Knitting

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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?

Knit a Glasses Holder for Your Bedside Table

knit glasses holder

Not too long ago I was seeing a crochet pattern for a glasses holder shaped like a bear all over the Internet. It was super cute, and also useful as a place to put your glasses on your bedside table instead of just throwing them somewhere random.

This project stewed in my brain for a little while and I decided I needed to make a knit version, but I didn’t want to make a bear. If you know anything about me you might know that I’m a cat person, so of course my version had to be a cat.

The base is just a basic little basic worked from the center out to the desired size, then up the sides as long as you want them. Knit some ears and add embellishments to make it whatever kind of animal you want.

The way I figured out to work the base from the center out was to use a crochet cast on, which gives you an easier way to pick up stitches from the back of the cast on than if you worked a more traditional cast on for a knitting project. It’s kind of fun to do things in a different way from time to time.

This little project is adorable if I do say so myself, and even as a plain little basket not made into an animal it’s a cute way to keep your glasses or other little things in one place. I’m tempted to make one for my desk to hold pens or even little little scissors and sewing needles that are always on my desk but somehow always seem to get lost on my desk.

If you need a little holder for your glasses on your table, check out the pattern at Our Daily Craft.

[Photo: Our Daily Craft]