Pattern Related FAQ
Article Related FAQ
Pattern Related FAQ
Q. How do you choose the featured pattern for each issue?
A. The featured pattern for each issue is chosen based on a combination of elements:
- Submission Timeliness – Patterns that are submitted by the submissions deadline get precedence to be selected as the featured pattern over other ones that are submitted past the deadline.
- Stellar Photos – Photos that are well-lit, from a variety of angles, and are also submitted on time, give your pattern the one-up over other patterns.
- Well-written Pattern and Introduction – If your pattern, notes, and/or introduction have to be edited for clarity, your pattern will most-likely get shuffled to the back of the list for featured pattern. This is mainly because copy-editing comes after content selection for an issue.
Featured patterns for an issue cannot be bought by advertisers. Sorry!
Q. How do I print the patterns from the Popknits website? I don’t see a print-friendly version to click on!
A. Never fear! There is no “print-friendly” version of Popknits patterns because it’s already print-friendly. Confused? Just hit the Print button on your browser on any pattern (or article) page and the browser will automatically pull the print stylesheet and use it to give you a fuss-free, easy-to-tote-with-you printed pattern.
Q. What does “vintage-inspired” mean? Can I just submit a retooled vintage pattern to you for publication?
A. No. Popknits will only accept a pattern for publication if it is an original, meaning the designer came up with this idea all on their own. Popknits wants designers to be inspired by vintage items in making their original patterns. Whether it’s from a very distinct memory of your childhood, a trip to the Met, or even a piece of your grandmother’s clothing, vintage ideas can be reinterpreted into fashionable modern clothing!
Q. What decades does Popknits consider “vintage”?
A. We’re looking for items inspired by the 1800s through the end of 1970.
Q. I need help with a Popknits pattern. Can I write to you to ask for advice?
A. If you have found a genuine error in a Popknits pattern, please feel free to contact us and let us know! We will then work with the designer to get the issue fixed and have the site updated as soon as possible. If you need help with certain techniques that are present in a Popknits pattern we suggest that you consult with the other members of the Popknits Group on Ravelry. Other knitters have such a wide-variety of advice to give if you are hitting a wall with a pattern.
Q. I’m a designer and I’m having trouble with making a chart for my pattern submission. Any advice?
A. Every designer has a different method for making charts whether it be in Microsoft Excel, Photoshop, Illustrator, and plain-old graph paper. For Popknits submissions, you will need to provide a JPEG image of your chart with a key and it should have been made digitally for our readers to understand it the best. For our first article, Cindy Moore explains her method of charting which may work for some designers especially if you already have the program Adobe InDesign. If you don’t have InDesign, you may find this tutorial on charting helpful: Software for Knitters: Part II—Charting with Excel. As the editor of Popknits, I personally like the Japanese charting symbols the best but as long as you provide a key to your chart, and the symbols that you use are distinct enough from one another, it doesn’t matter what you use when you submit your pattern. If you have some extra cash to spare, Knit Visualizer 2.0 from Knit Foundry is also very good.
Q. How do I get my Flickr images to show up on Popknits?
A. If you have images of your Popknits projects that you would like to show up on Popknits, there are two ways to accomplish this:
- Add your image to the Popknits Flickr Pool. If you are knitting a Popknits pattern and want to show it off, add it to the pool and it will show up in the footer on Popknits’ site. Please be aware that posting non-Popknits related project photos will result in them being deleted from the pool. Multiple offenses will get you banned from the Flickr group.
- Tag your image with the Popknits specific Flickr tag (shown in the grey box to the right of every pattern) and it will be added to the pattern page. These will also be watched by the Popknits editorial staff. If people abuse the tag and put non-Popknits related images in then these will be taken down from the pattern pages and only the pool will be used. You have been warned!
Article Related FAQ
Q. What sort of articles does Popknits publish?
A. Pretty much anything if the author can tie it to the vintage theme. Some ideas (though certainly not limited to the following): knitting in historical situations; how to read and change vintage knitting patterns; bios of historically significant knitters, knitting companies, etc.; how knitting influenced the growth of other cultures; and tutorials on long-forgotten and under-used knitting techniques. It is a goal of the Popknits staff to have a good catalog of articles that can help knitters of every walk-of-life understand and appreciate vintage knitting.
last updated on August 28 2008 at 08:19 PM ET
