Category: Img2track

image editing and download software and cables

Gimp 4, pattern fill, dithered portraits, and more.

The latest version of Gimp for Mac includes many small changes which come with no announcements and take a bit of sorting out to recognize or problem-solve.
There are good collections of Youtube videos intended for use on much larger files, with fewer color restrictions than images used for knitting.
A dock is a container that holds a collection of dialogs.
I work in single-window mode and had an issue a few times recently with the tool dock and dialogue disappearing from the left.
The method that worked for me:
on a Mac, select the link to the Preferences/Settings window found in the GIMP application menu, next to the Apple menu. Scroll down in the left pane until you see the Windows Management entry. Click on it to open the relevant settings pane. Look for the giant button labeled Reset Saved Window Positions to Default Values, seen on the bottom right.  Click on it, and GIMP will pop up a small notification box letting you know that the save will go into effect the next time GIMP loads.
Click OK there, and click OK again in the main Settings window.
Close GIMP and reload it, and familiar settings should be back.
To prevent a reoccurrence of the issue, it is possible to lock the associated tab, permanently fixing the dialogue. To do so, click on the small shape next to the Tool Options Menu text on the top right, then select Lock Tab to Dock.  Tool icons are also changed at times, leading to puzzlement when steps used in the past do not work. An example, The layers menu no longer offers the difference mode used previously in custom color separations.
From the manual: “If you need to stay compatible with older GIMP versions or you need to use the legacy layer modes for other reasons, look for the icon to the right of the layer modes selection.
This drop-down menu will let you choose between Default and Legacy. If you choose the latter, the layer modes list will only show the legacy layer modes and all modes will have “(legacy)” behind their name (the selected mode will use the short version (l). ”
To make the dialog available: click on Legacy to switch mode selections.  My posts are at times generated in response to questions I have received through forums or direct contact via my blog, but most often by my exploring whatever rabbit hole attracts my attention for a period of time before leaping into the next.
A quick way to fill with a design/ drawing in repeat is to choose and open an image, ie this rose, indexed B/W 28X30 pixels Magnify ie to 800X, go to Edit, and Copy Visible to save it to the clipboard as long as the program is open
Choose File, New, in size that is a multiple of the original ie 84X90.
Select the brush tool  In the Windows menu choose Dockable Dialogues and select Symmetry Painting, then Tiling.
After entering the desired values, as you move onto the canvas, a brush icon and crosshair will appear, along with a square bordered with a dotted edge representing the clipboard brush in full size, place it touching the left upper corner for a straightforward tiled repeat, an alternative to the familiar method using Filter, Map, Tile.  Undo and repeat if needed.  
For a brick repeat For easy and quick drawing in any repeat configuration including random, I recommend using ArahPaint.
For other tiling repeats, I have found Gimp offset limiting, offering this as an alternative method for, in this case, a half-drop design.
Work in matching magnifications as steps are advanced.
Begin with the rose, use filter, map, and tile it to twice its height, 28X60 Open a new file, twice its height and width, 56X60 pixels.
Using rulers as guides for the half drop, place a center vertical guide at 28, horizontal guides at 15, and 45 click on the 28X60 selection at the top of the work window, copy and paste it on the file marked with guides first on the left side, click on the rectangle tool to fix the layer
paste it again on the right, placing a full rose in the center square outlined in the column,
paste again and  move the selection above or below to fill in the empty third of the column
select the rectangle tool again to fix the layer, save the 56X60 file,   filter, map, and tile again to test the alignment ie here, 168X80 the icons selections at the top of the work windows change as steps are completed   A visual summary of the 28X60 image placements  A pattern is a small image that fills areas by placing copies side by side, while a brush is used for painting.
In drafting A collection of geometric design blocks built with squares, rectangles, and lines and considering optical design development, Gimp fill with pattern gained my focus once more.
Pattern fill was discussed in Gimp update for Mac 2
In developing pattern-fill libraries, and saving them, using larger pixel group pngs rather than the smallest repeat needed makes identifying them easier.
These suggestions are for drafts on 8X8 pixel grids.
They may be used to pattern fill from the clipboard while the program is open, or exported as .pat files, adding them to a “my pattern” folder through program settings, where they will be available after Gimp is quit and reopened.
Always tile/draw-in-repeats to check alignment prior to saving.
Color-reversed versions are also useful.
Once the basics are tested, one may begin to move towards shapes and more complex repeats, particularly if using electronic machines. A library of circles, some in dimension used in developing truchet tiles, drawn using the built-in Gimp circle brush, from 5 to 24 and 28 pixels in size. Developing dot designs merit a separate thread as well as more on symmetry painting.
The patterns may be saved as color or black-and-white files.
Passap users should know even though they may see this icon from some old company-shared files along with their own .cut ones,  they are not compatible with Gimp software or any other outside the DAK universe that I know of, where they were an earlier format later replaced by the stp format.
There are always many ways to approach DIY, staggered lines of equal size with alternate color starting points can fill in spaces between each other.
Gimp has offset and symmetry drawing functions.
As a long-time repeat builder, if working in Gimp alone, I prefer working with multiple images open to using layers, and visually making the drops or shifts in the repeats manually by copying and pasting on progressive-size canvases.
Starting out with colored squares in RGB mode allows for filling in each color with multiple different BW patterns, for these samples I am using only 2 linear pattern fills, beginning with a 40X40 design  tiled X5 in brick repeat  and in half drop  Introducing other shapes, 16X16 brick configuration, 32X32
half drop, 32X16   Keeping that black outline, but still rendered in B/W Eliminating the outline, retaining a quarter circle, 16X16Using mirroring, and cropping the repeat using several canvases, eliminating double lines in the process, 30X30.  The maximum size in width for large items in a single piece is generally between 180 and 200 stitches on 5 mm and 4.5 mm respectively.
Gimp comes with many built-in assorted patterns which can serve as a starting point. Here a 160X160 canvas is filled with a Gimp pattern, planning a 20 stitch border on all sides.  Convert image mode to greyscale,  using Colors/Curves adjust values to an input of 47, and an output of 203,   and if planning to knit the piece in only 2 colors, convert the result once more to indexed B/W mode To add any desired border, open a new file, in this case, 200 by 200, working in RGB mode, and fill it with any color other than black.
Copy and paste the image above onto it, it will be automatically centered  Choosing another built-in pattern, the red border is pattern filled To eliminate the yellow, use fuzzy select by color, and check that the bucket fill tool is set to fill with the background or foreground color again.
Press the shift key, and replace the yellow with white.
Convert mode to indexed B/W once more, and export as png.
If desired, using a grid view and pencil tool, additional black borders can be added.
The shift command keys on the Mac used in conjunction with the pencil tool help render straight pencil lines. Any of the larger files developed as tiled designs can be cropped to different dimensions depending on preference and end-use.
Decades ago, before software design aids, there was a knitting challenge circling around to include hidden language or undesirable language in a not necessarily easy-to-read format in knitting, beginning with hand-scripted text, which was then mirrored in width and height.
This was my version of DBJ vertical design, with the photo rotated and repeated to visualize what the appearance might be on a larger piece.
There are some really interesting examples of hiding messages in textiles throughout history and even books written on the topic, it is referred to as steganography, which means hidden writing.
When I was teaching there were often as many as 15-20 students knitting in the studio at the same time, and I felt a need for an expletive outside the less civilized 4 letter word that came to mind when multiple emergency yell shouting my name for help occurred at a single time.
Hints on using text: Gimp to create text for knitting
This image, rendered in Gimp with superimposed text and filled with patterns in both the text and in the background illustrates my answer to that problem.   I have often seen illustrations of artworks for sale online using portraits with superimposed all-over patterns.
This concept for a possible knit began with an AI-generated foursome using Midjourney  My chosen image, originally 700X700, with image mode changed from RGB to greyscale, indexed to 3 colors, scaled and trimmed to 181X183selecting a random brush for superimposed pattern, 30X40  file, new, exact dimensions as portrait, white ground, 181X183, fill with pattern, layer, transparency, color white to alpha,    copy and paste on portrait file, fix layer, save .png Image ready for download using img2track  For use on a 930, the design is broken down into multiple tracks by the software, each to be downloaded in sequence as a new pattern.  The same repeat, with a few pixel changes  Using a different punchcard pattern repeat with a different pattern fill, the portrait becomes more hidden A video on achieving a similar effect using Arahpaint   If the goal is only to change the background, there are several options for that as well.
One way to remove a background containing varied shapes, and return to an often-used of my old friend Rocco,
the file, 150X154,  add an Alpha Channel The Free Selection tool, or Lasso, allows for creating a selection by using a pointer.
Since GIMP-2.10.12, selection modes now, in 2.10.34, work differently.
Marching ants/dots come with a continuous line, meaning that the selection is not validated yet and that you can still change the selection shape (the mouse pointer comes with the Move icon) but keyboard commands may no longer work. When satisfied with the changes hit enter/ return key on Mac to validate the selection.  Enlarge the image to make following and marking its outline easier.
Freehand selection can be made in small segments at a time connecting short lines, or long, continuous strokes.
First, create a starting point by clicking on your image.
A yellow dot will appear. As you move along the edge of the image, the colored dot reappears every time you stop, with the previous locations turning into empty circles.
When it is reached, if you click on the endpoint, it turns filled and is accompanied by a moving cross.  Use the return key to pause if needed.
Pressing and releasing the mouse pointer allows you to mix free-hand segments and polygonal segments.
If you click on the endpoint, dragging alters the shape.
When the endpoint is on top of the starting point, click to close the selection.
Double-clicking on the endpoint closes the selection with a straight line.
You can go outside the edge of the image display and come back in if you want to.
Escape cancels all continuous selection segments.
When the lasso selection is completed there will be visible dotted lines around the selection Color invert the result Open a new, white canvas of the same size and magnification, and copy and paste the color inverted one on it  Use color invert once more, Rocco is now on a black ground Using the result in online dithering programs provides a different result than when dithering the full greyscale image. This result is from using https://29a.ch/ditherlicious/  If the result is an instant favorite, and the goal is to fill the ground with a pattern, use the lasso tool again to eliminate the black more carefully than I did, repeat the steps to color invert, copy and paste on red,  Color invert once more,
Fill the background with a chosen pattern, convert image mode to indexed B/W, and export the resulting file
If the image is to be knit using 3 (or more) colors per row, this is one of the myriad possible results using my favorite dithering option, https://app.dithermark.com. Returning to the greyscale image on the black ground,  the latter can be bucket filled directly with any chosen pattern   To superimpose a pattern on the whole image, fill a white canvas in the same dimensions with the pattern use Layer, transparency, color white to alpha  Copy and paste the result on the original Full greyscale is not knittable.
What about using the AI portrait in B/W or 3-4 color knitting?
172X172ditherlicious 2-color,   and dithermark using the built-in pattern selector for 4-color.   The image will be elongated in actual knitting, this window from img2track on the left is set for 4 colors. Changing selection to 2 colors and opening the same image, it is converted to B/W 3-color with diagonal hatching 2-color
Though visually some images may appear as though more than 2 colors are in use, here is the comparison using img2track between opening the above on the left, and, on the right, after changing the image mode to B/W indexed using Gimp with added cross-hatching followed by image mode to B/W in Gimp simply to note visual differences    
and a different cross-hatch, with a value balance change, in B/W mode

 

Blistered dbj 3

Names referring to the same knit fabric can vary between machine manuals for specific models and brands or references in books, magazines, and articles depending on the dates they were published.
My earlier share on the topic:
Blistered stitches dbj 1
Blistered DBJ 2 and technique variations on a single repeat, introduced some of the concepts involved.
Beginning with any random published repeat can offer the start of exploring a range of fabrics. This was a Pinterest punchcard share, markings indicate it was intended for Brother machines  Methods for obtaining color separations for specific knits have been discussed in other posts.
Brother models can use the cam buttons to perform a function in one direction only, ie by using only one tuck or slip button, the machine will knit when the carriage reverses movement to the opposite side.
Developing specific color separations makes the files usable on other machine brands and models, makes it easier to return to specific rows in error corrections, and is my personal preference in test swatching and complete pieces.
Drawing the initial design in repeat provides a visualization of the resulting secondary shapes and the number of needles required for tiled variations in finished pieces based on gauge.
The first design is intended for use in every needle rib, with the knit carriage knitting in one direction, and using slip or even tuck in the opposite direction.
The 24X32 design extracted from the inspiration punchcard  A: the rendering scaling the design twice in length
B: making the choice to color invert it in planning slipped stitches on the larger number of white pixels
C: superimposing black lines on every other row beginning with row 2 A quick review of the steps involved in working with Gimp:
begin with magnification for easy viewing, ie. 800X, view grid if preferred
the starting brush can be as small as this 2-pixel   select it and save it to the clipboard by choosing copy visible, making it available to bucket fill images, or export the same design as a .pat file and save it in the appropriate settings folder for future use.  A: the original design repeat rendered in black and white
B: layer, transparency, color white to alpha
C: file, new, white ground, matching size, filled with a pattern of pairs of horizontal all-white pixel rows beginning with white on row one, followed by all-black pixel rows on row 2
D: copy B and paste it on C, and export the file as png The chosen repeat may not be color reversed after programming it using the machine’s built-in electronic functions.
White pixels slip, stitches on the main bed in non-selected areas would not knit off for extended periods ie where red marks occur, and noticeable problems would develop quickly Beginning proofs of concept for this version, 24X64  knit on 60 stitches using it drawn in repeat X3, 72X64, and programmed as a single motif  The result is a very subtle contrast lacey knit The yarn thickness and color were changed. The pattern begins using the slip setting and transitions to tuck, also in only one direction. Because the ribber is knitting every stitch between stitches on the top bed holding side-by-side loops down, tucking on multiple side-by-side needles can be performed,  producing a wider, stretchy knit that also lies flat.  True blisters/pintucks generally knit rows on the top bed alone forming pockets that are eventually sealed by all knit rows.
Slip stitch settings are used.
The design is at first lengthened X5, then every 5th row is filled with black pixels or punched holes.
A begins in smaller groups of gathers, testing for any errors or problems, while B allows for deeper folds. A: the mark shows the stitches on the top bed begin to slip far too many rows
due to using the color reverse option in the 930 before continuing to knit.  With a switch to the blue yarn, all-knit spaces between the pockets now begin to appear gathered. Slip stitch results in narrower knits, noticeable in the ruffled effects on every needle rib above the cast ons B: the extra row of slipped stitches result in a far more textured knit   Developing other layouts for the same design, brick 24X128   half drop 48X64 Eliminating unwanted extra stitches from the original, modified to 24X28 pixels drawn in repeat to 144X168 brick version 24X56 half drop 48X28  adding those all knit rows  Viewing repeat alignments  The 24X112 brick repeat suitable for punchcards, not tested,   and the half drop, 48X56  tested using a 10/2 cotton and lightly steamed and pressed. Knit on 80 stitches, it measures 17 inches in width and 11 in height.
an attempt at a more detailed look  

 

More Truchet inspired tiles, a brief look at gradient filter use


The latest ArahPaint user manual download,  updated on February 9, 2023, includes added directions for drawing in repeat including a truchet/Smith tile variant.
This post will not provide specific how-tos, the pngs can be downloaded and used to perhaps test Arah’s features or to aid in finding a personal, preferred method for manipulating DIY designs.

There are additional Arahpaint options for altering designs in width and height which may be used progressively on the same image. Some in the group of edits and rotations are evocative of the Passap console’s Alter programming loop.   Lower in the same menu, diagonal mirroring opens yet another series of possibilities. These samples were produced in a Passap workshop, using the console Alter, add commands. Note that mirrored areas have identical pairs of side-by-side pixels at their meeting points,  while ArahPaint offers an opportunity to change that, a thing to keep in mind when returning to simpler motifs such as those used for tuck stitch. Performing the rotations, however, will render the result with an odd number of pixels in width, often making them less likely to be usable in punchcard models  My area of interest has been primarily and still is in creating textures beginning with small repeats that may grow in complexity and size to make the structures programmable and thus easier to track and execute.
Presently I rarely engage in multiple color motif work ie fair isle or other large-scale textile pattern applications but my curiosity in applied techniques has led me down this potential giant rabbit hole.
The speed and ease of drawing variations for repeats using ArahPaint make the process addictive.
The source of inspiration for this design series is “The curse of truchet tiles”.
When recognizable circles are a goal, these tiled motifs often begin with starting sizes as wide as the 24-stitch standard punchcard repeat limitation, and the manipulated larger motifs are suitable only for electronic machine models capable of accepting software downloads. Adding lines and extra dots of circles
Isolating fractions and individually rotating segments to draw again rendering larger repeats More info on knitting DBJ using more than 2 colors per row:
DBJ: more than 2 colors per row 3 3/22
Img2track_multiple colors per row dbj, each color knitting only once 1/21
DBJ: more than 2 colors per row 2   12/19
DBJ: more than 2 colors per row 1 12/19
Adding one more color to the last repeat whole planning a knitting a test at a max of 3 colors per row knittable in a single track 
The img2track window Positions of the respective yarns in the color changer as suggested by the program result in accuracy prompts by the machine on which of the respective colors should be in use at any one time.  Planning gauge-dependent pieces using large repeats requires large test swatches, generally a minimum of 100 stitches by 100 rows.
Adding and varying the colors in the design draft to match the yarns to be used in the repeat helps to visualize the possible result, and allows for using the sequence suggested by the download program to help track the proper color changes.
The test here is 60 stitches wide, knit one full repeat in height, measuring 7.5 inches in width by 11.75 inches in height after resting. On rows where the colors for the dots and squiggles may knit in small parts or not at all, there will be a preselection of large groups of needles such as seen here.  Birdseye setting is used to decrease motif lengthening. The img2track user manual describes the steps necessary for downloading to different model knitting machines and possibly using more than single tracks. A series inspired by another of the tiles in the linked publication   
Similar to one of the source repeats, increasing the balance between light and dark Open areas or specific rotations in the visual space may be created by eliminating or rotating individual segments.
To change the mirroring type, place a mouse pointer over the arrow that you want to change, and press the left mouse button. The arrow will jump to the next mirror type. With only 5 mirror types, you will get what you want in a maximum of 4 clicks. If you press the right mouse button, it will put the arrow to the default orientation. The result of course is dependent on the original file choice. Combining duplicating repeat variations with drawing in repeat helps one develop a DIY library of favored tilings. Begin with a possible background Tools/ Find Repeat  Aiming for knot variations, a cross-over to add to segments of the ground, manipulating individual tiles, adding copy and paste More play with manual duplication of tiles as opposed to drawing in repeat Combining different scale repeat segments, starting with 54X36 pixels  And it’s not all about just circles, a 36X36 pixel design to play with A reminder, if the plan is to add color in continuous lines, it is best to place the colors after the full design repeat has been developed rather than on the individual starting tile segments, For some, this would be considered a design feature.  A very different look may be achieved using any of the available filters. A square image of any size may be filled with a color gradient while keeping in mind the fact that knitting is very low resolution and the maximum number of available needles for patterning is 200 or under.
Beginning with a 20-stitch file. Below the software tool options on the right, click on the tool in the area marked with the red shape to produce a design that may then in turn be drawn in repeat No edges were cleaned up in this view. The design meets the maximum 200 pixels/needles size Going larger, an 80-pixel start to end with a 160-pixel blanket or tapestry suitable image with some wiggle room for adding a frame/border. The concept may be used in various densities for use in an accessory such as a scarf, spaced and colored to your liking, or even sweater bodies and sleeves planned specifically based on stitch and row counts for each of the pieces involved. Filters may also be applied in developing other stitch structures in addition to working with color motif designs. That topic merits its own post.

A “fast pattern” user guide shared by the ArahPaint 6 developer October 2023 which demonstrates how to use filters with associated designs https://www.arahne.eu/pdf/fastpattern-EN.pdf

Truchet/Smith inspired designs 2 meet ArahPaint

Added explorations of the Smith tiles.
Most common knitting machines capable of accepting electronic pattern downloads have a number of needles ranging between 180 and 200 on either of the available beds.
Punchcard machines have a 24-stitch constraint in width for repeats that are selected in fixed locations on the top bed, while height row counts can be endless if one keeps joining punchcards together.
The narrow repeat width does not allow for impactful tiling such as seen in the truchet variants.
A 24-stitch initial repeat can be created, but will not align properly ie. here:
the 24X56 png, colored in and repeated in width and height X3. It can, however, be drawn in repeat using ArahPaint to produce a new and successful design repeat ie this 48X112 pixels version and its appearance in repeat on a larger canvas: Electronic machines can be used to knit large, non-repetitive designs based on the number of needles available on their beds.
Unless knit-from-screen software is used, the size of the files downloaded to specific machine models varies depending on both the software used and the knitting machine’s available memory.
One of the issues using online generators as seen in the previous post is that the files tend to be high in pixel counts and rendered in RGB mode.
Changing image modes to BW indexed and scaling the large design to a smaller version have an effect on the edge definition of the shapes and are likely to require clean-up to remove or add pixels.
Beginning with small and clearly defined forms, tiling repeatedly to larger ones will allow for results that can be cropped to specific sizes with clean edges along the secondary shapes.
Beginning the proposed method with the Smith tile, a place to start is to choose the smallest successful circular forms.
The repeat works using quarter squares, so the file size needs to be an even number of pixels in width and height.
Getting a sense of the appearance of the edges of small circular shapes, with the intent of choosing one for fabric development, beginning with an 8-pixel diameter, and increasing it in turn by 2 pixels at a time to 20.  The 8-pixel circle is chosen for this exercise.
Following the steps outlined by the developer in the video viewable on Instagram and Facebook, open a new picture, and set the image size to 8X8 pixels The goal is to create a clean design outline forming shapes that may be filled in to yield the secondary tiling designs.
To zoom in or out in ArahPaint: use Shift+ or – on Mac, click on the magnifying lens icons in the toolbox, use the command key and roll the mouse wheel or scroll along the vertical center line of the mouse, or press any number from 0-9 on the keyboard to change zoom directly to that level (1 means 100%, 6 means 600%, O means 1000%).
In RGB mode even if the shapes are drawn in black, when converted to indexed BW some pixels will be lost. If any lines are broken, control in using the bucket fill tool on only selected areas is lost.
To begin with, set the number of colors and the pencil size to one pixel   Use the draw circle tool, and select drawing from the center Draw a quarter circle starting on the bottom right of the square, and ending in the center of this image. In this case, there will be 4 white pixels on the left of the line, half the diameter of the planned circle. Click on the pencil tool to set the image. Repeat the Process, drawing a mirrored image beginning on the upper left pixel position, and ending in the center of the image as well Open the drawing in the repeat window and set the number of repeats vertically and horizontally, done here first in standard alignment. Do not click on random, select new picture, OK. If satisfied, save the png. Undo may be used to revert to the original file unless new picture was left unchecked.
For the Smith tile repeat, do click on random to apply different rotations of the repeat.
Load the 8X8 file
Zoom out to check the pattern and view changes adequately
Open the draw in repeat window
Click on random, and the proposed rotations will appear as symbols,  click on new picture and then on OK to view the result, a file that will now be 32X48 pixels. The result can be saved. To preview other arrangements:
choose undo, return to draw in repeat, random, preview, and with each repeated click on random a new image will appear on the screen. At any point select a new picture, OK, and save the result.  The final png for test knitting for my test swatch Its segments bucket filled with black  If bucket fill fails selectively and floods the whole image, return to drawing in repeat and click on close. Return to the image and continue the fill-in process.
Developing a larger repeat to select an area of interest while keeping in mind the maximum needle width of 200. This repeat is perhaps usefully cropped to blanket size.  Seeking a shorter and narrower motif for a scarf, in the range of 60 to 100 pixels in width that may not require too many tracks when programming the 930, the same 32X48 design is drawn in repeat X4 in width, X2 in height to 128X96 pixels. The above is split directly in half vertically for this exercise, rendering two files, each composed of 64X96 pixels. The left half,   and the right Checking vertical alignments and committing to the one on the right for the test swatch, knitting on 60 stitches for 120 design rows, using KCI, and starting with dark color from left.    That shape in blue that looks almost rectangular is actually not quite circular in the repeat, seen here color-reversed on the bottom right, with the definition also slightly lost in the knit due to the stitch size and birdseye stitches twist.  Comparing the 3 swatches in scale and shape definition: A tiny repeat formed with a thicker line Drawn in random repeat Dividing shapes into symmetrical segments is easy after configuring grid properties, in this case into thirds 12X12 in repeat adding an outline to change the weight of the lines by a single pixel all over without using more specific options Using the filled in double circle 18X18 repeats drawn in repeat While the definition of true circular shapes may be an issue for some when knitting the Smith variant, others may enjoy variations made by playing with other shapes and angles, here a 16-pixel square was divided into quarters adding a single pixel contour combining quarter circles sith full squares   Building larger repeats with interwoven intersections Playing with adding colors. In many instances when tiles are drawn in repeats requiring rotations of the original file, coloring in needs to be done after the final image has been composed.   Color exchanging fine black outlines to white, or filling the white background with black in order to reduce files for knitting no more than 3 colors per row.  The more complex designs become exponentially larger, require electronic downloads, and must meet the limitations of machine memory. The maximum equivalent for pixel per stitch is 200 pixels in width on 4.5 mm knitting machines, and 180 for Passap, with the possibility of separating the width and length into panels for large pieces ie tapestries, or blankets. Long vertical design segments, depending on their height, may also need to be separated in steps for programming them to produce narrow, long, pieces such as scarves or shawls.
The truchet triangles pose a different issue in knit design.
Quilters are familiar with block designs easily found in print and online that technically may be broken down into triangular blocks joined and meeting to form sharp points. Truchet in his publication used half-square triangles and assigned letters to the segments,   providing alphabetical references in illustrations for the permutations,  all far easier to achieve nowadays with the aid of software.
In ArahPaint, begin with choosing a square size, in this instance, 8 pixels by 8 pixels, matching that in the exercise using circles, and draw a triangle filling the canvas from corner to corner Drawing in repeat, the choice is made to repeat the triangles twice in both width and height, the preview symbols for the rotations of the shape are illustrated pointing in the same direction by default.  Clicking on any of those half-arrow shapes will rotate the specific shape in the tiled design, this becomes an action that may be influenced manually.  Selecting new image will render this,  which illustrates what happens when those triangles are used in knit motif designs. Inevitably, there will be areas where corner pixels meet to join others and the choice will need to be made between using the original or the color-reversed version of the repeat. Designing for a maximum 200-pixel design, the number of available needles on Japanese knitting machines, and continuing with random selections, paste 25 times in each direction, ultimately saving one of the new images:
its color reversed version Deciding on the first, an isolated area can be cropped to be used in an accessory ie a 72-stitch scarf, retaining full triangles, using the full 200-pixel height. Wanting to retain a 96-row max height for use on the 930, what happens when repeats line up vertically?  the isolated 72X96 design The assumption is that any change in vertical simple repeats will line up forming new triangles at the intersections not visually interpreted as patterning errors, the above repeated 3 times in height to 72X288 Committing to a test swatch: the wool ply is 2/13, and the space dyed rayon 20/2 and thinner in appearance. The contrast is not high, to begin with, and since the sample is knit as DBJ, as a result of the difference in yarn thickness the dark color bleeds through behind the lighter, reducing that contrast even further.
The places where the single pixels at the individual shape corners meet other shapes in the repeat can still be easily located.
The sample repeat size is 68X96 pixels, designed to include 2-stitch vertical borders drawn with dark pixels, the knit carriage was set to KCII, which allows the formation of distinct single color edges  Another alternative: beginning with a 9X9 repeat, drawn in repeat to 225X225, shapes do not touch in this rendering,  but do if color-inverted.  Isolating a repeat from the “floating” triangles, 45X81 tiled X3 to 45X243 may look ok but aside from the issue of choosing visually floating shapes vs still touching ones,  the big problem to be considered is the fact that for the machine KRC color separation to happen correctly, the repeat downloaded must be an even number of rows. A workaround may be to double the original height to 162 rows prior to programming it since one cannot use double height and KRC buttons at the same time in many machine models. Pursuing personal preferences can be endless. I am increasingly fond of the repeat that began with the 8X8 square.
Working with quarter-filled segments:  multiplied by 20 in each direction to a 200-pixel repeat. Drawn using random/ preview/ prior to saving the file  Its color reversed view

Truchet tiling design inspiration 1

For many years my knitting of accessories and wearable pieces was my source of income, guided by what pricing the local market would bear, the limitations of mylar sheets or that of an early Passap interface to program repeats, and the amount of time required to complete each piece.
There is practicality and ease in playing with colors using small motifs single-bed, and varying materials and yarn plies allowed me to aim for limited edition designs without looking at identical finished products more than once or occasionally a few times.
At first, Ayab and then img2track changed the playing field in terms of downloading and programming designs.
Eventually, my knitting moved from production pieces for sale to creating samples for my blog almost exclusively.
I have had a long and continued interest in math-based designs, and knit a line of accessories using automata-inspired repeats, often limiting the repeats in size to ones that would align vertically without having to program multiple DBJ segments, reducing the possibility of programming errors in scarves that would often require around 1200 knit rows in length.
A 930 followed the 910, this, knit in July 2021, was my first try at using img2track to download multiple tracks. There are many ways to yield math-based patterns, and nowadays online generators and reference sites abound, making it possible for nongeeks to use the resulting files to create knit suitable designs.
Some recent Truchet tile images shared on Instagram brought me back to exploring math-based images and what by default needs to be executed as larger-scale design motifs in knitting.
Sebastian Truchet was a Carmelite priest whose “Memoir sur les Combinasions” was published in 1704. It is a wealth of patterns built up from a simple motif, which you can see here
http://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/bpt6k3486m.image.f526.langFR and in which he discussed squares, half black, half white, split into triangles, with four possible orientations for each tile. He was also the inventor of the point system for indicating the sizes of typeface fonts.
His method of tiling by the combination of manipulating four-letter codes, A, B, C, and D, in rotations using triangular shapes inspired new variations in tilings.
Cyril Stanley Smith introduced two alternatives to the basic Truchet tile in 1987. One uses only diagonal lines to create maze-like designs where the coloring is removed and only the boundaries remain. The other, resulting in the designs produced in this post, uses quarter circles that may be filled or used as outlines and rotated to form the final shapes.  Distinctions in naming the tiles are not often made. “Truchet” is the commonly used generic term.
Some articles on the tilings:
Generalizations of truchet tiles, Multiscale Truchet Patterns, The Tiling Patterns of Sebastien Truchet and the Topology of Structural Hierarchy, and More on tiles, fun with portraits.
Basic elements include contrasting triangles,  quarter circles, and diagonal lines.
One may find code for programming DIY in various GitHub links. Python is far beyond my interest or skill, there are many ways to achieve the designs.
Spreadsheets are also programmable, but require the development of formulas.

Developing patterns from online sources, beginning with the Smith variation using quarter circles: the Wolfram site is a computing and math one well worth exploring, the files there are Computable Document Files, a document standard developed by Wolfram Research. They can be saved and opened using the Wolfram CDF Player, which is a standalone application and a Web browser plug-in provided for free.
To preview search results in a browser: https://demonstrations.wolfram.com/TruchetTiles/.
Ad blockers may interfere with proper previews in Safari but appears to not be an issue using Chrome as the browser.
Files cannot be saved from the preview results other than as screengrabs.
What is cdf  
For permanent access to preferred CDFs:
CDF Wolfram player download is available for Mac and Windows, you will be asked to provide an email address.
After the player is installed and opened, click on the central option, and search for your area of interest.  Any demonstration may be saved for future use, most are customizable to varying degrees.
In my first effort, I used colors and left the black outlines. The second, simpler method of editing follows below it.  The swatch png, 58X150, includes 2 stitch vertical borders in the dark color. The machine was set to the built-in KRC color separation for DBJ. Some of the circular shapes have been already edited, but if I were to reuse the repeat, I would clean up more of the design shape edges
160 design rows were knit, measuring 7.5 inches by 20.5.
The dark color is a chenille from an unmarked cone with uncertain yardage. The space-dyed is an 8/2 rayon slub.
Tension was set at 5/5, the knit carriage on KCI, and the ribber using lili buttons for birdseye backing. KCII may be used as well if preferred, the side vertical edges will have a slightly different appearance. Developing an added repeat:
the working file in the cdf is a default 600 by 600 pixels. If the goal is to save a black-and-white downloadable png, the present plan is to fill in portions of the design with black while leaving others in white.
Checking tiling insures continuous designs at any point in the process.
It is possible to directly scale size in the cdf, but the shape outlines become broken in the automatic % reduction, so the filling-in process I suggest fails to be contained. In this exercise, none of the other available parameters were changed. When the player is launched, click on the tile, it will be surrounded by an orange line,  copy the image, and it can then be pasted directly into Gimp.  Change the Image Mode to BW Indexed before proceeding further.
Using the fuzzy select tool click on any area in the design, it will be surrounded by dotted lines select bucket fill, to fill the selected area with black.
Edit, undo will revert to the previous steps in sequence at any point.
If satisfied, select the rectangle tool.
Clicking on the selected area will allow its use for copying and pasting the outlined segment on a new canvas or cropping the area to the selection for saving while clicking anywhere in the Gimp work window fixes the results. The dotted lines disappear. Repeat the process on the remaining image.  The processed file will measure 600X600 pixels.
Anyone working with large-scale images and reducing file size to make them available for knitting as single panels on a standard machine is familiar with the loss of detail and the need for cleanup of edges as incremental decreases in file size are attempted.
Magnifying any of these will help evaluate forms and scaling decisions for final repeats to be used in knit test swatches.
Downloading or copying and pasting them from here for personal use may change the image mode to RGB in the process, check mode and convert them to indexed BW if needed before any further use.
300X300200X200 pixels  150X150 pixels  The proof of concept was knit using the 100X200 repeat without any pixel cleanup.  The blue yarn is a 2/20 wool, and the white is a 2/28 Italian yarn of unspecified fiber content from my stash. Both beds were set at 2/2. The KRC setting separated the colors so each color in each row knits only once, but it takes 2 passes to complete one row, so 100 design rows translate to 200 rows of knitting. In this instance, img2track used on the 930 broke up the design into 2 tracks, a 66-row first track, followed by a 134-row one.
Each track needed to be programmed sequentially.
The ribber was set for birdseye backing, which in this case results in an interesting shadowing of the pattern Comparing the two swatches: Variations in tiles made by changing variable view options will still align when combined, easily producing a range of new designs at merging points. Use guides to help narrow down segments of interest, here they are placed at even 100-pixel intervals on two adjoining 600-pixel images. To remove a single guide after placing it, go to Edit, Undo Add the Horizontal or Vertical Guide. To remove all guides, go to View, and uncheck Show Guides.
And for those not averse to developing any larger motifs from scratch, the limitations of any geometric shape, when reduced to low-resolution knitting, mean the search must begin for what one determines to be a pleasing circular form.     My original circle was placed on a 40X40 grid with outlines every 10 cells, the central circular 20X20 repeat was isolated and split into quarters, in turn generating these 2 tiles out of the 8 total required, also 20X20, with the second the color-reversed image of the first. A similar approach can be used in color to visualize the initial 8 tile repeats and their rotations in order to form new shapes. This technique may be useful in planning floor tile patterns but is cumbersome for developing knit designs. Facilitating and speeding up the process: in my post on using ArahPaint and Gimp in knit design, I briefly touched on the Drawing-in-repeat feature in Arah to produce random tiling.

Thanks to the developer there now is a video, viewable on Instagram and Facebook, on how to use the feature for this type of tile, which allows for very quick DIY versions that can be trimmed as needed for knitting. This is my very first try, a how-to will follow in the next post.   And the second, composed of triangular formsFor spreadsheet users, this one generates the various tiles in Google Sheets and a related article.

 

 

Figurative designs in mosaic knitting

Designs may be developed to incorporate lines and grids by outlining motifs, filling in the results with grids or lines, and even color inverting the results.
From an early 2013 post:
Each number on the grids below represents 2 consecutive rows of knitting. The design may be elongated in the drawing of the final repeat itself prior to punching holes, marking mylar or pixels, or elongated using the built-in setting in the KM used, whether electronic or punchcard.
Color changes are required every 2 rows.
The grids: After a motif has been separated, usually color 1 is represented in row 1, and all odd-numbered rows
color 2 is represented by row 2 and all even-numbered rows
long horizontal lines in mazes usually occur on odd-numbered rows
even-numbered rows typically have no more than 2 black squares marked side by side
on odd-numbered rows, the white cells slip
on even-numbered rows, the black cells slip
odd-numbered rows are knitted in the primary color (black cells)
even rows are knitted in the contrasting color (white squares)
Forming shapes and or text on the vertically symmetrical grid: 
2023
These single-bed knits are ideal when float control is an issue, or when one wishes to reduce the bulk of fair isle techniques. There are, however,  geometric design restrictions and the resulting patterns may be too “busy” for some.
Separated designs interrupted by black or white lines rather than single-cell dots are knit using slip stitch on the single bed, or in every needle rib with the knit carriage set to slip or even tuck in both directions on the top bed, and the ribber set to knit in both directions, a very different fabric.
The basic procedures for drawing figurative repeats may be worked out using graph paper or image processing programs, depending on what tools are available.
Working in Gimp, generate a file in a basic grid, which in turn may be tiled to any dimensions needed. Using the bottom grid is problematic in creating figurative mosaics using the connect-the-dots technique. Attempted vertical lines do not connect cleanly.   Cautious planning is required in executing figurative designs.
Clean-up will often result in solid color surrounding shapes or the addition of some short solid lines.
Doodling with blocks on both grids in a spreadsheet.  Text becomes more complicated if one seeks to emulate favorite fonts or to work on a small scale.
A spreadsheet using multiple colors may make the drawing easier to start with. By necessity, repeats will once more need to be large.
With practice, one develops favorite ways of reaching the chosen goal. Large shapes may be superimposed on either dotted grid for final editing depending on what sort of border one wishes to add in designs for end-use in large pieces such as blankets.   Figurative drawing occurs on rows marked with black pixels on the grid where black dots line up vertically.
White rows remain blank except where the black dots in the shape’s outline need to connect vertically.
After the outline for the motif is created, the filling-in of the shape is executed connecting dots once again.
By necessity, these shapes need to be large.
My first design is 68 stitches wide by 40 high. Processing the image is done on the same design. When color-separating Mosaics the design is not elongated.
Using the steps described in previous posts on a copy of the initial file: color invert, It is interesting to observe that the knitted result matches this image.
The file may begin as black and white indexed, but prior to adding colors the mode needs to be changed to RGB.
Add a third color beginning on every other row beginning on row 1,    using layer, transparency, and color to alpha, the third is removed, leaving black and white.  The alpha file is copied and pasted on the original resulting in a knittable mosaic repeat that requires elongation X2.
Check that the file is in indexed BW mode prior to saving it for knitting, it will need to be elongated X2 if used as is.  The above doubled in height, now 68 stitches wide by 140 high, may be knit as is.  Those solid black areas are OK. On the corresponding design rows, needle selections on nearly every needle will take place, those needles will knit the color in use at the time.
The tuck setting is possible, the final appearance will be quite different. For my swatch, I used the slip setting.
Slip-stitch pieces tend to have vertically straight side edges, while tuck ones tend to have wavy ones.
The floats on the purl side are still only 2 stitches wide.
The all-knit areas are not reduced in height, so they ripple initially and became flattened with blocking in this case, but caused the top and bottom of the horizontally striped segment to curve.
Starting knitting using the light color as opposed to dark will color invert the design.
The blue yarn used here is wool and the yellow is acrylic.
The swatch was steamed and pressed.
The dark color is dominant.  Visualizing the color inverted image using the photograph of the swatch rather than actually knitting it:  A 48X46 heart to play with for DIY Beginning in a spreadsheet followed by transitioning to Gimp can use a similar dot-to-dot design concept. It offers the opportunity to make adjustments before fixing on placement for the final black pixels over other colors. Moving away from dot to dot to “visually pleasant” does not necessarily work.
The flower design chosen and committed to for the moment is 37X32, visualized on possible backgrounds, and placed on a final one drawn with straight diagonal lines in pattern, for the test knitting  Aside from whether accurate tiling is possible for that final repeat, it has far too many white rows uninterrupted by black squares. As in any slip-stitch fabric, a stitch is held in every white cell or unpunched area location until a black cell or punched hole follows it, the result is very elongated single stitches on the knit side: There is a limit as to how big a part of any final mosaic repeat can truly be freeform.
It helps to develop a library of personal grid variations, to be willing to observe some basic rules, and to have an affinity for the overall look of the results.
In terms of the basic grids, the horizontal stripes have already been shown in the fish to produce 2-row all-knit stripes in alternating colors where they are placed in the design.
The vertical stripes create this result when proofed, and it can be recognized in the png for the body of the fish  Developing a DIY background: I find it easier to work on such designs on a large table in Numbers, which allows for placing a variety of colors and in the same document more easily, and then converting the outcome to a BW indexed png in Gimp. The smallest isolated repeat, in this case, is a square, 20X20 Make certain it tiles correctly before proceeding:
The final file doubled in length shows no areas where extended slip stitch rows might be an issue. This step is not necessary as one begins to trust the process. Returning to that flower, on the white-to-alpha ground, a 37X32 saved file, open it in Gimp.
Open a second file, using the background-repeat, and tile it X2 in both height and width to a matching 40X40 size.
Copy and paste the flower onto it in what appears to be a visually pleasing location, clean up the surrounds, and save the png.  Proceed with the now familiar steps: The final repeat must be elongated X2, color inverting may provide a better sense of what cells knit or slip, and it may be used to knit the design.     The working 40X80 repeat: Once again, the completed swatch visually matches the original file, color inverted.
The latter provides a sense for guessing if the knit results are pleasing and it offers a way to explore different colorways or matching yarn colors.
Pursuing the dot-by-dot concept can lead to endless DIY designs. Playing with motif scale in Numbers: Isolating part of the design in Gimp: 42X44  A variation using multiples on an 80X80 canvas.  Loving that DIY background? To create a frame
1. choose a finished canvas size, ie 120X120, and fill it by tiling the DIY background
2. open a second file to, in this case, 80X80, in any color including white. I chose yellow as a way to place black border lines more easily
3. copy and paste the second file onto the first
4. add a solid color border at the inner and outer edges of the frame, outlining the shape at its center.  At this point, any image also 80X80 may be simply opened in Gimp, copied, and pasted over the yellow. Files to play with: the frame with a transparent center to be pasted in place on other graphic files,  Here with a dot-to-dot center to draw on, and the file with central flower motifs to use or edit further.  The final choice then needs to be made as to how to use the final image.
One option is to separate the motif for use as a single bed 2 color slip stitch, and the second is to simply use the built-in KRC color separation in electronic machines to knit it as DBJ.
Motif definition requires large-scale designs limited by patience and imagination.
Autofill, command key and other shortcuts can help execute them more easily and quickly in spreadsheets as a first step.
This start of a hummingbird, inspired by a small segment of a Pinterest find, is already 54X101 pixels, ending my exploration of these knits for the moment.  

When editing or developing large images a series of guides may be useful. To configure them, see pos:t Gimp update for Mac 2

Color separations for larger scale mosaics and mazes

There are generators online for many generators to aid with knitting design. In 2015 I published a post on working with generated mazes: Gimp charting 1
The mosaic and maze graphics prior to their color separations are not suitable for fantasy fair isle double bed knitting as a shortcut. There are simply too many vertical white pixel rows begging for carriage jams no matter the machine used. The same long lines of black or white cells make them unsuitable for traditional fair isle knitting as well.
Visual clues are helpful as steps get navigated. In small-scale repeats, a different option from the method that follows is to begin with a file previously used and separated, magnified to 1800X.
1. using the rectangle select tool, begin on row 1, extending handle outside the image, I work from left to right
2. hold down the shift key, and continue selecting every other row. As each row is selected, it is outlined with dots. The handles to the right and left of that row serve as guides as to the last row worked, moving up as separation progresses. Clicking on the rectangle select tool at any point fixes the layer, and the dotted lines will disappear. The process could be performed in steps, with guides placed prior to color inverting the previous steps in the sequence and moving onto the next. The guides remain until they are removed by clicking on the check mark beside show guides, or with the Image / Guides/ Remove all Guides command.
In large designs, I would guess this may be more easily error-prone than when using layers.
3. after each pertinent row has been selected, choose the color invert option, and save the resulting file. The first step is completed in the separation.
The file then needs in turn to be color-inverted and lengthened X2 prior to knitting. The result matches the separation in the previous post.   Holding down the shift key when using the pencil tool on any image produces very different results.  My samples continue to be knit on the 930 using img2track, a download program I find reliable and easy to use. The only errors in programming I have encountered were due to operator errors, not software ones.

Since 2015 working with larger images has become far less daunting as my methods for color separations of mazes and mosaics have evolved.
Laura Kroegler’s online Mosaic Pattern Generator is still available. Returning to it, and using these parameters the pngs were downloaded both in red and then again in black and white. A 38X38 stitch repeat was isolated, and using Layer/Transparency/Color to Alpha a knittable mosaic design was obtained which, when knit, would require elongation X2 for color changing every 2 rows The last file, doubled in length to 76 rows in height, requires no further processing The separations are achieved now in just minutes.
The proof of concept swatch: when using repeats that are so much wider, one must commit to far larger swatches to test them. In addition, the placement in the final piece may matter with shifting the pattern to highlight a preferred center, here the machine was allowed to place the design as a simple overall one on 78 stitches by 116 rows. There are droves of inspiring large-scale mosaic crochet images published nowadays, which led me to wonder about DIY similar large graphic mosaics in machine knitting.
I performed the first color separation with shortcuts, used mirroring the cleaned-up repeat, did not verify each step with tiling, and committed to knitting a test swatch. A 68X136 repeat X2 in width and at least with 40 more rows in height, produced a 16X24 inch test swatch, wherein a couple of missing pixels became noticeable.
The swatch was also knit using slip in both directions on the main bed, which produces a narrow, short fabric as opposed to wide and also short when using the tuck setting. Back to the drawing board.
The initial approach is similar to that used in creating mock filet crochet shapes on the machine.
With present tools the results process is easy and quick: to begin with, choose any symmetrical design where the shaping of the motif occurs in single rows, this one measures 23X23  scale the file X3 in both directions to 69X69 save this brush to use later for bucket-fill in the design.     Choose fuzzy select by color/black, each shape will be surrounded by a dotted line bucket fill the selections with the saved pattern click on rectangle select to fix the layer, work on and clean up the repeat, and check a magnified version for any missing or misplaced pixels.  Save the png. for reference before continuing to work. Make one of 2 choices. If the goal is to place a motif, and to add borders or horizontal additional design stripes, create a new canvas, larger in size than the above, fill it with the same pattern, and then Colors/Invert.  Click on the rectangle tool to fix the layer.    Change the white color to alpha in the previously processed snowflake, click on the rectangle tool again copy and paste the file onto the color-reversed grid, and click on the rectangle tool.  Check the pasted image visually, and continue adding any other designs.  If the goal is to produce an all-over design, crop the shape on the dotted ground, and save it as a 69X69 repeat. Pasting the original on an equal size color reversed dotted ground does not work.  Tiling the result of the cropped repeat will show the need for cropping it by one row at the top and one column to the right.   The resulting repeat, 68X68 tiled X3 in each direction for a visual check.  Using the process previously described
1. open the 68-stitch file in Gimp, and magnify it to at least 800X for a visible grid
2. open file/new, equal size and magnification
3. copy and paste 1 on 2, click on the rectangle select tool
Colors/invert, click again on the rectangle tool or anywhere in the work window 4: magnify further if needed. Using the pencil tool fill in every other row beginning with row 2 in a contrasting palette color, and click on the rectangle tool 5. Layer, transparency, color to alpha, as described in the last post, click on rectangle tool 6. Copy and paste this result onto the 68-stitch file in the first window, there will be lots of dotted lines onscreen  Click on the rectangle select tool to paste the image in place. Since those large areas of white will be knitted in a tuck or slip fabric, the above result needs to be color inverted. If used as is, set the machine’s built-in double-length function.  Doubling the length of the file prior to the download to km Part of the view on the img2track screen for the 68X136 file ready for download. Committing to proving the concept:  Using the same approach of tripling the original, here the repeat was used in an attempt to render a larger-scale mosaic. The process becomes fiddly because using the fuzzy select tool and then the bucket-fill-in pattern does not work cleanly on areas that are only 3 pixels wide.
That said, it is possible obstinately, in stages, to get from this, 36X54 To a 36 by 56 mosaic
A last edit Perhaps falling in the category of “don’t have to simply because I can”.

Images at this stage of the process may be knit double-bed as a “fantasy fair isle” with no further separation.
On an electronic machine, download the repeat, program it for the number of needles in use on the top bed, and select the KRC separation button.
The first preselection row will need to be from left to right.
The main bed is set to tuck in both directions, the ribber to N in both directions.
There will be lots of non-selected needles tucking on rows with large numbers of side-by-side white cells. Because the fabric is being knit using every needle on both beds, each main bed tuck loop will have a knit stitch on the opposite bed anchoring it down. Those rows will appear more compressed, producing narrower horizontal lines The yarns used were very thin single strands of  2/28 at tension 4/3. The result is a very lightweight and loose knit with lots of drape. The 72 stitches by 140 rows swatch measured 16 inches in width by 10 rows in height. Perhaps a good method for summer shawls, worth exploring in thicker yarns for blankets. A closer look at the structure:  A larger BW design was processed using no modification of the original 75X71 motif. When using Gimp/File/Save, the result is a .xcf document similar to PSD files in Photoshop. It will store layers, transparency settings, and more information associated with and parts of the same project. Note to self: before deleting the .xcf make certain that at least the final png has been saved.

If one is familiar with image processing and fond of the maze appearance in designs, there is a font to try: Mazeletter
The downloadable associated documentation and source for inspiration: http://mazeletter.xyz/Mazeletter.pdf.
A very quick random type sample rendered with no advance planning: 

Another, mosaic4way, is potentially usable for single bed fair isle or dbj.  The drawback has been that my sample pngs for both were created in RGB mode, and conversion to BW or scaling loses details.
It is possible to begin on an all-white canvas, set the mode to indexed to start with, type text, merge layer down, crop to content, and have workable indexed black and white knittable results, but the degree of success appears to depend on the font size used.
Another thing to investigate 😉

Working with diagonal patterning in machine knitting

After a slow down in my blog posts for a variety of reasons I find myself playing catch up with the eternal list of knit fabrics that I wish to explore out of my own curiosity and the attempt to answer questions from knitters who contacted me directly via the blog or have asked them in the online forums in which I am a member.
Stephen West is a prolific designer of colorful hand knits in a variety of techniques and complexity. This honey-striped scarf is an example.   Slip-stitch patterning is a likely way of knitting a similar effect combined with
the use of the concept familiar to many when making bias cast-on rags.
A fixed number of stitches is cast on and positioned as far to one side of the machine as possible. They are then decreased on a fixed side and increased on the opposite one.
The strip moves across the needle bed, when far enough on the side opposite to the starting one, it is returned to the original needle bed position and the process is repeated until the desired length is reached.
If the moves to and from are performed on solid color rows matching needle selections may not be an issue. If the repeats in other cam settings are to match, then proper needle placement can be assisted by marking the metal bed, the factory-supplied needle tape, or a custom-printed one, and hand-selection for the first design row may be required and planned.
This chart attempts to visualize the proposed movement using colored stripes. Stitches are bound off on one side and cast-on on the other to maintain a fixed width with shaped edges.  If the goal is to maintain straight bias edges, the design repeat would need to be rendered wider in order to compensate for the shifts on the needle bed in turn modifying increases and decreases at a different rate The black cells represent the adjusted stitch counts needed for each pattern band.  When an item such as a scarf is worn, both options will appear as diagonals. If any picture knitting is included and the direction of it matters when the piece is worn, appreciated particularly in representational fair isle, such accessories are best knit as 2 pieces knit from the bottom up, and grafted together at their center after the fact.
Increases and decreases are calculated based on the knit gauge carefully for garments. The approach to accessories may be more casual.
Stripes heights are varied to accommodate any specific design motifs or cam settings and in turn, are added to the base visualization charts.
Here an attempt at 45-degree striping is made by beginning on a 3-stitch tab.  Increasing on the carriage side creates loops, while those opposite the carriage form knots.
Increases and decreases are indicated by arrows.
Increases are made on alternating sides, opposite the carriage, to produce matching edges.
The red cells in the chart represent the carriage side prior to each pass.
Table cells have been rendered rectangular in a 4 to 3 ratio, estimating the difference in gauge between stitches and rows.
Striping for an even number of rows matters if color changes are made on a fixed side ie if a color changer is in use. Yarn ends at color changes may be cut or the yarn can be carried up the side depending on preference and the number of rows involved. If carried up for long stretches, the alternate color yarn not in use may be secured by e wrapping it on the end needle periodically. Care needs to be taken that the float up the side is not so short as to have an effect on the swatch length and having an effort to remedy that will leave yarn ends too short to be secured.
The result is not going to produce a proper square, garter stitch is the only knit stitch that results in approximately true square shapes.
If the center of the machine is always used for swatches, keep an eye on the stitch formation. If loops are formed repeatedly on specific needles akin to tuck stitches or problem areas such as those in the center of this swatch are encountered, they can be caused by damaged needles or sticky latches that may result from frequent use. Diagonal lines in knits that maintain straight sides are also achieved using short row/holding intarsia techniques. Segments are planned in specific orders which can be varied to form added shapes.  Chevrons would be more easily created by knitting separate strips and seaming as you knit or after the fact. The addition of small-repeat fair isle patterns is also possible. Keep in mind when bringing needles back into work to reverse shaping, needle preselection for accurate patterning in Brother machines needs to be maintained by hand selection.  Some of the published punchcard patterns can serve as a source for diagonal lines that may be tiled and programmed for the full design in addition to being used for their original intent. Numbers 52, 384, and 328 (published with error), are suitable for tuck, slip, and FI with moderately wide floats, while 335 would fail as a tuck stitch.
Tiling as in any patterning will reveal errors, such as here for 328.  The latter was edited to a 22-stitch wide repeat, becoming suitable for only electronic machine models.
The charts with the red grid on the top row were rendered as tables in Numbers. Since their end use is different, they are the color-reversed version of the cards, whose screengrabs were in turn processed in Gimp to create knittable pngs.
The smallest repeats suitable for electronics are given in the center row of images, the amended 328 cannot be reduced in size. The last row illustrates tiling for all files as BW images that may be opened and amended to suit the size of the pieces planned.
Files in png formats for the group: if pngs generated by me in BW indexed mode are downloaded and opened in editors such as Gimp, they will open in RGB mode. To make them suitable for download programs, convert them to indexed BW mode again and save the result. There should be no loss of data.
384, 12X2412X48 144X144328, 22X44
176X176
335, 12X24
24X48 144X144  52, 8X16
24X48 192X192 The black lines formed by units 2 rows in height can be followed or erased to establish short rows shaping a stitch at a time every two rows, in a view of at least 2X2 full repeats to check color placement as seen here. The method was used to isolate the previous ungridded color illustrations. Another instance of a published Toyota 901#11diagonal tuck card, in this case, incorporates a combination of 2 and 4-row tuck patterning. The repeat is 24X48 The previews may be used to replace color selections with those matching yarn colors used in the project to develop some idea as to how color shifts might affect the final piece.
EON diagonal patterning surrounding blocks containing other shapes may be maintained with slight variations in the size of the shapes used to fill those blocks  References published for weaving can be a source of charts usable for this type of design.
The repeats are given in terms of width (shafts) and height (picks). For proper alignments, the provided charts need to be reproduced in full, or in DIY adaptations careful editing with erasures or additions can still maintain the proper tiling.
A page from an 1898 pub   Playing with using #20 and #16 mirrored, isolating, erasing, or combining elements of each while keeping fixed some of the details that move diagonally to touch sides of the repeats, with the process illustrated in color.
Consider the width of the floats if planning for fair isle patterning.
Check the original for any errors, marked in the color chart in black. They are often not noticeable until the design is drawn in repeat.   The editable png for the center 24X24 design is tiled on the far right above. It is also suitable for punchcards  

Handweaving drafts such as those found at handweaving. net provide endless inspiration for designs, including diagonals.
8X812X12
drawn in repeat X712X12drawn in repeat X715X15
color reversed  using color invert and quarter rotations to 30X30  16X16
16X16
16X24
drawn in repeat to 160X168 20X20
32X32 with rotated segments  playing with rectangles, squares, and fill-ins24X24
Chevrons can be developed from partial repeats. This is from Toyota 950#12, 24X20 drawn in repeat to 144X140  Whether in use for a punchcard model or an electronic one, the convention if the end goal is a tuck stitch fabric, is to color reverse the design  Taking diagonal patterning to the double bed for creating pintuck effects using the slip-stitch setting, this 24X48 repeat explores some of the potential spacings and the resulting ridges.  The next 2 repeats tested, both 24 stitches X 48 rows:  The red line is a reminder that the slipped stitches are being held for as many as 8 rows. It is best to use thin yarn that does not break easily and to watch for the knit stitches riding up.
Slipping in one direction produces a very subtle texture,  while the color-reversed design produces even-sized identifiable folds Adding lettering or small shapes and maintaining the diagonal can result in distortion of the motifs.
One option to add such motifs is to form the knit by beginning on 3 stitches as in this shared swatch and planning the stripes to heights and widths that accommodate adding designs or fonts. Short-row intarsia will also produce diagonal striping, from simple to complex as seen in this chart, with knitting sequence numbered for each segment.  complex_number_01A limited number of rows may be knit in stocking stitch in areas following shapes not simply to travel to the opposite side and reverse shaping,  but also to add small rolls or hems.
Another use might be to add small vertical motif details or patterning in their usual orientation.
The limit appears to be a maximum of 8 rows of alternative patterns, in order to keep the short-rowed areas from developing into distorted edges, which may be variable depending on the yarn and pattern used.
This first swatch was knit using progressively thinner yarns, wool, wool rayon, and a 2/24 acrylic in the FI segment. FI is a slip stitch that narrows the knit. The dark acrylic color stitch definition here gets lost. The band is seen pulling in the short-row segments on both sides. The shaping in both the top and bottom segments is by 2 stitches at a time.  The result in different yarns of equal thickness, with the FI band knit at a tension one full number looser than the stocking stitch areas, with the top and bottom solid color segments now shaped 3 stitches at a time. There is a trick when making A-line skirts to change the triangles that would poke out normally at the bottom if shaping were to begin immediately used as a design feature in many runway knits recently. If between an inch or 2 are actually knit up straight before shaping starts, the problem is eliminated. Depending on the design this may be a solution or it may read as a patterning error.
There are some conventions and “rules” for short-row techniques, but they do not always apply.
Keeping good notes helps to make successful experiments reproducible.
Two more tries began to experiment with working on the first and last groups in the holding techniques on a different number of stitches than the remaining shapes, noting differences. In the first an all-knit row is made across the short-row eyelets, reducing the planned FI band from 6 rows to 5. A rough spot in maintaining even stitches on one side is noticeable.  Progress: holding happened at the start of the bottom wedge, the FI was knit at 2 tension numbers looser than the stocking stitch, for 6 rows.  The goal in the short row shaping for the triangles is to maintain vertical edges that appear as straight as possible to the eye. One need not work on large swatches, small ones can provide clues as to differences resulting from variations in the starting side of the short-row shapings.  Studying the results can lead to many variations. There are student theses and careers based on exploring limited techniques to the max.
Building a theoretical true square or other predictable shapes is subject to the yarn and tension used. Beginning with a small sample, this shows the order of knitting 2 triangular shapes with the carriage beginning to knit each shape from alternate sides. In this case, 2 stitches are to be brought in and out of holding at a time. Because each color knits for 2 rows, small slits happen in the fabric resulting in eyelets. They may be used as design features, or attempts can be made to reduce their size. One way to do so is to have plain knit rows between holding selections to keep the small slits from intersecting and becoming double height. On the left swatch, one yellow row was knit to the left before reverse shaping in the same color. In the swatch on the right, in addition, 2 rows were knit in the blue prior to reverse shaping.  Reviewing the concept and developing a chart for larger swatches: the cyan color cells represent stitches in the hold position and the white cells stitches that will be knit.
At the top of the first wedge, most needles will be in the hold position, return them all to the B position manually before knitting the next row.
With the carriage on either side, set it for KCI with the cam buttons to slip for a free pass to the opposite side, the first FI pattern row will pre-select. Holding need not be canceled, since no needles are brought far enough out for the technique.
Cancel the slip setting, change the cam setting for FI knitting, place the pairs of colors in their corresponding feeders, and knit 6-8 rows of pattern.
Bring all needles out to hold except for the first desired group, if the holding lever has been canceled, reset it and commence reverse shaping.  Merrily knitting along and you forget to loosen the tension for the fair isle stripe: And what if the FI were to actually follow diagonal colored stripes? The approach is the same. I am right-handed, my default is often to begin on the right. Left-handed knitters can mirror charts as needed to make them easier to follow.
The first triangle is shaped from right toward left, subsequent ones begin on the left, then to wrap or not wrap becomes the question. Review of wrapping, which does not disturb the stitch on or the position of the wrapped needle:   bothI obstinately use random yarns at hand, sometimes too thin for the task at hand, true here. Any type of intarsia, of which holding is one, will be accompanied by lots of yarn ends that will require weaving in. Some of the stitches were wrapped here, some not, and maybe the eyelets could be considered a pleasing design feature. The 8 rows of FI, knit at 2 full tension numbers higher than that used for stocking stitch, minimizes the size of the eyelets all on their own on both sides of its stripe. Errors in bringing an added group or not into work may not always be immediately visible, frogging this type of knitting can be painful.
I would not use the last 6 stitch modification in any future swatches. Elizabeth Zimmermann published many patterns for hand knitting utilizing garter stitch and striped diagonal wedges for garment shaping.
Multiple colors per row patterning may be maintained by beginning planning with diagonal straight lines, seen here in a 32X32 repeat.  Opened in img2track The design will be elongated, and 256 passes are required to finish a single repeat Each color may be edited to suit. Quick visualizations of a few of the possible repeat arrangements using the file as is Avoiding lots of extra knit rows by eliminating one of the colors.  The larger designs may need to be knit in sections depending on the available memory in the knitting machine model being used.

Machine-knit stitches do not form as close to square ones found in garter stitches. Rendering the full-scale garment on a knit leader would make knitting to gauge while avoiding tons of math calculations possible.
DIY is a bit like assembling paper cut-outs that are required to fit together, first attempts at planning do not always succeed. One may begin at different parts of the piece and seam two halves together if necessary in order to keep matching stitch formations in both directions. Stripes may be added to form secondary intersecting shapes. On the left is a simple one-piece vest concept with no miters in the back panel, which may be knit from the bottom up or as two pieces with a center seam.
The bolero style is repeated in 2 separate pieces with mirror shaping in the second and would be joined at the center back.
The knit gauge is easier to maintain in short or small wearables.   Many garments may be made following the concepts for creating “pies”.
Decades ago batwing sweaters based on a sideways circular knit concept were standard presentations at knit seminars. Short-row diagonal graduated wedges were followed by varying amounts of all knit rows.
This idea for a short sleeve garment is from a Japanese magazine. In creating such illustrations because of the scale of the publication, the aspect ratio is distorted. In the final garment, the bottom circumference can in fact be far narrower than it might appear to the eye in the sketch and may be gathered or left released depending on design goals. The neckline diameter at the end of the project, after joining one shoulder, is gathered with evenly distributed decreases to the desired measurement prior to knitting the collar.  A way to form a long sleeve item, using binding off and casting on stitches in addition to shaped wedges followed by all knit rows. Knitting a garment on the bias at 45 degrees will produce a knit fabric that drapes differently.
Horizontal patterning can turn into diagonals and chevrons, and fancy decreases may be used in the center shaping of the garment.
Pre-computer programs and knitleaders, an easy way to sort out shaping for garments, was to begin by drawing on large sheets of graph paper. An all-square grid is fine.
Calculate a 10 cm/4 inch knitting gauge to the second decimal point before any rounding off. For example, if the gauge works out to be 5.728, and the measurement needed is 19.5 inches, the multiplied value result is 111.696, which can be rounded off to a 112-row line on the graph paper.
Working in cm can actually lead to easier calculations and is required when using a charting device.
Each cell in the graph paper grid equals one stitch and one row.
For knitting on the straight grain, based on gauge, draw series dots placing them on the beginning and the ending pots for each measurement, and connect them with straight lines.
Curves such as those necessary for necklines may be composed of short straight-line segments.
When knitting from the bottom up, continue with a colored pencil, filling in squares as they jog in or out, maintaining the new outline as close to the first as possible.
For the bias knit, whether on graph paper, the computer, or a charting device, begin by drawing a 45-degree line.
Rotate and trace the unmodified original straight-line image in place, follow the lines, and mark in and out jogs once more in color for contrast.
This is a very small chart so outline jogs in far larger pieces cannot be reflected. They would produce edges not as straight as in standard knitting, which will need to be considered when joining finished pieces.
As the piece is rotated, a wider grid base is required. Consider that the motif images as they are worked on the purl side will be mirrored horizontally on the knit side, a particular consideration if any text is introduced. Comparing theoretical purl as opposed to knit views on the left, two purl views on the right.   Fonts in various stitch and row counts are useful when planning knit text.
The point at which the text or pattern is introduced needs to have enough stitches in work on the machine to contain the intended words, ie for the above, a minimum ground, independent of shaping, would need to contain more than 9 rows if solid color stripes are to be added above and below it, and 26 stitches in width in this case.
A proof of concept swatch with arbitrary shaping on every other row illustrates the need for shaping based on a calculated gauge if a square is indeed the aim.
I knit on a 930 where mirroring is automated for programmed designs, so the text was programmed as drawn.
Sometimes less information is more. It became evident very soon that the placement of the text on the left was wrong if the aim was to have it centered in the final shape, and that more rows were needed at the top of the design.
On the right, the purl side as it faces the knitter is shown, with black pixels used to represent increases and decreases. The center red line separates the needle placements on either side of 0, and the text is shown in the default mirroring. The respective swatches after their rotation preview one of the potential results A true diagonal repeat may be planned for motif patterning knit from the bottom up. The drawback is that for executing a fair isle using more than 2 colors or with multiple color changes, partially illustrated on the far right, the 32X32 repeat would need to be rotated and knit as above.  

From the Brother machine knitting techniques book, a suggestion for dividing a sweater front into diagonal halves created by using the holding technique  

The idea of chaining the eyelet areas to reduce the size of the slits is an interesting one that up to now I have not tested.

Diagonal pleats

ArahPaint and Gimp in knit design 3

Previously published:
ArahPaint and Gimp in knit design 2
ArahPaint meets Gimp in knit design 1

Subsequent posts on using Gimp Layers to process images:
Using Layers in Gimp for color separations
Layer/Transparency/Color to Alpha Gimp Update for Mac 3_more on color separations

Gimp allows one to work on multiple images with only a single window open, left mouse clicking on any one of the images will bring it into view for editing. In the dark theme, it is hard to see the difference, but a lighter border actually surrounds the active image distinguishing it from the others, outlined here in yellow In Arah, multiple windows may be opened at any one time, and left-clicking on any one of them will bring it to the front for editing.   When working using the same file in more than one window, the degree of magnification needs to match in each.
Spreadsheets and paint programs may be used to achieve color separations for designs intended for specialty fabrics, many worked on the double bed.
Two places to begin exploring them here are for knitting single-bed mosaics and double-bed jacquard in its form where each color in each design row knits twice.
It is unlikely to happen often in knitting that more than 6 colors are used in any one fabric except perhaps in an elaborate color-changing fair isle.
The palette that appears in Arah when opening a new file is random, as seen here when two new files of the same size are loaded  If one’s preference is to reduce the number of colors, the specific number may be set by choosing from the colors menu, editing the number identified as that for the working palette, changing it to the new value, in this case, 6, and the palette reduction occurs as seen in A. For most knit repeats a black color is handy, any one of the 6 colors or more may be adjusted as described in the previous post, seen in B, where black has been added, replacing the color in position 1. More Gimp information: https://docs.gimp.org/2.10/en/gimp-palette-dialog.html
Some of the related content in brief: the former versions of GIMP had a “Save palette” command. Palettes were stored in a specific folder via the preferences pane. Easy to do and manage. It no longer exists.
To save the palette of an image, indexed or not, you must now import it from the image.
The “Palettes” dialog is dockable: from the Image menu, select Window, Dockable Dialogues, Palettes.
A few dozen more or less randomly chosen palettes are supplied with GIMP.“Import Palette” allows you to create a new palette from the colors in a gradient, image, or palette file.
Right-click in the space to the right of the illustrated palettes to call up the import option, or for palette editing. It is not necessary to index the image, this image was used in RGB mode. A palette name can be assigned, and if previously used, a number will be appended by the program.
The number of colors: the default is 256, you can set the number to any you choose. Gimp will try to create a palette by spacing the number of colors evenly across the range of the gradient or image. Each screengrab in the top row shows the initial selections for gradient or image, and the second row of screengrabs notes other changes made when choices were available and the results. White dots mark selections as seen while using the program.   Using the same image, indexed to 5 colors, the custom palette is rendered in a one-step process. The gradient seen in the first position on the top left was randomly assigned by the program and does not influence the results. The Columns selection number settings only influence the way the palette is displayed and have no effect on the way the palette is used. The lower the number, the larger the display size of each color unit.
Double-clicking on any palette color will magnify the palette view on the theme color background. Left-clicking on any color makes it available for drawing, the selection will have a dotted bounding line and the selected color will be assigned to the foreground position,  Right-clicking on a color results in these options.  The imported palette will be added to the Palettes dialog and is automatically saved in your personal palettes folder when you quit GIMP so that it will be available in future sessions.
In Arah, the color palette will always display the colors of the active layer. The working image contains colors intended for use in my designs.  In addition, please see the note from the developer in the comment at the end of the post.  The palette tools: A: if you press this icon the program will underline the colors actually used in the image, since all colors are used in this case, each color is underlined in either white or black in this instance  D: adds color(s) to the palette  B: removes unused colors in the above palette, it would restore the original colors
C: removes duplicate colors, not applicable in this instance
E: removes the last unused color, will not work if all colors are used.
Changing color positions in the palette: to switch the position of two colors in the palette, click the chosen color in the palette, move the cursor to the color you want to switch the position with, and press the left mouse button while holding the Ctrl key on the keyboard. In this instance, the color was duplicated in the new position.  Knitters designing for dbj are likely to work with a limited range of colors, often 3 or 4 max, in specific palette ranges to ready images for download.
If color separations for 3 or more colors are done in shades of grey in terms of technical details, you need a pattern image that is 8-bit greyscale, with each color in a range of 8-bit values. So for 4 colors, it would be 0-63 color 1; 64-127 color 2; 128-195 color 3; 196-255 color 4.
Binary images have only 2 possible intensity values, normally displayed as black and white with values of either 1 or 255 for white, and often 0 for black.
That convention may have led to the selection of white as color 1 in automatic separations such as the KRC Japanese one, where white is selected first. In a greyscale or color image, a pixel can take on any value between 0 and 255. Designing for fair isle, or when attempting to visualize and illustrate slip and tuck fabrics with frequent color changes, more colors may be required even though the final download will be in black and white. There is a quick way to add random colors assigned by the program and based on the initial palette: The magic wand tool allows you to work on consistently colored areas without having to select and outline each.
To alter a single color using the bucket tool, click on the wand, then on the color single color area you wish to change, it will become outlined by bounding lines.
Click on one of the colors in the expanded palette, and it will automatically appear in the foreground color position, and it may then be used to bucket fill the chosen area. Flatten the image using the merge-down tool.
If the foreground color, in this case, white/0, needs to be changed, in order to choose all pixels in the foreground color, click on the wand, and use Tools > Select by color or Shift+W. This function works only on 8-bit pixel images. Click on the color you wish to use to replace the ground, and bucket fill with the newly selected color. Flatten the image using the merge-down tool.
Changing multiple color blocks in the same color could be selected by the tool, but filling each of them one at a time was required.  In Gimp a similar tool is the fuzzy select, which also allows for changing the color in a selected area or for selecting and changing all pixels in that color. Selected areas will also be outlined in dashed bounding lines. Bucket fill may then be used to replace color(s). The option is offered to choose either foreground or background for the fill.  2023 in Gimp 2.10.34 use and hold the shift key prior to selecting and using the bucket fill tool to change all the areas outlined by dashed lines. The bucket-fill tool itself now works again on any area with a defined boundary, no other, following action is necessary.

Click on the rectangle select tool and then on any spot in the work area or on the image to set the image. The dashed lines will disappear.
In terms of saving the palette in Arah for future use, I saw no specific directions in the manual.
The color palette displayed is always the one used in the active layer. As a workaround: open the image, and the associated palette will be displayed. The repeat begins drawn 24 pixels in width, by 24 in height.
Select clear from the edit menu, or bucket fill area with white
If the size of your intended drawing area is different, choose the option Resize Image from the Image menu. With the chain link intact, the new canvases are created keeping the aspect ratio. Enter a new value for width/height, hit return, or move the cursor to the alternate value, and its number will automatically change to a matching one. Click OK to use the new canvas, or reset if you wish to return to the original 24 by 24 pixel one for a different edit.
With a broken chain link as one of the two values is altered, a preview is available. If both values are to be changed, break the chain link, enter the two values in turn, and a preview appears for each step. Ok is used again prior to saving, or choose reset to return to the previously used setting. Color separations can make specialty fabrics possible to knit which are outside the possibility of doing so simply by changing cam settings. Two instances are mosaics and DBJ where each color in each design row knits twice. Separating each may be done in two ways. The first method, convenient for longer repeats, requires that the result be elongated X 2, whether in the repeat design software or after download to the machine or using the elongation X2 function in the punchcard models. For illustration purposes here I will be working to create files that do not require elongation.
Mosaics and Mazes are constructed in similar ways and are sometimes referred to as floatless fair-isle even though technically speaking usually 2 stitch floats do appear on the purl side in the alternate color used with each color change.
Many such repeats may be knit using both the slip and tuck settings, the latter is the more interesting of the two on the purl side.
When learning structures it may be worth beginning with a published design.
Kathleen Kinder decades ago published two books, one with 24 stitch repeats, the other with 40 stitch repeats, with the separations included as well This, by Barbra Walker and intended for hand knitting, offers a huge library of designs for inspiration and conversion Following specific rules it is also possible to develop DIY repeats from scratch. That said, the repeat used in this blog post happens to have a known value of 12 pixels by 12Magnification in Gimp is achieved by selecting or typing in new percentages at the bottom of the window.
Entering and exiting the full screen may be controlled via the view menu To exit, it right-click at the very top of the window to expose menu options and select deselect full screen.  In Arah, if you press any number from 0-9 on the keyboard, you will change the zoom directly to that level (1 means 100%, 6 means 600%, 0 means 1000%). The plus + and minus keys- as well as the magnifying lens icons, will zoom in and out To use the entire space available in the window, choose Fit to Window from the view menu or select Ctrl+zero.
If working in more than one window this option makes repeats the most visible, scaling back can be done by counting the number of selections, helping to match the new picture magnification to the first.
Press the escape key on the keyboard to return to the original 100% view.
To work using the full screen, select the option from the view menu. To exit, right-click at the very top of the window to expose menu options, and select exit full screen Separating the design: ultimately the planned final graphic repeat would be a BW png used for electronic download, programmed as a fair isle one, but knit using tuck or slip settings, it may be drawn initially using only in those 2 colors. Black may need to be added to the palette selections.
One may always draw on a large canvas and then crop as needed, but as a starting point, it may be easier to simply match canvas size to the published repeat being used.
It is handy to have an extra column to help track image processing during the separation, the repeat above is identified as being composed of 12X12 pixels, one could begin with a 13X12 canvas.
A second way to provide the 13th column is to work using 2 windows, matching magnification,  and the second with a different, larger pixel measurement than the first. Copy the contents of the original work area and paste them into the larger canvas in the other window. Crop to new size if necessary.
To illustrate the two-window process, here the original BW repeat has already been drawn and elongated X2
A. Use the rectangle-select tool to capture the whole image in the first window, bounding lines in the colors of the palette in use will outline the selected area
B. Use the edit menu or command C to copy the selection, edit paste, or command V in the new window to place it.
When pasting on a different size ground, the bounding lines will also appear in the new image, the contents remain moveable,
C. Place the selection where desired on the new canvas,  when satisfied use the X, merge down tool to flatten it.
The quicker method begins with a canvas one pixel wider than the repeat, 13X12.
Adjust magnification, for comfortable viewing in the editing process.
View: show grid 2
Colors: set the number of colors to 6, and adjust the #1 color to black, white is in position 0 in the palette by default
Activate the pencil tool, and draw a vertical line on the far right in an easy-to-see color choice other than white or black
Using black, fill in pixels for your first draft of the pattern repeat
Image multiply YX2, resulting in 13X24
Using the pencil tool fill in the first 2 design rows followed by every other pair with white. Magnify image A to a comfortable work viewing size.
B and C: using the rectangle select tool, with the left mouse button, place the pointer on the purple pixel, drag the mouse across each pair of marked rows, release the mouse, and use Command I to color invert, and merge down to eliminate the bounding box.
The purple pixels will change color as well, making it easier to track what rows have been altered already.
D: crop the image, removing the row with colored cells for the final repeat
If for some reason you are processing an image that is color reversed, the steps are identical, but tuck or slip stitch fabrics, black pixels or punched holes knit, white pixels or unpunched squares tuck or slip. For this reason, the cropped final result would need to be color inverted prior to knitting or punching holes. This separation for 2-color DBJ results in its potential use in many fabrics other than DBJ and may be performed by some programs used to download multiple color patterns to the machines prior to knitting the fabric. One such fabric is drop-stitch lace.
Punchcard machine users would need to separate the colors manually, or if Dak is available, the separation may be done using the program and a corresponding template may be printed as a guide to punching holes.
This method is the automatic default one for any 2-color DBJ knit on the Passap.
Each color in each design row will be knit with each pair of consecutive color passes. Completing one design row containing 3 colors will require 6 carriage passes, 4 colors 8, and so on.
The built-in color separation in electronic machines wherein each of only 2 colors in each design row knits only once does not apply when using more than two colors,  though it is possible using Dak or by downloading a special card reader technique to program separately from the design when using the Passap E6000 in addition to the pattern repeat.
This separation of a 2 color pattern results in an elongated version of the design regardless of any dbj backing used.
Begin with a 2 color image,  an extra column of pixels is added here as well:
A: multiply YX4 to 13X48
B: mark alternating pairs of rows in the extra column with a contrasting color
C: following the color cues on the far right column, on rows with no added color use the pencil tool to replace black pixels with white, leaving only the orange cells
D: on rows marked with the third color replace the orange pixels with white, leaving only the black pixels
E: crop the image eliminating the extra column
adjust the remaining orange color to black
index the result to B/W, and the image is ready to save and use The difference between single repeats for each type of fabric, no further elongation is required. A: mosaic, B: DBJUsing layers in Gimp opens up the possibility of several color separations for fabrics using only 2 colors.

Both img2track and Ayab are capable of opening 2 color images.
In img2track this is what would appear, after the download the KRC function needs to be activated in the knitting machine.  Ayab: the repeat should be programmed in width equal to the number of needles planned to be in use. The color change happens as the file is loaded into the program, the ribber classic option is used to render results that would match the KRC knitting machine selection after an img2track download. Here the repeat is also tiled in height.  My personal preference is to work with images designed in black and white. With the 910 presently stored, my blog swatches are knit on a 930 using img2track.

A note for Mac users like myself using desktops with the M1 chip and Mac OS Monterey. Img2 track requires an FTDI driver for its download cable, on June 6 finally released a beta version of a more recent driver, I do not plan to install it at this moment, function in the upcoming Ventura OS would be unknown.   Ayab does not launch automatically. These are the steps necessary to run the program, following suggestions by Adrienne Hunter via the Ayab FB group:
open a Terminal window (Applications/Utilities/Terminal) and type these two lines:
cd /Applications/AYAB.app
./Contents/MacOS/AYAB
The app may also be found and then opened via using Spotlight search if you prefer  Once the program is quit unless you choose to keep the terminal icon
in your dock, it will disappear and the above process will need to be repeated. Once the text has been entered, and Ayab has been launched, a message similar to this will appear, showing your last log in. To launch Ayab again, simply use the up arrow key and hit return to repeat the command  Creating an AYAB desktop shortcut for Mac that will work without opening the terminal each time
Using Finder, open Applications and find AYAB. Right-click on AYAB and select “Show Package Contents”.

Locate “AYAB” under MacOS. While holding down the command and option buttons, click and drag that icon to the desktop. This will create an ayab shortcut that does the terminal stuff for you you can change the icon by copying and pasting the icon image in “get info” but it works fine without it. These icons will appear in your dock after double clicking on the icon   The ayab window opens with only the load image option highlighted Click on the load image file to open an image, and the remaining features of the program will now be available If you quit ayab, the terminal window remains active Quitting terminal called up this window for me only the first time I did so.

DBJ: more than 2 colors per row 3

Previously published related posts:
Img2track_multiple colors per row dbj, each color knitting only once 1/21
DBJ: more than 2 colors per row 2 12/19
DBJ: more than 2 colors per row 1 12/19 
Revisiting Ayab_multiple colors per row DBJ 2 1/20
Revisiting Ayab_multiple colors per row DBJ 1 1/20

Reducing the number of rows on the front of DBJ fabrics and the associated elongation of the planned design matters so some designers far more than others, at times only in specific projects.
It may remain something in one’s wheelhouse that is not worth doing because one can.
When I was knitting garments and art-to-wear pieces I found I preferred to work in 2 color dbj, plying thin, sometimes space-dyed yarns and dropping threads, replacing them with the next shade in the chosen color wheel spaces to add more colors per row.
Long before computer interfaces that made downloads or even color separations easy, most knit artists used punchcard machines, often the Passap Duomatic, lining up long individual panels to create large, non-repetitive images, Nicki Hitz Edson among them. That said, the topic has remained   interesting to me.
In the post written on 12/19, an option was presented for having each color in each design row knit only once rather than twice. Tables in a Numbers spreadsheet were used to produce the necessary color separation.
The present goal is to repeat the separation process using other possible DIY methods.
To review: the dbj automated separations for more than 2 colors per row with the exception of the Heart of Pluto one when using the Ayab interface generally result in each color, in each design row knitting twice. This is also true of default console separations in the E6000.
The yarn for this fabric needs to be thinner, colors easily become muddied if not chosen with care, there are 6 carriage passes for each design row of knitting, and charts and downloadable repeats including all knit rows become considerably longer.
When experimenting with colors keep careful notes about your own color placement in each yarn changer location, they may not match those assigned by the download program or in the original chart.
DAK offers the option of printing templates for its DBJ separation methods.  They may be used as guides for using the designs outside the program, whether for download to electronic knitting machines or to be followed in punching cards.
Files may be opened in the DAK Graphic Studio Module with the intent to convert them to stps for use in its universe or to adapt the design for other uses outside it.
My experience with several trials of small images in 3 colors is that the resulting design conversion is faulty.  The file size morphed into a 40X40 repeat as opposed to the original 12X14, leaving no option but to draw the design from scratch in the stitch design module.  
My third attempt finally got my 3 colors represented properly, but still in the 40X40 pixel size, not worth troubleshooting, redrawing the motif is far easier and more straightforward.
Img2 track will perform the separation but does not offer a charted view or template for it. It has the added interesting function of immediately reducing the file by half because upon download the image will be lengthened automatically by a default setting to double length on the Brother machine. The issue may be addressed by doubling the file in length prior to selecting it with img2track or the stretch factor in the program may be changed to 2, also before selecting the file for separation.
I prefer to manipulate files as needed prior to opening them in any program for download, believe it makes patterning errors easier to correct, and avoids forgetting to change settings when returning to knitting the particular repeat again. In the January 2021 post, I suggested manually pushing back to B position all needles in work prior to the carriages returning to the left on every other row as one way to reduce the resulting elongation in the designs. Here the plan is to achieve it by amending the color separation and its needle selections.
One of the advantages of DIY is that the color order in the separation may easily be matched by that in the color changer.
Repeats should contain an even number of rows and may also contain rows where not all colors are in use. The first starting repeat:  The often published convention in performing dbj color separations is to begin ordering the colors based on the number of cells they occupy in the first row, here the yellow would be followed by black and then red. Other programs start with the first pixel color on the left by default.
After drawing the repeat in Stitch Designer, working with Dak choosing color separation C, and exploring print options, one may obtain a template. Its screengrab serves as a guide to tracing pixels, the results match the Gimp separation which follows.
DAK automatically mirrors the motifs horizontally prior to working with them in any way. The mirrored DAK template compared to the in-progress Gimp separation: My goal is to produce the fabric with each color in each design row knitting only once by changing the separation, the function performed automatically by Ayab’s HOP code.
This technique applies to double bed work only, is not suitable for single bed 3 colors per row slip stitch.
The backing used is bird’s eye on the ribber, with slip stitch set in both directions and using both lili buttons. The result is that every other stitch knits on the pass to the right in any color used, the alternate needles knit on the return to the left completing one full row of knitting in that single color on the purl side.
The main bed needles are preselected on the way to the left, create stitches on the way to the right, as they flatline. Since there is no needle selection, as the carriages return to the left, no main bed needles will knit, resulting in only one row in the color being carried knitting on the top bed as well. Needle preselection continues to be made for the next row to be knit after the color change.
This makes for a more balanced fabric unless colors begin being skipped for multiple rows, in which case the ribber stitches may even form small ridges and the main bed stitches will become more elongated until the skipped color is repeated.
Working using Gimp alone
It is possible to color separate using only Gimp. One of the tricks is to use significant magnification, along with the view grid and snap-to-grid options when working with developing or editing designs.
In the latest version of Gimp for Mac, using the fuzzy select tool, selecting pixel color segments allows for color substitutions when converting charts to BW prior to the final png save.
It may be achieved by clicking on a single color, followed by holding the shift key, clicking on more colored pixels for multiple selections regardless of color, and then selecting bucket fill with the replacement color. Using select by color, followed by using the bucket fill tool, changes that particular color globally throughout the repeat.
As selections are made, dotted lines outline selections until after the color change and the image has been fixed.  Colors are fixed by choosing the rectangle tool and clicking in the work window outside the image, those dotted lines will then disappear.
This separation begins with black, the first color pixel on the left.
The original image is scaled X3 in height to 11X30, the file resulting from the separation will be scaled again X2 prior to knitting the repeat after it has been completed.
Copy and paste the scaled X3 results on a larger new file so that color markers for each row may be added, horizontal guides every three rows help define each expanded, now 3-row color sequence.
Following the color rotation markings for each row, erase colors unlike it and not represented in each design row to its right, so where the black marker pixel is on the left yellow and red are erased, where the yellow marker pixel is black and red are, and where the red marker is black and yellow are. That single row with no color red is left blank.
Those extra columns on the left are cropped prior to converting the file to BW. The results on the far right would need to be used double length, whether scaled before the final file save or after download, prior to knitting. Depending on the machine and the program used for download, if the direction of the design matters, the result may need to be mirrored as well.  Developing the test png on the elongated repeat My test png, mirrored for download to the 930.
I had color changer issues with yarns being picked up 2 at a time fairly frequently, which were likely static related and improved following a rare use of yarn spray and a humidifier.
Having end needle selection, KCI on the main bed helped avoid issues with edge stitches not forming properly.
I tend to grab yarns randomly when swatching. The resulting colorways are not planned for use in finished items, they are explorations that help illuminate subsequent choices.
The yarns used in the swatch are of three different weights, so tension needed to be adjusted to accommodate the thickest yarn, resulting in more elongation of some of the stitches on the front of the fabric. The latter might be far less noticeable when knitting with thin, equal weight yarn selections. The design can be easily identified and it is also seen that colors are indeed knitting a single time for each design row. There is an exception on a single row toward the bottom of the swatch, where blue and white have knit together during tension adjustments on both beds.
One drawback to this method is that since it is downloaded as a fair isle, the capacity of the machine to offer prompts and reminders as to which color is in use and which selection should follow in knitting 3 color dbj is lost.
Testing the concept on a design where more rows have less than 3 colors represented. The repeat is slightly modified, from the one used in the second 12/19 post Here it is shown modified, with rows containing fewer than 3 colors marked. Separating the repeat using only Gimp:
the file on the right rendered double length
and in turn with the second of every pair of black pixel rows erased the comparison between the two I left the color changer set up in the same sequence and yarns used in the previous swatch, so colors do not match their placement in the charted design. I stopped knitting when the color changer carried 2 colors across a whole row, and I did not notice the error until I had reached the other side. A repair can be made easily, but I chose to stop since the repeat was previously untested. There is a dropped stitch also missed on the purl side, an easy repair when a piece is finished.
The fabric is narrow as a result of the slip settings, the cast on and beginning and ending rows of knitting need to be adjusted or they will stretch out quite a bit compared to the remaining knit.
The proof of concept with each color in each design row knitting only once: The 12/19  post also compares its repeat knit using the initial double-length file to the one resulting from the amended repeat with each row knitting only once for each color in each design row