Category: knitting books

Knitting Knee-Highs: Sock Styles from Classic to Contemporary by Barb Brown has 20 different knee-high sock patterns which also include shorter socks and leg warmers variations.

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If you are looking to up your sock knitting experience then Barb Brown’s Knitting Knee-Highs book may be just what you have been looking for. This book takes you to the next level by offering knee-high length socks (13 inch legs) in lovely designs and patterns. And if that much knitting seems too much, there are shorter sock length(6 or 7 inch legs) and leg warmers (knee-highs with out the foots) that you can knit.

The book is divided into two sections.

The first section is about getting started with knee-high sock knitting. It provides a clever formula for figuring out how to knit custom fit knee-highs. And it covers how to convert knee-high sock patterns to other type of sock patterns.

The second section has 20 different knee-high sock patterns. Each of the patterns include one or more variations which could be a shorter sock, an anklet, or legwarmer. Most of the patterns are either fair isle or lace stitch patterns. Some include both types. And there are a couple of patterns that use a picot cast-on that give the knee-highs a stylish look.

A couple of my favorite patterns are the Airy Mountain Knee-Highs on page 65 and the Maid Marian Knee-Highs on page 93. The Airy Mountain Knee-Highs has a picot cast-on and a lace pattern that follows the shape of the calf. The Maid Marian Knee-Highs has a lovely lace pattern and a simple cable running up the sides of each leg.

Overall, Knitting Knee-Highs: Sock Styles from Classic to Contemporary has some good information on knitting knee-high socks and some great patterns to get you started on your first pair (or more!).

Happy Knee-High Knitting!

1. Basic Mitten Pattern by Ann Budd in The Knitter’s Handy Book of Patterns: Basic Designs in Multiple Sizes & Gauges (Interweave)

Patterns in a table/grid format for a wide variety of gauges and sizes.

2. Mitered Mittens by Elizabeth Zimmermann in Elizabeth Zimmermann’s Knitter’s Almanac

Mittens based on the shaping principle of miters.

3. Warmest Mittens by Kris Percival in Knitting Pretty

Knit in the round with thick worsted wool. This pattern fits an average woman’s hand if you tend to knit tightly.

4. Basic Glove Pattern by Ann Budd in The Knitter’s Handy Book of Patterns: Basic Designs in Multiple Sizes & Gauges (Interweave)

Patterns in grid format for a wide variety of gauges and sizes.

5. NHM #7 by Terri Shea in SELBUVOTTER: Biography of a Knitting Tradition

Norwegian stranded mittens.

6. Easy Mittens by Sue Dial in One Skein Wonders

These mittens are knitted with one skein of yarn.

7. Elegant-and-Easy Cable Mittens for the Family by Marci Richardson in 101 Designer One-Skein Wonders: A world of possibilities inspired by just one skein

These mittens are designed to fit a small child, a large child, a small adult, and a large adult.

8. Norwegian Snail Mittens by Adrian Bizilia in The Knitter’s Book of Yarn: The Ultimate Guide to Choosing, Using, and Enjoying Yarn

Norwegian stranded mittens.

9. Scandinavian Spots Mittens by Cheryl Murray in 60 Quick Knits: 20 Hats*20 Scarves*20 Mittens in Cascade 220

Norwegian stranded mittens.

10. Welig by Robin Melanson in Knitting New Mittens and Gloves: Warm and Adorn Your Hands in 28 Innovative Ways

Cabled gloves.

Knitwear designers Laura R. Myers, Laura Grutzeck, and Carol Sulcoski—co-authors of Knit So Fine: Designs with Skinny Yarn are on a mission to deepen knitters’ appreciation for skinny yarns. Starting Monday, June 2, they’ll be sitting down for a virtual chat each day with some of the Internet’s favorite knitting bloggers to look at all the advantages of thin yarns and offer new inspiration for working with them this summer, and year-round.

Book website: http://www.interweave.com/knit/books/Knit_So_Fine/
Book knitalong: http://knitsofinekal.blogspot.com/
On Ravelry: http://knitsofinekal.blogspot.com/

The Knit So Fine Blog Tour: 14 stops in 14 days, full of yarn reviews, inside
stories, and more!

June 2
Andrea of The Fiber Forum, http://thefiberforum.com

June 3
RosieBlogs, http://www.rosieblogs.blogspot.com

June 4
Faina of Faina’s Knitting Mode, http://fainasknittingmode.blogspot.com

June 5
Kat Coyle, http://katcoyle.blogspot.com

June 6
Lynn of ColorJoy, http://colorjoy.com/weblog

June 7
Shannon Okey, http://www.knitgrrl.com

June 8
Nautical Knitter, http://www.knitwith.us

June 9
Connie Chang, http://www.physicsknits.blogspot.com

June 10
Christi of Turtlegirl’s Bloggy Thing, http://turtlegirl76.com

June 11
Rob of Threadbear Fiber Arts, http://blackdog.threadbearfiberarts.com

June 12
Cindy, the FitterKnitter, http://fitterknitter.livejournal.com

June 13
Véronik Avery, http://www.veronikavery.com/blog

June 14
Franklin Habit, http://www.the-panopticon.blogspot.com

June 15
Myra & Suzie of Woolbearers, http://www.woolbearers.blogspot.com

Twelve Months of Knitting: Improve Your Knitting skills Month By Month With 36 Seasonal Projects by Joanne Yordanou is a unique knitting book because not only does it have some great projects it also helps you plan on starting and finishing them.

Have you ever started a sweater in March and April and ended up finishing it but it was to warm out to wear? Waiting a few months to wear something I’ve spent weeks and possibly months on, is disappointing.

But with Twelve Months of Knitting, Joanne Yordanou, takes the guess work of project planning so that you can start and finish projects to use and wear right away.

The book is divided by month with garments each month. These are the months that they should be completed for. And there is a weekly planner that tells when you should start the project and the approximate length of time it will take to complete.

So for January, there is a Ski Lodge Scoop (one of my favorites), on page 17. On the planner it says to start the second week of December and the vest should take 1 to 2 weeks to complete if you are an average speed knitter.

Another favorite of mine, the Girl’s Valentine Cardigan on page 27, should be started the 3rd week of January and take 2 weeks to complete. Just in time for Valentine’s Day!

I also like the Boat Launch Cables on page 94 which is a sleeveless wrapped top made from 100% bamboo. Joanne has it placed in July and says I should start it at the beginning of May for it to be done in time to wear it.

The planner could also be used for projects similar in design that aren’t in the book. So if you see a sweater pattern with cables like the Stitch Therapy Turtleneck (page 57), you could check the planner and see that it should take about 3 to 4 weeks to complete it.

This book was big hit when I took it to my weekly knit group. There are so many items that were popular including:

Kiss Curls Sunggles Wrap for February, page 30, 2 – 3 weeks
Summer Chill Shaw for August, page 107, 3 weeks
Kimono Wrap for October, page 125, 1 -2 weeks
Red Cable Cardigan for December, page 151, 3 – 4 weeks

Although I don’t necessary agree with months that some items were placed (ie. a long sleeve llama/wool sweater in August), most of the projects are appropriately placed. And the time to complete some of the projects seem to short, at least for me anyway (ie. the cable sweaters and cardigans would take me much longer then 3 – 4 weeks to complete). But I also like to have several things on the needles.

Overall, I really like Twelve Months of Knitting by Joanne Yordanou. It has some great projects for all level of knitters and the helpful planner and placement of patterns in months, makes it a great book to guide you to completion.

The Knitter’s Book of Yarn: The Ultimate Guide to Choosing, Using, and Enjoying Yarn by Clara Parkes is an informative and entertaining guide to everything you need to know about yarn.

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The Knitter’s Book of Yarn is written by the editor of Knitter’s Review (http://www.KnittersReview.com), Clara Parkes, who has been reviewing yarn, needles, and all things knitting for years.

It includes a thorough discussion of the 4 major types of fibers used to make yarn: protein fibers (wool, cashmere angora, etc.), cellulose (plant) fibers, cellulosic fibers (rayon), and synthetic fibers (nylon, acrylic, etc.). Clara writes about the characteristics of each kind and where they come from. More importantly she explains the properties of each kind of yarn and what type of knitting uses are best for them.

Clara also has a whole section of the book that covers how yarn is made from the major mill to the microspinneries and everyone else in between. Plus she discusses the different processes used to dye yarn.

Finally, in the third section of the different plys of yarn (single, two-ply, tree-ply, four-ply, cabled, textured, boucle, brushed, and chenille), she has 40 knitting patterns that take in the best features of each type of yarn.

I especially liked the two-ply Baby Soft Cardigan (page 91), the four-ply Princess Mitts (page 173), and cabled-yarn Cabled Headband (page 187) by designer Jennifer Hagan of Figheadh Yarnworks. The baby cardigan has an unique slightly asymmetrical front placket that doesn’t require a button band to be knit. And the fingerless gloves have a beautiful cable pattern on top.

Amy King has several nice patterns including an angora cardigan, Vines Cardigan (page 103) and a cabled-yarn vest, XOX Vest (page 183).

Other designers featuring patterns in the book are: Adrian Bizilia, Cat Bordhi, Teva Durham, Jackie Erickson-Schweitzer, Norah Gaughan, Amie Gavin Glasgow, Bess Haile, Lana Hames, Shelia Janury, Elanor Lynn, Tara Jon Manning, Gina Wilde, and Margaret Klein Wilson.

Clara Parkes has included several of her own patterns including a lovely Butterfly Moebius shawl done in a cabled-yarn.

What I especially enjoyed about all the great patterns in the book is that in addition to listing the yarn used in the pattern, the book also has recommendations on what type of yarn to use for substitution.

Two patterns from the book are available for free, Maine Morning Mitts by Clara Parkes and Princess Mitts by Jennifer Hagan

Errata for the patterns is available on the Knitter’s Review website.

The finally section of the books is a great reference that any knitter could use. It includes how to care for handknits and special considerations to keep in mind for each type of fiber. There are couple of invaluable charts, one on figuring out Wraps Per Inch (WPI) and the other listing the standard yarn weight system. And the abbreviations and technique section is invaluable.

Overall, The Knitter’s Book of Yarn is a must have for any serious knitter who want to knit better finished garments. It gives all the information you need to make better buying decisions of yarn and wonderful patterns to use the yarn with.