Book Review: Gilmore Girls The Official Knitting Book

In the interest of full disclosure, I’ve never watched Gilmore Girls. I know I probably should, but I feel like I wasn’t quite the right age for it when it came out and I’ve never gone back to watch it. That said, fans of the show are sure to enjoy these knit homages to the beloved characters from Stars Hollow in Gilmore Girls: The Official Knitting Book.

Edited by Tanis Gray, the book includes 29 projects for hats, cowls, scarves, socks, mitts, garments and home decor designed by a variety of stitchers.

Six of the projects are rated easy, 17 intermediate and six for advanced knitters.

The projects are sometimes literally inspired by the show, such as the tam Rory wore when she went golfing with her grandfather, while others incorporate icons, quotes (like “I smell snow”) and logos (Luke’s Diner) from the show.

There’s a hat made to look like newsprint as a nod to Rory’s journalistic aspirations, mitts and gloves for supporting the teams at Stars Hollow High, a beaded lace scarf inspired by Rory’s adventure with the Life and Death Brigade, and a cardigan designed to show Paris’s love of macaroni and cheese.

Some of the patterns are less obviously related to the show, like a cowl with falling leaves or an argyle vest.

Each pattern comes with a quote from the show and a little back story about the cast, different storylines or the inspiration behind the design. The book is scattered with photos from the show and other fun facts about its production.

In the back of the book you’ll find a glossary of techniques (words but no pictures), and the book has a ribbon bookmark to hold your place on the pattern you’re working on.

This book would be a fun gift for a knitter who is a Gilmore Girls fan, or use it to stitch something up for someone who watches this show as their comfort show almost 25 years later.

About the book: 200 pages, hardcover, 29 patterns. Published 2024 by Insight Editions, suggested retail price $34.99

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Blankets are a great blank slate project that you can change up in a million different ways. From color to stitch pattern to size, the possibilities are almost endless.

Jared Flood, the designer behind Brooklyn Tweed, was inspired by a log cabin quilt his mother made in 1995 to re-create that design in knitting, which led to more blankets and ultimate Brooklyn Tweed’s Knit and Crochet Blankets, which includes 25 patterns from an array of designers using different skills and techniques to make cozy, pretty blankets.

The patterns are divided into three aesthetic themes: traditions, minimalism and colorplay. The patterns are rated on a scale of one to five, with one being the easiest, and there aren’t any pieces rated five. Two blankets are rated one, 14 are two, eight are three and one is four.

In addition, three of the 25 patterns are crocheted, but they either use single crochet or granny stitch, so they are pretty easy even if you don’t do a lot of crochet. You can see all the patterns on Ravelry.

Some of my favorites include Rattan by Rastus Hsu, a chunky blanket worked in knits and purls with simple crossing stitches to make a raised woven look; Homewood by Seth Richardson, covers in dramatic, loopy cables; Ainur Berkimbayeva’s Tessellate, one of the beginner projects that doesn’t really look beginner but is totally worked in knit and purl stitches; Warp + Weft by Aist? Butkevi?ien?, which is mostly knits and purls but makes a fun woven look fabric that blew my mind a little bit; and the same designer’s Canyonland, a multicolored blanket with wavy stripes.

The patterns tell you how to resize them for different dimensions and include information on pattern repeats where it is possible to make a totally custom size.

Many different techniques are included here such as cables, lace, shadow knitting, intarsia and other colorwork techniques, as well as modular knitting and lots of sewing pieces together. The patterns are all presented with charts, but there are line by line written instructions available on the Brooklyn Tweed website if you need them.

The book ends with a deep dive into log cabin knitting, telling the story of the quilt Jared’s mom made and how he made it in knitting, as well as the multitude of variations you can make if you want your own log cabin style design.

The back of the book includes a little written information about some of the special techniques needed, but there are no photos.

This is a lovely book full of inspiration for knitting and crochet blankets for any skill level. If you like to make blankets as gifts or aspire to have a handmade blanket in every room of the house, these designs would be a great place to start.

About the book: 192 pages, paperback, 25 patterns. Published 2024 by Abrams Books, suggested retail price $24.99.

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