Book Review: Japanese Stitches Unraveled

I have quite a collection of knitting stitch dictionaries, but sticking to stitch patterns that are available in English limits your possibilities. In recent years Japanese knitting books and all their fun stitch patterns have become more available in the United States and elsewhere, and publishers have sought to provide English versions of these pattern books to a wider audience.

Wendy Bernard’s Japanese Stitches Unraveled: To Knit Top Down, Bottom Up, Back and Forth, and In the Round offers 160 stitch patterns inspired by those found in Japanese knitting books, described anew for an English-speaking audience.

Japanese knitting books often use different symbols and don’t provide a lot of explanation as to what the knitter is supposed to do to execute the stitch. Bernard says in her book that even with some knowledge of Japanese, as she has, it can be difficult to decipher the instructions in these books. They’re also expensive and difficult to come by as they are not regularly exported.

Bernard provides translations of a multitude of stitch patterns as well as instructions for how to work them top down or bottom up, flat or in the round. They are also charted as well as having written instructions.

Some of these patterns will look familiar but many are unique, and she has given them fun names (Japanese stitch dictionaries use numbers rather than names). So now you can knit Charlie Brown twisted ribs (a sort of chevron rib pattern), Dragon and Cables (a wide cable with a zigzag of traveling stitches on top), Spiders (bobbles combined with tuck stitches) and Beetle Cables, to name just a few.

Each chapter — focusing on knits and purls, ribs, fancy and textured patterns, cables, and lace — includes a pattern showing how you might use one of the stitch patterns, and there are three from-scratch projects (a blanket cocoon cardigan and oversized cowl) you can knit as designed or add your favorite stitch patterns.

Japanese Stitches Unraveled is a fun addition to any knitter’s stitch pattern book collection, and it provides plenty of inspiration and tips for designing projects using these fun stitch patterns.

About the book: 288 pages, hardcover, 160 stitch patterns, 8 knitting patterns. Published by Abrams Books, suggested retail $29.99.

Looking for more knitting patterns for knitted Cardigans? Check out these Knitting patterns we found on Etsy.

Specific to knitters, you can join our Knitting Patterns Only group to get, well, knitting patterns, ask questions and gain inspiration for what to knit next.

Looking for more Cable-styled knitting patterns? Check out these Cable Knit Patterns on Etsy

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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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