The great thing about knitting reference books is that they never really get old, you can refer to them again and again over the years, and probably should, to make sure you’re using the best technique possible for whatever it is you’re trying to do.
The Knitter’s Book of Finishing Techniques
by Nancie M. Wiseman originally came out in 2002 and was reissued as a paperback 10 years later (there’s a PDF version now, too), but it’s still a really good, capsule reference to a lot of knitting techniques.
Despite the word “finishing” in the title, it’s really about all the little details that go into making a knitting project great. She focuses on things you might need to knit a sweater, but many of the topics are useful across different types of projects.
The book covers:
- cast ons
- increases
- decreases
- selvedge stitches
- bind offs
- seams
- picking up stitches
- borders, bands and finishes
- buttonholes
- odds and ends like how to join new yarn, weave in ends and store sweaters and yarn
Each of these sections includes detailed but concise instructions on a variety of techniques, as well as pros and cons of each so you can tell at a glance which ones are right for your project. Line drawings and photographs illustrate the techniques and how they actually look in knitting.
In addition there are worksheets at the back for planning a knitting project and doing the math to determine how to increase or decrease evenly across a row.
This little book is full of great information and is small enough to keep in your knitting bag or next to your knitting chair all the time. There are more detailed books on these subjects, but this book will give you a lot of great tips and show you how to do things that will make your garments and other projects look better and make you a better knitter.
Have you read this one? Do you have a favorite book on finishing or other knitting techniques? I’d love to hear about it!
