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Book Review: Knitting for Radical Self-Care

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If you consider knitting part of your self care ritual — not self-care in a cutesy way like people on the Internet usually describe it, but as a vital part of your means of survival — you definitely should take the time to read and knit from Knitting for Radical Self-Care by Brandi Cheyenne Harper.

The book includes essays and reflections on how knitting serves us as an act of self-care and a way to show up in the world and how to find joy, self-expression, armor and resilience within our stitches and ourselves.

Each of the 10 patterns offers a reflection on and is inspired by a word and the words of women who are meaningful to the author.

The patterns mostly use bulky and super bulky yarn and place a lot of emphasis on shaping details and the structure of the pieces that make them more than just a shawl or a sweater. For example the Ode Cardigan, one of my favorites, uses chunky yarn and begins with an I-cord cast on. Pockets and the shawl collar (which doubles as a hood) are integrated into the design and the raglan shaping adds even more movement to the piece.

There are cowls, mittens, sweaters, a hat and a shawl in this collection (you can see some of them on her website or at the Amazon link below) and all the knitting instructions you need, even if you’re totally new to knitting (I would say these are good for knitters who have a couple of projects under their belts, but everything is well explained).

The author models her designs and the joy she feels in sharing her creations is apparent and serves as a reminder to all of us that this is what we should be striving for in life: pure self-expression and acceptance. It’s not an easy thing but it’s what we’re here to create.

The health benefits of knitting are well-established, and entering the new year consciously choosing projects and materials that speak to us, as well as embracing knitting as a practice, is a great way to begin. Knitting for Radical Self-Care calls on all of us to remember why we knit and how it helps us to build connections to ourselves, our community and our ancestors.

About the book: 160 pages, hardcover, 10 patterns. Published January 2022 by Abrams. Grab the book from Amazon.

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Review: The Knitting Pattern Writing Handbook

I know not all of you are interested in writing patterns, but for those of you who are (or who already do), The Knitting Pattern Writing Handbook by Kristina McGrath and Sarah Walworth is a great guide to things you need to consider as you are designing, writing and preparing your pattern for publishing.

While a lot of this information (such as grading patterns for particular sizes, the importance of size inclusivity in patterns and common sweater design pitfalls) is specific to designers or garments, this information is important for designers to think about and for knitters to look out for when purchasing patterns.

The book covers the basics and beyond of writing a knitting pattern, including:

  • foundations of a good pattern
  • components of a pattern
  • gauge
  • charts
  • sizing
  • common sweater pitfalls
  • working with a tech editor

The goal of all this is to get designers thinking about how they want to present their patterns, from how abbreviations are handled to when charts are used, how many sizes are included and how elements of the pattern might need to change as garments get larger (such as increasing at a different rate on raglans so the armhole is not too deep when accommodating a larger bust size).

McGrath and Walworth are professional tech editors who host the Tech Tip Talk YouTube page, and their aim is for patterns to be clear, consistent, correct, size inclusive, accessible to a range of knitters (both in terms of physical ability and skill level).

They definitely have opinions about how knitting patterns should be written, such as how to convert from inches to centimeters and that measurements for sweaters should be taken from the upper bust rather than the full chest. But they also note that a tech editor’s job isn’t to be dogmatic or make changes without good reason.

The book also covers other subjects of importance to designers such as the difference between tech editing and test knitting, why you might want to do both and in what order. Each chapter includes a checklist of things to think about when writing you pattern and questions and answers to common questions they come across in their tech  editing businesses.

The back of the book includes detailed guidelines for where and how to measure bodies, plus standard size charts for kids, women and men. There’s also a sample style sheet for use with a tech editor and plenty of resources for learning more about design, accessibility and more.

This book is a great resource for people thinking about getting into knitwear design (particularly garment design), or for designers who want to make their patterns better and their editor’s job easier.

About the book: 176 pages, hardcover. Published 2023 by Storey. Suggested retail price $20.

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