#knitting pattern book

[professorpski]

Simple Color Knitting by Erika Knight

If you are a new knitter, I can recommend this handsome and useful book with enthusiasm. Although I am a relatively new to knitting and crochet and should know better, I tend to launch myself into projects without enough preparation. Lace weight mohair, tiny crochet hook, intricate pattern, why not? Only to find myself facing a hopeless snarl of yarn. A little more knowledge is a lot of help in staving off disaster.

This book set my straight on several things about color knitting, including some of the easiest ways to do it. The book begins with some of her ideas about color, some information on basic color theory, and then a gallery of swatches. And a set of projects for each type of color knitting.

Of course, there is fair isle knitting which I have enough sense to be intimidated by. She explains techniques with large and clear sketches and large swatches (thank you for not using small photos with dark yarns, a silly but common practice). She also offers useful advice and tips along the way. You see here her Fair Isle Snood and her Fano Mittens which encourage you to build your skills up from a simple pattern to a more complex one.

Knight also points out some of the simpler ways to mix colors. For plying, which is taking 2 different color yarns and treating them as one, she offers a big sweater. Then there is ombre effect by phasing from a solid color to a mixed colors to the new solid as you see in the garter swatch in green. She shows many ways to stripe and then adds a big on making a plaid through duplicate stitch, i.e. stitching over the existing knit stitches. You can see the elegant Tweed Stitch Muffler Scarf which is done with slipped stitches, a charming look, and one that produces a dense fabric because there are far more stitches per inch. She also covers color blocking.

If I knew another new knitter, I would definitely buy it for her. You can find it for sale on the web and here: https://www.amazon.com/Simple-Color-Knitting-Knit-Color/dp/1250039096

[professorpski]

Snoods for Summer, etc.

Snoods for Summer or Super Baby

I cannot tell which appeals to me more: snoods or a baby wearing a tiny cape. These are images from a British knitting book called Practical Knitting Illustrated which is considered one of the classics in the field. It came out int he late 1940s after World War II and was written by Margaret Murray and Jane Koster. I give you just a few of my favorite images from the book, including a bathing suit and a bedjacket that could easily be put to other uses.

The book claims to be “the key to hundred of garments you can make yourself,”  not because it literally offers you hundreds of garments. It doesn’t. There are about 16 items for women from hats down to socks, 7 household designs, 11 men’s garments, and tons of stuff for babies and children up to their teenage years. The hundreds of garments come in because the book explains how to “ring the changes.” Which means it explains how to take a garment pattern and redesign it whether by changing the garment size, the stitch pattern, or the garment shape. Which means, among other things, explaining how to calculate the number of repetitions of a different stitch to create the shape you want. They spend some 70 pages explaining how to redesign, and offer other stitch patterns in this section as well as the other sections. So that beach skirt could be lengthened and become a skirt for day wear. There are also 32 pages at the start on “The ABC of Knitting and Crochet.”  So, you can see why it became a classic.

Fortunately, because it was so popular, there are a fair number of used copies on the market. If you like vintage knitting patterns, prefer your sweaters fitted rather than oversized, or enjoy making babies and children’s clothing, this is the book you will like. And if you want to learn how to redesign patterns, this will come in handy too. Remember, that the British crochet terminology and the knitting needle sizes differ from the American ones, but that is a small obstacle.

[professorpski]

Projects and Principles from The Top Down

As a new knitter, I appreciate books that combine project patterns and knitting principles. I like to learn why I am being asked to do what a pattern calls for. And as my first--and so far only--sweater was from the bottom up, I like the idea of skipping seaming for the moment. Also, I love those little bobbles on the cover.

This book by Cathy Carron offers over 2 dozen women’s sweater patterns, plus an introduction about the principles of top-down patterns and a conclusion that offers basic patterns for you to take as the starting point for designing your own sweaters. You see here one of the more sophisticated evening sweaters and one of the easier bulky cardigans, plus some small pictures of how Carron explains features like adding a variety of collars, or shaping as you go. Since I have always messed about with sewing patterns, the idea of doing the same with knitting patterns has appeal.

This is one of the knitting books I found in my public library and then decided to buy for myself.

You can find copies online, like here: https://www.amazon.com/Knitting-Sweaters-Top-Down-Fabulous/dp/1579908586/ref=sr_1_9?keywords=carron%2C+cathy&qid=1556647675&s=books&sr=1-9

[professorpski]

Fluffy First, My First Knitted Sweater: Nu by Vedis Jonsdottir

The reason I am slightly out of focus above is that I was jumping up and down as I was so excited that my first knitted sweater actually fit. I thought it would, but holding it up to your chest and thinking it will probably fit, and pulling it over your head and finding out it truly does fit, are two different things. I added the rib stitching at the bottom of the sweater and, as you can see, it is a little goofy looking there, but the collar got much better.

It is an easy first sweater, done in the round on very large circular needles, so only a knit stitch and some easy increases as you go until the collar when you must do rib stitches. It goes relatively quickly if you are a new knitter. You must use either short circulars or double-ended needles for the sleeves. I did the latter and sometimes they went sliding out. Oops. I must admit one sleeve got started several times as I forgot to do my increases. Oops.

I recommend binding off the underarm stitches. I bound off one side, and left live stitches on a piece of yarn on the other side as the pattern called for, to see which worked better. The bound off side remained far more stable in shape and easier to sew together when all was done.

This was made in Biggo yarn from KnitPicks.com. On the one hand, it is super soft and pettable, if that is a word. On the other, it is definitely pilling. Sigh. This is the simplest pattern in the book, but I am looking forward to trying more of them.

You can find the yarn here: https://www.knitpicks.com/yarns/Biggo_Yarn__D5420217.html

And the book here:  https://www.knitpicks.com/Books/Knitting_with_Icelandic_Wool__D32057.html

[professorpski]

Silly Name, Fluffy Sweaters

I could live without the name Wool Addicts, but the 40 patterns have appeal as they are usually pretty simple and good for someone learning to knit like myself. This is pattern book #1 from a new line by Lang Yarns. The patterns vary from the easiest of garter stitch scarves, as you see on the cover, to the single-cable sweater called Summit View made out of Fire, a merino yarn in super chunky. The pretty pink ribbed design is called Sweet Dreams made out of Water, an alpaca yarn that is crimped which gives it the fuzziness and a variegation in texture that works well if your stitches wobble a bit still. The yellow turtleneck is called Utterly Okay and made of the same yarn. Remember, if you prefer your sweaters not quite so enormous, you can always choose to make a slightly smaller size.

You can find more at Lang Yarns, or a your LYS, lcal yarn store:  https://www.langyarns.com/index.cfm?dolphin=09429558-155d-006d-013c-c75aaad71ae6

[madeinlowell]

Sweaters He and She by American Thread