Technique
Knitting is a technique used to make fabric using one long yarn with two or more knitting needles. Knitted fabrics are exceptionally elastic and are primarily used in fashionwear, textile art, and interior design products and applications.

Yarn collection
Because we invest in research and the procurement of special types of yarn, we can guarantee that the world’s most extensive yarn collection will be available to you in the TextielLab. We work with sustainably produced yarn from European suppliers as much as possible. We also research specific applications for different types of yarn in textile products.

Finishing
All fabrics exit the machine unfinished. They can be given a high-quality finish after mechanical processing. The TextielLab has its own assembly studio where experienced tailor cutters can trim and finish most products completely in accordance with your wishes.

Do you want to have knit work done in the TextielLab? First, you have to submit a request, which we will assess for motivation, innovative merit and level of artistry. In this respect, the TextielLab focuses on outfitting, art and fashion projects. If there is a match, an intake will take place to see whether your proposal is feasible.

After the intake, we will send you a work proposal and an offer. As soon as we receive confirmation of our offer, we will schedule the work your project involves. In order to achieve optimal end results, you should be present in the TextielLab as much as possible during the development phase.

• Patterns that you prepare in Illustrator or Photoshop to create digital designs can be loaded into our software.
• Every pixel in a digital design stands for one stitch in the machine. The number of stitches you knit depends entirely on your concept; you have to coordinate this properly with our product developers.
• When working with a pattern, you have to prepare a TIFF file in RGB colour mode. In this file, you have to specify the exact number of colours by using the ‘Save for web’ option. Save the original GIF file, then reopen it and, only after you have done this, convert it to the TIFF-RGB format.
• If you have a design in which loose panels have to be pre-knit or which entails seamless knitting to shape, please supply a technical drawing indicating the dimensions. A prototype or true-to-scale pattern is not required, but can prove to be very useful in development work.

Technical specifications

The TextielLab has three types of flat knitting machines: two Stoll machines (one with a bulky gauge and one with a fine gauge) and an ADF machine with a fine gauge. We also have a Mayer & Cie circular knitting machine with a fine gauge. Stoll software is used for preparing designs for processing.

• Flat knitting machine, fine gauge:
  The width of the needle bed is 72 inches, or 183 cm. The knitted fabric is always smaller than this. The gauge on this machine is 12 needles per inch. When knitting thicker yarn types, the gauge is occasionally set to 6 needles per inch.
• Flat knitting machine, bulky gauge:
  The width of the needle bed is 84 inch, or 213 cm. The knitted fabric is always smaller than this. The gauge on this machine is 5 needles per inch. When knitting thicker yarn types, the gauge is occasionally set to 2.5 needles per inch.
• ADF flat knitting machine, fine gauge:
  The width of the needle bed is 84 inch, or 213 cm. The knitted fabric is always smaller than this. The gauge on this machine is 14 needles per inch. When knitting thicker yarn types, the gauge is occasionally set to 7 needles per inch.
• Circular knitting machine, fine gauge:
  The diameter of the needle bed is 30 inches and it has 1680 needles. Depending on the machine configuration, the width of the produced knitted fabric can vary from 150 cm to 190 cm. This machine has a gauge of 18 needles per inch.