Knitting Patterns  

Knitting Book Reviews

Vogue Knitting

by the editors of Vogue Knitting Magazine

This is a must-have book for the knitters library. In it you will find every kind of stitch with excellent photographs. You will learn how to shape numerous knit garments, how to sew a nice seam, how to add color to your knitting and more. A great encyclopedia for the avid knitter.

My only complaint with this book is that it is so odd-shaped, I have a hard time finding a shelf for it to sit on. I have to turn it sideways to get it to fit. 

THE ILLUSTRATED DICTIONARY OF KNITTING:

by Rae Compton

             This is a technical book which is organized in dictionary format.  It is very useful for looking up a technique quickly - browse through to the right letter and you've got it.  Unless you don't really know what you are looking for:  It has no index, and is not very well cross-referenced.  It can be difficult to find something if you are not certain of the proper term.  The book uses European terms, rather than American terms.

             Beginning to advanced knitters will find this book useful.  It clearly illustrates everything from the bare bones of casting on to the most complicated French lace patterns.  There are instructions for left handed knitting, continental knitting, and every conceivable method of increasing and decreasing.  This book also covers basic design considerations, and how to build your own patterns.

            This book has a vast array of lace patterns in every conceivable technique.  It is much less in-depth for cable and color patterns.  Instructions are full of tidbits of historical information which add interest to the craft of knitting.

KNITTING IN THE OLD WAY: by Priscilla A. Gibson-Roberts

            This is a wonderful book for a person who loves to design sweaters.  I am considering this as a technical book.  It starts with yarn selection and basic techniques and then leads the reader through the design of seamless sweaters.  It has wonderful photographs and illustrations of a vast variety of traditional sweaters.  Each sweater design is laced with historical information.

              The designs in this book are very attractive.  It has color stranded sweaters, textured sweaters, and combinations of the two techniques.  It also details sweaters with geometric patterns such as stripes, basketweave/entrelac, and argyle.  The only problem with this book is that you could never in a million years make every possibility.  Sigh.

            Descriptions of methods such as increasing, decreasing, and picking up, are clear and well illustrated when necessary.  I disagree with her on a few things, however, such as number of stitches to pick up off a vertical edge.  The in-depth index makes it easy to find anything from "allergies to wool" to "Z twist".

            This book also has a chapter on handspinning including: fleece selection, preparation, spinning, plying and sizing.  This gives the reader the option to really knit in the old way.  I love to look at the pictures.

KNITTING FROM THE TOP: by Barbara G. Walker

            By far one of my favorite knitting books.  I love Barbara's writing style and find her instructions to be the clearest I've ever read.  She carries my main prejudice of knitting - that seams should be avoided at all cost!  And conquers the need for seams by starting at the top and shaping garments as you go down.  The sub-title of this book is "How to make perfectly fitting sweaters, skirts, pants, capes and ponchos: start at the top, try on, adjust, block and sew up as you go."  That describes the book perfectly.

           Barbara's rule for knitting is "try it on - try it on - try it on."  I have found that this gives perfect results every time.  The only time this won't work is if you don't have available the body for which the garment is being knit. 

           This book is written is a prose style full of cute opinions (use small buttons, only slip sts on edges that will show) and drifts into tangents, and tangents within tangents.  Fortunately the reading is easy and you can sit back and enjoy as you learn.  The book has an in-depth index so it is easy to find any technique or piece of information you may need.

            Knitting from the top starts with the most common top-knit sweater, the raglan, but it doesn't stop there.  Following the techniques you can also make shaped shoulder tops and even set-in sleeves.  There is also a variety of neck shapings and styles to choose from.  The most wonderful thing about this book is that if you learn the techniques you can put the book away and design on your own.

NOTES ON DOUBLE KNITTING: by Beverly Royce,

edited by Meg Swanson

            I find this book to be difficult to read, but the technique described is so amazing that it should be read by every knitter.  The problem is that weird abbreviations are given for the new techniques, and then these abbreviations are used in the instructions for the projects.  I had to look back and forth and back and forth in the book to figure out what the heck was going on.  I gave up entirely in trying to understand the instructions for the various invisible cast-ons.

           Once you figure it out, though, double knitting is an amazing thing: you work tubes on flat needles - no more turning and turning small items on three needles.  You just work back and forth keeping track of front and back stitch by slipping them.  This is perfect for small dolls and for fingers on gloves. 

            Several interesting projects are given in the book, Anna Makarovna's Secret Stockings, Lined Gloves, and the amazing Stuffed Pony.  There are also instructions for a tam, but in my opinion double knitting is best suited for small items.  It's not worth the trouble for things that work comfortably on 3 (or 4) needles.

            I haven't worked any of the actual patterns in this book, but I used the technique to design some easy-knit bears that I mass-produced at Christmas time.  A wonderfully versatile technique.