im wanting to design!

[bubblefizz]

I really want to design a ladies top but where do i start?

im sick of looking for patterns but arnt what i want.

what is the basics to start with when designing?

[diamond]

The basics are just that; basic:

Your measurements, type of yarn you want to use, hook size you want to use, type of stitch (sc, hdc, dc, etc). Graph paper is good to have. What I do is take all the above elements, then with with my graph paper sketch out what I want. Figure out your gauge, then go from there. Once I have the basic elements & the rough sketch, I usually write down a very rough pattern (not row by row but in general, this lets me know what my original thinking was). After that I begin crocheting and write down everything as I go. How many stitches in the starting chain. whether I'm working in front loops (FLO), back loops (BLO) or both loops. Everything I do gets written down. You should see some of my working patterns. There are circles with notes, squares with notes. Notes written sideways, in script, in block letters, underlined, etc. My original patterns are a mess. After I get all the kinks worked out and the first piece done. Then I sit down at my computer and write it all out. Loopi took about 10 pages for the original paper work but my Epiphany bag took only about 3 (as it was a much less complicated project). I keep a 5x8 spiral notebook with me at all times and may not write down basic instructions right away, but will sketch out what ideas pop into my head to work on at a later time. This is just my way of doing it and it works great for me. Hope this helps some.

[bubblefizz]

so what if i want to use assorted stitches ie...dc and shell stitch etc,

and is there alot of maths involved in designing? im useless with numbers lol

[diamond]

There's not a lot of math involved, you just have to remember if your starting chain is say 20 and you're going to use dc as your stitch, then you have to add either 2 or 3 to the original 20.....ch-23. Some people prefer to use 2 stitches when turning, others 3. And if you're going to dc, ch-1, then for your starting chain you would do 20 + 3 + 1 = beg ch-24. If your work will be done in filet, then it's a little more complicated to figure out the blocks & spaces but the same basic idea. Just always remember how you plan to turn your work. What is the first st going to be after you turn?

 

Also consider if you are starting at the top or bottom. Make note of it in your instructions; ie: this piece works from the top down or works from the bottom up. This helps others who will read your pattern know what to expect when working your pattern.

[bubblefizz]

i have just got my graph paper out and now im stuck LOL i know what kinda pattern i want but still not sure where to begin, what do you class one square as? 1" 2" 4"?

[diamond]

Depending on how big the top is. Say the top is 12 inches across. Your graph paper is more than likely 8.5 inches wide by 11 inches long. You could tape to pages together and have each square represent 1 inch or each square represent 1 stitch. An inch can be a square.....now do a swatch gauge with the hook, yarn & stitch you plan on using. Figure out how many stitches/rows per inch. This is just an example and not meant to be used as a guide: if you have 4 stitches of sc that equals 1 inch and do 3 rows that equal 1 inch....your gauge would be 4 sts x 3 rows = 1 inch......now pencil your top onto your graph using the same guidelines......1 square equals 1 sts/row (if taping 2 pages together).

 

Am I confusing you? I know how to do it but have never written it out before so I may forget something. I'm trying to remember as I go.

[bubblefizz]

yes i get what you mean, i did try using 1 square as an inch, then changed it to 2" then 4" LOL so i will try using one square as 2" !

[bubblefizz]

Diamond .........its not worked out LOL i cant get it right im trying to get a basic top but it looks so funny,its defo not right

[diamond]

Angie....I'm going to work up a new top pattern and write down exactly how I do it each time. Then I send you how I write up the pattern so you can write your pattern for your top. I just do it so need to figure out the instructions as I've never written them up before.

[bubblefizz]

ok thanks very much Cheryl