A free program for designing punchcards and much more

IN PROGRESS

I began machine knitting decades ago, learned to use pixels for graphic designs in a Mac Lab at the local art school, with DPaint IV and later IV.
Design tools beyond that were initially minimal: graph paper and pencils.
I try to include repeats that can be used on punchcard machines in many blog posts, and their gridded designs can be exported and printed to scale for tracing/marking cards for punching.
Thinking back on the design development of knit-related software tools, my earliest memory is of the work of Marnie MacLean, whose designs may be found on Ravelry, and who published two formative posts in 2007, one on using Excel to develop design motifs, https://www.marniemaclean.com/words/2007/02/tutorial_using.html, the other, using Excel to draft multi-size patterns https://www.marniemaclean.com/words/2007/06/using_excel_to.html#more.
As long as 15 years ago, a discussion began in Ravelry on using computer-controlled die cutters for punch cards.
An early tool, https://github.com/biscuitlad/Punchcard-encoder/tree/main
A more recent one, created by Angela Minster, is worth exploring by anyone.
Program features described in the About page:
Punch-card editor with adjustable stitch and row counts
Colour mode for row-by-row and per-cell colour assignment
Pattern library with built-in motifs, borders, and all-over patterns
Fragment selection — save any rectangular region as a reusable building block
Community library — optionally share your patterns with other users
A composition sequencer to chain patterns and fragments in order
Export as PNG
Offline-capable: works without internet after first load
Free, ad-free, and no third-party tracking
The program link: https://www.symbolstructure.com/punchcard-pwa/.
These are short notes on some of the features I have tested, but only briefly.
The program is free to use with no login required unless one wishes to add files to the user library.
It can be of use to electronic machine users as well, is easy to navigate, and is a good way for newbies to explore creating their own designs and visualizing what to do with them.
Functions perform predictably and accurately, with easy editing.
The card designs can be displayed numbered by selecting the punchcard option, as seen on the left, and as plain cells by selecting color, shown on the right.

Patterns can be offset for longer repeats, i.e., brick, or shifted placements on the needle bed. From a published chart to PNG or SVG with a preview of the file in repeat after it is converted at the bottom of the window to help visualize knit results:  the PNG can be saved, opened in a paint program, colors changed to BW, and scaled to the published repeat size, 24X60,  and reduced, if preferred, to the smallest programmable repeat, 24X12 Lace is fiddly to translate from chart to a working correct repeat because there are so few black pixels.
Over the years, my best solution when my usual go-tos failed with scaling the charts correctly, I resorted to opening a table containing the same number of cells and rows as the chart, taking a screen grab adjusted to the same size as the table, arranging it under the table, tracing the design, then continuing with the other necessary steps to obtain the needed PNG.
Out of habit, before attempting to go from chart to PNG, I tend to crop the image only to the stitch and row content, unskewing the file before cropping if needed.
The charts tested below began as very small greyscale screengrabs of lace charts from published sources.
The first attempt with the initial result is on the left, with a few pixels missing. The rows are visually edited in the center, and the selection to export the PNG is on the right.  The result of the corrected repeat in BW, and the 24X48 PNG.
The inspiration charts with exterior description and content can be imported and cropped to the design repeat.
The generated result in this case was color-reversed automatically, which is an option that can lead to better results when using paint programs to convert lace designs from charts as well.
The selection, in turn, is made to invert, light=punch.
There are a few missing pixels as in the previous illustrations; it is an easy task to perform the edits and save the result before exporting the file. A second lace repeat opens in the program default palette; the edited, added pixels are rendered in a different color when editing rows, and after saving the image, they are included in the tiled preview at the bottom of the card image. The same method was successfully applied to a short Fair Isle repeat chart, with no missing pixels.
Starting with an existing PNG, 24X42, separated for DBJ with each color in each design row, knitting only once, and requiring that the first selection row be made from left to right. There were 2 options: a split version and a continuous one.  The output can also be numbered (center), in this case for Brother machineswith starting row 7 up from the bottom.
The chart on the right is of a separation for the same PNG generated by me, which shifts the last single row down to the start of the design for the first selection row from right to left.  SVG files can be used by Cricut owners to produce ready-to-knit cards.
Those who do not have the tool available can open them in paint programs such as Gimp or ArahPaint, and they will print full size for potential tracing or otherwise serving as guides in hand punching the card.
The result of importing published DBJ color-separated designs leads to a possible exception for that use, unless the dots in the printout are filled for added visibility.

Gimp in knit design #5

The last related post, 2023: Gimp 4, pattern fill, dithered portraits, and more.
The draft for these explorations began more than a year ago, and turned up when I circled back to testing additional Gimp features.
Two Gimp updates in September 2026, the first, 3.2.4, and shortly after that, 3.2.6.
3.26 brings up this window on Macs when initially launchedselect deny and keep working. The request does not reoccur after quitting and relaunching the app.
Since I began using ArahPaint for developing my design repeats and color separations, there are only a few Gimp features I still use with any regularity, but as with other rabbit holes, I return to testing when driven by curiosity for how features I am not familiar with may work and have to offer.
I am presently working on a Mac with an M4 Chip, OS Tahoe, 26.6.2, keep circling back to Gimp 2.10, the last predictable and bug-free version I have tried for some of its features.

A recent tool shared in forums that is being tested for dithering and separating multiple-color large, non-repetitive designs, i.e., portraits, stirred my pondering on some of the possibilities to consider before executing them in DBJ on 4.5 mm home knitting machines.
The width of the repeats is, in theory, limited by the fact that such electronic machines have 200 patterning needles available.
The results are very low resolution, but can be improved by using a larger number of stitches and rows in the final piece.
Any image can be split into panels, followed by knitting them individually and joining them upon completion.
Color Palette choices may not match yarn color choices, and if they do, yarn thickness must be considered.
Printing a large-format version of the image in any color combination helps to visualize some of the potential results of knitting it, i.e., clarity and easy identification of smaller shapes, particularly in portraits.
A list of free online dithering programs, some with BW results only, may be found in the post on Online Pattern generators, hacks, free KM manuals, and more.

Splitting images
A fractal-inspired randomly chosen image,  with a change to indexed, 4-color Mode. Gimp does offer dithering options, but I prefer the results from using online tools.
Changes in the original aside, 4- color and 2-color BW dithered versions. The colors in the triptych are deceptive. This is the BW PNG for the image on the above right, 192X248.  It may be divided based on the knitting machine’s available storage memory, knitting method, or other personal preference or end use.
Go to the top menu and select Image > Guides > New Guide (by Percent).
Choose Horizontal or Vertical, and enter the percentage where you want the split line (for example, 33.33% or 50%). Click OK. Repeat to add all the necessary guides.
I typed in 33.33 for the first guide, 66.66 for the second, deciding to split the file into thirds.  Go to Image > Slice Using Guides (or Filters > Web > Slice in some versions).
Choose the destination folder, image format (i.e., PNG), then click OK or Export to save the individual pieces. May 2025
Gimp March 16, 2025 has many menu and command changes, making some reinterpretation necessary when following previously published blogposts, a quick tutorial.
I have encountered several issues with familiar functions, have both this and the 2024 versions available.
Experimenting with transform/distort: you can access the Warp Transform tool by selecting Tools > Transform > Warp Transform from the image menu, clicking the tool icon in the toolbox,  or pressing the W keyboard shortcut. The 2025 new icon. The method options. The brush size can be image size, rectangle, or ellipse-select to distort only.“Abyss” is a term used by GIMP developers for “data outside the input buffer”. The warp tool moves pixels from one point to another. Some pixels may come from outside the layer boundary. These pixels don’t actually exist anywhere, and therefore don’t have any associated color; yet, some color must be assigned to them.
“Abyss policy” has a drop-down list that allows you to fill empty areas in different ways:
None: this is the default option. Empty areas are transparent. An alpha layer is necessary for this option.
Clamp: each edge of the transformed layer stretches out indefinitely, so, for example, a pixel to the left of the layer boundary has the same color as the leftmost pixel of the layer with the same y coordinate. An alternative way to think of it is that each pixel outside the layer boundary has the same color as the closest pixel inside the layer boundary.
Loop: the transformed layer repeats itself in all directions, so that, for example, falling off the right edge of the layer takes you back to the left edge.
Black, White: these options are similar to “none”, but use black and white for out-of-bounds pixels, instead of transparency.
A glitched effect pattern knit could be created on shapes, matching pixel numbers to those of stitches and rows in the planned piece.
Working on a 120X120 file:  using the default settings:  drag and release the mouse to draw across the full-size file in straight, circular, clock, or counter-clock movements, until satisfied,  or use the rectangle or ellipse select tools to distort only the respective areas on a unaltered background   pixel size of 28
A seasonal BW image with its background color to alpha was superimposed on the simple brush filled ground in the program’s default position, then on a warped >transformed one. The file is blanket size, 180X180 pixels, with no added clean-up.   The skull was scaled to 59X84 pixels to preview a possible scarf design. With such reductions, some skull definition is lost while the striped background becomes more dominant

Using lace transfers to form horizontal waves

IN PROGRESS

I rarely hand-knit, but still browse patterns that seem challenging and visually interesting to me, i.e., brioche designs, fox paws, and lately, my eye was caught by this again, a piece by Kieran Foley, his great shawl of China, leading to my pondering making waves by using lace transfers combined with FI, whether with hand transfers, or with automated repeats. This is a grab of part of the shawl, which, of course, is not reproducible on a home knitting machine, but can inspire cousins. Working in Mac Numbers, with the plan of starting on the easiest to track series of transfers, and then automating needle selection to guide movement of stitches and fair isle patterning.
Green cells mark eyelet locations after transfers to the left, magenta ones eyelet locations after transfers to the right.
Yellow cells represent knit stitches/ rows, and the other colors represent the fair isle striping.
For the Lace segments, the carriage is set to needle select, but no cam buttons are used. Needle selection is to guide the transfers, 3 to the left and 3 to the right.
Row 1 knits, row 2 hand-transfers the selected needles, and knit
Row 9, all needles are selected; it is the last row in the lace repeat stripe.
Rows 10-17 change the knit carriage setting for fair isle knitting.
Row 18, all needles are selected again, change the carriage function to knit, and begin another lace segment.
The repeat needs to be 34 stitches wide for the fair isle pattern to line up properly, ie, 17X17, 34X17, 6 eyelets per completed transfer row.  Retaining the yarn and tension used for the lace segments and working on the same number of stitches, now adding transfers in the center of the knit blocks in the above swatch, plotting it out first in a spreadsheet, again marking left and right transfers.  A tentative repeat to help with needle selection was developed, 28X19,  but abandoned in favor of working the design strictly as a hand technique.
Custom needle tapes can be useful, and if a color printer is available, they can be designed with added colors before printing them.
Any tools used to help track actions can be marked as little or as much as one desires or finds helpful.
The next swatch in development on the machine:
Begin by selecting the same every other needle every row with the carriage set for fair isle using chosen colors for X rows.
With the carriage set for plain knitting, knit a row with the lace yarn.
1-2: After transferring the groups of 3 needles in alternate directions on a center stitch that will hold 3 stitches, the needles were brought out to E position to make it easier to spot the places for the next series of eyelets. Their transfers mirror the triple transfers to the right and to the left; there will be a center needle between them that remains undisturbed throughout the piece.
3: When lace transfers are completed, at 11 rows, check for proper transfer stitch formation or dropped stitches visually, and that no needles were accidentally pushed back to the A position during transfers.
Bringing all needles forward to E will ensure that they all will knit with a last pass using the same yarn.
The knit carriage ends up on alternate sides. The convention in machine knitting when planning frequent color changes is to work with pairs of rows to allow travel to and from the changer or to manually change colors, always from the same side.
An 8-eyelet per completed transfer row design. A habit with years of traditional transfer lace: transfer left, knit 2 rows, transfer right, knit two rows. There are many possibilities in changing colors: here, first every two rows, then every 8 (full repeat segment). 
With a repeat established, it is easy to explore adding or changing colors or techniques for different looks. Bands of plain knit (or FI) make the knitting grow more quickly. To eliminate the eyelets being divided between color changes, a shift to working with repeats containing odd numbers of rows was considered and briefly tested, but, as often happes inDIY, sometimes it takes a while before a lightbulb moment to occur, such as looking at that transfer spacing again in each 8-row segment, and noticing that the series of transfers can occur within a single row before being followed by any number of knit rows.
Hints:
Use light colored yarns at the start, making it easier to check for proper stitch formation.
Knit 4 rows. Check that all latches are open before making transfers.
When making transfers for each segment sequentially in single rows, the stitches become stretched, a consideration in choices for yarn and tension. A view after the completed transfers, emptied needles out to E for illustration purposes. Bringing all stitches out to E before any knit rows provides an opportunity for a last visual check of stitch formation. Feel behind knitting to make certain loops/ stitches are not hung up on gate pegs.
In this swatch, 4 rows of hand-selected FI are added. Knit row placements for color changes every 4 rows, and with centered eyelets. A smaller horizontal movement using a first automated repeat: the LC makes 8 passes, followed by two knit rows (or more). Using contrasting colors aids in viewing the degree of movement.
Repeated in width X2, 48X40, pairs of eyelets in each completed transfer row, the design required mirroring on the 930.
These repeats for automated patterning are found in Kathleen Kinder’s Machine Knitting: The Technique of Lace.
Fantail, p. 120, 24X24, 4 eyelets in completed transfer rows, half repeats are slightly staggered, required mirroring on 930.
In the test swatch, each 12-row LC transfer sequence is followed by 6 rows knit.
Transfers occur before the all-knit color change/ stripe.
Because yarn changes are made manually with the knit carriage, remember to close the gate in the Brother after the change to avoid dropping the piece to the floor on the next carriage pass.
Yarns can be cut or carried up the side.
Knitting through the first stitch on the right with the next color before knitting with it keeps the yarn lengths between rows even without added weights.  Feather and fan, reversed on 930, p. 58, 24X24, 6 eyelets in completed transfer rows. With 24 passes of the lace carriage before any knitting occurs, using a friendly yarn, and considering as many knit rows as possible between series of transfers, a two-color study is a start before either changing or adding colors, and perhaps FI stripes. Peacock plume, p. 58, 24X22, 8 eyelets on completed transfer rows. The negative spaces do not relate to shapes secondary to the transfers, as was seen in some of the mesh transfer lace. The 22 LC passes occur before they are followed by two or more rows of knitting.
This was the fussiest design to swatch.
It is an exception to having no selection on the last LC pass to the left. Instead, the needles preselected on the last pass to the right are now transferred to the left as the LC returns there.
There are multiple transfers where pairs of stitches are moved, and stitches in transfer areas become stretched, requiring tension adjustments.   Fifty stitches measure only 5.5 inches in width. The striping reminds me most of the inspiration hand-knit pattern, but both my machine and my eyeballs/brain need a break from this technique for a while.
This swatch uses Brother card 426. The results evoke the multicolor hand-transferred swatch with 6 eyelets on completed transfer rows.

To mesh or not to mesh 11, combining large and standard eyelets

To mesh or not to mesh 10: more large eyelet variations provides a review of information in some of my previous posts, and links to information to achieve the combinations shared by others.
The direction of transfers is marked in many of my charts with cyan cells for transfers to the left, and magenta for those to the right.
In these knits, large eyelets are created by side-by-side transfers.
Two empty needles in standard transfer lace may indicate an error, or that the repeat needs to be mirrored, while here, if in testing these patterns, only single stitch eyelets are produced, they indicate the same.
The transfers resulting in side-by-side needles on which loops will form with the next knit carriage pass are circled. The next group of transfer selections will anchor the side-by-side loops.
The repeats mentioned as used on the 930 may need horizontal mirroring, depending on the machine model or the download software.
The 32X24 design produces a vertical column of small eyelets on a field of larger ones.  The eyelet placements are planned this way, but the full repeat, 32X24, needed mirroring horizontally for use on the 930The work on the machine: after the side-by-side transfer in opposite directions is made, there will be a loop on each empty needle hook. The usual second pass with the knit carriage repeats the loop formation, and the first pair of loops is dropped. The choice can be made to keep the dropped loops, forming visual ladders, or to lift them onto the hooks so that when they are secured by the next pair of transfers, the edges of the eyelets form cleaner rounds.
Here, the dropped loops are undisturbed.
A potential troublesome spot is those loops getting hung up on gate pegs, so a light color is useful when first experimenting. As the return to transfers is made, the transferred stitches will anchor down the side-by-side loops as new double transfers are executed.   Vertical columns formed by small eyelets on a large eyelet ground, mirrored for use on 930 to this 32X24. Vertical column formed by large eyelets on a chevron ground, for knit side borders of any size, cast on a larger number of needles than in the width of your programmed lace repeat, here a 24X32 repeat is centered on 32 stitches, as used on the 930. Creating shapes: in Seasonal knits inspired by published repeats 2_hearts, 36X88,  used a combination of large mesh and single transfers to create the heart shape. 

 

More on brioche, geometric shapes knit with tuck setting

Most tuck patterning is based on designs with lots of black pixels serving as background for white pixels in bars that are generally a single cell in width, and on Japanese machines, no more than 4 rows in height, followed by black cells above them to knit tuck loops and the last knit stitch in the same location together.
One random sample, 24X48, to match a repeat suitable for a punch card. Several fabrics visually break that pattern and are knittable.
Such instances may be found in single-bed “floatless” FI, aka mosaics and mazes.
This is a large-scale sample, 40X40.To knit it using the tuck stitch setting, the original design is color separated by color-inverting every other row in the original image, starting with row 2, and then doubling the result in height to 40X80. To knit as a tuck or slip stitch pattern, the last PNG was again color-inverted,  programmed, and test-knit on 80 stitches, and for 120 rows.
The pattern section of the swatch, knit using the tuck setting, measures 11.5 X 9.75 inches and is reversible. When working in every needle rib, if the ribber is set to knit every row, the stitches on the ribber will help anchor tuck loops formed on the top bed, which makes tucking many side-by-side stitches there, again meeting limitations in terms of the number of rows in Japanese models, dependent on yarns and design choices.
As in the case of single bed mosaic/ maze work, when using more than one color, each design row repeat must be repeated twice, and is knit with color changes every two rows.
The swatches are knit with the end needle selection on to ensure end stitches are knit on both beds; the result is the beaded appearance in the side edges.
The first and last needles in work are on the ribber, with it set to half pitch.
These fabrics have good drape and are very stretchy, so cast-ons and bind-offs in the final pieces must be considered.
A recent FB question on brioche knitting to achieve horizontal lines of color rather than vertical, prompted a return to sampling with a new repeat, 18X24. The process is fully automatic, while the brioche with designs formed by shifting vertical lines of color to create shapes evoking the far more complex hand-knit versions requires hand transfers as often as every fourth row.
In horizontal patterning, each color is present on each needle with each carriage pass, whether as a knit stitch or a tuck loop, so loop and stitch colors will mix.
The work on the machine: after the first carriage pass is completed with either color moving from left to right, needles that are pre-selected forward will knit stitches, the ones in the B position will form tuck loops.   After the carriages move to the left, repeating the same selections and preselecting for the next carriage pass, the color is again present in every needle hook as a stitch or a tuck loop.The needles that are preselected forward to form knit stitches with the next carriage pass now hold the last stitch knit in the previously used second color, and 2 tuck loops from the recent, dictating limits on the yarn thickness used. The pattern was test-knit on 36 stitches.Introducing small diamond shapes in a brick arrangement, separated by solid color stripes, 16X80. The test was knit on 42 stitches.
Those dropped stitches, noticeable on the bottom right, were missed as can happen when knitting ribbed fabrics, where they may not be noticed until after several inches of work on the machine, or even after completion of the piece.  This left me wondering about other geometric designs and how to make the process easier in DIY design development.
This 16X18 design was used frequently in previous posts on color separations.In color separation for mazes/mosaics, alternate rows beginning with row 2 are color inverted, then the result is doubled in height to 16X36, twice the height of the original.   The repeat was tested on 32 stitches. To color-separate for DBJ, where each color in each design row knits twice, multiply the original X2 in height to 16X36, color invert every other row beginning with row 2, and multiply the result by 2, to 16X72, 4 times the height of the original. Seeking a visual break from the yellow, the blue was the third yarn tried to achieve a predictable stitch formation.
The same tension was used as in the red and yellow swatch, tested on the same number of stitches, 32, with a resulting pattern area 1.25 inches wider.
The design is more recognizable, and the separation method, automated by some download programs for 3 or more colors, may be worth a test run.

Returning to the skull shape slightly different from the one first explored in the 2022 post, planning to decrease the height of the overall repeat by color separating as for a mosaic or maze, the 58X82 starting PNGwith every other row beginning with row 2, color-inverted 58X82,  with rows of pixels added at the top and sides for more pattern surrounding the skull shape,70X90,  doubled in height to 70X180, sampled on 70 stitches produced a more rounded skull than the repeat sampled in DBJ. The DBJ separation would begin with the initial 58X82 file doubled in height to 58X164 before beginning the color inversions. Some of the related posts, in reverse chronological order
A review of brioche patterning 12/25
More shapes on ribber fabrics with tuck patterning, fantasy fair isle 2/22
a more challenging size, with horizontal striping, the knittable separation, 98X384 Geometric shapes on ribber fabrics with tuck stitches 3   9/21
Geometric shapes on ribber fabrics with tuck stitches 2; knitting with 4 carriages 3/19
Geometric shapes on ribber fabrics with tuck stitches 1 2/19
Fisherman and English tuck stitch rib 1_ checks patterns_ Brother, Passap 10/18

Ladders meet slip and hold, go around to form new shapes

The concept for this post began in 2022, and as so often happens, I got distracted by some other rabbit hole and came across its draft while looking for another previous post.
In November 2025, a similar approach was used to produce modified hexagons to achieve automated star shapes.
The basic steps
1: Put in hold the number of needles planned for the radius, cast on with waste yarn, and knit several rows in the planned needle arrangement.
2: Set the knit carriage for plain knit and holding, and with the project yarn, knit one row.
The outer edge of the final shape will be on the side opposite the starting side, where only one row is knit across all needles in work before short rows start.
The remaining rows are worked in pairs, bringing needles first out of and later back into work position, and when the desired number of segments is reached, knitting ends with a single knit row as well.
Visualizing composing a variety of geometric shapes,    and with the addition of ladders and increasing numbers of segments to form shapes other than larger triangles,which requires some practice and patience. The printed 64-row repeat chart can prove useful in tracking the required hand techniques. It is intended to be followed with the first row executed from left to right, and then with holding pairs of rows from right to left. The chart can be mirrored horizontally and followed for operating from the opposite side. Grey cells represent needles out of work forming ladders and eyelets. Eight segments form a square with sides that, depending on yarn choice, may bow toward its center and move away from straight lines.
Although the small ladder spaces add interest, they add tracking complexity in knitting and can be eliminated.
A yarn that can be blocked flat is a better choice than one that will spring back at the edges and curl.
Omitting the smaller shapes, in the bottom angle, as stitches are brought out to hold, to maintain a constant 4 needles in work, bring an empty needle into work on the left, and transfer a stitch on the needle to the right, with the last transfer on row 17.
To make a sharper turning point, 4 rows rather than 2 on single stitches could be considered before the return needles to work sequences.
On row 38, transfer stitch to the left, taking the needle out of work, forming a ladder. Repeat until 3 empty needles are reached, and maintain the ladder space size by transferring a stitch to the left, bringing an empty needle back into work on the right until the starting needle arrangement is reached, then reverse shaping.
To bind off, take off on waste yarn, rehang stitches, knit side facing, for both bottom and top edges, use your preferred bind off.
Steaming at least the top and bottom of the swatch before joining to make the stitches more visible when picking up may be helpful. I did not. Other bind-offs, including grafting, may improve the join.
Triangular versions in differnt color and yarn choices,  and an attempt at going square. In a last try at forming a square, the new, taller repeat has more constant stitch counts, making transfers and held stitches easier to ID.
The yarn used is a wool rayon, knit at tension 6, resulting in very small stitches around the outer edge, even with the use of weight on that side. This would become a consideration if one chooses to block the individual results or when joining multiple pieces together.
The revised 70-row repeat chart can be printed and marked as desired.This swatch was the first ever that I blocked to coax a more permanent, final square shape, using ribber comb wires. The base is an old, bulky felted swatch, my go-to when steaming/ pressing swatches. The result after resting, perhaps needing a few more small tweaks.

Historical posts
Lace meets slip and hold,  goes around, ruffles, and edgings  
Automated shapes across rows of knitting using slip stitch only  10/20
From automated lace edging pattern to doilies and ruffles  7/20
Lace edgings on Brother machines- automated with slip stitch 2 7/20
Lace edgings on Brother machines- automated with slip stitch 3/18
Return to circles, knit and crochet “pies” 1  2/17
Doilies: Lace meets hold and goes around  3/11
The “doilies”_swatches  3/11
Short rows meet circular shapes 
Return to circles, knit “pies”, miters, and spirals 4  3/17
Return to circles, knit “pies” 3  3/17
Return to circles, knit “pies” 2 (round yokes and more)  3/17
Return to circles, knit and crochet “pies” 1  2/17
Revisiting miters, spirals, going square, round, and more  2/16
Return to circles, knit “pies”, miters, and spirals 4  3/17
Miters and spirals: visualizing, charting (and more) 3  7/14
Miters and spirals: visualizing, charting (and more) 2  7/14
Miters and spirals: visualizing, charting (and more) 1  7/14
Short rows_ balls, tams, 3D rounds  12/13
Back to that pie: a bit of holding  6/11
Knitting math and pies 6/11

To mesh or not to mesh 10: reviewing mock filet designs

One of the many differences between automated machine-knit transfer lace and hand-knit lace is that the alternate direction of transfers in machine-knit lace occurs after the first is completed and followed by knit rows separating the eyelets, so there is always a slight shift in horizontal lines formed by them.
In hand-knitting or when stitches are manually transferred in both directions on the machine before knitting any additional rows, the appearance is noticeably different to purists and closer to hand-knit.
To truly match some of the transfers, stitches need to be removed from their respective needles, and other stitches are placed on the empty needles before the removed stitch is restored to its place. That is not an automatic function, but an added hand technique.
Changes in aspect ratio are often accompany knit structures and are seen in lace as well, more noticeable when one begins to use representational motifs, as in these recent cases, flowers.
There are so many sources available for designs, one need not necessarily build motifs from scratch, and they can be made more personal with modifications.
After choosing the base mesh, math may be used to change the scale of the superimposed shape.
Using small designs to test differences in results, one way to simply change the result is to multiply the height of the original shape by X3, with or without also doubling its width, thus approaching the 4X6 ratio often attributed to knit stitches other than garter.
The designs are programmed as fair isle in electronic models, which often automatically mirror the design horizontally.
Ways to modify electronic and punch card published transfer lace designs 6/26 returned to a partial image of a card used in 2011 as a mock filet mesh with traditional LC operation from the left side.
For the bse mesh, the LC makes 2 passes for transfers to the left, 4 passes for transfers to the right, each sequence is followed by two knit rows using the knit carriage operating from the right.
With the punchard located, the repeat was rebuilt using Mac Numbers, and a combination of ArahPaint and Gimp to reproduce the 24X162 file as a PNG. A 24X84 segment was, in turn, isolated, drawn in brick repeat, 24X168.  The swatch, tested on 60 stitches, helps to determine whether other DIY arrangements, i.e., widening the repeat or altering the edges of the shapes for use only on electronic machines, should be made.
For some reason, the yarn used, which had posed no problem in recent swatches, was particularly cranky in transfers. The swatch has several dropped stitches.Using a random flower design from a published source, 18X20 multiplied X2 in height and width, 36X40 4X6 brush fill to use as a background on a 60X60 canvas offers 2 choices, one can be to copy and paste the enlarged flower onto the mesh grid with the white color to alpha,  the other to lock the magenta color, and superimpose copy and paste the 60X60 mesh ground file onto it, not anchoring it in place until the preferred position is found.
36X40 The magenta shape is then bucket-filled with white.
Either method will require some cleanup to reach a programmable, final file size. In this case, for a 60X60 BW PNG.
When tested and drawn in repeat, followed by the decision to bring flower shapes closer together, cropping the design to 44X60 with a couple of shifted pixels in the center of the flower to keep the direction of all transfers the same across horizontal eyelet rows, and then tested.  Different distribution of the shapes: an untested brick repeat, 44X120,  and a half drop 88X60.  Changing the aspect ratio of the flower, an 18X20 slightly different design is multiplied in width by 2, in height by 3, to 36X60,   and superimposed on the 60X60 mesh ground with magenta bucket filled with white,  the tested repeat cropped to 48X60, produces a slight change in overall appearance,  adding the change in scale to the list of potential choices in DIY designs, if larger repeats are preferred, this previews the brick version, but the half drop needs work. Early Brother electronic machines, i.e., the 910s, used mylar sheets.
Any programmed design was automatically mirrored horizontally to avoid having images, i.e., text, appear in the wrong orientation on the knit face. When looking at images that accompany files, the direction of the motifs in the program is the mirror of those shared in the accompanying swatch.
The charted image is what appears on the purl side, facing the knitter.
Some download programs will automatically mirror any file, adding to confusion as to whether that is required in some instances.
A way to test whether mirroring is again required in your software/machine model is to program the desired mesh, knit a small swatch, and there should be no side-by-side needle selection.
A simple button selection on electronic models can flip the image horizontally if needed. My preference is to alter the PNG and save it before programming it, to avoid errors in larger pieces, or later returns to the design, since I am not always the best note keeper.
From Brother Electroknit Lace Patterns 3, two larger-scale patterns that are published on a rectangular grid show the mirroring of the design in the final knit and the change in aspect ratio.
Conversions to BW PNGs

60X132120X132
The appearance of the edges of the knit stitch shapes takes on the more familiar look of their edges as seen in my own shared designs. 
60X120
120X120 Ancient magazines are easily found online for browsing and inspiration.
Now tired of flowers, this Knitking magazine published a pattern that included a sailboat design, which caught my eye. Visually, the card offered clues as to a possible problem with the mesh ground, but initially, the only change that was made was to the starting row, as seen on the BW chart on the right.Additional clues are also in the tiled 24X56 PNG, and here are those knit stripes breaking up the ground behind the sails. It is not possible to know whether errata were ever published for the card, or whether the outfit may even have been knit on an electronic model.
If there is a fondness for the design, the background can be adjusted to maintain a consistent mesh while keeping the punch card 24 stitch constraint.
A close-up of the garment’s texture. The new 24X54 mirrored design attempting to duplicate it.  The result allows for a closer look at eyelet placements and further editing based on their distribution if desired. Some of the historically related posts:
To mesh or not to mesh 15/11To mesh or not to mesh 2 5/11

To mesh or not to mesh 3 5/11

To mesh or not to mesh 4 5/11
To mesh or not to mesh 5 7/17 a collection of mesh design repeats To mesh or not to mesh 6: chevrons 6/20

Lace knitting tips, to mesh or not to mesh 7 7/20
To mesh or not to mesh 8: more Numbers meet Gimp 5/21
To mesh or not to mesh 9: more on mock filet design 12/21

Unconventional uses for punchcards 2: thread lace cards for “filet” mesh 8/17



Revisiting adapting Studio punch card simple lace cards for use on Brother.

Ways to modify electronic and punch card published transfer lace designs looked at some ways to achieve lace designs on Brother models with single knit rows between transfer segments, which influences the number of total knit and lace carriage passes, changes the appearance of the spaces between the resulting eyelets, the height of the finished piece, and the aspect ratio and gauge of the original pattern executed as intended.
This post revisits a source of pattern inspiration for such knits that explores cross-brand patterning repeat development.
Links to historical blog posts on the topic are listed at the bottom.
There are so many sources for free, published volumes of all sorts of brand-specific knitting techniques, that finding inspiration in them for execution or DIY designs is endless and production-ready.
That said, as with punch card volumes for Brother machines, in Studio equivalents, not every type of possible stitch type is represented, and names for each may vary not only between brands but sometimes within the same brand, depending on the time of publication.
Testing techniques using simple geometric shapes and knitting with light-colored yarns makes it easier to understand what happens in the process and how stitches are formed, informing the choice as to whether to invest in DIY variations.
Perhaps not ideal to pursue in large pieces, some of the working through of issues to translate designs cross brand can increase understanding of how stitches are formed, and aid in developing personal preferences and patience limits in seeking out something specific or “new and different”.
The method for charting out the transfers by assigning colors to the left and right transfers aids in translating hand-knit charts for machine knitting.
Of note is that the yarn lines formed between the eyelets can take on multiple appearances.
The first exploration below uses a triangular motif taken from this hardbound edition, which is still readily available for purchase and offers a section for lace carriages that transfer and knit in single passes, as seen in Studio simple/plain lace patterns. Repeats are the standard 24-cell width, but row counts are not provided. A 24X52 repeat, IX.8, and its associated PNG. The arrow markings on the left of the cards do not necessarily indicate the direction of the transfers, simply the direction of the movement of the carriage, able to knit and transfer in a single pass, or plain knit.
The punch card advances with each carriage pass.
Blank rows on the card result in rows with no transfers, only knit stitches,
which can vary in numbers.
In traditional transfer lace on Brother, only the lace carriage passes are programmed. The knit carriage does not advance the card, unless for some reason, its cam is set for needle preselection in it as well.
If multiple knit rows are to be planned between lace segments, it is for the knitter to track where to place them.
If extra blank rows are present, they are usually intended for the lace carriage to advance the design before changes in direction, i.e., following the ins and outs seen in diamond shapes.
For proper needle selection, the lace carriage electronic trigger must move past the turn marks on either side. When testing on a small swatch, if the carriage is replaced on the opposite side inside the mark, there will not be proper needle selection.
A reminder, although these repeats may remain 24 stitches in width, the adaptations are suitable for use only on electronic models when operating carriages from both or alternate sides.
Punchcard models repeat selection with each carriage side change.
Electronic models with patterning engaged, i.e., using the LC, or the knit carriage set to KCI or II, advance a design row with each respective carriage pass.
These repeats do not require mirroring when programmed.
These spreadsheet-generated charts identify the direction of left and right transfers by assigning cyan to transfers to the left, magenta to transfers to the right, and the repeat is expanded to use the method described in the previous post, with the LC making 2 passes in the direction of the arrows, followed by a single knit row and a move of the LC to the opposite side for the next pair of rows.
In this instance, knit and transfer rows alternate with all white knit rows throughout the design.
24X52 (L), an increase of 4 rows to 24X56 (R)

The lace shapes are quite compressed. The same, 24X56 repeat, a different approach, analyzing the carriage actions on the single repeat height, 24X28.
T&K = Transfer and Knit. Noticing that each transfer/knit row is followed by a second, plain knit row, so that 2 knit rows follow each row of transfers, until the point is reached where 4 transfers have been made at the top of each triangle, resulting in 4 empty side-needles,   remove the lace carriage, knit only one row to the opposite side, and place the LC on the opposite the knit carriage again,  beginning transfers followed by two knit rows until the next set of 4 transfers at the top of the mirrored shape are made, then knit a single row, begin transfers once more from the side opposite the knit carriage. Comparing the purl sides of both for scale and similarity to the swatch image pictured in the publication. There are other arrangements of transfer and knit rows in the published sources.
Here they are staggered alternating transfer and knit, T&K,  to the left, followed by T&K to the right, up to the all blank row, which is an added plain knit row between repeat segments.
The repeat, expanded into a chart using Mac Numbers, adds lines marked in red for the execution of 2 consecutive knit rows.
On those rows, the LC remains on the same side, the KC makes its 2 passes, and the LC moves toward it again, alternating sides followed by single knit rows, until the next 2 knit rows sequence, and the process repeats.
The 24-row design is easy to track for the paired knit rows. If preferred, or for longer repeats, some machine models allow memos to be set, with beeps reminding the knitter of locations for specific actions. 12X24tested on 36 stitches.  A design with no blank rows, with the initial plan to move the LC again to alternate sides, followed by a single knit row after each LC pair of passes, IX.16. The original repeat, 26 rows in height, expanded to 52 rows. 8X52tested programming on 32 stitches made for an interesting design, but very different from the original.
Looking at the related expanded chart, each T&K row is followed by a knit row, so there are pairs of rows for the alternating to the left and the right transfers, requiring a different row expansion.
On the Brother, the LC and KC remain on their respective sides, with the LC making 2 passes for transfers to the left, four passes for transfers to the right.24X78 is also suitable for punch card machines since the respective carriages both travel away from and back to the same side of the knit bed.
The resulting swatch was tested on 32 stitches.  The difference in yarn thickness can make the match harder to recognize; here, the result is compared to the working repeat for the original. This last design is from an electronic Studio pattern book.  There are no blank rows; the left and right transfers alternate, offering an opportunity to treat the repeat in yet another way. The starting 28X24, rendered double height, 56X48, takes on a structure similar to thread lace designs, except that the eyelets are not placed in straight horizontal rows; they alternate.
Patterning begins with KC on the right,
LC on the left makes 2 passes, is removed to be brought to the opposite side,
The KC makes a single pass to the left,
LC makes the next two passes from the right and is removed,
KC makes a single pass to the right; the steps repeat.
With each second pass of the LC needle selection of stitches already transferred, repeats, and empty needles are brought forward before the next KC knit row pass.
The test swatch: So many machines…lace punchcard knitting  4/11
Lace punchcards_use on the Brother 260 Bulky 5/11
Studio transfer lace knit on Brother 910 3/14
Studio multi-transfer lace punchcard use on Brother punchcard machines  3/15
Studio simple lace on Brother electronics  9/13
Studio simple lace punchcards used on Brother  3/13
Revisiting the use of lace patterns Studio vs Brother machines 2/19

2D, 3D shapes and more on their possible automation

IN PROGRESS

Revisiting “wisteria” 3D shapes and their possible automation, reviewed a collection of blog posts, including repeat options that formed open, highly textured knits, with ladders, eyelets, and sometimes added patterning.
This repeat forms a more compact, textured surface with none of the large, open spaces in those knits, only the eyelets that form when short rowing designs in two-row sequences.
The chart could be followed in hand-selecting short rows, and can be expanded in height for wider stitch counts. The single repeat is 50X90. Depending on your machine model and download software, i.e., with my 930, it may require mirroring horizontally.
The first preselection row is from right to left.
Claw weights will be needed as each shape forms to keep stitches from jumping off.
This sample was knit using 2/8 wool, aiming for maximum texture. Even with a switch to thinner yarns, the attempt to introduce a second color did not get far with yarn and stitches “refusing to cooperate”.

 

 

More fabrics with knit bed tuck patterning 2

Tuck lace knits require specific needle arrangements to form properly.
Tucking on needles intended to be empty will keep building up loops in fixed locations, potentially resulting in interesting carriage jams and yarn formations.
End needle selection is canceled.
The following are typical published illustrations as found in punch card volumes.
The same repeats intended for tuck lace may be used in double bed work.
Cast on every needle, transfer stitches in the OOW locations down to the ribber, and proceed in pattern.
The reverse process, using patterns already established for double-bed work, can be tried for a more open single-bed tuck-lace knit.
Depending on the electronic machine model and the download software used, the pixel repeat match to the published punch cards may need mirroring horizontally.
Air knitting can be useful in determining needles to be taken out of work; they will not be selected in the same positions continually. Cast on every other needle, i.e., by chaining on every needle and dropping the chains in OOW needle locations, cancel end needle selection.
If the goal is to evaluate what happens with frequent color changes, a start can be made with the first preselection row from right to left toward it.
An alternative way to plan the designs is to repeat/ mark the same selections once more aside them in all blank needles out of work columns, making their use independent of needle placements on the machine bed. The smallest, altered repeat, tested every other needle on 48 stitches, and produces a fairly dense, reversible knit. Any of the following arrangements can be planned for asymmetrical or random arrangements of all components as well, once the stitch structure is understood.
Returning to one of the repeats shared in the post on more fabrics with knit bed tuck patterning (1), which originated with the starting published design, 24X48,   then modified by adding blank cell vertical columns for an isolated 10X24 repeat, the related chart and PNG. A chart with the intended transfers down to the ribber represented by magenta cells, and the tested 63X48 PNG.  The yarn used is Merino wool. This is a modified needle count and arrangement with tuck columns 7 stitches wide to accommodate ladders represented by cyan cells in the chart; extra black cells were added for knit stitch side edges. The 62X48 test PNG, used in the top swatch below. The repeat, adjusted for 5 stitch tuck columns, and its 61X48 PNG, knit-tested in the bottom of the image.  A repeat knit test of both, showing the transition in the needle arrangements in a different colorway. This yarn is a 2/18 alpaca and silk blend.
The part of the swatch with stitches transferred to the ribber measures 2+ inches wider than the ladder sample following it, 9.5 inches, as opposed to 7.25.Previous blog posts with added single-bed-related techniques and repeats:
Tuck trims 4 and other edgings
Tuck lace trims and fabrics 3
Tuck lace trims and fabrics 2
Tuck “lace” trims and fabrics 1
“Crochet” meets machine knitting techniques: tuck lace trims and fabrics 1
“Crochet” meets machine knitting techniques: tuck lace trims or fabrics 2