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Reimagining Knitting with 3D Printing

October 5, 2015 5 Comments

Reimagine knitting with 3d printing

As a public librarian, I have been able to experiment with 3D printing as part of my job working with teens. I’m lucky because my library has a maker lab outfitted with all kinds of equipment designed to enable people to develop their own designs, ranging from avant garde shoes to robots. 3D printing has been around for awhile, but has become more accessible recently. If you’re brand new to 3D printing, it is what it sounds like: printing in 3 dimensions as opposed to flat. The 3D printer I have uses a recyclable filament that, when heated, forms objects layer by layer. If you’re curious to see how 3D printing looks in action, check out the video in this post.

Now that we’ve gone over what 3D printing is, I should probably tell you what the heck this has to do with knitting! :) Earlier this year, I shared 2 dimensional scanning and design that can be done with the HP Sprout by letting you inside the knit design process and showing you how to digitally organize your yarn labels. More recently, HP sent me a 3D Capture Stage and the Dremel Idea Builder, a 3D printer, to use along with the Sprout so I could take this technology to the next level and reimagine knitting with 3d printing.

Use 3D printing to reimagine your handmade crafts as statement jewelry! Click through to learn how.

Using a swatch of knitting made with rope, I 3D scanned, modified and printed a statement necklace using HP’s technology, all in the comfort of my own home. After successfully printing my swatch, I attached the 3D printed pendant to jewelry chain and a lobster clasp with craft pliers and jump rings.

Use 3D printing to reimagine your handmade crafts as statement jewelry! Click through to learn how.

Supplies

HP Sprout
white rope
knitting needles
HP 3D Capture Stage
Dremel Idea Builder (3D Printer)
jump rings: two 7mm, one 4mm & one 6mm
lobster clasp
jewelry chain
jewelry pliers

Directions

I made a video to show you how I was able to create this project, end-to-end, using the Sprout’s all in one desktop technology:

As I mention in the video, I added a backing piece to my 3D scan to give it some added structure. The natural shape of the knitting was too delicate to print on its own, so incorporating a thin wedge on the back made 3D printing it possible. Check out the front and back of the pendant in this GIF to see how I made this scan and print work.

Knitting swatch necklace made by replicating your own knitting or crochet with 3D printing - click through to learn how to do this at home.

The final step of attaching the jewelry chain to the 3d printed pendant was easy! Since the 3D scan detected the open loops at the top of the swatch, all I need to do was attach jump rings to the loops on each side of the pendant. I used two 7mm jump rings to attach the chain to the pendant, and I used a 4mm ring to attach the clasp to the chain and an additional 6mm jump ring to the raw end of the chain.

Knitting swatch necklace made by replicating your own knitting or crochet with 3D printing - click through to learn how to do this at home.

Like I say in the video, I really am loving wearing this lightweight statement necklace. As knitters, we’re used to the great feeling of getting to wear something we’ve made by hand. What’s extra special for me about this piece is knowing that every bit of it, from beginning to end, was designed and made by me. Even though this project has an industrial feel, there’s some soul in it too, having come from my own hands.

Use 3D printing to reimagine your handmade crafts as statement jewelry! Click through to learn how.

This is a sponsored post. HP provided compensation and the equipment used to create this project. 

  • Visit the Sprout website
  • See other project ideas in the Sprout Creator Gallery
  • Find out more about the Sprout

Filed Under: Giveaways, Reviews & Sponsored, How-to, Knitting, Knitting & Crochet, Video Tutorials Tagged With: 3d printed necklace, 3d printing, dremel idea builder, gomakethings, hp, hp sprout, knitted necklace, reimagine knitting, sproutbyhp, swatch necklace

About Heidi

Heidi Gustad (she/her) is a craft book author & designer specializing in yarn crafts. Her work combines vintage and modern design elements, prioritizing color and graphic motifs. Her first book, Latch Hook: 12 Projects for the Modern Maker, is out now.

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Comments

  1. Jessica [Havok]

    October 5, 2015 at 10:02 am

    3D Printing is an awesome thing – for PAXPrime, a YouTube me and my Mister follow 3D printed a Stormtrooper suit to wear, and it turned out rather fantastic! I haven’t yet heard of scanning something in to print it up, though – that would be fun to explore! :D

    Reply
  2. Julie

    October 6, 2015 at 10:09 am

    wow, what a cool idea, and how fun that you get to experiment with this technology! I haven’t tried 3d printing yet, but I’d love to give it a go. I’m hoping in the future we’ll have other materials we can ‘print’ with, other than plastic. Imagine how pretty it would be to do the same design in metal!

    Reply
    • Heidi

      October 7, 2015 at 2:38 pm

      Thanks, Julie! It was fascinating! :)

      Reply

Trackbacks

  1. Bringing the Worlds of 3D Scanning, 3D Printing and Knitting Together with the … says:
    October 9, 2015 at 6:20 pm

    […] can review about Gustad’s plan over on her Hands Occupied blog, and learn some-more about a HP Sprout here. And here is a video of a Sprout in movement branch […]

    Reply
  2. Electric Knits Infographic – max in the stacks says:
    December 6, 2023 at 9:29 pm

    […] Gustad, H. (2015, October 5). Reimagining knitting with 3D printing. Hands Occupied. https://www.handsoccupied.com/sprout/ […]

    Reply

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Heidi Gustad from Hands Occupied / Craft Book Author and Knitting, Crochet, Latch Hook and Macrame Designer

Hi! I’m Heidi (she/her/hers), and I’ve been helping yarn crafters untangle various techniques on the internet since 2010. I got my start here, as a blogger, and since then I’ve shared more than a few tutorials here and on YouTube as I’ve grown as a pattern designer. 🧶 

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Heidi Gustad 🧶 knitting & yarn crafts

handsoccupied

Knitting & yarn crafts designer 🧶
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Stay up-to-date 💌 & shop new patterns ⤵️

POV: Showing you how my new Bevelled Tank pattern POV: Showing you how my new Bevelled Tank pattern fits with no ease vs. 4” of positive ease. There’s a bit more length to the cotton (brighter color) sample, but both are cropped and feature shoulder seams designed to sit an inch back onto the shoulder instead of on top, giving it a little swing. Length is easily adjustable for folks looking for less of a crop. 
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Pattern: Bevelled Tank by @handsoccupied for @pompommag x @hobbii_yarn summer 2024. Available for free from Hobbii at the 🔗 in my profile.
Yarn pictured: @kelbournewoolens Skipper and Camper. 
Dress form is adjusted to a 36” chest and ~5’3”ish in height. 
Human has a 40” chest and is 5’5”.
Both skirts are vintage.
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#pompomxhobbiisummer2024 #handsoccupied #intarsia #handmade #knitting #colorwork
Let’s talk about fit and ease! . During the Beve Let’s talk about fit and ease!
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During the Bevelled Tank design process for @pompommag, I knit 2 samples using 2 different @KelbourneWoolens yarns. One was in Skipper (100% cotton, second photo) and the other was in Camper (100% 2 ply wool). The Skipper sample was knit for a 36” bust, which measures in at 40” with 4” of positive ease. And I knit the Camper Sample for my 40” bust with a 44” finished measurement. (BTW, I’m 5’5” for folks that find that measurement helpful in visualizing fit.)
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Based on the size chart for the Bevelled Tank, that means I knit one size 3 sample and one size 4. As designed, I conveniently fit a size 4 as intended with 4” of positive ease. When I wear the 3, there is no ease at all because the garment and my body are both 40” in size. Comparing the 2 garments, you can see how the fiber content (cotton vs. wool) and fit (no ease vs. 4” of positive ease) makes a difference in the look and feel of the finished garment. 
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These samples are a great way to compare what ease looks like on different bodies. While I can fit both a size 3 and 4, the garment with no ease feels more like pajamas or a bralette when I wear it. On the other hand, when I wear the one with 4” of positive ease, I feel comfortable enough to wear it to work, even as a crop top. Plus, it leaves me with enough room to layer it with a nice button down if I’m not feeling the cropped look one day. 
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I’m curious - how would you style this tank? Would you modify it with a few stockinette rows for added length? I’m so curious now that this pattern is finally out in the world. :) 
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#pompomxhobbiisummer2024 #bevelledtank #handsoccupied #knitting #intarisa #handmade #kelbournewoolens #croppedsweater #summerknits
After a 6 month hiatus, I am happy to say I’m ba After a 6 month hiatus, I am happy to say I’m back with a brand new pattern in 9 sizes, and it’s FREE as part of @pompommag x @hobbii_yarn’s summer design collection! (Link is in my bio.)
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In my December newsletter, I announced that I was soliciting test knitters for a pattern that had originally been selected for the summer ’24 issue of Pom Pom Quarterly magazine. However, the magazine ceased publication after its spring ’24 issue, leaving in-progress designs unpublished. (It happens.) As a result, I’d begun the long process of editing, testing, and photographing the pattern for independent release through the Hands Occupied pattern shop and Ravelry.
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Before I was done with that process, Pom Pom Quarterly’s former editors reached out with an exciting proposal for the pattern. Post-magazine, they’ve begun to partner with yarn companies to produce high quality pattern collections. They wanted to include designs from the would-be current issue of Pom Pom Quarterly in a new collection for Hobbii yarn, including my Bevelled Tank. I worked with the same technical editors I would have for the magazine on this one, and as you can see from the photos, Pom Pom’s team did an amazing job of styling the garment to the beautiful standards they’re known for.
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You can learn more about the pattern on my blog and get the free pattern from Hobbii yarn - links to both in my profile. I’ll post sizing info in the comments for quick reference too. 🧶
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#pompomxhobbiisummer2024 #knitting #intarsia #sponsored #colorworkknitting 
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Photos: @dianascarrunz 
Model: @angel.jade_
Here’s a nice throwback for you: my take on a vi Here’s a nice throwback for you: my take on a vintage knitting pattern from 1938 called the Fernlace Pullover. A pattern so nice, I knit it twice.
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Yellow version 💛: knit with Despondent Dyes’ Vintage Vixen Sport after attending a @squidneyknits vintage knitting retreat in 2019 & learning *so much*. Paired with a self-drafted circle skirt pattern. 
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Blue version 💙: knit with @eweeweyarns Ewe So Sporty in Sky Blue. Paired with the 1940s Boardwalk Duet sewing pattern from @decades_of_style 
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Head to my stories for 🔗🔗 to the handmade wardrobe blog posts I wrote about each take on the Fernlace Pullover, working with a vintage pattern, where to find vintage patterns (including the one I used), & some thoughts on sizing. 
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Image descriptions available in alt text. 
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#handsoccupied #handmadewardrobe #fernlacepullover #vintageknitting #vintageknittingpatterns #knitting_inspiration
Frogging is a word in the knitting world that mean Frogging is a word in the knitting world that means to rip out your knitting. It’s called frogging because frogs say “ribbit,” and when you’re tearing out your knitting, you will “rip it” out, and that sounds like ribbit. No really. 🐸 Did you know this fun fact? 
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P.S. I did like this design concept, but to make the pattern more knitter friendly as well as more wearable, I am making some tweaks to the construction. Excited to share when it’s ready! 🥰🧶
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Yarn: @blueskyfibers Woolstok North in Morning Frost & Highland Fleece 
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#handsoccupied #knitting #frogging #blueskyfibers #knittersofinstagram #blueskymakers #knittingvocabulary #bsfmakers #knitdesign
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