There must be something about the holes in lace I can't resist!
I finished a dress and a cardigan on the knitting machine. The lace trim is hand-manipulated adapted from one of Mary Anne Oger's Edge books. There is another picture here.
The patterns were designed by me using the trial version of KnitWare. But only the cardi and the top of the dress, the skirt was hit and miss math by truly yours.
Learning machine knitting is a process, it is not that easy as one might think. When things go right it is fast and fairly easy but when something goes wrong you can end up re-knitting the whole piece just because of some little thing you forgot to do. It does help to understand the structure and the nature of knitted fabric.
I have been using KnitWare and I like it lots. You can design garments for hand knitting, machine knitting or crochet. The trial version is quite robust but it does not let you print, save or use custom measurements. I have the Sweater Wizard but Knitware has lots more options and it is nice to have the pattern written with the abbreviations and jargon of the technique you are using.
Right this moment I have on the mid-gauge machine a pullover with one of Elsebeth Lavolds yarns. The pattern is a variation of a free download from KnitWords and Knitware. I used the cables but placed them on the lower body instead of the yoke, the ribbing is another one from Mary Anne Oger's books and using the ribber. In machine knitting the cables have to be crossed by hand so it takes a bit longer than stitch pattering with the machine. The result is worth it big time. It all goes as planned I might attempt something with smaller cables on the standard gauge machine. The electronics and punch cards on the machines are nice but hand-manipulating the stitches adds to the knitting process.
Princess: finished repeat #10 of the center, 4 more to go! I am so excited! It is like seeing light at the end of the tunnel.
Next weekend is our Weaving Guild Lace workshop with one of the judges of the COE of the Weaving Guild of America. The loom is ready and so am I. Woven lace!
5 comments:
I think the hem of the skirt is really lovely in lace. Machine knitting is beyond me I'm afraid. Math and I don't get along. Can't wait to see your Princess shawl!
Beautiful hem on that skirt! Machine knitting is way beyond me. Math is not one of my skills I'm afraid. Can't wait to see how the Princess looks.
It's stunning!
I adore Knitware and use it to design all my sweaters. It's much more flexible than Sweater Wizard.
Good work--I gave up on my knitting machine and sold it a few years ago.
I hadn't heard of Knitware.
I love how the lace turned out. Beautiful!
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