Customer Reviews

Knitting Stitch Bible

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I practically snatched this book off the shelf at the local bookstore, since I'm a true fan of Barbara Walker's treasuries but always looking to expand my horizons. I'm afraid it's a bit of a disappointment.

Color photos are nice, but getting creative with yarn colors for these pattern swatches was not always a great idea. Tweedy yarns as well as bright-colored yarns (e.g., many of the bobbles which are done in bright red) make it difficult to see the texture; and a large number of the lace patterns, some of them very poorly lit, are shown in light-colored yarn on a white background. I keep finding myself unconsciously tilting the book trying to get some shadows so I can see what the pattern actually looks like.

Another major problem is that some of the symbols in the charts are not listed in the "Chart Symbols" at the back of the book, and some are just wrong. There are at least two "mystery symbols" appearing in the charts. Several patterns which I know are using twisted (or crossed) stitches show cable symbols instead. ("Mock cable," pattern #23, shows cable symbols - how is it a mock cable if you're actually using a cable??)

As another reviewer noted, many of the patterns in the "Fair Isle" section are not actually Fair Isle. The selection of actual Fair Isle designs is rather scanty.

Last and probably least, I wish there were more commentary on the patterns such as Barbara Walker gives, regarding the qualities of the fabric, suggested needle sizes, applications, etc.

I give the book 2 stars only because there are several patterns in it which are new to me and I will probably use. (Unfortunately one of those patterns, #25 "Celtic vine," is one of the charts with mystery symbols, although I think I can figure it out in this case. A beginner definitely could not.)

This book has both plusses and minuses. It seriously needs a copy editor. The illustration on page 207 does not accurately depict the stitch diagram. Many of the stitches listed in the intarsia section belong in the Fair Isle section, and vice versa. (Fair Isle is unique in that it allows only two colors to be used at a time, whereas intarsia can use any number of colors at a time.) Some of the lace illustrations can barely be seen. They should have either been put on a darker background, or they should have been knit with a darker material. As is, they are nearly-white on white, and it is hard to see the detail.

On the plus side, the book is well-organized, most of the illustrations are above the norm for books of this type, and some of the patterns are new to me, though I own several other books of this genre. The ring binding is a big plus, aiding in keeping the book open to the desired page as one works.

Incidentally: the pattern on page 207 would be a great use of scrap yarn, and any number of rows could be used for the middle section of each stripe, aiding one in using up nearly the very last inch of material before moving on to the next scrap.

I was very impressed with the collection of stitch patterns in this book. As a advanced beginner knitter, I found much of them inspiring, particularly those displayed in the cable section.

I only wish it had diagrams or better explanations for a few of the chart symbols in the back. I had to reference a completely different book to understand how to do some of the stitches in patterns.

Loving stitch pattern books, I bought this one sight unseen and while not thrilled, I am satisfied. The book is in color, always nice with stitch patterns books, and is well-organized and easy to use. It was nice to see sections on Fair Isle, Intarsia and Sequins & beads. Each section has it's own color "tabs," and there are thumb-nail photos of swatches of all the patterns at the beginning of the book, making it easy to browse. While I miss the discussion of the fabric the pattern produces (as in Barbara Walker's "Treasury" books), finding the type of yarn used in the photo swatches printed beneath them was a consolation. Note that all of the directions are charts (I know that is problem for some people, I've found that it just takes getting used to and has the benefit of giving you some idea of where you are going on the more complicated ones). So why don't I use it more? Probably just a matter of taste and undeveloped skill. I haven't found a pattern in it yet that inspired me to use it. Still, it's a welcome addition to my collection.

This is not so much an instructional book as it is a design aid. I am kind of a novice but I can read knitting patterns and I like designing my own projects sometimes instead of just copying everything out of knitting books. If you are looking for a how-to-knit book this isn't it, but this is a great pictoral reference of many different stitches that can help a knitter design their own projects or test out newly acquired knitting skills in different patterns. I enjoyed the setup of the patterns, although it is unorthodox, and I thought the setup of the book itself was great. I cant wait to learn all of these interesting stitches, particularly the cool Victorian looking lace patterns!

I am not new to knitting but fairly new to designing myself. I have found this book a great resource for adding details to my sweaters and socks. Not having worked from a lot of graphs, I easily caught on the the concept and loved it. When I need an idea, this is the book I dig out.

I love the beautiful pictures of the stitch samples and learned how to read charts. However, and this is a big however, I was very disappointed to see that there were no diagrams of how to actually do the stitches. The Crochet Stitch Bible by Betty Barnden does both.

My mom got me this book as a Christmas present. It has some really beautiful patterns with pictures of exactly what they're going to look like, however, as others have said, it has some problems.

I'm a beginner to intermediate knitter and have never worked from a chart before so I had to do a good bit of research online to try to figure out how to use the charts since, as others have said, some of the symbols aren't represented and there really isn't a good explanation of how to read the charts in the book.

After my research, I was ready to try the Raised Rib pattern on pg. 75. I tried this pattern, I think, 4 different ways and pulled it out & started over before I finally figured it out. From what I read online, charts should be read right to left for odd rows & left to right for even rows. After looking through some of the simpler patterns, I realized that her charts are all right to left for every row.

Once I figured that out, I started making some great headway. Perhaps this info may help others here who have had problems with the charts in this book.

While not as extensive as some multi-volume stitch collections; this book is a handy and indispensible reference. The stitches are organized by type, thumbnailed for quick selection, and photographed adequately. The instructions are easy to follow.

This is a delightful little book. It is especially nice in actual use because, while it has a hard bound cover, it has a spiral binding inside which opens the volume out flat for viewing. I also appreciated the photo index of stitches in the front. It permits the user to compare several similar patterns at once. The index arranges selections in sections listed as "knit and purl," "ribbing," "cable," "bobbles," "lace," "fair isle," and "intarsia."

The system of presenting the pattern instructions was a little confusing at first. I am more accustomed to the old system of "knit 2, purl 2" etc. The book presents the pattern in graphic form. You see the pattern as it would appear from the front, but the knit and purl designations change their character every row. Essentially while a dot may represent a purl in one row, it may represent a knit in the row above it. This confused me for a while. After using the system for a pattern, though, I started to make sense of it.

The methods of illustrating vairous techniques--knit three in the same stitch, for instance--required a frequent referral to the key until I could remember it, but this is no different from the pattern key that is often included in many common sweater patterns.

The illustrations featuring the sample knitting are lovely--I should knit that evenly!--and delightful just to look at on their own. The fair isle and intarsia patterns were especially lovely. My favorites were the "Interlocking Swirls" on p. 207, the "Inca Stitch" on p. 201, and the "Snowflake" on p. 203.

A nice little book