Yarnsoft: Making simple pictures with your knitting

I was asked recently to do a tutorial showing how to make pictures in knitting. I will admit at this point to not knowing (or having long forgotten!) the name for this kind of knitting. With this in mind I shall call the technique "Simple Picture Knitting"

This style of knitting can be as simple as using knit and purl stitches to produce a kind of silhouette on knitted fabric. There are thousands of patterns on the Internet with a design for every occasion - favourite sports, babies, kitchen motifs, you name it and there is a pattern for it!

There is also the technique known as "Intarsia". This is a type of colourwork where blocks of colours are used to define a picture or pattern. I will be covering this technique in a future post (when I've done some studying to remember how to do this...I haven't touched colourwork much since the awful 80's, when huge splashes of colour competed with shoulder pads for pole position in the knitted jumper world.

So, you've chosen your pattern, have your yarn and needles ready, what next?

The first thing I do is enlarge the pattern chart and print it out. This way I can mark off the rows that I've done so I won't get confuzzled. Motif knitting isn't like fairisle, there is no repeating pattern to memorise. Many patterns have row by row written instructions as well as charts. Which one you choose is entirely up to you. I know there are a lot of people who are scared off by charts, which is one big reason why I'm doing this post.

My example is a square cotton washcloth with a heart design on it. I found it by searching the Ravelry database and linking to the designer's blog. This is a free pattern and the blog has heaps of awesome freebies, as well as a selection of reasonably priced paid patterns. So, go nuts and pick out the pattern of your choice!

The main thing to remember when knitting motifs is that the motif itself is created by simply knitting and purling. If you look at the chart, the red squares are purls on a knit row and knits on a purl row.

I have started by doing a few seed stitch rows as a border. The border continues along both sides of the cloth, and is repeated at the top of the cloth to frame the picture.

Printed out chart and made seed stitch border

As you continue, you will see the pattern emerging..very satisfying! As I mentioned before, all you do is purl the chart stitches on every knit row and knit the chart stitches on every purl row. All of the white stitches are the normal knits and purls.

In progress. I have started highlighting completed rows to keep track

And now for the finished washer! I used Heirloom Cotton 8ply in a deep red shade, 4.00mm needles. I could have gone down a needle size to make the cloth a bit firmer but would have added probably 4 stitches either side of the motif and a few extra rows top and bottom to make up for the slightly smaller finished size.