Customer Reviews

Viking Patterns for Knitting: Inspiration and Projects for Today's Knitter

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I love this book, and have made several projects using the patterns. But it is not a book for every knitter, and certainly not for the new or casual knitter. For one thing, much of the book is taken up with archaeological discussion -- interesting, but those who buy the book just for the patterns may not feel they're getting their money's worth. Second, you really have to learn new skills to use it. I am a very experienced knitter, and can use both charts and traditionally-written directions, but it took me a while to grasp this new system (I wrote the code for the charts onto the page of each chart I used, and that helped). And, third, the sweaters themselves are not adaptable, simple, sized for everyone, or even necessarily suited for daily wear. All are very special, unusual designs -- the ball gowns of the sweater world -- and friends will say "Oh, you're wearing your Viking sweater!" every time you do.
That said, let me also say that I submerged myself in Viking knitting for months after buying this book. The stitch patterns are like Aran cables, but they do not go from the top to the bottom in the usual way. Lavold has figured out how to get cables to twine all over the place -- even into medallion-ish closed shapes. I practiced the techniques and designs on slippers and hats and other small projects before attempting a sweater, and found them very usable for alll kinds of projects. If you knit enough to adapt patterns, you will find that the Viking designs will add interest to many other projects and patterns. And if you are a medium-sized person with dramatic tastes, you will love the sweaters, too.
There are more than 14 projects altogether, including a cushion and afghan, one child's sweater, some coats, unisex and women's sweaters, and a number of smaller things like hats, socks, and mittens. All are beautiful and unusual.

Viking Patterns for Knitting is a beautiful, inspiring book that should engage both hand-knitters and other artisans interested in Viking design work. The sweaters Lavold has designed are, for the most part, glorious -- attractive and challenging even for an accomplished knitter -- and she shares the artifacts that inspired her designs. She also gives charts for variations on the different cabling patterns to lead the reader to design her own sweaters or to amend Lavold's.

Unfortunately, the book often gives away the fact that it's the first translation from Lavold's native Swedish. The text could definitely have used a more detail-oriented editor both for the descriptions or the projects and the background on the Viking designs as well as for the directions for the sweaters -- in my first perusal, I found one mistake in a pattern.

If you're interested in knitting cabled works of art, this book will appeal to you immediately -- I can't wait to get started on several of the sweaters -- but be prepared to spend some time deciphering the directions. The pattern directions are terse and often require a lot of interpretation by the knitter, which may mean that this book is intended for someone with advanced skills. That said, the ambitious new knitter shouldn't be turned off, as long as she's game for some trial and error as she figures out how to make all of the cable charts work together.

I heartily recommend this impressive book.

In "Viking Patterns for Knitting", author Elsebeth Lavold presents 54 unique cable patterns she created based on extensive research into Viking ornamentation. While the Viking were not knitters, the patterns the Vikings created in metal bear a strong resemblance to Aran patterns and other cabling patterns. Lavold has chosen patterns that could be adapted for knitting, and has devised several techniques to enable smooth transitions between cabled and non-cabled areas.

Many of the Viking patterns are incorporated into 14 sweaters, primarily for women. Directions are presented in standard knitting notation, with charts for all patterns. Photos of all sweaters are in color. Examples of Viking artifacts and cable patterns are in black and white.

The strength of this book is in the cable patterns themselves, providing a foundation for the designer to create unique textural pieces. The information on the cable patterns is interspersed with the sweater directions, without clear indications of where the directions end and the history and patterns start. A good index of the patterns and a solid table of contents help minimize the confusion.

Eslebeth Lavold has done extensive research on Viking designs and it shows in this book. The patterns in the book look much more complicated than they really are. Her technique for increasing and decreasing for cabled designs are simple and give excellent results. I condsider myself to be an intermediate skilled knitter and found the patterns quick and easy to execute. I stronly recommend this book to any knitter looking to expand their skills, or to anyone you likes cabled designs. Some of the yarns used for the sweaters in the book may be hard to locate,but substitute yarns are readily available. Eslebeth Lavold's designs rival the work of Alice Starmore although they are much easier to knit.This book belongs in your knitting library.

I have knit for years and done tons of Aran knitting, but never could have dreamed up the knots Lavold shows in this book. The pictures, the history, the patterns in the book thrill me, and I look forward to learning how to make these impossible-looking designs come alive with yarn. Not only did I find the history compelling, but Lavold is a great designer. Watch how she runs bands of cables up the front of a cardigan, then they turn a corner at the shoulders and meet at the middle back of the neck to form a yoke. Incredible. I rarely knit from patterns and I have never seen a knitting book from which I actually intend to make so many designs. There are entire patterns -- heavy coats and pullovers of Lopi, a light blouse cardigan of Silketweed, hat and mitten set, pillow and afghan. It's mostly sweaters for women in different weights, but there are few other things for household, child, and men. There are also charts for pieces of cable and motifs so that you can create your own designs, as well as a rune alphabet in case you want to knit a message on your sweater in the stick-like figures; it would look just like a thicket of trees. The more I look through this book, the more I appreciate it. It's up their with Starmore's Aran Knitting for scholarship and design and beauty.

I can't help but echo much of what others have said-- the designs are gorgeous, Lavold's historical research is impressive and thorough, the directions are occasionally confusing and not for beginners-- but for an experienced cable knitter, this last is less of an issue than others have made it out to be.

True, these are challenging designs. Even Frode, probably the simplest sweater design in the book, requires the knitter to juggle three cable designs simultaneously (one with a 36-row repeat, two [mirroring each other] with a 32-row repeat). Yet the pattern directions for front and back don't even require armhole shaping, and the unadorned sleeves are the simplest I've seen. The sweater isn't "simplicity itself," as the pattern instructions claim, but the finished product is a comfortable and flattering weekend-ish sweater.

An important point that I think no one else has mentioned is that the more fitted sweaters (the ones that don't double as coats) tend to run small and would need to be adapted for XL+ sizing.

If you've done some cable knitting in the past, are accustomed to following charts, and are experienced enough to know that many knitting patterns require some commonsense adaptation, you'll find nothing to fear here. Well worth the money just for the dozens of cable patterns.

I thought this book would be another pretty book about knitting. Was I surprised! Not only has the author done her homework as far as researching her subject, she has supplied her readers with really unusual and usable cables with accompanying charts as well as a display of beautiful photography. Often, stitch pattern books give stitch by stitch, row by row directions where crucial mistakes can often be overlooked (I should know; I've written them before for magazines). Elsebeth Lavold gives an instant understanding of how and where the yarn is going through her clearly drawn graphs so you can knit her creations or design your own. All knitting patterns should be written in this way so we can throw out the others!

A Norwegian designer's teaching expertise led me to a decade-long career of designing knitwear and reviewing knitting books for how-to publications. Viking Patterns for Knitting reminds me of her well-grounded lessons in technique, spectacular designs in the very best yarns, and uncompromising taste and fit---all enhanced by the rich Scandinavian traditions of history and cosmopolitan style. This is the best knitting book published in the last five years, although not for rank beginners, as assumptions are made about basic knitting skills, pattern charts are too small, and technical information is relegated too far from individual patterns. However, these are small quibbles, considering the enormous amount of inspiration and information in this must-have book.

Oh my! What a gorgeous book. Elsebeth has really done her homework. The hardest part about owning this book is deciding which project to start next. I was in my local yarn store a few weeks ago and everyone who worked there was drooling over the designs. They're that special.

The author has come up with quite a nice way to increase stitches in the middle of the garment. If you're a less-experienced knitter I'd recommend you play with this a bit before trying it in an actual garment. It's not hard so don't be intimidated! I started out by making one cable into a pillow. She has a gorgeous cable the continues around corners and frames a pillow beautifully.

This book is as much a coffee table book and history book as it is a pattern book. Lavold details each new cable with explanations of its origin and what it meant as well as pics of it carved in stone and on antique pieces.

If you're new to knitting or have tons of experience this book is for you!

This is a lovely book containing patterns that consist of glorious textured panels and serpentine cables. While I fully endorse tackling complex projects, this is perhaps not the best book for someone who picked up knitting needles yesterday. I have made a couple of the sweaters, and found the directions easy to follow. In both instances, they came out fabulously. Take Lavold's (and most every other knitter on the planet) advice: knit a tension swatch! These sweaters can get all wacky if you aren't careful.