Customer Reviews

Knitting Noro: The Magic of Knitting with Hand-Dyed Yarns

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

First of all, make no mistake - I love Noro yarn and I was looking forward to this book, since gorgeous amazing yarn like this really does benefit from the right kind of design - not too complicated or it fights with the yarn, but instead designs that have good lines, and either some unique touch, special elegance, or a stitch that interacts with the yarn for an interesting effect. Unfortunately, there was nothing like that in here.

The book consists of ordinary, basic designs, almost all in plain stockinette or rib stitch, with few details to make them memorable. For example - almost every item has pronounced horizontal stripes, due to the nature of the yarn, but that's SO not flattering, and it's a problem that occurs using ordinary sweater patterns with the Noro yarns. Why not have some designs that address that issue? Another example is entrelac, a technique that almost could have been invented just for Noro yarns, it gives such beautiful results. It's not mentioned in the book. Aren't those the king of things that should be included in a book about how to use a particular kind of yarn?

The disappointment is made worse if you go to Noro yarns own website, noroyarns.com, and click on the 'reference' section. There you will some interesting items from various designers that make good use of their unique yarns - why couldn't this book have had something like those, instead of the same things I've seen in a hundred books?

I also find the introduction (and even the title) full of misinformation. "Hand-dyed yarns"? No, they aren't. Noro dyes the raw materials, then spins the yarns from those. The author also implies the yarns are hand-spun, but they are not. Noro's own website has a picture of them being spun by machine. Why does the author include all these false statements about the yarn? It's way beautiful enough to stand on its own without making up stuff.

I really like this book. Any yarn with the same gauge as the featured Noro yarn can be used for these patterns. Easy knitting and basic desgins (good for TV knitting).

I plan on knitting many of the patterns in this book using not only Noro yarns but Manos, Mountain Colors, Blue Heron or Dune and let my imagination run wild while reducing my stash. For those that prefer more imaginative or avant garde designs, as has been the case with some of Jane Ellison's past designs, this is probably not the book for you. One of the design elements used is to combine more than one color of Kureyon, for example, in the same design with great results. (Also good for stash busting).

While the patterns are not necessarily classic, they can be worn for many a season from a fitted rib cardigan to a ribbed vest to a hooded jacket. The pictures of the designs are also clean and basic without any distracting background so that the design and the yarn stand out.

The only thing I don't care for are the use of rolled hems, but that is my preference and a very easy fix.

A good buy if you are a knitter that wants the yarn to do the work.

I made the Noro Hoodie in the photos using Kochoran #31. I don't think I'll be adding the zipper to the front. I loosely used the Hoodie pattern from the Knitting Noro book. I say loosely because I bought it and I wouldn't recommend it because: 1) even though it has beautiful photographs, it's pretty pointless as a pattern book. 2)There's no way to get the gauge stated. I had to redo all the stitch totals. 3) The patterns are shapeless and unattractive. For a "beginner" level book, if someone can shape a sleeve shoulder head, how come they wouldn't be able to shape sides? I had to shape and lengthen the body, widen the sleeves and totally rewrite the hood part of the pattern. 4) There is overlap with her other pattern books (pamphlets). Sorry, wish I had more positive things to say about it... Ummm, the photos are pretty...

I consider myself to be a beginner knitter, though I have made several sweaters in the past and am comfortable with increases/decreases/shaping, etc... HOWEVER -- I do expect a pattern to be correct, as I am not experienced enough yet to see a mistake in the written pattern BEFORE I've translated that mistake into my garment.... and when knitting with yarns as expensive as Noro, and working on a project as time consuming as a sweater, to find mistakes in the work because the pattern is incorrect is absolutely infuriating!!!

I should have gone with my gut instinct that if the author and editors of this book were too lazy to actually write out the pattern for each garment (rather than referring the knitter to different pages for different changes) then there were likely to be missed errors. Completely unacceptable, and renders this book a complete waste of money in my opinion.

Lastly, though you can see this in the photos of the sweaters (and in the measurements of the length the author does provide) -these sweaters are pretty much uniformly designed to be ridiculously short. So short, in fact, that the models in the photos wear them over single color long-sleeved shirts. It looks so ridiculous, as if they are wearing baby sweaters, or shrunk the sweater in the wash. So -- if you are feeling brave enough to tackle these patters then please don't forget to add a few inches to the length of the garment.

When I first looked at this book, I thought, how beautiful! And wanted to rush right out and buy a lot of Noro yarn to make about 5 items.

Then I started working on one of the patterns. OMG! Who put together these instructions? Were they knitters? Very confusing and I'm an experienced knitter. Page jumps to sections in different sweaters, odd repeats, instructions out of sequence. Obviously edited so that the instructions would take up the least amount of space possible. Nice pictures though and a good color hit.

So loved the color, hated the instructions.

Just like Noro yarn, the book is colorful and inviting.

But there are drawbacks. With Noro yarn you get the inevitable knot with the second piece unmatched to the first one.

For the book, I got a ways in and realized, this was a bunch of patterns easily found in other books but with Noro yarns used.

A bit disappointing.

I've got some ideas for how to use my large stash of Noro but probably won't use the ones in this book.

A friend showed me her new copy at our knitting group tonight, and I had to come right here to order my own copy ASAP! I have several of the Noro pattern books, but this one is going to be the most useful yet. Yes, the sweaters are basic pullovers and cardigans, but the details are delicious! And simple enough so that the focus is on the yarn.

I especially love the rolled hem and the exaggerated cowl neckline of a couple of them. Many of the patterns are simple and show off the striping effect of most Noro yarns. One sweater mixes bands of solids with bands of self-striping yarn, And the two row striped sweater reminds me of a famous scarf done in Noro Silk Garden yarn. I've used that technique in a pair of Socks, using Noro Kureyon Sock Yarn. I love the way that a two row stripe shows off the long color changes that make Noro yarns so special. I know I'll be knitting this sweater as soon as my book arrives!

Once I get through some of my Noro stash, I'll be using many of these patterns to do some stash busting and mixing it up! Hours of fun lie ahead!

I am knitting a pattern from this book -- touted as a beginner-level book. It's definitely NOT for beginners. I've encountered so many issues with the pattern that I'm working with that I've had to consult two different sources (Knitter's Handbook : A Comprehensive Guide to the Principles and Techniques of Handknitting and sweater knitting software) to determine how to knit a simple ribbed vest. My pattern has the knitter referring back to a simple garment (the "bespoke" garment) in the beginning of the section. In theory, that would work well if the pattern was more intuitive and if the second pattern didn't depart so much in construction from the first "example" pattern. I fully expected to love this book -- it would have met my expectations if not for the errors and complete lack of information.

So while I love Noro yarns and the patterns themselves are inspiring - it's just not very useful. Use it as a guide only.

When I first opened this book I was taken with the colorways and designs, I couldn't wait to get some Noro yarn and get started. However, after making my first sweater from the book, I was very disappointed to see that these large horizontal stripes are not for me. They are not for anybody unless you are a prepubescent girl who is a size 2. I've never considered myself heavy at size 6, but this has to be the most unflattering design and there are several of these designs in the book.

Secondly, I have encountered more than a couple of pattern errors. On page 97 for the fitted cardigan, the portion of the pattern that instructs you on how to make the left front at shape armhole is completely wrong. You only decrease at the armhole edge, not at both ends as the pattern states. If you decreased at both ends like the pattern says, you would end up with significantly less stitches than the pattern actually wants you to end up with, not to mention that the left front would end up looking like a warped attempt at a V neck. This is not the only mistake I've found so be careful. Another thing about the book, most of these patterns in here look like they are for 14 year olds. I don't know why. All of Jane's other books seemed more inclusive for all body types but not this one. This one's for models only so beware!

I can't believe the author has not published some kind of support page on the web to address the errors. It only seems fair to admit these mistakes. If I were a beginner trying these patterns for the first time, I'd be very frustrated with my results and probably give up knitting all together!

I love what a lot of people don't like about this book - the patterns are really basic and I can see myself knitting just about any of them, letting the beautiful yarn do the work for me. I especially like the fact that there are 5 vest patterns in this book. I live in California and have always wanted to knit something with Noro, but knew that I'd never be able to stand to wear it. Well, a Noro vest will be just perfect. The patterns all look like they will be easy to adjust as far as adding ribbing instead of a rolled edge or making them a little longer than the cropped looks they show.