Knitting

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Knitting Goes Hi-Tech.

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So you’re ready to take your knitting to the next level, raise the bar, go high tech? Do we have the answer for you!
Software designed for the knitter, enabling you to make up your own patterns and designs without fiddling with all that fussy math.

Here are some I’ve found:
Knitware – Knitting and crochet pattern design software for hand knitters, machine knitters, and crocheters

Here’s a Random Stripe Generator, from Biscuits and Jam, it generates random stripe patterns for knitting sweaters, scarves, blankets, etc. It’ll give you an idea of what the finished sweater will look like, but it still leaves some unpredictability to the stripe pattern.

Of course, there’s the ever popular, Sweater Wizard. This program generates schematics and text directions for sweaters customized to the knitter’s specifications. Sweaters may be charted for flat or round knitting, using any gauge.

Knitware has a free trial. This program designs for hand and machine knitters as well as crocheters.

Swatch Wizard calculates your rows and stitches to give you an accurate guage. It will NOT, however, knit your swatch for you 😉

The Sole Solution provides hundreds of sock patterns for the price of about 5-6 individual patterns.

DesignaKnit touts itself as being professional design software. Complete with lace and cable modules, this looks to be for machine knitters.

And last but not least, at Woodland Woolworks you can find Sock Wizard, Stitch and Motif Maker, Sweater Wizard and Print a Grid.

Don’t forget to enter our Knitting Stuff Giveaway! Just leave me a comment, making sure to give me your email address. I’ll pick a winner on 1.1.09.

Comments

  2. Thanks for the links, I am having fun checking them out! I have never designed my own knitwear, but I may start now.

    Jane

Have you read?

A Shawlette with a Ton of Design Options

There’s a lot to like about the Eloise Bandana from Katryn Seeburger. This cute little colorwork triangle can be worked as a bandana or kerchief size or a bigger shawlette. 

It’s worked in two colors of fingering weight yarn so you can use whatever yarn you have in your stash and just make it as big as you can (since it is worked from the bottom up). 

You can see the two sizes from the photo, and also two colorwork options: strawberries and lily of the valley. 

But that’s not all the choices you have. In fact, there are 34 different charts you can choose from to knit onto your project. Some of the options include happy faces, a lobster, a pumpkin, a snail and a butterfly. There are cherries, peaches, tomatoes and radishes.

There’s even a blank square you can use to draw your own little design if you want to use something else. Or keep it blank and make it a plain checkerboard design. 

And while both of these shawls use the same icons throughout, you could also use different designs throughout if you want. Say a fall version with a bat, pumpkin, leaf and acorn, or a summer beach theme with sailboat, fish, lobster and a bird? I keep suggesting four different icons because the larger size has four rows of squares, but the smaller has three, so you could do stripes of the same icon or alternate a couple of different ones, whatever you like. 

Look through the finished projects on the Ravelry project page to see lots of different options, from rows to individual icons. There are also some projects that are smaller than the suggested size to make a smaller bandana. You could also keep going a make a bigger shawl working increases in the same way as you have been going. 

Check out all the details and grab a copy of the pattern on Ravelry. 

[Photo: Katryn Seeburger]