Selective lifts, alternating grid (honeycomb / smocking)

Machine types that can knit it

• Single bed, punch card
• Single bed, electronic
• Single bed, no patterning
• Single bed (punch card) + ribber
• Single bed (electronic) + ribber
• Double bed with pushers (Passap type)
• Double-bed hand flat (V-bed)

Steps

1. Cast on multiple of P (+ edges); knit base in A.
2. Knit R rows in B.
3. Lift last A row on needles {k·P + 0..g−1}.
4. Knit R rows in A.
5. Lift last B row on needles shifted by P/2.
6. Repeat 2–5. Tip: let the colour you lift equal the colour you are about to knit, so you always know which row to pick.

The full card

What it looks like

Knit face: staggered grid of puffy cells, like smocked or tufted-quilt fabric; cells separated by pinched points; striped colours appear and disappear across cells. Purl face: regular lattice of stretched vertical lifted strands. Small scale (2 stitches, 4 rows) → fine waffle/honeycomb; large scale (6 stitches, 20 rows) → deep pillowy bubbles.

How it behaves

Bubble/puff array; strong relief at large scale, subtle texture at small scale.

How it works

Each stripe, lift groups of g stitches every period P needles; next stripe offsets groups by P/2 so pinch points alternate.

Machines

Single bed; transfer tool (multi-prong tool matched to g speeds work).

Parameters

g = 2–6 lifted stitches; P = g + gap (gap 2–18); R = 4–20 rows per stripe; offset = P/2 alternate stripes; colours 2.

Steps

1) Cast on multiple of P (+ edges); knit base in A. 2) Knit R rows in B. 3) Lift last A row on needles {k·P + 0..g−1}. 4) Knit R rows in A. 5) Lift last B row on needles shifted by P/2. 6) Repeat 2–5. Tip: let the colour you lift equal the colour you are about to knit, so you always know which row to pick.

Charting

Simplified chart: one band per stripe (not every row) with short vertical bars on the needles to lift; full chart: every row plus curved arrows. Pattern repeat shown with heavy grid lines every P needles.

Limits and common problems

Too few rows/too few lifts → texture only, little form; many rows + wide gap → fabric narrows/gathers a lot (plan extra width).

Combines with

weight-contrast stripes, elastic yarns, block placement.

Pieces and assembly

Gathering shortens width and length unpredictably; knit a swatch to measure take-up before cutting/joining pieces.

Related techniques

• Basic lifted stitch (heel hook-up)
• Charted lift placement (blocks, diamonds, conceal-and-reveal)
• Stepped adjacent lifts (diagonal wave)
• Lifts with contrasting yarn weights/fibres
• Lift-and-shift (directional/twisting lifts)
• Full-row lift (horizontal tuck/roll)