Book Review: Knitting Van Gogh

If you’re a fan of the artist Vincent Van Gogh and of knitting patterns inspired by art, Knitting Van Gogh by Krista Ann is the book for you. The book includes 20 patterns inspired by artwork, as well as the pictures that inspired them and a little information about them.

Patterns are divided into two sections, apparel and decor, and include wraps, scarves, gloves, nesting baskets, a journal cover, a sunflower pillow cover and more.

For some the influence is obvious, such as the red hat inspired by the painting Head of a Woman, or the sunflower cushion inspired by Sunflowers. Sometimes it’s not as obvious, such as the Peach Tree Wrap inspired by the colors of the painting The Peach Tree, or the journal cover that pulls colors from Self-Portrait with Straw Hat.

Some of my favorites include the Wheatfield Brioche Cowl, with colors from the painting Wheatfield and brioche designs that look a bit like grass; Vincent’s Blanket, made from log cabin squares in shades of red based on the blanket in The Bedroom; and of course the Vincent doll.

Four patterns are rated the easiest skill level, with eight each at levels 2 and 3. You can see a few of the patterns on the publisher’s website (as of this writing they are not on Ravelry with photos).

The book includes a glossary and some tips for finishing at the back, as well as a key for abbreviations and a guide to the artworks featured. The book was produced in collaboration with the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam and purchasing the book also supports the work of the museum, which is pretty cool.

This would be a fun book to knit from for an art lover, or if you just want to enjoy the hidden meaning in your projects if you knit some where the influence isn’t as obvious.

About the book: 144 pages, hardcover, 20 patterns. Published 2024 by Weldon Owen, suggested retail price $29.99.

One of the fun things about knitters is that we will use a holiday theme on any kind of project. From Easter bunny socks to Christmas sweaters, there’s no combination of holiday motif and knitwear genre we won’t combine.

Case in point: Halloween cowls.

This fun cowl from Sweet Vireo Designs features large carved pumpkins and little cats and skulls. It uses two colors of DK weight yarn and I love the multicolored yarn for the background color on this one. And the braids! So cute.

Spooky Season by Jocelyn Tunney (also on Ravelry) uses fingering weight yarn in two colors to make a design with crescent moons and eyes. There are two circumferences and two heights available so you can make it a neck hugger or a slightly bigger project if you like.

Make more moons with the Broom Riding Cowl from Vanessa Ewing Knits. This two color pattern looks extra fun with a multicolored yarn for the colorwork, but you can use a solid as well. It calls for DK weight yarn but there is also a fingering weight version if you have some yarn in your stash you want to use.

Jinx Made has another fun Halloween cowl, this time covered in skulls. South Philly Skulls uses DK weight yarn and comes in two lengths, and there’s also a matching hat pattern, both of which can be found on Ravelry.

The Ghost Stories cowl from Melissa Knit Wear is a two-color cowl with ghosts of different sizes on the body. It uses DK weight yarn, and average sized skeins will allow you to get two cowls out of two skeins. It also calls for stitch markers to help you keep your place in the chart.

Or stitch up a cowl with a giant bat on it. The Nightling Cowl from Jen Immer uses DK weight yarn in two colors and has moons and a large bat on it. This pattern can be found on Ravelry.

How about spooky trees? The Weirwood Cowl from Andrea Krüß-Anders is inspired by the weirwood trees in the Game of Thrones books, and is worked in two colors of fingering weight yarn. You can find this free pattern on Ravelry.

If a bandana cowl is more your thing, try Cowloween from Tellybean Knits (on Ravelry). This colorful design is worked from the top down and features pumpkins, ghosts and candy colored stripes, and is worked in a light fingering weight yarn. There are kid and adult sizes available.

Have you read?