Knit Fabric Construction
Knitting is the art of constructing fabric or cloth with knitting needles by an interlocking of loops. The essential element of knitting is the loop, for the whole fabric is constructed from a succession of loops.
A loop is a very small length of thread, or yarn, taken at some point at a distance from the end and drawn through, or around, some object, usually another loop. Obviously this will result in two loops. One of these coils around the instrument or needle which draws it through and is called the needle loop, shown by the letter a in Fig. 1. The other loops around the object or previous loop through which it was drawn, and is called the sinker loop, indicated by b, b in Fig. 1. These two loops, not two complete loops, but rather one full needle loop and two halves of the sinker loop, make a stitch, as indicated by the shaded portion of Fig. 1 from c to c.
Fig. 1.
Sinker Loop, Needle
Loop and Stitch.
A course is any number of loops lying side by side in a line crosswise of the fabric, as indicated along dotted lines a, a, Figs. 2 and 3.
A wale is any number of loops in a line succeeding one another lengthwise of the fabric, as indicated along dotted lines b, b, Figs. 2 and 3.
Crosswise of the fabric is the direction in which the yarn feeds while the fabric is in the process of construction, forming loops adjoining one another, or the same direction as the course. Lengthwise of the fabric is the direction in which the fabric is built up by drawing one loop through another, or the same direction as the wale. Therefore the width of the fabric is restricted by the number of loops or needles used as a base, while the length of the fabric has no restrictions other than the supply of material or the will of the knitter. Rib is an alternative expression for wale, but is applicable more particularly where the fabric has a wale on both sides, in which case it is shown as a rib fabric. Where a cloth has a wale on one side only it is known as a jersey fabric, and is also sometimes called flat goods. Rib fabrics will be taken up later for it is my purpose to deal only with jersey or flat fabrics until the theory of knitting is thoroughly explained.
Fig. 2.
Wale and Course, Face.
Fig. 3.
Wale and Course, Back.