Creating Patterns

[Futurekitty]

Hi, I'm interested in creating my own knitting patterns but don't really know how to go about it. Any suggestions on resources I could use would be greatly appreciated.

I've been knitting since little, but have always followed someone else's pattern. I would like to understand how to make something unique.

Thank you.

[suzeeq]

You get experience in designing your own patterns by making someone else's, doing your own modifications. Top down raglans are the easiest to design, or bottom up raglans. I listed several books in this thread, which you should be able to get through your library. Forgot about Custom Knits by Wendy Bernard; that has ready made patterns, but they all have options to modify them and in the back she has several pages about converting other patterns as well as designing your own. The thread also has other links that may help you, specifically the one to the Knitty article, and another book I didn't know of.

[Michaele]

Yes, you must have experience before you really can design.

1. Choose the item that you wish to make.
2. Find an already existing pattern.
3. Follow said pattern once.
4. Look at the finished project and consider what modifications or alterations you'd like to make (different colors, decreases or increased, etc.)
5. Then experiment! But remember to RECORD your progress or any problems that come up, you'll want to remember these when you're finalizing your new pattern.

For example, I'm trying to make globes for earth day. I'm modifying this pattern http://i-like-lemons.blogspot.com/20...nit-balls.html to accomodate intarsia for a miniature Earth.

[Mokumegane]

You know, I got sick and tired of using someone else's pattern because it meant I had to conform to their yarn and gauge, etc. It's so hard to get gauge right when you really don't want to use the yarn they present to you... and I'm just sick of spending so much time knitting up a gauge on different sized needles, double-stranded yarn, etc. What did I do? Well, I chose mittens! They're somewhat simple... there's a cuff, a thumb gusset and the rest of the hand is basically an ovalish shape that fits around the rest of the hand. The trickiest parts of that are the gusset and decreasing on the ends of the thumb and hand area, really... not that bad. For the gusset, I used a traditional gusset and for increases and decreases, I used ones that would put a patterning on the mittens that I liked. As for gauge, I figured out my gauge with the yarn I wanted to use and dpn's (I wanted a mainly seamless mitten) the size that looked right. Something small and simple is definitely the way to go to begin with. Scarves are VERY simple and you can think of how you'd like to make one that has elements you want that you may not have seen all in one pattern or any in one pattern. Just experiment!

[suzeeq]

Hats would also be easy to design your own. You cast on enough for 2" smaller than head size, then do what you want above the ribbing or edging. Increase sts for a floppy beret type style or not, put in your own stitch pattern and there you are. Decreasing is generally standard at 8 sts every other round until the last few rounds where you dec every round. Then you're done.