Textured sweaters incorporate the knit stitch as the background and the purl stitch as the pattern or visa versa. The trick is that the contrast in the texture produced by these two different stitches makes the pattern stand out. Textured sweaters can be very dramatic or very subtle. You can use textured patterns along with cable patterns for a more varied look or you can use texture alone. It’s your choice. But the process is very simple. It’s only a combination of the purl and knit stitches that you learned in the first lesson.

            You can use a multi-colored pattern to create a textured sweater pattern and visa-versa . There are a few things that you need to consider before you convert a multi-colored pattern to a textured pattern though.

            Look at examples “A” through “C”. They are the very same pattern but “A” is knitted in a multi-colored pattern, “B” is knitted in a textured pattern with a knit stitch for the background, and “C” is knit with a purl stitch for the background.
           

            Study example “A” and you’ll see that the snowflake pattern stands out from the background because the white of the snowflake contrasts well with the navy blue background.

            Now look at example “B” and you will see that the pattern does not stand out as dramatically because the contrast is subtle. You will also notice that the stitches act differently depending on how they are placed. The border at the top and the bottom are both done in the very same purl stitch, but you will notice that the horizontal border is convex and the vertical border is concave. The same stitches act differently because in the vertical border the purl stitches are placed one above the other for several rows and thus they tend to sink inward. The horizontal border has only 2 rows of purl stitch and then knit rows above it and the knit stitch tend to raise the purl.  Notice too that the pattern (done in a purl stitch against the knit background) tends to rise about the knit background.

            Next take a look at example “C”. Do you see that the exact opposite is happening from the patterns that we saw in example “B”? The border is done in a knit stitch and the background in a purl stitch. Now the horizontal border at the top and the bottom are concave and the vertical knit stitches at the sides are convex. The pattern in the knit stitch sinks below its purl background.

            When you are designing your own sweaters you’ll need to take these factors into account. Understanding how color and texture relate can mean the difference between an award winning sweater and a “ho-hum” sweater. If you are creating a new pattern, always, always, always make a test swatch before you plunge into making the sweater. It can save you a lot of time and tears.