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Review: Color Knitting with Confidence

January 20, 2015 by Sarah White

color-knitting-with-confidence

A lot of knitters are intimidated by color knitting, whether because they’re afraid of the techniques or because they don’t want to pick colors they end up not liking together. Nguyen Le tries to take some of the fear and mystery out of colorwork techniques with her book Color Knitting with Confidence (Barron’s, 144 pages, 30 patterns, October 2014, $19.99).

In the interest of full disclosure, my new book coming out in April is a colorwork book, so I might be a little more judgmental than others on this topic right now.

That said, this is a cute book that really focuses on people who are new to colorwork (and, indeed, new to knitting, as there are basic knitting instructions here, too). It covers knitting stripes, slip stitches, stranded colorwork, intarsia and double knitting with a focus on simple, often repeating designs and small projects.

Each chapter takes you through the basics of how to perform the given technique as well as offering some sample patterns you might want to play with. There’s a handful of patterns for each technique, most of which are pretty simple, such as an ombre striped baby blanket worked mostly in Stockinette Stitch, a slip stitch chevron rug, a collar worked with hearts in intarsia, fingerless mitts with stranded knit triangles (both of those are on the cover) and a double-knit belt that’s solid colors on both sides.

There are some more elaborate patterns as well, such as a baby cardigan worked in stranded knitting that involves cutting a steek, but most of these patterns are pretty straightforward, which is great for people new to colorwork but those with a few projects under their belts might find these options a little boring. (But they’re not the target audience anyway.)

That said there are some projects here that are really cute. I actually like those stranded mitts on the cover, and the color wheel pillow is super cute and I wish I’d thought of it. There’s a little bunny (that looks more like a mouse to me) with a stranded knit body that’s really sweet, and the double-sided double-knit cowl is pretty and practical.

So if you’ve been afraid to try color knitting in the past (and don’t want to wait for my book) and are looking for some straightforward patterns to get you started, this is a good book to check out.

Have you read it? Or are you in the fear of colorwork boat? I’d love to hear about it!

Next Pattern:

  • Book Review: Knit Color Block Blankets
  • Have Fun with Color in the Ocean Pathways Sweater…
  • Play with Color in this Retro Scarf Blanket Knitting Pattern
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Comments

  1. Vickie Howell says

    January 22, 2015 at 8:31 am

    Love this cover! Looks like a sweet, informative book. 🙂

  2. Cindy S says

    January 27, 2015 at 4:38 pm

    My next goal is to learn colorwork, I’m thinking intarsia. I just finished my last goal and knit a lacy shawl! I love learning new things.

Have you read?

Knit a Great Button Down Shirt

Just about anything you can make in fabric you can make in knitting, but there are some styles that you just don’t see that often translated into knitting. 

For example, a button down collared shirt. This is a classic design, of course, and it looks great in a knit version, but it’s just not something you see much of. 

Noma Ndlovu’s Guglethu shirt is the pattern to try if you want to knit your own button down shirt. This one is inspired by cashmere tops (though the sample was made out of yak yarn, not cashmere, and uses two strands of lace weight yarn held together) and includes lots of high-fashion details like double-knit cuffs, collar and shoulder seams. 

It has a patch pocket on the front and 10 buttons including the button band and the cuffs. 

The designer says you can also use a DK weight yarn held singly if you’d rather, and that the shirt looks good in a variety of yarns. There is another version on Ravelry that uses Berroco Remix Light, which is a mix of nylon, cotton, acrylic, silk and cellulose fibers. It has a more relaxed look but it still really pretty. 

The pattern has 12 sizes, with a full bust measurement ranging from 32.35 to 72.25 inches, or 82 to 183.5 cm. The designer suggests 2 to 6 inches, or 5 to 15 cm, of positive ease when you pick your size. I could totally see knitting one that’s even bigger to wear more like a jacket, because I do that a lot with button down shirts I already own.

I love all the details on this shirt, which isn’t necessarily difficult to knit, but might introduce you to some things you’ve never knit before (like those cuffs with the plackets, or a shirt collar like this). 

To learn more about this shirt and grab a copy of the pattern for yourself, head to Ravelry. 

[Photo: Noma Ndlovu]

Add Some Texture to Your Summer Knitting

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