple, 48 stitches. The table takes a few common hat and mitten cast-on counts and shows how many whole repeats each one holds; a dash means that repeat does not fit that count.
| Cast on | Star band (16 sts) | Lice (6 sts) | Small crosses (6 sts) | Cross and diamond border (8 sts) | Spruce trees (8 sts) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 72 | — | ×12 | ×12 | ×9 | ×9 |
| 80 | ×5 | — | — | ×10 | ×10 |
| 88 | — | — | — | ×11 | ×11 |
| 96 | ×6 | ×16 | ×16 | ×12 | ×12 |
| 104 | — | — | — | ×13 | ×13 |
| 112 | ×7 | — | — | ×14 | ×14 |
| 120 | — | ×20 | ×20 | ×15 | ×15 |
A 96-stitch cast-on fits every repeat on this page: the table shows how many times each unit goes into it. If you are knitting only one of the repeats, any multiple of its own width will do; each repeat’s width is in the table above, so a narrower repeat can fit a much smaller count. The how to read a knitting chart guide explains how to keep the repeat lined up once the cast-on is right.
Every chart on this page uses no more than 2 colors in any row or round. The longest float is the longest run of one color in a row, or in a round for the repeats, counted across the edge of the repeat because the next repeat carries the same round on. The table gives that number for each chart.
| Chart | Worked | Colors in a row or round | Longest float |
|---|---|---|---|
| 13-stitch Selbu star | Flat star | 2 | 5 stitches |
| 17-stitch Selbu star | Flat star | 2 | 7 stitches |
| 21-stitch Selbu star | Flat star | 2 | 9 stitches |
| Star band | Repeat in the round | 2 | 5 stitches |
| Lice | Repeat in the round | 2 | 5 stitches |
| Small crosses | Repeat in the round | 2 | 5 stitches |
| Cross and diamond border | Repeat in the round | 2 | 3 stitches |
| Spruce trees | Repeat in the round | 2 | 5 stitches |
The repeats are the easiest to knit: every one keeps its longest float to 5 stitches or fewer, so there is no need to catch the yarn. The 17-stitch Selbu star (7 stitches) and 21-stitch Selbu star (9 stitches) go past 5 stitches when knitted stranded; catch the carried yarn behind a stitch about every 5 stitches so it cannot snag on fingers or jewelry.
A float is measured one color at a time, not across the whole motif. The 21-stitch Selbu star is 21 stitches wide, yet its longest float is 9 stitches, because the petals are separated by background stitches instead of forming one solid block. That is why the number in the table is lower than the width of the star, and why a motif can be wide without needing a long carried strand in every row.
The colors themselves matter as much as the pattern. Put one light yarn and one dark yarn in each row, as these charts do, so the star and the lice dots stay readable at a distance. The charts use a main color for the background and one contrast color for the motif, and the PDF’s written instructions name them by letter, so the instructions still read the same after you swap in your own colors.
Pick a chart
Choose one of the 3 Selbu stars for a flat motif on a mitten back, a hat front or a cushion, or one of the 5 repeats for a band or an all-over pattern worked in the round. Each card gives the stitch count, the finished sizes and the longest float.
Cast on the right number
For a repeat, cast on a multiple of its width; 96 stitches holds every repeat on this page. To center the 17-stitch Selbu star on the back of a 48-stitch mitten, the back is 24 stitches and the star is 17, leaving 7: knit 3 background stitches before it and 4 after it.
Change the colors or size
Open any chart with the button on its card. In the editor you can change the colors, set your own gauge, choose flat or in the round and check the true-stitch-shape preview before you print.
Download the PDF and knit
Download the whole set as one PDF or print a single chart from the editor. Start at row 1 or round 1 at the bottom right, and block the finished piece so the star settles into its final shape.
The best-known is the eight-pointed star, the Selbu star or selburose. Lice dots cover the body of a lusekofte sweater, and borders, trees and reindeer fill the bands between larger motifs. The free Christmas knitting charts include reindeer and trees for that kind of winter band.
The eight-pointed star is called a Selbu star or selburose, after Selbu in central Norway, the district known for its patterned mittens. A sweater covered in small dots is a lusekofte, which means “lice jacket,” from Setesdal in southern Norway.
Both are stranded colorwork, with two colors in each round and the unused yarn carried behind the work. Norwegian patterns usually stay with one dark and one light color for the whole piece and build it from bold motifs such as stars, with lice dots in between; Fair Isle changes through many colors from band to band. The free Fair Isle charts show that band-by-band approach.
The phrase can mean the two-color stranded tradition described above. It can also mean the Norwegian purl, a way of purling with the yarn held in the left hand and kept behind the work.
This page has 8 free Norwegian charts and a PDF of all of them, and every chart opens in the free chart editor to change the colors, size or gauge.
For the repeats, cast on a multiple of the repeat width; 96 stitches fits every repeat on this page. A single star sits on the front of the hat, and the hat pattern sets the cast-on.
Yes. The charts are free to knit, change and use in your own projects and in patterns you sell, with no credit or payment needed.
The charts are free to knit, change and use in your own projects and patterns. There is no sign-up and no watermark on the PDF. They are original charts drawn for this page in the traditional two-color style, not copies of a historical pattern or a particular knitter’s design. Open any card in the editor to change the colors, size or gauge, or download the whole set as one PDF.
Knitting Chart