Subtitles for knitting and crochet videos on Mac.

Make a pattern demonstration easier to follow

A knitting or crochet video can show a movement clearly while leaving a crucial instruction in the narration: where a repeat begins, how many times to work it, or which stitches remain at the edge. Polyglot can transcribe an authorized recording locally on an Apple Silicon Mac, help you review and translate the timed text, and export separate SRT or WebVTT subtitles.

Treat the subtitles as one part of the teaching material. Keep a short review sheet connecting each demonstrated row or round to the approved pattern. The sheet helps you catch a missing “more”, an incorrect count or a term used under a different convention. Polyglot does not read charts, count visible stitches, verify patterns or describe silent hand movements.

Start with permission and one named pattern version

Use a pattern and recording you own or are authorized to demonstrate, translate and distribute. Check the permitted audience and use of any charts, written instructions, music and other contributors’ voices or images. Access to a purchased or publicly available pattern does not establish permission to republish its pages or a translated copy. Keep third-party material out of the example unless its use is cleared.

Before captioning, identify the pattern revision, selected size, video filename and term convention. Resolve mistakes or excluded material in the final recording using appropriate editing tools. Keep any published correction with the version it changes. A subtitle edit cannot remove a chart shown on screen or repair a demonstrated stitch.

For each section, note its row or round number, starting stitch count, repeat unit, number of repetitions and finishing stitches. Record whether the video shows the entire sequence or skips ahead after demonstrating one repeat. A sped-up passage must not appear to show a single action when several repetitions happened.

Review total repeats separately from additional repeats

The Craft Yarn Council explains that repeat markers group instructions and that bracketed counts can specify the total number of repetitions. Read the exact pattern key rather than guessing what a symbol means. For crochet, also check the pattern’s turning-chain and row or round instructions before deciding which elements enter the count.

The original fictional example below illustrates a subtitle review sheet, not a complete knitting pattern or a tested sample. Its unchanged stitch count makes the arithmetic easy to inspect. A three-repeat total and three additional repeats describe different amounts of work.

Replay the narration and the visible boundary together. If the audio says “twice more” and the draft says “three more”, correct the transcription to match the audio. If the narrator actually says the wrong count, do not silently substitute the pattern’s instruction in the captions. Ask the pattern owner to resolve the recording and publish a clear correction; then review the resulting final cut.

Fictional review sheet
Pattern: Sample Rib /
revision B
Video: sample-rib-v03.mp4
Section: row 5 / right side
Start: 18 stitches

Edge: knit 3
Repeat unit: knit 2, purl 2
Work unit 3 times TOTAL
Finish: knit 3
Count: 3 + (4 x 3) + 3 = 18

At 00:24, one unit is
complete.
Heard: “Work it twice more.”
Draft: “Work it three more
times.”
Review: restore “twice
more”.
Three more would mean 4
units.

At 00:38, check the cut
resumes
before the final 3 edge
stitches.

Keep row state and stitch terms explicit

Check “row” versus “round”, right side versus wrong side, increases versus decreases, and references to the front or back of the work. Preserve the narrator’s words while flagging contradictions in the review sheet. If a mirrored camera view makes a direction unclear, resolve the explanation in the recording or companion instructions; changing “left” to “right” in captions alone can create a new conflict.

Translation needs a declared stitch convention as well as a language. The Craft Yarn Council’s terminology table maps US double crochet to UK treble; an identical-looking abbreviation does not reliably name the same action across conventions. Record the source convention and the intended reader’s convention. Keep the original caption track faithful to the spoken terms, with any explanatory mapping clearly labeled in the companion notes.

Have someone competent in the craft and target language review translated stitch names, repeat scope, counts and the selected size. Use the pattern’s own definitions for special abbreviations. Maintain an external terminology sheet where helpful; Polyglot does not import or enforce a glossary. Preserved source timing and cue-structure validation do not establish that a translated pattern instruction is correct.

Check the captions where the hands do the work

W3C’s caption guidance calls for human review of automatic captions and relevant non-speech audio. Review spoken corrections, questions and meaningful audible cues. Do not expect transcription to explain a silent needle insertion or the difference between two visually similar stitches. Add an approved written explanation or prepare a descriptive version separately when the visual action carries essential information.

Export the format accepted by the actual receiving player and enable the track beside the final video. Watch at the intended viewing size, especially on a phone. Check whether captions cover the hook, needle tip, row marker or stitch being discussed. Positioning and burned-in delivery depend on the destination or a separate video-editing workflow; an SRT export alone does not guarantee either.

Inspect the moment before a repeat, any cut across skipped repetitions and the point where the next row begins. Confirm the displayed text belongs to the audible instruction and remains readable. If you add pauses, recut or change playback speed in the source video, recheck the subtitle timing against that new version.

Deliver a matched pattern, video and language set

Keep the finished video, approved pattern reference, reviewed subtitle files and repeat sheet together. Give each language file a clear name tied to the same video revision. Check every cue for missing text, changed numbers and unintended duplicates, then compare the opening, repeat boundaries and ending against the recording. Reopen the exported files in the receiving workflow rather than relying only on the editing preview.

The handoff is ready when a reviewer can identify the pattern version and selected size, follow the intended repeat count, resolve the term convention and see the relevant hand movement while captions are enabled. This is a practical review checklist, not an accessibility certification or a guarantee of pattern accuracy. Local media processing and the app’s separate network boundaries are described on the privacy page.

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