What Does it Take to Design and Write a Knitting Pattern
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- čas přidán 5. 09. 2024
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If you would like to see more about my book Big Yarn, Beautiful Lace Knits check out the following videos:
Book Unboxing: • New Book Big Yarn Beau...
The Shawls: • Lace Shawls to Knit in...
The Cowls: • Lace Cowls to Knit in ...
The Hats: • Lace Hats to Knit in B...
Mitts & Scarves: • Lace Fingerless Mitts ...
Ponchos & More: • Lace Ponchos and More ...
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And I discuss more about Stitch Dictionaries in this video here: • Ask Me Anything Knitti...
You are the Michelangelo of yarn - you let the yarn tell you what it wants to be! Love it!
Well that is very high praise indeed. I don't know if I can rise to that but yes, it's a similar approach LOL.
Wow! I’m exhausted just listening to the process. Lol.
Seriously, thanks for sharing this. Many of us don’t think about the time and effort that does into writing a pattern. You’re obviously doing it correctly, because I find your patterns to be easy to read and execute, and the results are always great!
I'm so glad that you find my patterns easy to follow. My goal is to produce patterns where the knitting process is enjoyable and the end product is beautiful/elegant/fun ... whatever it is supposed to be.
I give mine swtaches to my 6Yo daughter. She likes to play with Barbie dolls, and she is happy to have those samples for her play.
Thank you for hard work ❤️
Sounds like a great use for them!
Great idea!
@@WatchBarbaraKnit Thank you. It is a win-win situation :)
@@naseerahvj thank you
Thank you for this information. Kind of makes you appreciate your patterns are only $6. What a bargain!
Thank you! You actually hit a wee bit of my motivation. I receive a lot of requests for free patterns and I thought this might help to explain why they really don't factor much into my business plan LOL.
Thank you so much for revealing how labor and math intensive designing is. It really opens my eyes to how little we pay for this in pattern prices! I watch a lot of knitting videos, but you were one of my first, and always a favorite!
Thank you so much for your kind words. I am glad you like my videos!
Wow! Much appreciation for all you have to do to get a design out. You do beautiful work! Thank you for all of your videos...🤗🥰
Thank you for watching!
Wow the process seems to be very complex and overwhelming. To maintain all the pages and postings and pictures for ravelry and other places. I am pooped out just thinking about it. I applaud your strength and all the work you do to give a pattern from scratch. Thank you for your videos. I love watching you and knitting with you.
Once you get a system down it's not that bad. But I think that there is a lot more involved than most people think LOL!
First of all Big Thumbs Up to you Barbara! You did fantastic job in explaining your process. This was greatly informative.
I am a new knitter only been knitting for just 6 months but I have noticed (borrowing from one of your earlier Videos - what type of knitter are you) I am an adventurous knitter and love myself a challenge. I did small alterations in the pattern for the second shawl I knitted (lace pattern) and I experienced the whole ‘lot of maths involved’ part of the process. I have immense respect for the designers and their patterns for just that reason but that made me fell in love with lace knitting and shawl knitting. I have read blogs of other designers explaining their process and it’s so subjective; but nothing really connected. I want to design my own patterns at some point, and I come from digital design background and I tend to design things mostly in my head before i even sketch anything so you talking about going straight to knitting and using graphics softwares sounded familiar to my way of doing things. Thank you so much for sharing your process! Really appreciate your work and designs 😊. Keep them videos coming!
Thank you so much for your kind words. I think every designer approaches things in their own way and I just wanted to share my way - but I don't think anyone has figured out a way to avoid the math LOL!
This is why when someone asks for a pattern of a piece I have made I will refer them to the artist, and where they can purchase the pattern for themselves. Most people do not realize how much work goes into a design and the how much education is needed to creating a design. Thank you for doing this video.
Thank you!
That blue shawl is so beautiful, wow. ~Marie
Thank you!
Barbara wow!!! I am so impressed just listening to you. You are very smart designer. I just started “every witch way “ the three panel one, it is so smart pattern. I am so excited knitting it. Thank you for your creativity.
Awww, thank you! I am so glad to hear you are enjoying the shawl!
I liked finally meeting you in person at Rhinebeck. I will be buying more of your patterns in the future from Ravelry. Teresa
Thank you for coming to visit me! People like you made the trip worthwhile! I can't wait to see what you knit up.
That’s a ton of work ! I get ideas in my head but that’s as far as it gets !
I have a lot of things that never make it past the "in my head" portion of the plan LOL.
Love this! So interesting how simmer and different our process are. Also timely as I'm re looking into publishing my patterns.
You go for it! The one piece of advice that I have is that you should start the way you want to be perceived. Kinda along the same lines as "dress for the job that you want, not the one you are interviewing for". It would be better to devote your resources to producing a smaller number of patterns at a higher level of professionalism than a bunch of patterns that lack polish.
This is something that I have requested you discuss this. Love this!!! Thanks so much. My husband helps me with math, Art is very mathmatic. So its kinda crazy cause math and I are not friends. It's interesting how what we need to understand we eventually get and are able to get the answers we need. And still I am not be any better at math. lol.
I'm so glad I hit on something you wanted to hear! It's kinda crazy how if you are a creative child you might think that math is unimportant only to grow up and find creative endeavors can take soooo much math!
This was great! I loved hearing about the process you go through to produce a pattern. Loved the swatches... I now have a much better appreciation of them. Thanks!
I'm so glad you enjoyed the video!
It's always fun to translate from your personal shorthand (lol) to english that makes sense to almost anyone. This is a lot of great info on getting a pattern from your head onto the needles and then paper - not always an easy thing to do. Thanks for sharing your process! Now I don't feel quite so daunted in trying to get a few of mine written up :)
You should totally do it!
Wow. I have knit things from scratch (as in without a pattern) that involve math and swatching, but I think it must take a special kind of crazy to do what it takes to actually create a reproducible pattern. You go girl!
I've always been of the opinion that designing something from scratch and writing patterns are two completely different skill sets. It is entirely possible to be able to do one but not the other and yes, it takes a special kind of crazy to do both LOL!
Btw you are one of the Knitters I most love to watch on CZcams. You and knitting pipeline are my two favs with verypink knits being my fav for technical instruction. Just wanted to let you know
Thank you so much for your kind words. I am so glad you like the videos.!
What a great, informative video on the knitwear design process. I appreciate the creative and technical process of making a knitwear pattern. Brava, Barbara!
Glad you enjoyed it!
Barbara thank you for this look at behind the scenes. There's a ton of stuff you have to do again a pattern out. I never realized how much. Thanks for the information.
I am so glad I was not boring everyone!
Being a designer involves so many different things. Thanks for the overview of the process. Hope to be one someday
Any time!
I am such a beginner...I hang out at the knit from a pattern stage!
Thank you for the wonderful patterns and all the work...I totally love that you tell us how many stitches we should have!
Oh, that is an important piece of info that should be in every pattern LOL! And there is no shame in knitting from a pattern. It takes a special kind of crazy to write them.
I've been waiting for a show like this from you. Thanks so much.
That is a wonderful thing to hear!
Thank you for sharing how you do your pattern designs. I love knitting your patterns as they are so easy to follow and knit up. So the effort is really appreciated by me. I have been knitting something from a big wool company’s pattern and boy do they leave lots of information out and I struggle to get things right. So again thank you for your amazingly well written patterns. I am onto my 5th project from your patterns and have done knitting things I have never tried before and succeeded 😁👏🏻😁👏🏻
Wow! Five! Thank you so much. I can think of no greater compliment. One of the positives of being independent is that I get to decide how much detail I get to include in a pattern. Often times the larger companies have restrictions on space and in the desire to cut down they get patterns so bare bones they are a challenge to follow. I try to hit a happy medium between just enough info to get the job done and waaaaay too chatty LOL.
Great video! You provide the best explanations. Love your patterns 🧶
Awww thank you!
Thank you for this information. 😘❤
You are so welcome!
Loved the look into your progress. Thank You!
Thank you!
Nooooooo. You are obviously a natural mathematician, I have a blockage when it is even mentioned. I will definitely buy your patterns because it is much easier and enjoyable for me. X
Actually, math and I have a very rocky relationship LOL. I get to where I need to go, but I am pretty sure I do it in the most difficult way possible. Thank you for buying my patterns!
This was super interesting, thank you for sharing!
Glad it was helpful!
All I wanted to learn is how to add some lace to a shawl .....I'll stick to buying patterns thank very much. Lol Bless your brain!
LOL, I don't blame you.
Wow, that is a lot of information to grasp. I am like okay, so there is a whole bunch of math input. I am able to grasp the thought of all that you said about designing a pattern in knitting. I am like okay now that I know this, what do I like better, knitting or crochet? I like them both!!!! Knitting is a bit more involved then crochet. Now I have a deeper respect for all the knit designers and crochet designers. Heck, it is enough for me to get thru a pattern than to try and design one. I am glad that I know how to do both of them. Once I grasp knitting, my next step will be learning the Tunisian stitching. (my project for next year.)
I'm confident that crochet design takes just as much time and math LOL! I honestly think that crochet can be just as complex as knitting, in fact it confuses me more. Knitting basically only has 2 or 3 sts and everything else is just a variant on those. In crochet there are so many different stitches and so many different places to put them LOL.
What does it take you ask? More brains than I possess! That's what.
BTW ya had me at "y'all".
LOL, it's the best gender neutral plural I know!
@@WatchBarbaraKnit ... but I'm not gender neutral....
I'm just from Y'all Country.
Thank you for explaining the process. I would not go through all that for a million dollars, but I'm glad you and others do and for a bargain price. I was curious you did not mention test knitters I know some designers use them do you?
I do not use test knitters. I have my reasons but I'm not sure I should go into them. Test knitters are a relatively new thing in the knitting design world and aren't really any guarantee of quality. They also add a huge amount of time to the design process.
I laughed out loud when you said, I don't sketch and I can't draw. Thank goodness I don't have to draw either. I can somewhat draw but I've seen some of these knitters draw fashion apparel and it makes me wonder, "why the heck are they not fashion designers?"😂
Technically, they are fashion designers LOL!
They design knitwear, duh.
Thx for this... I'M a fashion designer and I'm just dabbing in knitting.... Ive been knitting for 12 years and want to start creating patterns. Can you do a video on how to incorporate a knitting stitch to make a sweater? Or insert it in. Sweater? I love ur videos keep making them.
I'm afraid sweaters are outside of my area of expertise. I have never even knit a sweater. Thank you for your kind words.
My own pattern designing is such an unorganized effort in comparison. I'm definitely going to take a few of these ideas into my next attempt. Thanks so much.
I'm so glad I could be of help!
Posting your designs on Pinterest is a great way to insure that your design is pirated. Last year, another CZcams knitting favorite of mine, Arne & Carlos, had a mini rant about why they and their designs are no longer on Pinterest, the term copyright infringement came up frequently. And I have certainly done searches on Pinterest and gotten links to knitting patterns that I know are under copyright but were available free for the taking on Pinterest .
That is a problem with Pinterest and other sites. There will always be people willing to do dishonest things and that's sad.
Thank you for sharing😊
Thanks for watching and listening!
Gamardjoba Barbara.
Great video! Go math! I will say, on photography, you are much more conscientious about getting the details of the item than many other designers (for which I am very grateful!). I've decided to _not_ purchase designs because I can't get a good idea from the pictures of what it actually looks like. One detail question: what charting software do you use? I bumped into this a bit ago when I wanted to re-chart a pattern, and couldn't get all the symbols I wanted.... Very frustrating. I would have thought they'd be in a special font somewhere, but no.
I use EnvisionKnit because it has all of the functionality that I needed. For a knitting symbol font google search for Stitchmastery Font!
@@WatchBarbaraKnit Thank you! (Of course, I only noticed your reply now, because I thought about just checking, since CZcams didn't send me a notification like it usually does!!) Unfortunately, the Stitchmastery Font doesn't help me, because it's not adapted for Google Chrome / Docs. :( Downside of having a techy husband that's tied to a specific platform.
Hello Barbara, UK newbie here. Just wanted to know what stitch dictionaries you use please. I am actually in seach of some now.. subscribed. thankyou
Oh my! I have a whole pile of stitch dictionaries that I use and I am aquiring more all the time. But if I were only able to have one ... well ... I'd cheat and get all 4 volumes of Barbara Walker LOL!
Yee... 40 yrs knitting & I never have made a Swatch unless it was a small Motif in itself. {I only check the Gauge & I jump at it.} Sew them all together & form a large Throw for TV watching!
ALL THE SWATCHES ... LOL everyone does their own thing and that is awesome.
I often think about the designer as I go through a pattern as in “how in the world did they figure this out?” especially if there are mixed type of stitches (some draw up the garment, some widen it). I’ve always thought 5 or 6 dollars was a super bargain for a pattern considering the work that goes into the creative process, test pieces, models, photography, publishing, marketing etc…
Most of the time the answer to that question is swatching, lots of lots of swatching LOL.
Really, really enjoyed this video. Was so interesting listening to you go through the process.
I have a couple of questions, if you don't mind.
What was the first thing that you designed? Also, do most of the designs you make work out? Have you ever almost completed a project only for you to either find it doesn't work out or that it isn't what you wanted.
I'm struggling with a part of a design I'm working on and I don't seem to be able to get it to work I've put it to the side for a few days and will try again after the weekend.
Take care and keep safe. xxJane
If a pattern I'm designing makes it far enough to get officially onto the needles it typically makes it all the way to the end. I sometimes need to make minor (and occasionally major) changes when something doesn't work as planned ... but mostly I've gotten it figured out before I ever cast on. But before cast on there will have been a myriad of swatches, charts, maths, and such.
If it isn't going to be what I wanted I usually know fairly quickly and I go back to the drawing board. I have loads and loads of ideas that turned out to be duds!
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It’s a lot of work, a lot of math. I can’t draw either. I start with an idea...like I want to make a hat. A standard hat has three part: Brim, Body, Crown. I then decide what I want to do with those parts.
That is a great way to go about things.
I've never been one to knit shawls but I'm trying out your Easy Side to Side triangle shawl pattern. I'm a garment knitter and am intimidated by lace. What pattern would you suggest I try? I bought 100 grams of Knit Picks Gloss Lace yarn a few years ago and it's still in my stash waiting for the right project
I'm currently doing Barbara's easy crescent lace shawl pattern. It's an easy and very pretty lace design. She has a great video for it.
I was going to suggest the easy crescent lace shawl but someone already beat me to it! You can find it here: czcams.com/video/_DbCuDFBcQM/video.html
Which charting software do you use?
Envisionknit: www.envisioknit.com/
you are osem
Thank you!
But is it worth it? 😂 I wonder if you make enough money to justify all of this? Money isn’t everything, I know. Maybe you just live it! Or maybe you’re making bank!