Sockupied – Spring 2011!

Sockupied Spring 2011 is here. It’s great, even better than the last one. Along with the product reviews – all aimed at sock knitting, there are interviews and of course the patterns. But this emag is different. Along with the interviews there are videos. Interaction all over the place.

Little bits and pieces about the designers and editors, lots of links to references. Tutorials and videos of tips and techniques as well as ground breaking new ideas in sock knitting.

This emag, priced at $14.95 is different from the rest of the emags on the market. You won’t find any ads for cars, or laundry soap or even Trident gum. Nothing but knitting. All knitting all the time.

Read along as needles and yarns are compared and contrasted. Learn different ways to construct your heel, as well as the confidence to tackle your own ideas. The different cast ons and bind off tutorials are worth the price alone. There are 5 patterns, all with interactive links, tutorials, videos, slide shows, and designer info. There are reviews of the Knitting Workshop DVDs as well as Knitting Daily DVDs and video previews of the same.

Pretty enticing stuff, you can’t even imagine interactive features that these emags from Interweave don’t have. Of course, the heart and sole of any pattern book. 5 different patterns, with variations. One men’s sock pattern, one that could swing either way, and the rest for women.

My favorite? The Latvian Inspired socks, but I also had fun with the interactive argyle designing section. Did I forget to mention that? Do you like to mix and match colors? Yeah… that’s in there too!

Next Pattern:

Blankets are a great blank slate project that you can change up in a million different ways. From color to stitch pattern to size, the possibilities are almost endless.

Jared Flood, the designer behind Brooklyn Tweed, was inspired by a log cabin quilt his mother made in 1995 to re-create that design in knitting, which led to more blankets and ultimate Brooklyn Tweed’s Knit and Crochet Blankets, which includes 25 patterns from an array of designers using different skills and techniques to make cozy, pretty blankets.

The patterns are divided into three aesthetic themes: traditions, minimalism and colorplay. The patterns are rated on a scale of one to five, with one being the easiest, and there aren’t any pieces rated five. Two blankets are rated one, 14 are two, eight are three and one is four.

In addition, three of the 25 patterns are crocheted, but they either use single crochet or granny stitch, so they are pretty easy even if you don’t do a lot of crochet. You can see all the patterns on Ravelry.

Some of my favorites include Rattan by Rastus Hsu, a chunky blanket worked in knits and purls with simple crossing stitches to make a raised woven look; Homewood by Seth Richardson, covers in dramatic, loopy cables; Ainur Berkimbayeva’s Tessellate, one of the beginner projects that doesn’t really look beginner but is totally worked in knit and purl stitches; Warp + Weft by Aist? Butkevi?ien?, which is mostly knits and purls but makes a fun woven look fabric that blew my mind a little bit; and the same designer’s Canyonland, a multicolored blanket with wavy stripes.

The patterns tell you how to resize them for different dimensions and include information on pattern repeats where it is possible to make a totally custom size.

Many different techniques are included here such as cables, lace, shadow knitting, intarsia and other colorwork techniques, as well as modular knitting and lots of sewing pieces together. The patterns are all presented with charts, but there are line by line written instructions available on the Brooklyn Tweed website if you need them.

The book ends with a deep dive into log cabin knitting, telling the story of the quilt Jared’s mom made and how he made it in knitting, as well as the multitude of variations you can make if you want your own log cabin style design.

The back of the book includes a little written information about some of the special techniques needed, but there are no photos.

This is a lovely book full of inspiration for knitting and crochet blankets for any skill level. If you like to make blankets as gifts or aspire to have a handmade blanket in every room of the house, these designs would be a great place to start.

About the book: 192 pages, paperback, 25 patterns. Published 2024 by Abrams Books, suggested retail price $24.99.

Next Pattern:

Have you read?

Leave a Reply