A Stitch in Time

Yesterday we had a lovely sunny autumn day at last, after summer hadn’t arrived this year. It was like waiting for Godot. Like a piece in time is missing. Was it not just late spring, also long awaited, when the hawthorn blossomed, blessed with the few dry and sunny weeks of this year, as were the aquilegias? When the Lady’s mantles just emerged. When we had strawberries from the garden with ice cream.

Now all is wilting, drying, dying back - earlier this year, it seems, than usual - having been smashed so frequently by rain and wind. Strawberry time was good and happy. Mohrle was still here, our blind black cat. She loved to lick the empty ice cream bowls. She also loved egg yolk, when we had boiled eggs – served to her in the tops of the eggshells. She left us nearly three weeks ago, forever, after she had been a loved and loving companion for 13 years. She had only become blind about 1 ½ years ago and coped well.

Where I sat yesterday to write this post was her last favourite place in our mutual world. She used to have favourite places for periods of time. In the last few months every morning she insisted to go out to spend most of the day on the garden table, under the parasol we had bought in Lidl, initially to protect her from the sun at strawberry time. It turned out to be her umbrella sheltering her from the rain later. Now she is in her final resting place. She is missed. I will forever think of her when we’ll have eggs or ice cream, and especially at strawberry time.

Not when I’ll see the rhododendron flowering that grows down along the road, because Mohrle didn’t go that far anymore when she was blind. But rhododendron had the same good time as the strawberries and the hawthorn this year, other than the roses. Quite every year a wet period sets in when the roses would come into full bloom, and quite commonly that wet period lasts, and not their flowers. They hardly ever reach their full potential of beauty here.

I remember walking down with my neighbour at rhododendron time, and as nearly every year, she told me how fond the late old lady who had lived in our house, was of it. I said to her: If we think about it… We see nature’s seasonal signs and patterns, if we are lucky, only 70/80 times in our live… Maybe we should be more aware of this to value nature, and life indeed.

Seventy pattern repeats, that’s not much if you come to think of it.

I guess this post turns out to be about time and patterns. I’ve noticed that I can’t go on to always upload several colour sequences of one structure. It is technically time consuming, and it doesn’t go smoothly with real time, because in real time I’m always already at other structures.

I wish to thank some nice people in the “geek craft” group on ravelry, who have done some maths for me. I had asked for the total possible amount of different combinations of Ks, Ps, Xs and Os that go into a 4x4 grid, where every row or column contains at least 1 P or K. Their complicated calculations resulted in this number: 221238784. They agreed that only 1/16 of that is relevant for knitting because the grid = chart is repeated in knitting, and that makes 15 of 16 charts redundant. (ABCD repeated horizontally or vertically gives the same result as BCDA, CDAB, DCAB) That still leaves 13827424 combinations, possible different structures. And that’s only for the 4x4 grid. They said they don’t attempt larger grids, as the numbers would be “intimidating”. The various possible colour sequences are not considered in this.

So, there is a lot to explore, and I want to try different structures and do a range of colour sequences only sometimes. That means I’ll put up only a single pattern a day in the future, instead of giving nine colour sequences for one structure. It may also be less confusing for readers. I’ve shown how colour sequences do change the resulting pattern, and there is room for readers to experiment. The proverb fits quite neatly here: A stitch in time makes nine.

In a year’s time, if I really manage to upload a stitch a day there will be one for every day. That would give the possibility to use them as “birthday patterns” in birthday presents, for example.

I’ll start with a stitch a day tomorrow. It’s the birthday of a special person. Today I have these patterns for you. They are very easy to knit, but quite charming for that, I think. The resulting fabric is rather elastic, especially vertically. (The order is 1A, 1B, 2A,2B)

8th pattern structure

I'm sometimes thinking should I name the pattern structures? It's difficult to find proper names, because the various colour sequences give different patterns. That's why I decided to number the structures instead. But I miss the poetry of names, and might start naming them some day...

Anyway, here is number 8:

one side

1 - 2 - 3

4 - 5 - 6

7 - 8 - 9

other side

1 - 2 - 3

4 - 5 - 6

7 - 8 - 9

Chart:

A bit about the exploration process

I discovered the patterns in the swatch below today. I thought I put it up whilst I’m at it. I have only done 4 colour sequences so far, but I am amazed by the fairly different texture and patterns the structure yields on the two sides of the fabric.

When I knit the swatches I never know what the results will be beforehand. It can’t be foreseen. A computer programme that could create the patterns from the charts would be handy, but I consider it impossible. How could a computer simulate the behaviour of the threads, the interaction of the stitches, and colours, the tensions in these fabrics? By the way, if someone knows of any scientific/theoretical description or explanation of the knitted fabric structure for common stitch patterns or even stocking stitch I’d be grateful to get a link to it.

I tend to describe for myself what I’ve developed meanwhile as a kind of grammar. I have the four elements K, P, X and O (or A, B, C, D privately) and put them on paper in basic arrangements. A few restrictions come from the knitting technique itself; such as you can’t slip all stitches in a row, nor slip a stitch vertically all the time.
These basic arrangements could be called morphemes. These then undergo further transformations, much based on symmetries really. There are many possible transformations, and what I get sometimes opens up the possibility of new transformations on earlier ones. And added to this for each resulting structure are the various possible colour sequences. Sounds a bit technical, I know. But is also for me a kind of an evolutionary process. Sometimes my mind boggles, and I have difficulty to remember earlier stages. Anyway, there are so many possibilities and I can only knit some of them.

The funny thing is, if the letters on paper would for example stand for four types of vegetables to be planted in that order in a flower bed, we would get an analogue order on the flower bed. But with the dimensions in knitting the resulting pattern is hard to be related to the letters in the chart. It’s also different to weaving, where you can arrive at a drawing of the pattern quite easily from most charts. In a way I don’t know the meaning of my charts until they are knitted.

Okay, here is today’s swatch, and the chart is below. One side has a distinctive horizontally ribbed texture. I’m not sure if the picture can show this properly.

Colour sequence 1 is at bottom of swatch, 2 and 3 are above respectively.

The other side is much more flat, but still has a lovely texture even in the one colour-version.



There is a little mistake in 3 here. See it?

The black area between 1 and 2 here is a result from changing the colour sequence.

Here is the chart

Thanks to yarnpiggy for her encouraging comments.
I've meanwhile done five more colour sequences on this structure, and wish to add them here:

6th pattern structure

one side

1 - 2 - 3

4 - 5 - 6

7 - 8 - 9

The pictures show two sides of the 8 colour sequences of the structure given in the chart below. The ninth swatch is a different structure, but not so different really, because it is actually the basic structure in colour sequence 4, but enlarged x 2. The chart for this is given at the bottom.

other side
1 - 2 - 3
4 - 5 - 6
7 - 8 - 9


Chart:



Here is the chart for number 9:

Example of pattern structure in different yarn weights

Here I show a pattern structure knitted in different yarn weights. The first five were all knitted with the same colour sequence of the chart below, in one case light and dark colours were inverted. The coin is a 1 Euro coin.

The first sample was knitted with a chunky and an Aran weight yarn. Needle size 5mm.

The second is the same chunky yarn with a DK weight. Needles 5 mm.

In the third sample I used two Arans. Here the colours are inverted. Needles 5 mm

The fourth sample here is made with two DK yarns. Needles 4 mm.

The fifth is knitted with two fine worsted weaving yarns. Needles 4 mm. With finer yarns colours tend to blend more, especially when seen from a distance. To consider this when designing a project is a bit like mixing and balancing colours in a painting.

Chart:

X - K - O - K - X :8

O - P - K - P - O :7

K - X - P - X - P :6

P - O - X - O - P :5

P - O - X - O - P :4

K - X - P - X - K :3

O - P - K - P - O :2

X - K - O - P - X :1

Here the light yarn is Aran, the dark one is a slightly thinner single- strand yarn, knitted with needles size 5 mm.

The colour sequence here is

1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8.

The second sample is knitted with 2 DK yarns and needle size 4 mm. The colour sequence is

1 - 2 - 3 - 4 - 5 - 6 - 7 - 8

In the last sample the black Aran yarn was combined with two DK yarns and knitted with needle size 5 mm.

The colour sequence in the last sample was:

24 - 16 - 8

23 - 15 - 7

22 - 14 - 6

21 - 13 - 5

20 - 12 - 4

19 - 11 - 3

18 - 10 - 2

17 - 9 - 1

4th pattern structure

one side

0 - 1 - 2

3 - 4 - 5

6 - 7 - 8

I love these. They have a very ornamental, almost Moorish character on one side. They are also pretty plastic. The texture of these patterns is by the way often enhanced when yarns of a different weight are used. In the swatches I used two Arans, one thicker and more voluminous than the other, and a thinner single strand yarn.

I've decided to show the swatches now in 9x9 squares. They are easier and quicker to upload than the single pictures, and can be better compared. I can't show all possible colour sequences every time. There is room for readers to experiment. Different choices of colours will also have different effects.

One colour sequence I will rarely show is 1rowcolourA/0ne row colourB. This is easy to knit in the round, which is not suitable for swatches though. For a swatch the flat pattern chart needs to be rewritten and becomes much longer. This is because the next working thread is always on the other side, and you need double pointed needles to manage this. I thought that is too messy and not worth to do it every time.

other side

0 - 1 - 2

3 - 4 - 5
6 - 7 - 8

Chart (click picture to enlarge):

3rd pattern structure

One side
0 - 1 - 2
3 - 4 - 5
6 - 7 - 8

Here's a new pattern structure. You can see the results of 9 colour sequences in the pictures. The chart shows 8 colour sequences. It doesn't include the one colour version, which is obviously also possible. One-colour- versions are not always interesting, but they clearly show the difference to stocking stitch. They might be suitable if a fabric is needed that lies flat and has more substance than stocking stitch. They obviously can be combined with the multiple colour patterns.


Other side
0 - 1 - 2
3 - 4 - 5
6 - 7 - 8

Here is the chart (click to enlarge):

Second pattern structure

This pattern structure is not really representative of those to come, because it looks like stocking stitch whereas the others have a textured appearance quite different to stocking stitch. It is however based on the same technique as the others, and it clearly is not stocking stitch, because it looks like stocking stitch on both sides. Sounds somewhat like a paradox.

Knitting it in various colour sequences shows quite clearly their effects. That’s why I have chosen this one as the second pattern structure here.

It was also one of the early structures I discovered, by chance. I had started to experiment with the technique after I had knitted two patterns from Barbara Walker’s Second Treasury of Knitting Patterns. They were Carrousel Check and American Beauty Tweed. First I always used the 2 rows A/2 rows B colour sequence and knitted combinations of the four elements K, P, O and X, which I had written down on paper by chance. I also asked other people to fill in 4x4 or 4x6 squares with the symbols for these elements. One of these early trials resulted in the pattern, which one gets from colour sequence 1 in the chart below. A while later I started using different colour sequences with different structures, and in time I developed a more systematic approach to my experiments, which are still going on.

The different colour sequences in this case give the same result on both sides. That’s why there is only one picture per colour sequence. The structure makes a thick, soft, elastic fabric that is suitable to be used instead of ribbing.

It is indeed similar to Beverly Royce’s Double Faced Stockinette Pattern in Vertical Stripes, which she describes in her Notes on Double Knitting, but is not the same and needs not to be knitted on double pointed needles like hers.

This fabric is really easy to knit. Here is the chart (click to enlarge):

And here are the pictures showing the results of the different colour sequences:


1


2












3


4

5


6


7


8

More colour sequences for the first pattern structure

One of the things that amaze me so with these patterns is the fact that the same structure of the fabric, the result of the repeated actions that constitute it, has a different - and sometimes totally different - appearance when the two or three colours one has chosen to work with are used in different rows, in other words: when different colour sequences are applied to the same basic structure, which is represented in the chart.

Quite often the resulting colour patterns are interesting on both sides of the fabric, and it's hard to decide which one shall be the "right" side of a project. That's why I avoid to use the expressions "right" and "wrong" side. When I show pictures of the results of the colour sequences for a specific chart, I will make clear which patterns appear on the same side of the fabric. This helps when one wishes to use several of the colour patterns in one project, which is so easily done - just by changing the colour sequence.

Here's the chart for the first pattern again:

Colour sequence 2 gives this result:



This is the result of colour sequence 3:



Colour sequence 4 is knitted with three colours:



Three colours as well in colour sequence 5:

I've just finished a hat for which two of the colour sequences for this chart were used. I'll put it up here as a project which you could chose to make soon. In any case it will give an example of how these patterns can look in a finished project. I intend to have little projects up now and then, but the main purpose of the blog is to share the stitch patterns.

Please be patient with me, though, it's my first blog, and I need to get more experience and routine with time.

To knit

Today I describe how to knit a swatch of a rather simple pattern to explain how to read the charts and a few other basic things. I’ve chosen this pattern structure for a start, because it only requires three different actions: knitting, slipping with yarn at back, and slipping with yarn in front. It is not the most exciting pattern structure, but it has a nice "slant” when done in some colour sequences. It shows quite well the “fabric” character many of these patterns have, including their characteristics of lying flat. Most of them do not curl in the way stockinet stitch does.

Here's your first chart:

Casting on:I personally always use the long thread/thumb method for casting on. For stockinet stitch I do this with two needles hold alongside each other, but for these patterns only one should be used, as otherwise the stitches will be too loose. The slipped stitches make the fabric a good bit tighter than stockinet stitch.

Any method of casting on should do, however, as long as it gives a tight enough result.

The code

I’ve chosen the symbols for the charts here, because they are quickly available on the keyboard, but also because they are easy to jot down on a piece of paper by hand. I usually cut empty cereal boxes or similar into pieces and write my charts onto them. The cards can easily be put somewhere in front of me where I can see them during knitting. (My personal code consists just of A, B, C and D, however, and for some reason I write the charts against the common way from top to bottom, so I have to convert them here.)

All you need to know is:

K = knit
P = purl
O = slip with yarn at back (to remember: your ability to see the working thread behind the stitch is zero)
X = slip stitch with yarn in front (to remember: your ability to see the working thread is checked, because it is in your view in front of stitch)
Kb = knit by inserting into back loop of stitch.

The last is only needed for first stitches in a row. I recommend that you slip each last stitch in a row with yarn in front, and knit it as the first stitch in the next row by inserting the needle into its back loop. This will make neat edges, and also clearly indicates the colour of the yarn used.

The charts are read as usual, from bottom up, uneven rows from right to left, even rows from left to right. The two symbols outside the vertical lines represent the action at each selvage; the elements in between are the actions to repeat.

There will be patterns, which require one additional action on one side because they are symmetrical. But this is really only necessary if the selvage is visible, as in a scarf, and will be indicated in red.

The chart on the left is for flat knitting; the chart on the right is for knitting in the round.

In this case the numbers in between indicate five different colour sequences with the numbers of rows to be repeated for each. The colour of a number indicates the colour to be used for this row. There are mostly either two or three colours required. You can of course indicate the colours you actually use on paper.

Having a go?

I recommend casting on at least 4 times the elements to repeat, plus 2 stitches for the edges. A lesser amount of repeats will not show the pattern clearly. It will also only show properly after a few vertical repeats. The reason is that it is the interaction of stitches with stitches below, above and beside each other that constitutes the structure of the pattern and the resulting colour effect. These “neighbours” are missing at the bottom, edges and at the end of the swatch.

Phew! It’s amazing how many words are needed to describe something pretty simple, which you will recognise if you give it a go and do one or two colour sequences. I’ll give a few more hints and tips later, which you might better understand afterwards.

When working the first colour sequence, the two sides of the swatch should look like this



The pattern will obviously show more boldly when heavier yarn is used.

Casting off

When casting off, don't knit every stitch before you pull the previous one over it. Just pull each stitch through the previous one, like in a crochet chain. Otherwise the cast off will be too loose. To have a thread to be pulled through the last loop, start casting off after you've knitted an even row. The other colour's thread can then be used for this.

Pictures of the results of the other colour sequences will be in my next post. If you are up for a little surprise, just try them out now!