Too Good To Miss….

Vogue has done it again! Their latest Stitch Dictionary, called Lace Knitting, is #5 in their Stitchionary 5 arsenol. With this book, anyone, and I do mean ANYONE can knit lace. I know what you’re thinking, that maybe anyone can do lace but you can’t. But think of it this way. It’s just a series of yarn overs and decreases strategically placed to make intentional holes!

There are several sections in the book, the first being Easy/Mesh designs.

The next section, Edgings, gives lots of designs to dress up anything you can think of.

Chevron designs are easy too, again, with charts and row by row instructions for all of these designs. All over designs such as sweet violets and field of daisies, perfect for your summer sweaters, and leaf designs for your cooler weather items. Panels patterns are perfect for afghans. Combos section shows how to combine these awesome designs into 2 or more per item. Come up with your own unique designs! And finally Motifs, such as sea star and medallions finish out the book.

Included, of course, is a glossary, complete index and technique section to help you on your way to knitted lace. While this isn’t a project book, it’s a technique manual, if you’re interested in dressing up your standard patterns or creating your own designs, this one is a must have. From, none other than Vogue!

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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.

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