Create Your Own Charted Crochet Pattern

[tracy.joyner]

My search for online charting software for fiber artists came up surprisingly .. well, ineffective.

I found options for commercial use but the cost and usability of those make them unreasonable options for most of us.

 

There is one option available for hobbyists from Stitch Works Software.

 

Stitch Works Software was created in 2011 by Brian Milco.

Brian created software for the fiber arts community..

 

"..designed to be easy enough for the hobbyist to use, and powerful enough for the professional. "

 

The software is full of features any crocheter would LOVE and is available for purchase for, a very reasonable $50 HERE

 

I did find ONE online option to recommend.

 

microRevolt is a "fiber movement" ..their mission is to "investigate the dawn of sweatshops in early industrial capitalism to inform the current crisis of global expansion and the feminization of labor."

 

On their website is knitPro, a Free Web Application that "translates digital images into knit, crochet, needlepoint and cross-stitch patterns."

This software is licensed under the CC-GNU GPL.

 

Using knitPro, you have the ability to create a charted pattern in three different sizes and three separate formats.

 

Your results will be in pdf format that you can print and save to your computer.

 

I could do anything I wanted with my newly created pattern except create an image that I could use here to show you the results.

 

I certainly have no reservations recommending this tool ~however~

There is a Clear Advantage to Purchasing Your Own Software...

..Once you've bought it, it's yours and so is everything you create using it.

 

Happy Charting~!

[wheat]

Hi Tracy,

 

In additition to Brian's excellent program Stitchworks there is also N.H. Software's Symbol Crochet. Both Author/Programmers frequent our Yahoo Group for SymbolCrochet in support of their program.

 

For simple graphs such as those produced by KnitPro, there are at least a dozen different options with a price range from "Free" to under $300 for some with professional capabilities such as generating schematics and customization of garments etc. such as is found in Cochenille's Garment Designer and Knitware and Sweater Wizard all are realtively useful for a Crochet Pattern Author

 

My major issue with KnitPro is that while it does produce a nice graph, for Knit & Crochet it does not truly represent the actauly shape of K-n-C stitches. For Needle point and Counted Thread/Cross Stitch one would be much better off with a program like Ken Davis' Easygrapher - again because of their ability to create charts which reflect differences in the proportions of stitches. Others worth considering would be Pattern Maker by HobbyWare for NP & XS.

 

Because of their versatility, for creating Crochet Symbols charts with proportional symbols and using generally accepted standard symbols, Stitchware & NH SymbolCro are probably the best for those willing to get past the initial learning curve.

 

If you needs are limited to graphs, I think I would still go with Stitchware & SymbolCro but some may find Crochet Designs - Filet Crochet best meets their immediate needs.

Many of these will export in multiple formats, which allows you greater flexibility in your choice of layout, or as required when submitting to various publications.

 

It is my experience that until one gets past the $1000-$1500 cost of a serious professional cad type design program, no single program is going to do what you need.

 

If all one wants is really just a graph, then my choice is usually coloured pencils and graph paper laid over a picture on a light table (improvised or otherwise)

 

Hope this helps your search

 

Enjoy The making

[TallGirl]

this is all very interesting to me as I am trying to find a program that is graphs with the symbols to design afghans like shady lane ghan designs with the sc in the back loop than you do the dc in the loop before to create your raised design http://www.shadylane.com/ do you recomend one specifically for this what I do is put my symbold on graph paper and every square is a stitch and tape the graphs together as large as I need it but would be so much easier with a program and be able to print it off and to market my patterns.

[MaryPat]

My search for online charting software for fiber artists came up surprisingly .. well, ineffective.

I found options for commercial use but the cost and usability of those make them unreasonable options for most of us.

 

There is one option available for hobbyists from Stitch Works Software.

 

Stitch Works Software was created in 2011 by Brian Milco.

Brian created software for the fiber arts community..

 

"..designed to be easy enough for the hobbyist to use, and powerful enough for the professional. "

 

The software is full of features any crocheter would LOVE and is available for purchase for, a very reasonable $50 HERE

 

I did find ONE online option to recommend.

 

microRevolt is a "fiber movement" ..their mission is to "investigate the dawn of sweatshops in early industrial capitalism to inform the current crisis of global expansion and the feminization of labor."

 

On their website is knitPro, a Free Web Application that "translates digital images into knit, crochet, needlepoint and cross-stitch patterns."

 

This software is licensed under the CC-GNU GPL.

 

Using knitPro, you have the ability to create a charted pattern in three different sizes and three separate formats.

 

Your results will be in pdf format that you can print and save to your computer.

 

I could do anything I wanted with my newly created pattern except create an image that I could use here to show you the results.

 

I certainly have no reservations recommending this tool ~however~

There is a Clear Advantage to Purchasing Your Own Software...

..Once you've bought it, it's yours and so is everything you create using it.

 

Happy Charting~!

I've also used a freebie called KG Chart.

http://www.iktsoft.net/kgchart-en/kgchart/

It is for cross stitching but you have much more flexibility than with knitpro.  There are no inbetween colors.  For me using knitpro, I handcolored them once I printed the created graph.  With KG Chart, you can specify how many colors.  And ... with a couple of clicks, you can change a color to something else.  You can also click on individual "pixels" and change color. 

 

With knitpro, I spent hours with non-professional photo software (Paint) trying to reduce the number of colors. 

 

It does not give any crochet symbols and is only useful in the same situations you'd find knitpro to be useful.

[Jsilvers]

If you want chart symbols for back and front loop and back and front post stitches, please consider SymblCro.  I have posted a sample using these symbols in a photo album on the SymblCro discussion site showing these stitches, changing colors and thicknesses of the stitches so you can see the separates stitches made into a single stitch.  The sample shows back loop sc's behind front post dc's and front loop dc's.

 

  An alternative would be to place the front dc's above the sc's and use dotted lines to show they are made in the same stitch.  You can do this with SymblCro also.

 

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/symbolcrochet/

[TallGirl]

If you want chart symbols for back and front loop and back and front post stitches, please consider SymblCro.  I have posted a sample using these symbols in a photo album on the SymblCro discussion site showing these stitches, changing colors and thicknesses of the stitches so you can see the separates stitches made into a single stitch.  The sample shows back loop sc's behind front post dc's and front loop dc's.

 

  An alternative would be to place the front dc's above the sc's and use dotted lines to show they are made in the same stitch.  You can do this with SymblCro also.

 

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/symbolcrochet/

 

thanks for this info   I joined and have checked out the group.   I will have to see where you download the program etc.   not feeling well tonight but am very interested in this.

[tracy.joyner]

I fee like a heal...the post and run kind 

I got busy and basically abandoned my post!

 

I'm fixing that with a schedule I've set up for myself.  I'm really sorry to you all who responded so informatively to my article then heard absolutely nothing from me! 

 

With all this new information, I think I must do a follow-up article for the blog including all your great input....I'll be sure and let you each know when that happens since I'm sure I will be using some quotes from you.

 

TracyAnn

[Judy Kious]

www.Myphotostitch.com has a picture to crochet pattern when you click on the address go to the advanced and it lets you set it for crochet if your left handed I think you could flip the picture then it should turn out ok because the pattern says for right handed you might want to experiment with this before you start a large project if your a lefty and this also is a cross stitch converter for those who do that also this actually prints a pattern of instructions for you to go by.  Hope somebody gets use from this one it lets you save to computer as pdf file. I played with this program for hours after I first found it. It was like a new toy:)LOL

[Margot Margaux Procureur]

Bonsoir , bonjour tracy.joyner and all of you here in this forum,

 

Thank you very much for your very interesting info about techniques to create our own diagram for crochet motifs or models.

I reallly want to try one of them,

thow I am not at all intelligent with computers and all its tresors of techniques.

But creating our own diagram printed is so much better

than with my pencil on paper...because I never am correct  in drawing on the rigth spots the symbols....

Merci beaucoup

 

How many of you have tryed thses links proposed in theme ?

Kind regards to all

FleurBelge