Creating a New Chart Diagram from an Image

To create a new Chart Diagram file from an image;-

1. On the main menu bar, select File > New > New Chart Diagram from Image.

   Alternatively in the main toolbar, select the New Chart Diagram from Image button

   The New Chart Diagram from Image dialog opens.

   

   This dialog allows you to select an image or a section of an image. You can then choose a selection of colours or yarns that you wish to use to pixelate the image and convert it to a knitting chart.

2. On the left hand side of the dialog is an image viewer. From the image viewer toolbar, select the Choose Image button .

   Alternatively click on the image viewer where the words 'Click to choose an image' are displayed.

   Navigate to the desired image file. Select the file and then select Open.

   The selected image will be displayed in the image viewer.

3. To crop the image select the Crop button  from the image viewer toolbar.

   A cropping screen with a highlight window is displayed in front of the image. Click and drag anywhere inside the highlight window to move the window. Click and drag on the handles at the corners and sides of the highlight window to resize it.

   

   To apply the crop select the Apply crop button  .

   To cancel the crop select the Cancel crop button  .

   Click on the image to select colours and yarns. Note that this feature will not work when in cropping mode. When you click on the image the exact colour in the image at the clicked point will be added to the Colours list at the right hand side of the dialog.

   If a yarn palette is selected, Stitchmastery will look in that palette for the closest yarn match to the selected colour and add it to the Yarns list at the right hand side of the dialog. Duplicate colours and yarns will be ignored.

   Use the zoom buttons on the image viewer toolbar if needed.

   Check Preview image with and then either chosen colours or chosen yarns to preview the image with all the original colours replaced with either the chosen colours or the chosen yarns. Note that this feature will not work when in cropping mode. When you click on the image the exact colour in the image at the clicked point will be added to the list of colours at the right hand side of the dialog.

   Uncheck Preview image with to view the image with its original colours and select more if needed.

   Use the Yarn palette drop down box to change the yarn palette. If you do this use the Refresh button  to update the yarns. Colours and yarns can also be deleted from the Colours and Yarns lists by clicking on the delete button.

   Click Next once you are happy with the cropping and colour and yarn selection.

4. A grid screen is now placed over the image.

   

   By default the grid and handles are black. Click on the Colour of grid and handles colour box to edit this colour. This could be useful if you are using a dark-coloured image where a light-coloured grid would be more visible. Note that this is the colour of the grid in this dialog page only, not in the final generated chart.

   To change the number of rows or columns click on the handles at the sides of the grid. Alternatively use the Rows or Columns drop down boxes on the right hand side of the dialog.

   To change the scale of the grid click and drag on handles at the corners of the grid.

   To change the width to height ratio of the grid cells either;-

   1. Check Use gauge to size cells and then enter the gauge information into the Rows and Stitches drop down boxes.

      This option is useful to ensure that the knitted work created from the generated chart will match the original image and not be stretched either widthwise or heightwise.

   2. Check Fit to size of image.

      The grid will now cover the entire image and the grid handles will disappear. Use the Rows and Columns drop down boxes to scale the grid.

      This option is useful when importing a colourwork chart created outside of Stitchmastery. In order for this to work well crop the original colourwork chart image so that only the full grid is visible. For example, crop away any row or column labels outside the grid of the chart.

   To preview how the chart will look, check Show pixelation

   Select Next once you are happy with the grid.

5. The next page of the dialog now asks for information about the new chart file to be created.

   1. The File Name contains a generated default name. If desired, type in a different file name. The file extension must be ".knt2".

   2. (Optional) Type in a Chart title. This can be edited later.

   3. (Optional) Change the starting row and column numbers. These can be changed later.

   4. (Optional) Select the positioning of Column numbers. Note that individual column numbers can be either hidden or edited later.

   5. (Optional) Select if the chart represents Circular or Flat knitting. Again, this can be changed later.

   6. (Optional for flat knitting only) Select if the chart should start with a RS or WS row.

6. Select Finish. The dialog closes and the chart diagram file is created and opened for editing.

   

Alternative sources of explanation: