I am such a fan of charts that I think everyone should use
them. I certainly wish all designers and pattern writers would. I now chart any
written lace patterns I use. Here are a few tips on reading knitting charts. I
hope this encourages you to try them if you haven’t tried them yet.
There is a learning curve to understanding charts. If you
have never read written instructions then reading charts will be no problem. If
all of your experience is with written patterns there will be some adjustment
time – a bit like learning a new, very easy language. Once you have learned the
“language”, charts will be a great knitting tool for you before, during and
after knitting. Charts help with designing and color choices. When knitting,
referring to a chart is quick and instantly lets you know if you are off the
pattern – or not. Charts are a great reference if you need to repair something
you have knit before or wish to knit again.
Stitch Pattern Chart: Brocade Diamonds: Key: Blank square: Knit on Right side, Purl on Wrong side
Square with dash : Purl on RS, Knit on WS
To read this chart, first notice
the numbers in the grey columns on either side – There are odd numbers on the
right and even numbers on the left.
1. The
odd numbers refer to the right side rows of the knit; the even numbers to the
wrong side rows of the knit.
2. Each
square is a stitch. The key tells you what the stitch is. A blank square is a
knit stitch on right side rows and a purl on the wrong side row. The minus sign
inside the square is the reverse- purl on the right side and knit on the wrong
side.
3. To
knit, you start on row one, stitch one in column one and work across from right
to left as you normally knit - knitting the blank squares and purling the minus
sign squares.
4. The
only tricky part is when you turn to the wrong side of the knitting you have to
read the chart from left to right. Think of this as the back side of the row
you just knit. You are actually still working right to left on the needles but
you have to follow the chart from left to right starting at stitch 25, row two.
You just finished that stitch on row one by purling it. Now on row two you will
knit it and continue across the row purling the blank squares and knitting the
squares with a minus sign-just the opposite of what you did on the right side.
5. The
bracket tells you what a repeat would be. There are six stitches and six rows
inside the dark square. For a wider piece you would repeat this sequence
(multiple) of stitches as many times as needed for the desired width and length.
Color Chart for Fair Isle Knitting in the Round
This is a chart for knitting in
the round. Notice the grey column on the right is numbered 1,2, 3, etc. Since
you are knitting in the round all the numbers are on the right side as you will
be knitting right to left on all rounds. In this case the chart tells you what
colors to use as all the stitches are knit stitches.
Imagine trying to knit this with written instructions. First you would have to remember that Dark Orange is Color A, Dark Blue is Color B, Light Blue is Color C, and Light Orange is Color D.
The first round would read:
Rnd 1: *1 A, 2 B*, repeat between
* to last stitch, 1A
Rnd 2: *1B, 1A, 3B, 1A*, repeat
between * last stitch 1B
Rnd 3. 2C *1D, 1C, 1D, 3C*,
repeat between* end 1D,1C,1D,2C …and so on
(A note of interest: this chart is the same pattern as the Brocade diamond pattern but using colors rather than different stitches.)
Lace Knitting Pattern: Trellis Diamond
This is a relatively simple,
typical lace knitting pattern. One important thing to notice is the numbered rows are only odd
numbers. There are no even numbered rows. In many lace patterns every other row
is just purled. Since there is no patterning on the purl row it is omitted from
the chart. These are nice lace patterns to knit as the plain purl row is like a
rest row. In more complicated lace
patterns there is patterning on the wrong side rows. In that case they would be
included in the chart and would require reading from left to right as in the
case of the stitch chart at the beginning.
One of the wonderful things about charts is the symbols often look like the stitch you are to knit. The O is a yarn over that creates a hole in the knitting. The forward slash looks like a knit two together, a right slanting decrease, while the backward slash looks like a slip-slip-knit decrease, a left slanting decrease. Our brains make this translation in a micro-second so you can read, that is “see”, the stitch and knit it almost simultaneously.
The chart looks much like the knitting
looks as you are knitting. In row three the knit two together lines up with the
one below for a diagonal line to the right. The yarn over in row two is to the
right of the yarn over below and so on. Now you can read the knitting and see
where you are and where you need to go –no counting (unless you want to) and
far fewer errors.
Tools for Using Charts
There are stand up magnetic
boards that hold the chart with magnetic strips. You line the strips up so that
the row you are working on is just below the strip. This way you can see the
row below and that you are knitting the current row correctly. In other words
you are reading your knitting in rhythm to the pattern.
Sometimes magnetic boards do not
work such as in a car. In that case there is a transparent colored tape that
can be removed without damaging paper called highlighter tape. You can use this
in the same manner, placing it just above the row you are knitting.
Once you are accustomed to charts
and don’t want to go back to written directions or if you want to design your
own patterns you will want graph pattern and a pencil. Decide on the symbols
you wish to use and you can graph out any pattern. There are software programs
for charting knitting also. Some people modify Microsoft Excel for this. The
software used here is by Intwined Pattern Studio.
Happy Knitting with Charts!
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