For most Doodle projects, you will create your own Master Doodle Chart by stacking more than one motif to create a design.

Most of our patterns come with the pre-assembled chart that we used to make our own sample, so you can see an example of what that looks like, and you don't ever have to make your own design.

But if you want to take the next step, and start learning how to put individual charts together to design a completely custom project, this post will give you lots of tips and tricks!

FYI: We have a separate post on how to use our Blank Master Chart if you want the basics, and we have more fun design tips in Creative Ways to Assemble Doodle Charts!

BASICS OF STACKING CHARTS

Almost every Doodle chart has a row of plain knitting (no colorwork) on the first and last row of each chart. This is to make sure that when you stack your charts, there is still enough space between them!If you are changing your background color with each chart, it's best to leave these plain rows in, otherwise the color of the background won't completely surround your motif. But if you are going to be using the same background color for the whole design, you can eliminate one of the plain rows on each chart. This can save space (more room for more Doodles!) but also make sure there isn't too much empty space in your design.

Some of our charts are directional - i.e. the image has a clear left and right hand side. With this Ghost chart from our Haunted Doodle, the tail goes off to one side, so the chart looks different when it is mirrored. In the example below, you can see how the design looks when every other vertical repeat has the chart facing in the opposite direction, and how it adds a little visual interest.

Another thing you can consider when building your Master Chart, is offsetting some of the charts. Rather than having them all align in neat vertical columns, you can move some of the designs over a few stitches, so the motifs on each row are staggered - or "offset". In the example below, the middle chart is offset, and you can see how it makes the design look a bit more interesting!

WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO "OFFSET" A CHART?

Offsetting a Doodle chart simply means starting your knitting at a different point in the chart, so that the designs are staggered on your project. Rather than always starting at the first stitch, you can alternate the starting point on each motif, making your design a little more dynamic!

WHEN & WHY TO OFFSET CHARTS

Honestly, it is just an aesthetic choice. If you like the look of all your charts lining up, you never have to offset them. But if you are making a design with a lot of motifs that are the same width (i.e. all 12-st repeats, like the Ghost chart), sometimes it can add more visual interest when they're staggered.

WHEN NOT TO OFFSET

Some Doodle Charts, like the Scales chart below, are designed to be continuous vertically (i.e. the motif lines up with itself when it's stacked). For these types of charts, you probably don't want to offset them because it will interrupt the design.

If the design is continuous horizontally (i.e. the motif lines up with itself between repeats in the same round without space in between), then you can still offset it! In the example below with the Wave chart, the design isn't interrupted if you offset it.

HOW TO OFFSET CHARTS

The easiest way to offset charts is by simply starting halfway through a chart.

So if you are stacking a bunch of charts with a 12-st minimum repeat, then on every other "stripe" or vertical repeat, you would simply start working the chart from Stitch 7, instead of on Stitch 1. If you are using charts with the full 24-st repeat, you would stagger them by starting every other vertical repeat on Stitch 13.

Note: When you start at Stitch 7, the original sts 1-6 end up and the end of your repeat, they are not missing.

OTHER WAYS TO OFFSET

While the simplest way to is to offset by half a chart, you can start anywhere in the chart you want! No matter where in the chart you start knitting, as long as you keep that starting point consistent each time you knit a repeat, it will look the same once the motif is repeated around your project.

Note how in the example below, the squares in the white boxes are exactly the same as the squares in the pink boxes next to them. As long as your repeat is the right size (12 sts in this case) you can move that repeat box over as much as you want, and the design will still work.

Because in addition to offsetting by half a chart, you can also start your design by looking for the center of the motif. If you find the middle of the design, you can shift subsequent rows so that the center of one motif lines up with the gap in the other motifs. You can see how that looks in the example below:

Note: With this Ghost chart, offsetting by 6 sts already aligns the midline with the gap, but this is not always the case. Play around and see what works best for your design!

Take a look at the examples below to see how the design looks with different amounts of offsetting. Try a few different placements for your charts, and decide which way you think looks best to you!

MIXING & MATCHING CHARTS + REPEAT SIZES

All the examples so far show stacking and offsetting with the same motif. But all the same ideas apply if you are using different charts!

If the minimum repeat size of two charts is the same, you can stick with the basic half-chart offset (start on Stitch 7), or you can play with the offset amount to get the two motifs to line up in the way that you think looks nicest.

In the example below, the Skull chart is offset by half a chart AND that makes the center line of the Skull line up with the gap between the Ghosts.

If you want to stack charts that have different minimum stitch repeats, you can keep being creative with how you want to line them up!

In this last example, I stacked 6-st, 8-st, and 12-st motifs. I did not offset the Pumpkin chart, because I thought it looked good the way it was. But I chose to move the Bat chart over a little bit, so that the main color stitches didn't line up perfectly between my motifs.

But, as always, there are no rules in Doodling, so feel free to play around with any of these tips & tricks as much as you like!

You can print and cut out your Doodle charts, rearrange them in a digital knitting app, or redraw your design on a Blank Master Chart. There is no wrong way to design a Doodle pattern, so have fun with it!

 

Happy Doodling!