A Gathering of Lace [Paperback]

Meg Swansen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: April 1, 2005

Collected from knitting designers all over the world, the patterns in this guide will be a joy to create for any knitter. The lavish full-color illustrations and easy-to-follow instruction charts will make these traditional patterns an exciting addition to a lace knitter's repertoire. From beginner to advanced, the 34 projects contained include designs for sweaters, vests, shawls, scarves, gloves, and socks. With beautiful photographs of these unique patterns, this knitting book is perfect for those who love to knit lace and those who would love to learn.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"'A beautiful book that samples the best of both traditional and contemporary lace knitting; it is a collection of patterns from a number of sources and includes biographies of the designers and a snippet of prose for each pattern. It is good to see lace patterns in a variety of yarns, both chunky and fine. All designs are charted with some suitable for beginners and others very much for the experienced lace knitter. This would make a delightful present for someone special or for yourself.' SlipKnot, Knitting & Crochet Guild, Sept '04"

About the Author

Meg Swansen is the daughter of designer Elizabeth Zimmermann, a leading figure in handknitting since the mid-1950s. She is the owner of Schoolhouse Press, writes the semi-annual Wool Gathering, has produced nearly 20 instructional videos, and presides over Knitting Camp. She lives in Pittsville, Wisconsin.

Product Details

• Paperback: 174 pages
• Publisher: XRX Books (April 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1893762246
• ISBN-13: 978-1893762244
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 11.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #711,367 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

101 of 105 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Can't completely love it, or hate it., February 2, 2004

By 

A. Reader (Boise, Idaho United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Gathering of Lace (Hardcover)

This is a collection of beautiful designs, and it has great color pictures of each shawl. The designs are unique and challenging. Pattern instructions are presented in chart-form only, which makes things exceptionally difficult because many of the charts are flawed. Written instructions would have been an easy way for knitters to double-check confusing instructions. An errata file can be found at www.knittinguniverse.com, but this is the only knitting book I own with errors, so it's disappointing that the errata sheet is necessary. Most of the patterns are for shawls, with a few sweaters, a hat, a pair of gloves, three sock patterns, a couple pillows, a child's pinafore, two purses, and a hat thrown in. Then, for some reason, there are pictures in the back of shawls without patterns provided, which is completely baffling in a pattern book. While I love the designs and the variety of the patterns, the book falls short of expectations. I would not recommend any of the patterns for beginners.

74 of 76 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Who ever thought there would be so many kinds of lace?, January 23, 2001

By 

Carol Peterson Hennekens (Colorado Springs, CO United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: A Gathering of Lace (Hardcover)

Yes, it's finally here! And, it is well worth the wait. This is a beautiful and BIG book - coffee table size and 174 pages.

The most astounding thing about this book is the amazing range of projects offered within the theme of lace. Just among the shawls offered there are: 3 triangles, 2 rectangles, 8 circles, 2 faroese and 3 squares. Then there are garments ranging from shrugs and tunics (6) to socks (3) and a christening gown. Then, just for grins, is Debbie New's lace boat (I kid you not!)

As for the skill levels required, there are a few projects for solid beginners. (The actual knitting of lace isn't difficult -- it's the keeping track of where you are in the pattern that is the trick.) Most of the projects are best suited to knitters with some experience with lace.

Beyond the patterns, there's a good techniques section in the introduction. There's also a gallery of lace projects where the designer doesn't have a written pattern available but it has some fun ideas (including the boat). There's also a section with a message from each designer. The book concludes with a section about the making of the book - coordinating 30 designers, photographing garments on several continents (and the photos are stunning). What a project for Meg Swansen to coordinate.

Bottom line -- a gorgeous book of patterns but with enough technique and design that you can use it as a reference too.

71 of 74 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating Lace Knitting, May 5, 2000

By 

Joanna Daneman (Middletown, DE USA) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: A Gathering of Lace (Hardcover)

More than one knitter has been bitten by the lace bug. With a few basic stitches and proper techniques, you can go from a plain looking thin yarn to a garment that is a work of art, with lace leaves, flowers, insects, and waves of edgings like ocean foam.

This book not only has patterns for shawls and scarves (typical lace projects) but also gloves and socks! Best of all, it teaches all-important techniques such as choosing the right yarn, the right sized needles for the yarn and blocking--stretching the lace project when completed. When you are initiated into these secrets, you will be able to make lace knits that are the stuff of legends.