knitting Knitting is a method by which yarn is manipulated to create a textile, or fabric. It is used to create many types of garments. Knitting may be done by hand or by machine. Knitting creates stitches: loops of yarn in a row, either flat or i ...

, a basketweave pattern is characterized by intersecting

ribs The rib cage, as an enclosure that comprises the ribs, vertebral column and sternum in the thorax of most vertebrates, protects vital organs such as the heart, lungs and great vessels. The sternum, together known as the thoracic cage, is a semi- ...

and welts. In its simplest form, basketweave is composed of a

checkerboard A checkerboard (American English) or chequerboard (British English; see spelling differences) is a board of checkered pattern on which checkers (also known as English draughts) is played. Most commonly, it consists of 64 squares (8×8) of altern ...

pattern of identical

rectangle In Euclidean plane geometry, a rectangle is a quadrilateral with four right angles. It can also be defined as: an equiangular quadrilateral, since equiangular means that all of its angles are equal (360°/4 = 90°); or a parallelogram contain ...

s that alternate between stockinette stitch and reverse stockinette stitch. In this form of basketweave, the only variables are the dimensions of the rectangles, i.e., the number of stitches across and number of rows long. If the rectangles are much longer vertically than horizontally, a basketweave may also be called a broken rib pattern. Similarly, if the rectangles are much longer horizontally than vertically, a basketweave may also be called a broken welt pattern. More complicated types of basketweave can be made with allowing the rib and welt widths to vary (i.e., by using rectangles of different sizes), and by allowing some rows or welts to continue uninterrupted. Other variations of basketweave change the stitch patterns that compose the rectangles. Instead of stockinette stitch and its reverse, the rectangles can be done in seed stitch, in

cables Cable may refer to: Mechanical * Nautical cable, an assembly of three or more ropes woven against the weave of the ropes, rendering it virtually waterproof * Wire rope, a type of rope that consists of several strands of metal wire laid into a hel ...

lace Lace is a delicate fabric made of yarn or thread in an open weblike pattern, made by machine or by hand. Generally, lace is divided into two main categories, needlelace and bobbin lace, although there are other types of lace, such as knitted o ...

. An especially common variant is to alternate rectangles of

ribbing Ribbing is a Swedish noble family of medieval origin. which may refer to: *Adolph Ribbing (1765–1843), Swedish count and politician who took part in the regicide of Gustav III in 1792 *Beata Rosenhane (1638–1674, spouse of Baron Erik Ribbing), ...

with rectangles of welting, e.g., rectangles of three ribs set against rectangles of three welts. A visually fascinating alternative approach to basketweave patterns is entrelac knitting, in which the grain of the knitted fabric itself follows a

woven Woven fabric is any textile formed by weaving. Woven fabrics are often created on a loom, and made of many threads woven on a warp and a weft. Technically, a woven fabric is any fabric made by interlacing two or more threads at right angles to on ...

pattern.

References

{{textile-arts-stub Knitted fabrics Textile techniques