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3-colour (DBJ) Jacket - by Loulou Pirotte

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Click here for notes on how to put the shape and stitch pattern files in your usual folder.

Inspiration:  I have always been intrigued by dressmaker and tailoring details. This is inspired by a basic dressmaker shape, modified to some extent. It is important to remember that, whatever the type of dressmaker garment we want to knit, the knitted version will be different, in its fabric, from the original which is usually woven. Knitted garments will also require different construction methods.

Size: petite (Bust - waist - hips: 88 - 68 - 88 cm)

Category: **

Machine: Electronic standard gauge Brother KH970. KRC1000E colour                 changer (or any double-bed changer).

Yarns:

•  Linea Più Classico Mou, 2/28 Nm, 65% merino - 35% angora.
   1 strand of each colour (Black,  dark grey and off-white) and 2  strands of dark grey for the ribbed waist band.
•  This combination produces a very lightweight and drapy fabric.

Total amount used: 380 grs. (132 grs off-white, 160 grs  dark grey and 88 grs black).

Tension: 0 on both carriages in DBJ. 2 on both carriages for the 2x1                ribbing, with slide lever on II. The close knit bar is used.

Gauge: 10 x 10 cm:  

• 3-colour DBJ:   38.8 stitches x 46 rows.
• 2 x 1 ribbing: 39 stitches x 68 rows.  

Stitch pattern:

This pattern was designed in Stitch Designer and creates the impression of a magnified fabric.

•  Knitting method: 3 (-colour double-bed jacquard). 2 carriage passes for one actual row, in each colour.
•  Design your pattern as a simple Fair Isle and let DesignaKnit deal with the separation! But, do NOT use  the  MCRIB (or KRC) key on your electronic  machine.
•  Select the right separation method for your type of machine.
•  Tip: if you want to know what the separated pattern looks like or if you need the separated version of  this  pattern to punch a card, for example, first select the Brother 950i as your machine (Stitch  Designer/Options/Method of  Knitting). Next  select File/Print. In the “Print Stitch Patterns” window, tick  the “Stitch Pat Template”  option which is now  enabled.
•  Full Needle Rib set-up.  
•  The shape and stitch pattern are integrated.
•  In a set-in sleeve, I want the  pattern to match from the armhole up to the shoulder. I usually move the  pattern down by 2 cm in the sleeve.

Shape:

The  shape was designed  in Original Pattern Drafting.

• The shape file has 4 pieces: Back, Front 1, Front 2 and Sleeve.
• Block your new pieces and Fit them To Height and Width, taking into account the facings and hems.
  Next, shape your pieces. You can use the Table or the Plus and Minus tools or drag your points.
  The front can also be constructed from the back piece: duplicate the back piece, set the Origin at the
  centre and use Piece/Separate. Don’t forget to add the facings! The front piece can also be duplicated and flipped.
• Do not forget the overlap in the fronts.
• Add points on  the back and front pieces to mark the depth of  the waist band in 2 x 1 ribs.
• If you are using a dressmaker pattern, do not use the ease recommended for the woven garment. Knitting is forgiving! For instance, I always use  negative  ease for the shoulder measurement. I  want the shoulder line at shoulder point, not off the shoulder.
• Collar: this is a built-up neckline (it extends above the base of the neck in back and front) and is constructed all in one with the bodice. It can be developed in different ways, from another point along the shoulder for example, depending on how far you want the collar to stand up away from the neck.
  The depth and width of the V-neck opening are a matter of personal taste.
  I used a mock-up before designing the front collar and facing but the “paper doll” is another technique one can use to ‘see’ a garment, or part of it, in three dimensions.
• The small “>” shape in the front facings and the 2 inverted “V” shapes at collar level are  constructed to remove excess fabric at the point of the V-neck  and in the collar, when the facings are folded in.
• Each piece starts with a hem that will be folded in.
• The front facings are constructed and  knitted as an extension of the piece.

Note: I like to take my shapes into Interactive Knitting and “knit them manually” before starting the actual knitting, to make sure everything is OK.

By “knit manually”, I mean using Interactive Knitting *without the machine*, i.e. using the UP arrow tool.

Knitting tips

• Most woven garments can be ‘translated’ into knitted garments but some factors must be taken into account such as the yarn, the stitch pattern, the mechanics of a knitted fabric, the features of the machine itself, etc. for the type of project you are considering.
  If you are using a dressmaker pattern, keep in mind that some minor (or major) adjustments  may have to be made as some sewing features cannot be reproduced as such on our machines.
  Vertical darts to cinch the waist, for instance, wouldn’t be flattering in a stitch pattern like double-bed jacquard as they would disrupt the pattern.
  The more colours you are going to use, the thicker the fabric in double-bed jacquard. So, choosing the yarn weight also matters.
• Back, fronts and sleeves start with a hem knitted in the same stitch pattern but, in a double-bed pattern, I always start the hems with a few circular rows at the tightest possible tension. This gives the hems more stability and prevents them from flaring.
• Shaping is with a 2-prong tool for all the pieces.
  Important: do not forget that , on a japanese machine, in double-bed jacquard, you must always have an even number of needles on the ribber!
  Hence, increases and decreases can only be in units of 2 stitches at a time, on either side of the ribber.
  On the main bed, you can increase or decrease one stitch at a time.
• Facing and collar: the facing is knitted as an extension of the front. The 47 stitches required for the facing are added directly after the hem, on the carriage side. (Depending on your machine, you may have to deal with a preselection row).

1. It is also possible to add those stitches when the carriage is on the opposite side, using a separate piece of yarn. Actually, I prefer this method. To cast on those stitches, I knit them manually (Knitted back e-wrap ) and transfer the heels of the stitches from the main bed to the ribber.  
   When adding stitches in double-bed work, it may be difficult to hang a cast-on comb, especially if you already have a large number of stitches in work. To work around this, I cast on the new stitches (Knitted back e-wrap), transfer the heels of the stitches from main bed to ribber, place a ravel cord over the newly cast on stitches and pull down on the ravel cord, from under the beds, until the knitting  is long enough to hang a comb and/or weights.
2. The small “>” shape in the front facing is constructed to remove excess fabric at the point of the
   V-neck when the facing is folded in. The shaping tag is H and this is short rowed. In the same way, the inverted “V” shapes, at collar level, are constructed to remove excess fabric.

Note : if you have not integrated the piece with the pattern using the cut and sew option from Stitch Designer’s Shapes menu, this part (in the collar) will be knitted in a single section.
If you don’t feel confident enough to short row in double-bed jacquard, you can either:

1. Use cut and sew for this deleted “dart”.
2. If your yarn is very fine, avoid short rowing and knit the shape without this ‘dart’. You will then ‘fold’ the fabric over itself and form a mitre when you finish the jacket.

• The sleeve cap  is longer than  requested to fit the armhole. This is in order  to have a surplus of fabric which will serve as a small shoulder pad.
• A vertical buttonhole is worked over 10 rows in the ribbed band. Don’t forget to make a buttonhole in the facing as well.
• If you turn on the Marker tool in the DesignaKnit shape file, you will notice markers  on every piece. These mark the fold line, i.e. the row or stitch where the  facings and hems will be folded in.
• All the pieces were mattress stitched together.
• As always, my hems and facings are set in place with iron-on fusible material.