Customer Reviews

Lily Chin's Knitting Tips & Tricks: Shortcuts and Techniques Every Knitter Should Know

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3 star:		(1)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

Knitters who have been around for a while know that Lily Chin is a prolific technical innovator and has a gift for expressing information exceptionally clearly. And so I am thrilled to see what I hope are the first of Lily's technique-sharing books (she has written Crochet Tips & Tricks as well).

I am a very advanced knitter; I write knitting books and teach unusual knitting techniques to hundreds of clever knitters every year, but I knew I would learn something new and valuable when I opened Lily's book. And I did. Not to give away Lily's secrets, but I want to make my point:

Page 74: A 6-inch square swatch will not behave like a 6-inch section of a garment, because the swatch weighs so little that gravity doesn't tug at it. But that same 6-inch section of a garment has the entire garment's weight pulling at it, lengthening and narrowing the gauge. What's a knitter to do? Lily has you weigh the 6-inch swatch, then use a scale (at the grocery if need be) to weigh out 3 times the swatch's weight in clothespins, brooches, or earrings. Attach these as weights to the bottom edge of the swatch, pin the swatch up by the top edge, and let it sit for a few hours. Then measure the gauge of the swatch, which now reveals how a 24-inch (sweater length) garment will really behave. Practical, ingenious, and life-saving.

page 115: I am very fond of spit-splicing, a roll-in-your-palm technique that can be used on any yarns that will felt, but what if you are using a yarn that doesn't felt? There are various methods (and Lily shares several in this section) but here's one I had never heard of nor had any idea could be done: needle-felting non-animal fibers as a splicing technique. I can't wait to try it.

This tidy fit-in-your-knitting-bag book will see you through most knitting situations, and would be a fine first reference book for new to intermediate knitters, although it has plenty of nifty technical tips for advanced knitters as well. In other words, this book will add to the education of just about any knitter.

I had the pleasure of attending one of Lily's 2-day workshops a couple of years ago. I remember one of her tips for joining a new skein of yarn was one of those things that makes you slap your head saying "why didn't I think of that" -- yet it was well worth the price of admission (basically, when you are joining a new skein on a new row, tie the end of the new skein to the tail of the old skein and slide up so that the new skein has a nice tight "connection" to the fabric).

Lily writes that this book was basically intended to be her workshop consolidated into book form and it does not disappoint. There are so many gems in there that you will want to read it virtually cover to cover several times to "internalize" the tricks so you will have them in your head when you need them.

Lily writes in a fairly witty conversational and easy-to-read tone. She is a bit self-impressed ... but I guess that is to be expected and somewhat forgiven given her stature in the knitting world. However, if you can get past the occasional self-congratulatory pat on the back, you will find so much great information packed into this book.

There were a couple of things I would have changed:

1. The first 60 pages are basically a regurgitation of every other knitting reference in terms of enumerating types of needles (yes... we all know there are straight, circular, and double pointed needles and they come in metal, wood, and plastic varieties.

2. The binding is very "tight" and cheap. The size of the book is compact and intended to be tossed into your knitting bag as a reference. However, even with a book weight, you can't hold the book flat to keep it open while you might be attempting to master one of her tricks. I would rather they had a spiral binding like The Knitter's Companion: Expanded and Updated (The Companion series) (another great compact reference, by the way) or at least a paperback (so you could get it spiral bound yourself).

However, both of these detract little from the overall value of this book. Definitely a book you will learn something new from every time you go through it. I highly recommend it as a great addition to any knitting library.

[NCJAR]

I have a lot of knitting books, but I haven't finished a lot of projects because I am clueless about a lot of things. I had no idea you should reel out some extra yarn when you cast on in order to give you yardage to seam things! I was so delighted to be able to start a center pull skein without pulling out a big chunk using her hints. Totally worth the small expense for the book. I'd like to see more techique books by Lily.

I was expecting this to be a book for knitters with experience and have more tips and tricks. For anyone who is not a novice knitter too much time was spent on the basics: yarns, needles, etc. There were some good tips - just not enough of them. Is she saving them for her classes or another book?
Also, page numbers are tiny and buried in little flower designs - cute, but really hard to read. This is supposed to be a practical book and clever graphics should be last on the list of what's important.

I consider myself a very well read knitter. And my bookshelf will attest to that proclamation. There are many tips and tricks in this book that I have never seen written anywhere else. Some of them I already knew from personal experience, but many many more were new to me. I'm really glad Lily wrote this book. I think it is useful for knitters at a lot of different levels.

My first problem with this little book is probably really my own problem. A number of people said that the book would have been easier to use had it been bound differently. But I said to myself "how bad can it really be. It's a knitting book after all." Well, it's pretty bad. It WILL NOT STAY OPEN. I finally resorted to putting heavy rubber bands over each side of the book and then holding it with a special book holder that I have. THIS IS NOT CONVENIENT WHEN YOU ARE SITTING IN YOUR EASY CHAIR TRYING TO KNIT AND READ A TIP OR SET OF INSTRUCTIONS AT THE SAME TIME.

My second problem is also probably my own fault. I was hoping for some good ideas on fixing problems after the fact. If that is what you are looking for, this is not your book.

However, the book does have a number of useful tips and tricks (see title which says it all). I already knew about a good number of them but there were some new ones for me too. I'm sort of an intermediate type of knitter and am always looking for ways to improve my skills. I think I would have liked a different book better.

I read this in one sitting. It's very easy to understand and it gives fixes for many mistakes that I always thought I would have to rip out and re-do to correct, such as incorrectly crossed cables. There were a lot of "why didn't I think of that?" tips as well, such as going and getting one skein only of the yarn you'd like to use for a project, then using a grid to figure out how many of your swatches it would take to make a sweater the size you want and using that information to figure out how much yarn to buy. Thus, you are able to get what you need all at once in one dye lot. You don't run short and you don't end up with skeins you don't need that you can't return because they've been wound into balls.

While there was a lot of information in there I already knew, in almost every section, there was at least one method of doing something or resolving a problem that was new to me.

I normally check knitting books out at the library to determine if I want to buy them. I don't typically buy crafting books if I'm not going to use them repeatedly. Frankly, even if I never crack this book again as I've now read through the whole thing, I'm happy to have bought it as Chin deserves the royalties.

This book is great. I honestly have no books by Lily Chin. But when I purchased this book I was amazed. The book is down to earth, like Lily Chin herself and offers alot of short cuts and good advice. If you are a novice knitter or a long time veteran you will still be surprised by the great simple tips and tricks she offers using everyday items. This book is well worth the price and a must have item for any knitter. Its small and convenient and fits right in your knitting bag. I really like the idea of using clothes pins to hold down your cast on row when you are trying to join the first row on a circular needle. Not only is it helpful but its a really great read. Buy it. Believe me, you need it and you will enjoy it.

I've used several of the tips in this book already & I'm sure will use more of them. I was a little disappointed in the quality of the paper for the pages & the page numbers are hard to read. The directions & diagrams are clear & easy to understand. Overall a good addition to your knitting bag.

This is one of those books that is deceptively simple. Oh, yes, knitting tips and tricks, sure. Gee, look, she talks about casting-on, casting off, and the fan-favorite, right-leaning decreases....

(Yawn.)

Because, yes, you would be forgiven for thinking that everything in here has been done and said already, somewhere else. How many basic knitting references does one person need, anyway?

Except ... this is Lily Chin, a woman whose hobby apparently is to rethink everything about basic knitting. "Knitters do it this way, but what if they did this instead? Is there a better way? Faster? Different? Do we have to do this at all?"

I'll tell you, I have a nice collection of books of knitting techniques, suggestions, tips, advice, and guidance, but reading through this one, I still learned things I didn't know before, or had concepts presented to me that I hadn't expected.

Was every tip or explanation an unheard-of gem? Well, no. There's definitely some overlap between this and other books. And Lily Chin definitely has her own opinions about the way things should be done. It's possible you won't always agree with them. However, since she gives you her reasons for them, you can make an educated decision. "I don't like to do decreases that way, but I'll file that away for future reference."

The book is thorough. It covers a lot of material, from basic knowledge about yarn weights and terminology to the best buttonholes. Like I said, there are definitely techniques in here that I did not already know, and even if I had, visiting with Lily Chin's way of thinking for a while can only be beneficial. There's a reason she has a reputation of being a master, after all.