One Ball Knits Purses: 20 Stylish Handbags Made with a Single Ball, Skein, Hank, Or Spool [Paperback]

Khadija Fatema (Author), Hajera Habibur-Rahman (Author)

Book Description

Release date: March 31, 2009

A sensational-looking purse is a woman’s most essential fashion accessory. This new One Ball Knits book features twenty different designer-caliber handbag designs–each created from a single ball of yarn.

The book’s "Basics" section covers all the essentials, and each project includes complete knitting and assembly instructions that even beginning knitters will find easy to follow. Comprehensive materials lists specify every component–from yarn to hardware–that each purse requires.

The projects are organized by season: five each for spring, summer, fall, and winter. From the comfortably casual to the sleekly chic, you’ll find designs that complement all of your personal styles. And no one will ever guess just how simple and fun these purses are to make.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

FATEMA, KHADIJA, and HAJERA HABIBUR-RAHMAN design patterns for many yarn companies and knitting publications. The sisters live in southwestern Ohio.

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Potter Craft; 1 edition (March 31, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0823033236
• ISBN-13: 978-0823033232
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 0.4 x 9.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,072,083 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 22 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Beautiful Designer HandBags with only 1 Ball May 15, 2009

By Ltltyke

Format:Paperback

One Ball Knits Purses came as quite a surprise. There are a wide variety of bags that can be knit up with just one ball. I was extremely impressed with the layout of the book - Basic section, Techniques as well as the section on wonderfully made and constructed purses, satchels, totes, clutches, duffles, shoulder bags and much more. These authors have beautifully designed each bag including many types and tastes for basically all knitters. There are a total of 20 handbags divided by season--Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter. I can find a bag I like in each season but I especially adore the Cabled Satchel in particular.

The photography of the book is very precise. There are no blurry pictures, each stitch and construction is clearly depicted in the photos. I like the fact that some of these bags have hardware included to give the bag a professional appeal.

Furthermore, I was surprised to find that the handbags in this book are NOT small to no degree. All the bags come in a variety of sizes, from large cabled satchels to keep my books, to medium totes for easy access on my next knitting project, and of course the cute mini clutches to keep my essentials. There are a variety of yarns used, with projects for all levels of expertise. I was thrilled to see that there were less expensive yarns used, as well, that I can easily find at my local craft store.

Lastly, I noticed that there were both graphic illustrations to make things easier for me when knitting. Lots of assembly schematics and accompanying charts. Contrasting stitches are used to give an overall appeal to each handbag. This books is definitely filled with goodies and it has become a worthwhile purchase. I am more than pleased with this book and (unashamedly) going to keep this one for myself.

It is quite amazing how so much can be accomplished with only one ball of yarn. Bravo!

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing in it's variety July 18, 2009

By Nomadic Pixel

Format:Paperback

This book has been sitting on my shelf for the past month. When I first bought it (I'm something of a knitting book fiend), I was overwhelmed by the sheer beauty of the purse designs. I figured I'd put it away and come back to it when I have a bit more time to sit down and figure out what I wanted to do first. Well, now I have a special someone's birthday to plan for, and I thought I'd just flip through the book and pick a pattern. The sheer variety of purses to choose from is still dazzling, and I guess I'm just going to have to flip the proverbial coin. I know I can't go wrong. I am really psyched about trying these purses.

Reading through the patterns, I realized there are some knitting concepts that I've either forgotten or never learned. How relieved was I to see the section up-front that describes many of those important concepts (like felting, for example)?! Bonus points for the fact that some light and easy sewing is involved in the construction of these items, enabling them to maintain their shapes and be long-lasting items of joy.

Additionally, like another reviewer commented, I wish that there was a variety of yarn stores in my area so that I could easily obtain most of these stunningly gorgeous yarns featured in this book. Fortunately, the book does have a list of suppliers you can contact for mail-order delivery. To top that off, in case that's an untimely option, the patterns specify the weight of the amount of yarn needed, so if I need to substitute the yarn with something more accessible, then it's fairly easy to calculate how much of the substituted yarn I need to buy.

Given the variety of patterns to choose from, the well-written instructions, and the superb illustrations and charts, this book is amazing value for money. In this economy, you couldn't ask for more.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars One Ball Knits Purses October 23, 2011

By CK

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I'm glad that I got this book. I checked out a library copy initially and thought it was worth buying. There are quite a few patterns that I'd actually make.