Knitting

Patterns, projects and techniques

Go Beyond Knit and Purl with this Great Book

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beyond knit and purl

Congratulations to Kathleen.

I took all the knitting books off my shelves last week (eek!) and am getting rid of a lot of stuff, which also means I’ve uncovered some great new (old) stuff for you all.

This week’s giveaway is Beyond Knit & Purl by Kate Atherley, which is such a great book for newer knitters or those who are a little scared to move beyond plain old knitting and purling to shaping, lace, colorwork and cables.

The book has tons of great basic advice on things like understanding patterns and choosing the right ones for you, doing all the prep work for successful knitting and how to work from a pattern, including what patterns assume you know.

Then she goes into shaping, working in the round, knitting socks, cables, lace and colorwork and has great tips and instructions as well as a couple of patterns for each section that will help you build confidence. The patterns are pretty basic but so great for skill building.

This is a really great book for building skills and gaining confidence as a knitter, and I want one of you to have it.

Leave a comment on this post by the end of the day Sunday, July 24, if you’d like a chance to win it. I’d love to know what particular skill you need help with that this book can help you with.

Thanks for visiting, commenting and sharing, and good luck!

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Comments

  3. I need help with knitting mittens on four needles. So far, I’ve only knitted mittens on two needles.

  7. Haven’ knit for years and sure need help starting up again. This book would be perfect. Thank you for offering me a chance to win it.

  9. This would be a great book to use when I’m helping people new to the knitting process to learn the basics – would also provide me with some new info for next steps!

  10. I’ve been knitting for 40+ years and only in the last 5 have I been pushing myself past the basics. Would love this book to keep me doing just that!

  12. I’m brand to knitting…just learned the very basics – how to cast on and knit/purl. Am left handed but was told it’s best to learn to knit using my right hand even though it feels strange ????. I want to succeed at this new hobby and need all the help I can get! I suspect this book would be beyond helpful!

  14. I love to crochet, but want to learn knitting. Have the needles and yarn, need the instructions and ideas!

  15. I would like to learn more about lace. It looks so delicate, intricate, and beautiful.

  16. I could use some help with colorwork. The couple of projects I have tried did not turn out so well.

  17. Literally haven’t progressed past knit and purl. I’m thinking there’s a lot that patterns assume we know (that this we doesn’t know at all). I do, however, own a huge assortment of short and long knitting needles, as well as every size circular needle, because I was a Girl Scout, and any reason to buy fiber-y tools and supplies is a good one for me.

  18. I would like to learn more about the knitting world. I am 71 year old grandmother and would like to teach my grand kids ‘the wonderful skill of knitting. Thanks for finding and offering this book for an give away prize.

  19. I’ve been knitting all my life, but have never progressed beyond the basics. Help!!

  22. Great push for someone returning to knitting after 50 years! Yep, have wanted to move beyond basic scarves!

  30. My particular stress point is when I have to fix a mistake in a complex pattern such as lace or fisherman’s rib. I thought that by now (70+ years) I would be unflappable when it came to knitting. Hah.

  31. I’m trying to “improve” (OK, really learn better techniques for) colorwork. I can manage basic intarsia, but as soon as it goes beyond single blocks of color or doing something a bit fancier, I’m lost!

  34. Have just helped a client in recovery pick up knitting Again after twenty years. She would find a. Ion like this so helpful.

Have you read?

Add a Little Lace to Your Knitting Patterns

If you’re new to lace knitting or just aren’t sure how to incorporate the technique into garments, check out these tops and sweaters that use lace as a decorative element.

The easiest lace out there is eyelets, and you can practice them plenty with this eyelet covered sweater from Knitcro Addict. It uses light/DK weight yarn and is worked in four pieces knit flat. It’s intended to be a little cropped and a little oversized, and includes sizes XS to XXL in the pattern.

If you’re in parts of the world where it’s getting colder as you read this, the Nora sweater from Bummbul might be a good choice. This is actually a great one for learning lace because it’s worked in super bulky yarn, which makes it easier to see what you’re doing and makes the lace super graphic. This one just comes in one size, with a 42 inch (106) cm bust, but that could fit a variety of people depending on how much ease you like.

Minimi Knit Design has a cute allover lace cardigan worked in one piece from the bottom up. It’s worked in lace weight mohair held double, which maybe isn’t the best for those new to lace (because it can be hard to rip out) but it sure is pretty. Sizes range to fit from 30 to 66 inches/76 to 168 cm bust measurements.

If you’d rather not have lace all over your sweater, you can knit the Lumi sweater from Originally Lovely, which has a chevron lace pattern on the yoke and is otherwise worked in reverse stockinette stitch. (It’s worked inside out so you don’t have to purl every stitch.) The pattern has 9 sizes from XS to 5XL and uses worsted weight yarn.

Or try the super romantic sookie blouse from Trust the mojo (available on Ravelry). This sweet top is started working flat from the bottom up and has a V-neck and I-cord edgings. The sleeves are worked separately in the round, and the pieces are all joined together to work in one piece to finish off the top. It comes in eight sizes and is available in English and French.

You can also pair lacy sleeves with an otherwise plain top, like on the Starflower Wrap from Annelise Driscoll Gingrow. This intermediate pattern makes a wrap sweater with generous lacy sleeves and a double wrap belt. The pattern has nine sizes, from XS to 5XL, and is available for free from Hobbi.