Book Review: Knit Wild

Some knitting projects are meant to be worn and enjoyed at home, while others are designed for keeping us warm and comfortable in the great outdoors. Knit Wild by Anna-Sofia Vintersol includes 21 sweater patterns made for outdoor exploration, with colorwork motifs that speak to outdoor adventures.

The book opens by talking about the different kinds of wool yarns that are best for keeping you warm outdoors, then dives into the patterns. They are all given in nine sizes but the actual measurements of the sweaters vary depending on the ease built into the design. They are meant to be suitable for both men and women.

The patterns themselves don’t include a lot of details because these sweaters are boxy and worked mostly in stockinette stitch. They indicate how much knitting you should do before working particular charts, which assumes that your row/round gauge is the same as suggested in the pattern, which isn’t always the case (knitters would do well to monitor their row gauge and determine how long each chart will take in their own gauge and adjust as needed).

There are lots on animal motifs in the patterns, including dogs, foxes, bears, turtles and orcas. One pattern, Kitulo, features allover colorwork in a mix and match style of motifs that include birds, alpaca, hearts, crosses and many other options. Check out all the patterns on Ravelry.

Several of the sweaters are shown in varying sizes and colorways so you can see how changing the colors changes the look. There are also sometimes different neckline options, and some patterns give you the option of working pieces flat or in the round with steeks (how to deal with steeks is described in words but there are no tutorials for any knitting techniques in the book).

Some knitters won’t mind this kind of hands off, go your own way approach to sweater knitting, but for those with less confidence these instructions might be intimidating. For those who are comfortable without a ton of hand-holding, these colorful designs should be fun to knit and great to wear on outdoor winter outings.

About the book: 232 pages, hardcover, 21 patterns. Published 2024 by Stackpole Books. Suggested retail price $34.95.

Next Pattern:

Sometimes it can be hard to figure out what to knit, and what knits to wear, when the weather starts changing. The good news is that spring is relatively unpredictable, and can go back and forth between warm and cold in the same week, or even the same day.

If you’re heading into spring (or fall) where you live, now’s a great time to make a shawl. This one, the Blossoming Wrap from Purl Soho, is especially nice because the textured stitches look like spring blooms on a branch (or maybe fall berries?).

The arc-shaped shawl, designed by Hiromi Glover, is worked in a bulky weight superwash wool yarn, which makes it quick to knit and easy to care for. Of course you can use whatever bulky yarn you have on hand, or even use a lighter weight yarn and just make the project bigger (the stitch multiple is included in the pattern so it’s easy to do just that).

The pattern repeats are surprisingly easy to work, and the texture is made with popcorn stitches, which are a little less fiddly than bobbles because you don’t have to turn the work to finish them.

Instructions are given both fully written out and with a chart so you can make it in whatever way is easiest for you.

You can find this pattern at Purl Soho.

Looking for more fun shawls to knit for spring? Here are a few I’ve shared in the past: Vibrance a triangle worked with sock yarn | a garter stitch triangle with textured edging | Adrift, an allover eyelet rectangle | Scrappy Bias, a great project for using up all your leftover bits or unused mini skeins

Summer shawls are great for those days when it’s more warm than not, so if you want to get a jump on a project you can use when it’s warmer, check out my collection of summer shawl knitting patterns, too.

[Photo: Purl Soho]

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