Editing Patterns

Pattern Builder includes editing tools that let you adjust your design without rebuilding it from scratch.

You can select individual elements or groups of elements, reposition them, align them, change their properties, and use tools such as Mirror and Inverse to quickly modify or expand your design.

Selecting Pattern Elements

Before editing an element, select it in the Builder workspace. Selected elements are highlighted so you can see exactly what will be affected by your next action.

You can work with a single element or select multiple elements when you want to make the same type of change to a group.

Selecting Multiple Elements

Pattern Builder provides several ways to select multiple elements, depending on what you're working with.

Shift + Click — hold Shift and click individual objects or threads to add them to your selection.
Marquee Select — click and drag a selection box over the center points of the Crosspoints you want to select. Crosspoints whose centers are inside the marquee are added to the selection.
Ctrl + Marquee Select — hold Ctrl, then click and drag a selection box around the Crosspoint centers you want to select. This mode is especially useful when selecting Crosspoints within an existing pattern because it prevents you from accidentally clicking and dragging a Crosspoint to a new location while beginning your selection.

Once multiple elements are selected, you can use editing tools (i.e. Color, Inverse, Mirror) to work with the selected group without affecting the rest of the pattern.

Moving and Positioning Elements

Pattern elements can be repositioned after they have been added. The available movement options depend on whether you're working with a Crosspoint, a Single Thread, or an End Wrap.

Moving Crosspoints

Crosspoints can be repositioned in several ways:

Arrow Keys — use the Left and Right Arrow keys to move the selected Crosspoint.
Drag and Drop — click and drag the Crosspoint to a new location in the Builder workspace.
Move Tool — use the Move tool on the top toolbar to reposition the selected Crosspoint.
Position Tool — enter the desired coordinates using the Position tool on the left rail toolbar.

Moving Single Threads and End Wraps

Single Threads can be repositioned in two ways:

Drag and Drop — click and drag the Single Thread or End Wrap to a new location. When released, the thread snaps to the nearest whole coordinate.
Position Tool — enter the desired coordinates using the Position tool on the left rail toolbar.

Use drag and drop for quick visual adjustments and the Position tool when you want to place an element at specific coordinates.

Maintaining Thread Alignment

Pattern Builder is designed to help maintain consistent and accurate thread alignment as you build and edit your pattern.

For this reason, some movement is intentionally restricted. Threads cannot be freely dragged up or down, and the Up and Down Arrow keys are not used to vertically reposition threads.

These restrictions help prevent small alignment changes that could unintentionally alter the geometry of the pattern.

When you need to change the placement of a thread, use the movement and positioning options available for that element. This allows Pattern Builder to maintain the relationships between threads while still giving you control over your design.

Mirror and Inverse

Mirror and Inverse can both be used to quickly transform a pattern, but they do two very different things.

Mirror

Mirror takes the selected portion of a pattern and creates its reflected counterpart on the opposite side.

This is more than simply flipping the image. Pattern Builder incorporates the mirrored threads into the construction of the pattern so the threads remain correctly interwoven, as though both sides had been built together from the beginning.

Mirror is especially useful when you've built one side of a symmetrical design and want Pattern Builder to create the corresponding opposite side without rebuilding it thread by thread.

Inverse

Inverse keeps the same pattern but reverses the order in which the selected threads are constructed.

Think of it as building the same pattern backwards: the thread that was originally placed last becomes the first thread, the next-to-last becomes the second, and the sequence continues in reverse until the original first thread becomes the last.

The result is the inverse construction of the same design rather than a mirrored copy of the pattern.

Mirror vs. Inverse

Mirror — creates the reflected opposite side of the selected pattern while maintaining the correct interweaving and construction.
Inverse — uses the same pattern and reverses its construction order from last thread to first.

Changing Colors

You can quickly change the color of an existing element or multiple selected elements without rebuilding them.

Select the object or objects you want to recolor.
Choose the new color.
Click Apply.

The selected objects will update to the new color.

For more information about choosing colors, working with the Thread Library and Packs, assigning separate colors to the Left and Right threads of a Crosspoint, and working with Fade and Shade, see Colors & Threads.