Question about knitting a collar onto a cardigan - will there not be way too many stitches??!!

[KnittingKnewbie]

These are the instructions for the Collar

Pick up stitches evenly along entire collar area (pick up one stitch at each row)
Work a 1 x 1 rib pattern until collar measures approximately 2.5” wide
Cast off and weave in ends.

So I understand this to mean I start at the bottom of the front left panel, go the whole way up around behind the neck, picking up stitches, then down along the front right panel to the bottom.
That's an awful lot of stitches!!!

Or would I go up one panel and halfway along the neck, do the same on the other side and stitch up the join at the end?

You'll be using the smaller needles for this, and ribbing is always very tight anyway.

It probably sounds like a lot of stitches, but the method is correct.

I think you just pick up the stitches around the neck. The front bands will be done separately. Unless it's a shawl collar that runs off the front bands in which case it is a lot of stitches. Have you got a picture

@TheShellBeach oh I didn't realize ribbing is with a smaller needle!

@Notthatcatagain do you mean I could do it in 3 parts? Knit the two front ribbings separately and sew on and pick up stitches for the back of the neck?

(photo from pattern attached)

Doesn't the pattern tell you how many stitches in total you need to pick up?

And are you going to do this on a circular needle?

Do you mean I could do it in 3 parts? Knit the two front ribbings separately and sew on and pick up stitches for the back of the neck?

You'd be better off doing it in one go, for neatness.
And anyway, you'd end up with the same number of stitches in total, and the thing would have two messy joins in it.

I’ve knitted that exact cardy. I did it in four parts as I don’t have needles long enough to do the whole thing! Then I sewed the edges of the four sections together

(My joins aren’t messy 😁)

@TheShellBeach the pattern doesn't state the total number of stitches as the panels are different sizes/lengths depending on knitter's choice. It says one stitch per row. Yes, I'd be doing it on circulars.

@bge ooh do you like the cardigan?! Did you knit your 4 separate parts by picking up stitches or did you knit narrow strips and stitch them on later?

It would be best in one piece, there will be a lot of stitches. If you don't have a long enough needle then do it in 2 halves with a seam at the centre back of the neck. Make sure you have the right amount of stitches or it will hang all baggy at the front. I usually do a bit of math to divide up the stitches and mark the knitted edge in sections with pins. So if the total is 200 mark halfway (100) then mark halfway between (50) and so on, that way you won't get to the end and be miles out with your stitch count. Cast off on a size bigger pin so that it doesn't pull out of shape

That’s ☝️what I do too

for normal cardies I do two sections, joining at the back. For this one I didn’t have big enough needles at all. In fact maybe knitting a strip and sewing it all the way round would have been better 🤔🤔

In my experience one stitch per row will be too many stitches and create a wavy rib. Usually patterns ask you to pick up a ratio like 2 stitches over 3 rows. For such a big shawl collar I would test your tension over a smaller number of stitches before knitting the whole thing.