Hats made on the Brother KH260 Knitting Machine and KR260 Ribber using DK, 8 ply, light worsted yarn. Can do faux rib.

Hats made on the Brother KH260 Knitting Machine and KR260 Ribber using DK, 8 ply, light worsted yarn.

When I first started using my Brother bulky/chunky I experimented with st's and rows needed until I settled on these st's and rows for a great size small/medium hat. 

 

Tension I have on one hat that I made is 19 st's per 4 inches and 25 rows per 4 inches, this tension could differ from yarn to yarn, but I still use the same stitch and row count on them all.

Simply written I did the following.

With main bed and ribber cast on 85 st's for a 1x1 rib according to the manual.
I do not count the cast on row, but the first 3 rows from the instructions of the manual is counted.
With T1 work 20 (includes the first 3 rows in the count of 20) rows 1x1 rib, increase T to T3 on both beds for row 21 (fold hem), decrease T to T1 for next 20 rows.
Total of 41 rows of 1x1 rib.
Move all needles up to main bed, for the folded rib band, hang the st's from the beginning row.
Using T3 knit 54 rows.
Move eon needle onto it's neighbor and work 1 final row.
Leave a long tail, break yarn and gather st's for the crown.
Secure crown and mattress stitch the sides and the folded rib.

 Handy Notes

• eon = ever other needle
• T = tension
  

For a childs hat, pre teen.
same tension as above, 80 st's, 31 rows rib, and 55 rows for top of hat.

For a large hat I add just a couple of st's and 5 more rows.

I have used my sizing with a faux rib of 3x1 and it's just a bit stretchier than using the ribber, below are two identical hats, but one is using the 3x1 faux rib.

When using the punch card, I begin on row 2 of the main body of the hat.

When making cables I use the same sizing.

I always use the seven weights.

I have been and still am experimenting with an inner layer for the hat to hide the Intarsia lengths of yarn.
For that I first experimented with making the inner of the hat first and only using eon for the length of 55 rows, which mirrored the front, BUT it turned out too long as eon is very stretchy, so next time I do that I will only do 45 rows and see how that goes.

I also tried to knit on the main bed to the row count of the height of the punch card pattern, transfer the needles down to the ribber, attach the ribber comb, knit the 1x1 rib for 41 rows, then up to the main bed and use the punch card to the end of the patterning rows (matching the inside of the hat), then hung the hem and knitted to the 55 rows of the hat. Kind of like this ear flap hat below but without the ear flaps and adding the rib.

 

I'm trying to use short yarn changing punch cards where I don't have all of this bother, but if I like something enough, I'll go back to those extremes.

In the picture above, it shows the division for a fully fashioned decrease top of the hat which can be done with the sizing I have given, I divided the 55 rows and st count by 4, so it's all done in quarters. I ended up with 58 rows in total, but that was fine.

In the facebook group Machine Knitting Beginners and Returners Circle  Jason Lightoller made a video of how to do this type of decreases for the top of a hat, I was so glad when he made that video as it simplified the whole process, so thank you once again Jason.

 

Well I won't bore you anymore, but check out the tab on my blog to see punch cards you can punch the link is here.

Make Crochet Letter Images With AI At Google Labs

Visit Google Labs: Head over to Google Labs and explore their AI experiments. One of the standout tools is the alphabet generator named GENTYPE powered by Imagen, Google's generative image model.

 

 I typed in this simple prompt to the alphabet generator: 

 

Here are some examples I got from my prompt.

Let's Get Creative with AI Images!

 

 

Hey there, fellow creators! Remember when we talked about the ups and downs of AI-generated images? Well, today, let's flip the switch and dive into the fun side of things! AI images can actually be super cool and handy for boosting your creativity, and I'm here to show you how.

Ever heard of ideogram.ai? It's like this magical place where you can whip up awesome typography images in no time. Seriously, it's a blast! They've got all sorts of fonts, styles, and tweaks you can play around with to make your creations pop.

What I love most about platforms like ideogram.ai is how they make creativity accessible to everyone. You don't need to be a design guru or have fancy software – just jump in and start creating! Whether you're into making motivational quotes or adding a personal touch to your messages, the sky's the limit.

 

But wait, there's more! AI images aren't just for artsy stuff. Businesses can use them to spice up their marketing game, educators can jazz up their lessons, and heck, even your grandma can use them to make her Facebook posts more snazzy.

Prompt:

A humorous illustration of a friendly rivalry between a crochet and knit enthusiast, both working diligently to create the best hat. The crochet enthusiast is shown with a colorful, textured hat, while the knit enthusiast has a smooth, well-crafted one. The two sit at a small table with a timer, a hat-shaped trophy, and a basket of yarn. Their expressions are animated, with a mix of determination and playful competitiveness.

Prompt:A delightful and vibrant scene of a crocheted granny square with a charming face, arms, and legs. The granny square is dancing exuberantly, with a wide smile, twinkling eyes, and a fluffy afro. The typography "Crochet Rocks" is displayed in bold, colorful letters, with the "O" in "Rocks" replaced by a smiling crochet hook. The overall atmosphere of the image is cheerful and uplifting, with a touch of creativity and humor., typography
 

   20 humorous lines about crochet, crocheting, or crocheted items:

1. "Crocheting is my excuse for having a 'yarn budget' that rivals my grocery budget."
2. "I've never met a skein of yarn I didn't like – my wallet, on the other hand, disagrees."
3. "Crochet: where the only tension you need in your life is in your stitches."
4. "I'm not addicted to crocheting; I'm just entangled in its web of creativity."
5. "Crochet goals: Make enough blankets to build a fort big enough to hide from my responsibilities."
6. "Crocheting: the art of creating something cozy while binge-watching Netflix until 3 AM."
7. "I don't need a personal trainer; I have my crochet projects to keep my hands busy and my heart rate up."
8. "Crocheting is like a puzzle where you make up the pieces as you go along – and occasionally lose a few under the couch."
9. "I don't always follow crochet patterns, but when I do, it's mostly just to see where I went wrong."
10. "Crocheting is like magic – but instead of pulling rabbits out of hats, you pull scarves out of skeins."
11. "Crocheting: where 'frogging' isn't a punishment but a necessary evil for fixing mistakes."
12. "If loving yarn is wrong, I don't want to be right."
13. "Crochet projects: the only thing that grows faster than my yarn stash is my list of future projects."
14. "My crochet hook is like a magic wand, turning yarn into wearable art – or at least something resembling it."
15. "Crocheting is my therapy, and my therapist is a hook."
16. "I'm not messy; I'm just 'creatively chaotic' – a term coined by crocheters everywhere."
17. "Crocheting: because life's too short to wear boring socks."
18. "Crochet hook sizes: the only numbers I'm willing to calculate willingly."
19. "Crocheting is the only time I don't mind being a 'yarn hoarder' – it's all part of the creative process, right?"
20. "My crochet skills are like a fine wine – they improve with age, and sometimes, they make me a little dizzy."