Folk Mittens: Techniques and Patterns for Handknitted Mittens (Folk Knitting series) (Paperback)

by Marcia Lewandowski (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
Because mittens are useful, warmer than gloves, and fast to knit, the art of knitting them is highly developed and has resulted in many traditional patterns unique to a geographic region. In Latvia, a young woman would knit mittens for all the guests at her wedding; in colonial America, mittens often carried a knitted-in Bible verse or poem. Folk Mittens details these and other traditions of various countries. The basic shaping instructions are clearly written, and all color charts are shown in color. Although the few monochromatic knit-purl patterns have charts that are difficult to read, most knitters will be too thrilled by the marvelous color patterns to notice. If you don't knit yourself, this would be a wonderful gift to inspire your favorite knitter (especially if you need a new pair of mittens).

From Library Journal
Following a section on knitting techniques, including valuable information on the Eastern method of circular knitting and on working with double-pointed needles, Lewandowski launches into some 40 different projects for mittens based on the traditions of Europe, Asia, and North and South America. She includes full-color charts, graphs, and instructions, along with the history of each type of ethnic mitten. Although a beginning knitter could learn to knit mittens from this book, Robin Hansen's Sunny's Mittens (Down East, 1990) would be a better choice for those with no previous knitting experience. Highly recommended for all knitting collections.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 120 pages
• Publisher: Interweave Press (January 1, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1883010349
• ISBN-13: 978-1883010348
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 8.4 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #448,552 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A really good book of patterns, June 18, 2003

By	M. Thoresen "bablarina" (Moelv, Ringsaker Norway) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This book has lots and lots of nice patterns for mittens. There are fancy mittnes and plain mittens, many colored mittens and some textured mittens. There is also a "basic mitten" pattern, which is nice for people who either have never knit mittens before, or who wish to have a template from which to branch off in designing their own mittens. The informational sections preceding the patterns from each country, though not extensive, are interesting.

For sheer number and variety of mittnes, this book can't be beat. My personal favorites are a beautiful pair of cabled aran mittens and a fairly simple but elegant two-color pattern from the Faroe Islands. I do, however, have one criticism. The section on thumbs is, well, pathetic. The different kinds of thumbs are each given a short paragraph, but there are no diagrams or proper explanations as to how to go about knitting them. Thumbs are not terribly difficult, but as they are particular to mittens and gloves I do think that a book devoted entirely to the mitten should cover their construction clearly and thoroughly. A relatively new knitter, or even an experienced knitter who has never made mittens before, will likely need a step-by-step book with diagrams or a personal teacher to show them the thumb on their first attempt at mittens.

Thumb section aside, this book is very fine, with simple but clear photography that more than adequately shows what the mittens really look like. No specific yarns are listed for each pattern, but the weights and gauges used in ihe models are listed, so unless you want to make an exact copy of the model (and where is the fun, or for that matter the "folksiness" in that?), it should not be a problem. Overall, I highly recommend this book.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars great book, October 19, 2005

By	T. Lewsey - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I gave this book 5 stars because the mitten patterns and the history behind each mitten is awesome but....frankly her explaination on how to knit them, especially the thumbs is rather pathetic! I have been knitting for quite a few years and have knit many pairs of mittens, and knitting these mittens, or at least just the thumbs were rather difficult to figure out. At least I think so. If her explaination on how to knit the thumb gussets where better explained, I don't believe the mittens would be very difficult to knit. The graphs in the book are very good. Very easy and not confusing. Even with the thumbs being confusing...I think it's definately a book worth buying. You can always go to a local yarn store to get help on the thumbs if you need to. The finished mittens are beautiful and I know I'm glad I took the time to figure out the thumb gussets.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars One of the best mittens books I've found..., January 5, 2001

By	"rottweilergirl" (New Mexico) - See all my reviews

OK, so I haven't really found that many mitten patterns at all, but I looked almost everywhere before I discovered this book. This book gave me a multitude of patterns ranging from the very complex to the very easy...I ended up knitting Halland mittens for myself and am going to make the Norwegian Selbu mittens too. The charts are easy to read but I was slightly confused by the description of thumb gussets (gores) and how to knit them. It seems that she slightly glossed over their descriptions, although you can extrapolate (to a degree) what she means. The patterns are nevertheless gorgeous and generally straightforward. Aesthetically, the photography is beautiful too. I like the fact that this is a collection of mittens from around the world, & doesn't just focus on one particular region so the selection is large.