# DesignaKnit (DAK)



## rainbirdoz (Nov 7, 2012)

Under the topic of Ann's lime rose sweater, Ella asked whether Dk was worth the cost, so I thought I would raise it as a separate topic and, as a DAK user of many years, would try to answer it.



charlie4carats said:


> Thanks for the info. I checked and the farm is safe for now. I have another question. Is the DAK really worth the expense. I have a friend who has one and she swears by it, but from what she tells me it is quite complicated. What are your thoughts on this. Thanks again for all the info.
> Ella


I have DAK and have had it since version 4. Is it worth it? - in my opinion yes, but it does depend on where you want to go with your knitting. I used to knit my whole wardrobe but now hardly knit anything ( getting on for 80yo). I never use commercial patterns and with DAK, you not only design the stitch patterns but also the garment shapes. Yes it is expensive and there is a learning curve but if you want something, you usually master it. It is the most comprehensive software for knitting machines, has been years in development and there are cables for just about every machine, including punchcard and manual ones. With non-electronics you can design punchcard patterns and print out the design to scale, place it behind the blank punchcard to show you where to punch, or you can design intarsia designs over all 200 needles and if you have the interactive magnetic cable, you can knit and have DAK show you which needles to place the colours over, row by row.(come to think of it, you can do this without a cable by advancing the program manually row by row). If you are curious, go to the Softbyte website and look at the Gallery of garments designed with DAK, particularly those by Louise Poirot. I am attaching a photo of one of my outfits knitted some years back with the aid of DAK. This one was knitted on the Passap E6000 and I used DAK FOR designing the garment shape as well as arranging the design on the garment. Hope this helps answer the question - whether it is worth it is up to the buyer and how much they use it.
Sheila


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## pamgillies1 (Aug 6, 2011)

Beautiful outfit


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## pamgillies1 (Aug 6, 2011)

Beautiful outfit


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## rainbirdoz (Nov 7, 2012)

Thank you Pam &#128512;


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## aussieHC (Oct 21, 2013)

Love your outfit.

I too am a great fan of DAK and agree it is the most comprehensive patterning system available - for garment design as well as stitch design - so easy to make changes. Once you have it, you can use it for any of your electronic machines with the correct cables. It does a great job of digitising photos too for a jacquard knit.

Compared to modern embroidery machines, where you can spend up to $10,000 for the machine and then $2,000 for suitable embroidery software, DAK is very reasonably priced. I am regularly sent upgrades to DAK8, compare that to the Brother Embroidery software, which costs over $600 just for the upgrade after spending $2,000 for the software purchase - and it appears that the embroidery market is much bigger than the customer base for knitting machines these days.


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## KateWood (Apr 30, 2011)

Very pretty sweater/skirt.


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## rainbirdoz (Nov 7, 2012)

quote=AussieHC

Compared to modern embroidery machines, where you can spend up to $10,000 for the machine and then $2,000 for suitable embroidery software, DAK is very reasonably priced. I am regularly sent upgrades to DAK8, compare that to the Brother Embroidery software, which costs over $600 just for the upgrade after spending $2,000 for the software purchase - and it appears that the embroidery market is much bigger than the customer base for knitting machines these days.[/quote]

Thank you Kate and AussieHC - trouble is I am "unlearning" all that I used to know these days 😊. 
Aussie, you raised some good points regarding the comparative cost of embroidery machine software. I, too do machine embroidery and am aghast at the prices charged by the machine manufacturers for their software and upgrades. Makes DAK quite cheap in comparison. Fortunately there are alternatives there too as in Embird which I have used for years and love. Getting back to DAK - I should also point out that you can buy this in modular form, starting off with the basic program and adding Professional Shaping, the Lace Tool, at a later date if you wish.
Another feature I love is that you can design your stitch pattern and with an electronic machine, place it precisely on your garment to give you matching seams and sleeve/body matching as you wish. I have never done much with the graphics conversion feature but after seeing Ann's lovely lime rose sweater, I must give it a try when I finally get home again (not until mid March😞).


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## rainbirdoz (Nov 7, 2012)

CORRECTION- in my original post I referred to the work of Louise Poirot. This was an error, I meant Loulou Pirotte. Apologies to all.
Sheila


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## aussieHC (Oct 21, 2013)

Thank you Kate and AussieHC - trouble is I am "unlearning" all that I used to know these days 😊. 
Aussie, you raised some good points regarding the comparative cost of embroidery machine software. I, too do machine embroidery and am aghast at the prices charged by the machine manufacturers for their software and upgrades. Makes DAK quite cheap in comparison. Fortunately there are alternatives there too as in Embird which I have used for years and love. Getting back to DAK - I should also point out that you can buy this in modular form, starting off with the basic program and adding Professional Shaping, the Lace Tool, at a later date if you wish.
Another feature I love is that you can design your stitch pattern and with an electronic machine, place it precisely on your garment to give you matching seams and sleeve/body matching as you wish. I have never done much with the graphics conversion feature but after seeing Ann's lovely lime rose sweater, I must give it a try when I finally get home again (not until mid March😞).[/quote]

I use Embird too, but also have Brother software. Both have their strengths with different features. If you have DAK8, have a look at the graphis tutorial - it is amazing what you can do with a photo and DAK, and because you can do garment piece placement, you can wrap a design around as many stitches as you like - imagine a 500 stitch wide pattern, wrapped around the front and back of a garment. I expect that I will explore this one of these days, but have currently been using needle felting instead - saves the problem of floats and gives a great 3D effect. What a pity you're on the other side of the country - would love a knitting buddy to share ideas with. Most of the ladies I used to share with are now in nursing homes, or have given up their knitting machine due to poor eye sight.

I just love the ease of using my laptop computer with garment shapes and designing stitch patterns is so much more versatile than using a punch card. I was playing with a fairisle design the other day, and when I wasn't happy with a few large floats on my swatch, it was just a matter of changing a couple of stitches in the design, and off I went again - a 5 minute adjustment, but it made a big difference.


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## Maryknits513 (Feb 12, 2011)

I also like Design A Knit, and feel it is worth the money. I started with DAK7, and upgraded to DAK8 2 years ago.

I use the Stitch Designer and Graphics Conversion modules the most. I had to buy several cables for downloading the stitch designs to different knitting machines, but that is the only negative as far as I'm concerned.

Standard Garment Shaping is great for quick designs. You save your measurements, so you only need to choose the style, enter the stitch gauge and you've got a pattern. 

As the others have said, Original Pattern Drafting module allows you to be very creative with shapes. An interesting feature in DAK8 is the ability to integrate stitch designs into the shape pattern. Makes it easier to visualize the finished garment.


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## ramdoupri (Dec 22, 2012)

Shelia,what a beautiful outfit! I could ask you questions all day about the passap 6000.


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## charlie4carats (May 31, 2012)

Thank you to all who answered my question regarding the DAK. This is definitely something to look into. Sheila, that outfit is absolutely gorgeous. That is my kind of outfit. I am trying to re-learn my machines and just last week I was gifted a DM80. It will be a while before I try to learn to use that one. Thanks again everyone. I knew that if I asked a question here I would get answers.
Ella


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## juliesknitknacks (Jul 28, 2014)

As others have pointed out, DesignAKnit does more than any other program that interfaces with your knitting machine. It also allows you to purchase stitch patterns on disks from designers, rescale them, PERSONALIZE them, download the design to your electronic machine, and knit the item. The last three projects I knit using DAK were Christmas gifts for our three great-grandchildren who were born in 2014. All were done in double bed jacquard. I will send photos, but here is the description of each.

Cora's afghan was a pattern from Cheryl Jiles' "Crib Quilts". The only change I made was to personalize it with the baby's name, weight, and date of birth.

Jackson's afghan was from Joan Swanson's "Kids" book. DAK allowed me to make the picture much bigger to fit the afghan. Like the man on the afghan, the baby's father is VERY tall, and played basketball in high school. The colors used are those of University of Dayton, where the dad got his advanced degrees.

Jacob's afghan started with a stitch pattern from the Uniquely Yours "Sports Edition" and again had to be scaled much bigger. This baby's father has been in the Iron Man triathalon, hence the bicycle and the Iron Man logo. The cyclist's helmet is also significant because the baby's skull was partially fused at birth. After surgery to "unfuse" it, he started wearing a helmet that looks just like his dad's bicycle helmet. (He is fine now, and will stop using a helmet in the next few months.) Finally, the colors are the red and gray of Ohio State---the dad's alma mater.


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## ICEQUEEN (May 16, 2012)

Rain bird that is absolutely gorgeous! I would love to create a garment like that but only have a Bond.


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## MaryAnneCutler (Jul 31, 2013)

While discussing DAK, perhaps someone has an answer. 

I developed a collection of stitch patterns and saved them on backup media. I have long ago sold my DAK but would like to access my designs. 

Is there a programme that will pull up/read my designs other than DAK itself.

I owned DAK5, DAK6 and DAK7.


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## knitwitkitten (Jul 20, 2014)

Hi I think your knitting very beautiful and will now look to buy the DAK program.

Can any help me I am in Australia and would like to buy a bulky knit (singer)Knitting machine. We have very few 
hear so I would like to get in USA but need a company or 
some one the group can send links. I know fright is dear
but the heart wants the heart get 
thanks everyone


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## nannie343 (Aug 15, 2012)

Lovely outfit.

Rhonda


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## rainbirdoz (Nov 7, 2012)

knitwitkitten said:


> Hi I think your knitting very beautiful and will now look to buy the DAK program.
> 
> Can any help me I am in Australia and would like to buy a bulky knit (singer)Knitting machine. We have very few
> hear so I would like to get in USA but need a company or
> ...


Hi knitwitkitten! 
Thank you for the compliment, I am glad you like my outfit. Re buying a bulky machine from the USA, before you do that and have to pay big freight charges, what about putting a Wanted advertisement on to Gumtree? There are lots of knitting machines sitting in people's houses around Australia unused, perhaps if you put a Wanted ad. On Gumtree someone will see it and decide to sell theirs. Also have you tried Reynolds Brothers in Sydney? They were big knitting machine dealers and I think they are still in business. There is also Dormani Yarns in Perth, they are worth trying to see if they have any pre-loved machines for sale. Just some ideas for trying to save big freight costs. Sheila


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## rainbirdoz (Nov 7, 2012)

ramdoupri said:


> Shelia,what a beautiful outfit! I could ask you questions all day about the passap 6000.


Thank you! You are welcome to ask questions about the 6000 but I am getting a bit rusty on my knowledge now as I sold mine about 10 years ago when I down-sized (and have regretted it ever since). It is the queen of knitting machines and is so versatile. It does take a bit of learning but the rewards are great.
Sheila


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## rainbirdoz (Nov 7, 2012)

ICEQUEEN said:


> Rain bird that is absolutely gorgeous! I would love to create a garment like that but only have a Bond.


Thank you! While you couldn't knit the top on a Bond, you could make the skirt (with a lot of patience). It is just 10 rows of thicker yarn alternating with 4 rows of very fine yarn - almost like sewing thread. When it comes off the machine you wash it and then hang it up with a weighted rod at the hem which pulls it down into fine pleats as it dries. They were very popular back in the day. If you have a Bond, do you have Susan Gugliami's books on hand patterning on the KM? She will show you how to do lots of beautiful patterns on any knitting machine. Also, always spend time in finishing your garments. Good blocking of the pieces before putting them together makes a lot of difference to the finished look. Sheila


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## aussieHC (Oct 21, 2013)

rainbirdoz said:


> Hi knitwitkitten!
> Thank you for the compliment, I am glad you like my outfit. Re buying a bulky machine from the USA, before you do that and have to pay big freight charges, what about putting a Wanted advertisement on to Gumtree? There are lots of knitting machines sitting in people's houses around Australia unused, perhaps if you put a Wanted ad. On Gumtree someone will see it and decide to sell theirs. Also have you tried Reynolds Brothers in Sydney? They were big knitting machine dealers and I think they are still in business. There is also Dormani Yarns in Perth, they are worth trying to see if they have any pre-loved machines for sale. Just some ideas for trying to save big freight costs. Sheila


Forget Reynolds Bros - it was cheaper for me to import a fully electronic machine from the USA and buy DAK8 than to buy a new punchcard machine from Reynolds - they don't sell anything but punchcard machines, and I didn't even use a punchcard machine in the 1980's.
Ebay is not a bad source if you want a second hand machine, gumtree has them occasionally, but not as often.


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## Maryknits513 (Feb 12, 2011)

Macon said:



> While discussing DAK, perhaps someone has an answer.
> 
> I developed a collection of stitch patterns and saved them on backup media. I have long ago sold my DAK but would like to access my designs.
> 
> ...


I've done some checking, and there isn't another program that will allow you to view DAK files.

If you know someone who has DAK, maybe they can help you print the designs.


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## MKDesigner (Jan 27, 2014)

I have DAK6, and have looked at the upgrades, and for what I use DAK for, 6 is perfect for me. I especially like the knit from screen on my laptop for the various smaller garments I like to make. I do a lot of charity knitting for babies & toddlers for a women's shelter out of state. The interactive knitting and I get along rather well.  Love that it beeps/dings at me when I need to do something. I'm anxious to get my electronic set up again so I can start doing more. Space is a problem for me at the moment in my room. But I'm working toward that. 

Marge


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## knitwitkitten (Jul 20, 2014)

Hi thank you very much two very good leads.

will let everyone know that happens

regards
leah


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## 30Knitter (Apr 9, 2012)

Since I have only owned DAK 8 since it came out, and am a relatively new user, it is a program I find very useful. I have used it with all my machines, including some of the punch card ones. I really like the interactive feature because it reminds me so much of the knitleader/knit radar of which I have both. I have used the software with and without the cables. And I will tell you I love it!!!

I also have other knitting software that I don't use as often - Knitware (all three versions), Cochenille, and DAK. I received Cochenille around the same time as I received DAK and still need to work with it. There are features of Cochenille's Garment styler that I still need to learn. But nothing can beat the interactive feature of DAK. I have used almost all of the features. I don't have the complete because I don't hand knit.


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## Maryknits513 (Feb 12, 2011)

rainbirdoz said:


> Thank you! You are welcome to ask questions about the 6000 but I am getting a bit rusty on my knowledge now as I sold mine about 10 years ago when I down-sized (and have regretted it ever since). It is the queen of knitting machines and is so versatile. It does take a bit of learning but the rewards are great.
> Sheila


Sheila,between the two of us,we should be able to help her. I'm still using my E6000. It got quite a workout between Thanksgiving and New Years.


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## rainbirdoz (Nov 7, 2012)

MKDesigner said:


> I have DAK6, and have looked at the upgrades, and for what I use DAK for, 6 is perfect for me. I especially like the knit from screen on my laptop for the various smaller garments I like to make. I do a lot of charity knitting for babies & toddlers for a women's shelter out of state. The interactive knitting and I get along rather well.  Love that it beeps/dings at me when I need to do something. I'm anxious to get my electronic set up again so I can start doing more. Space is a problem for me at the moment in my room. But I'm working toward that.
> 
> Marge


I have only had DAK8 for a while so don't really know what the improvements are (I had a really bad year last year which left me with no time for hobbies!). I had to purchase DAK8 because I bought a new laptop with Windows8 OS and my previous DAK didn't work on it. It doesn't matter which version of DAK you use, if it suits you, it's the best! Bless you for your charity knitting - there are so many in need.
Sheila


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## rainbirdoz (Nov 7, 2012)

Julie! Glad your grandson is doing well now, must have been a worry for a while. Lovely blankets - what machine did you knit them on?
Sheila


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## rainbirdoz (Nov 7, 2012)

aussieHC said:


> Forget Reynolds Bros - it was cheaper for me to import a fully electronic machine from the USA and buy DAK8 than to buy a new punchcard machine from Reynolds - .


That is almost unbelievable - but of course I do believe you 😀. Thanks for letting us know!
Sheila


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## rainbirdoz (Nov 7, 2012)

Maryknits513 said:


> Sheila,between the two of us,we should be able to help her. I'm still using my E6000. It got quite a workout between Thanksgiving and New Years.


Hi Mary! I think you may have to do most of the answering, I said I was now very rusty on then i jet of the 6000 😀

I really must try the graphics conversion of DAK8, I was so impressed with Ann's lime rose sweater and seeing that she knitted it on the single bed makes me even more interested - I always did DJ on the Passap and don't think I have the time for learning it on the Brother - I hate having to use the weights for the double bed work. 
Sheila


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## juliesknitknacks (Jul 28, 2014)

Sheila,

They were all made on the Brother 970. For the last few years I have used the electronic 6 color changer which makes switching colors almost mindless. But for many years I had used the 4 color ribber color changer, which means one really has to pay attention to what is happening.

Julie Esterlin


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## rainbirdoz (Nov 7, 2012)

juliesknitknacks said:


> Sheila,
> 
> They were all made on the Brother 970. For the last few years I have used the electronic 6 color changer which makes switching colors almost mindless. But for many years I had used the 4 color ribber color changer, which means one really has to pay attention to what is happening.
> 
> Julie Esterlin


Now you have made wish I had gone for the 970 - I stuck with my 940 and DAK because it gave me all I needed with the E6000 - I stopped knitting before they brought out the 6 colour changer and did,not know how good it is. It was the hit or miss if the 4 colour changer which put me off knitting DJ in the brother, perhaps I should get it out again and give it another chance!
Thanks, Julie
Sheila


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## Maryknits513 (Feb 12, 2011)

rainbirdoz said:


> I really must try the graphics conversion of DAK8, I was so impressed with Ann's lime rose sweater and seeing that she knitted it on the single bed makes me even more interested - I always did DJ on the Passap and don't think I have the time for learning it on the Brother - I hate having to use the weights for the double bed work.
> Sheila


Hi Sheila,

I think the graphics conversion of DAK8 works better than DAK7.

Here is one of the conversions I did. Coloring book pages have the important details, but not a lot of little extras that don't convert well. I download the pages from the internet. I made this afghan for my cousin's DIL. The grandson competes in BMX racing. I didn't have to do much work to get the design to look good.

BTW -- it was a big hit!


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## aussieHC (Oct 21, 2013)

Looks great Maryknits - you must have been thrilled with your hard work. :thumbup:


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## rainbirdoz (Nov 7, 2012)

That converted really well Mary. It's nice to know that they have improved that part of DAK. I will try it out. Thanks Mary!
Sheila


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