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Machine knitting for dolls

Apr 20, 2021

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    1. Are there any other machine knitters out there? Although I can hand knit I actually prefer to use my machine but I am struggling to find machine knit patterns for BJD's the only ones I can find are for American Girl type dolls which are totally the wrong shape. Most of my dolls are smaller ones I have Iplehouse BID's, Kids and Jids, and a couple of Pukipukis. I am working on trying to design my own patterns but I wondered if anyone had managed to find any patterns out there.
       
      #1 Valentia, Apr 20, 2021
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    2. I have not machine knit in many years but back when I was a lot younger and my youngest sister was in grade school I machine knit for her Happy Family, yes, that’s ancient, LOL, but sweaters and caps and even a bunting to match for the family baby... so, yes, it can be done, no, I didn’t have any patterns but I did have my mom handy to help with placing increases and decreases for shaping. A bit oversized is better than a bit too small.
       
      #2 Maggimia56, Apr 21, 2021
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    3. There is a tutorial that explains how you can create your own pattern for a boat neck sweater in the tutorial section. I'm guessing this technique can be used for other garments as well. Maybe this will help you?
      The tutorial can be found here
       
      #3 Enitnerolf, Apr 21, 2021
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    4. Thank you for bringing this subject up! Honestly I wondered if there was such a thing to machine knit BJD clothing items. I assumed that they were all hand knit because of the size. I have wanted to do something like this instead of hand knitting like I do for BJD items.
       
      #4 DitaBlack, Apr 23, 2021
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    5. Patience, a yarn that is smooth so it’s easier to rip back/unknit, an easy to see color to work with, not black or dark navy....good lighting, and a liking to do fiddling little things helps a lot. Gauge swatching, and remember that it’s bigger on that machine, once it’s off, it’s going to be smaller. I think this is 1 of the differences between hand and machine knitting, I have a better ‘feel’ for the fabric and the drape when hand knitting, it’s easier for me to know when it’s just not working up well, dolls are so much smaller that they need a very soft, drape-able ‘fabric’ and far bigger % wise openings to get in and out of... they just are not as flexible as us humans, even us old humans.
       
      #5 Maggimia56, Apr 23, 2021
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    6. I wasn't sure if there would be any interest at all so I am glad there may be a few machine knitters out there.

      I am going to have a go at designing a few patterns however my skills are a bit rusty. My machine will knit fine yarn fairly happily at tension 2 but I can't get a rib that I like even on the tightest tension so I think a mixture of machine knitting with hand knitting or crochet may be the way to go. I think I will work backwards and knit swatches until I find a feel/handle that I like then work out rows and stitches from there. Techniques that are fairly easy in hand knitting like increasing across a row are much more fiddly on a machine and possibly not worth it on doll size. Dolls may not be as flexible as us old humans although I sometimes think the ability to remove our heads and hands could have its advantages :)

      I do have a large collection of people patterns going back to the 1960's and possibly earlier so that may help although nothing BJD size, I'll let you know how I get on.
       
      #6 Valentia, Apr 24, 2021
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    7. My mom knit for shops and commissions with a variety of knitting machines, but she always hand knit. I know on some garments she would work back/rip/tink down individual stitches and then work them back up by hand, she did this especially when she wanted/needed intricate cabling work that her knitting machines just would not allow her to do. And I learned how to back down and fix my knitting errors from watching her. So, yes, a combination often gets the best results, especially for things like dolls.
       
      #7 Maggimia56, Apr 24, 2021
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