Review: Cozy Country Knits

I don’t know why, when the weather is finally officially warm here in Arkansas, the book I picked to review this week is one that’s decidedly meant for the fall and winter, but this is the one that jumped out at me.

Cozy Country Knits by Manuela Burkhardt and Dorothea Neumann is all about getting cozy with you’re knitting. It’s full of sweaters and jackets, socks and hats, as well as other accessories with what the subtitle of the book calls “classic rural charm,” which mostly means a lot of chunky knits, texture and cables.

The book includes 24 patterns – eight rated easy, nine intermediate and seven advanced — most of which are sweaters or socks but there are also some hats, wraps and other projects in there, too.

Some of my favorites include the Rustic Pullover, with a complex mass of cables at the center front that still manages to look casual; Delicate Lace, a pullover worked in worsted weight yarn with an allover lace pattern that’s actually not all that delicate; Warm and Elegant, a chunky cardigan with a simple textured stitch pattern; and the Cozy Tam, a slouchy cabled hat.

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Knitwear designers can get inspiration from almost anything when it comes to re-creating a color scheme, an image or a texture in stitches. Sometimes the inspiration isn’t always obvious in the finished project, but sometimes it’s more literal.

That’s the way it is with the Tin Ceiling Blanket from Purl Soho. Not just because the inspiration is in the name, but if you’ve ever seen one of these old ceilings you can see that the design of the blanket is quite similar to the pattern of the tin tiles.

This is also a good example of the idea that you don’t have to use fancy stitch patterns or lots of color to make a big impact with your knits. This single-color blanket (designed by Gianna Mueller and inspired by a washcloth and towel set designed by Sandi Rosner) is made completely with knits and purls, other than slipped stitches at the beginning of rows to make neater edges.

The pattern is written out row by row, but there’s also a chart, which means this project is a great opportunity to practice reading a chart where you can check your work against the written pattern if you need to.

It comes in two sizes, a crib blanket and a throw. The yarn used in the sample is an organic cotton sold by the cone, which is a great way to get a large quantity of yarn and have fewer ends to weave in. In fact, you can knit either size of the blanket with just one cone of yarn, which isn’t inexpensive but makes you a great, sturdy, heirloom quality but still washable blanket you’ll use for years to come. (Of course you can use any sport weight yarn you like to make this blanket.)

Check out all the details and grab the free pattern from Purl Soho.

[Photo: Purl Soho]

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