Customer Reviews

Vogue Knitting: The Ultimate Knitting Book

5 star:		(116)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(9)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

While this is the definitive reference book for everything about knitting, I think you could actually teach yourself from this book. The illustrations and diagrams are virtually self-explanatory. When I taught myself to knit, I used Debbie Bliss' "How to Knit," but also relied on this as a supplement. While Bliss' book is extremely helpful, I found Vogue's illustrations and descriptions to be a little more precise. For example, I had been confused about how to bind off, until I referred to this book. In that case, Vogue's diagram was more clear, and I proceeded with confidence.

The layout of this book is amazing, as well. The Editors seem to instinctively place all the information you need at your fingertips. Cross references on each page and color-coding of each chapter help you flip instantly to what you need to know.

This is not just another bland reference book. There is a lot of inspiration to be found here, in addition to unparalleled advice, and the last word on any technique you can imagine. One of the best features of this book is the design workshop at the back. Nowhere have I seen a simpler, more straightforward "how-to" for design. I never imagined designing until I saw their simple chart, diagrams, calculations, and advice on the subject. Debbie Bliss' "How to Knit" has a design workshop, but it is more of an introduction/afterthought and doesn't really get you there as Vogue does.

I love this book! I started knitting about a year ago, and essentially taught myself to knit using it. It is very comprehensive, from the most basic techniques to the most advanced. It has color photographs, excellent how-to diagrams, and a number of projects as well. It is a reference book that I know I will treasure for many years.It has a wealth of information, and I can't imagine myself outgrowing it. It is well worth the price.

This is a great knitting reference because it has most techniques, from circular knitting on double point or circular needles, to fair isle color, to mosaic knitting (colorwork on garter stitch--very pretty textural color.) There is attention to measurements, style, how to do your own garments.

The pictures are large and lavish--Vogue has great photographers and artists contributing to this book. It's attractive, and encylopedic. If you are new to knitting or want to advance your skill, this is really a great reference book.

this book is visually striking, with excellent photos and illustrations. content is quite comprehensive and i value the book for that alone, despite the frustration i experienced with charting typos and the difficulty of finding information.

BEWARE: there are a lot of typos in the stitch dictionary !

the indexing is poor: instead of one master index at the back of the book, there are "mini-indices" at the bottom of many pages. this is an interesting and potentially useful technique, but not a substitute for a good master index. likewise, the table of contents is anemic, supplying only the chapter titles. you have to go to the chapter in question to find a listing of the topics covered there. finally, the organization is rather odd, something i might not have noticed so much had the indexing or table of contents been better.

this is a reference for people who already have an idea of what they're doing, not really an instruction manual. for better charted patterns and stitch dictionaries, try one of barbara walker's books. begining knitters might have more positive experiences with other books.

After kissing several toads I finally found the prince! This book contains everything you need to know about knitting that even a beginner can understand and follow. The illustrations are wonderful and complement the instructions beautifully. The layout is very organized and follows a logical order in the knitting scheme of things. The most important thing is that it is not so longwinded that you get bored after the first ten pages! All subjects are covered in a straightforward and succinct manner. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves to knit or who is thinking about getting started. My mother-in-law comes from Norway and has been knitting since she could hold the needles. I told her she needed a copy of this book!

I decided to take up knitting, and wanted a good basic book that would answer my questions and get me started, and is this ever it! It builds upon itself, so I never felt overwhelmed by all the information it provides. It describes the supplies needed, the basic steps needed to get started, how to read the knitting instructions, how to correct errors like a dropped stitch, and goes on to describe more difficult techniques and how to design and finish your own projects. It has great photographs and drawings throughout that clearly illustrate the directions. I got some inexpensive yarn and sat down and worked my way through the instructions, and by the time I got through the chapter about fixing mistakes, I was ready to start buying easy knitting patterns. I am always referring back to my book now while I am knitting things. I thought this book was rather expensive at first, but now I realize it's priceless!

If you can only afford to get one knitting reference manual, let this be it! Of course, it's a good idea to have at least two manuals on the subject, however, be sure that this is one of them.

Vogue's Ultimate Knitting book is my third reference book and I wish I had come across it sooner. The diagrams and illustrations are very clear and concise, showing exactly where to put the needles and where the yarn strand goes.

It shows not just two or three ways to bind off, but several. Also, several different ways to cast-on, decrease, increase and the English and Continental method of holding the needles. As well as a left-hand way.

When I gain more courage, I hope to try the designing section. The way everything is spelled out takes away some of the fear of attempting to design your own sweater. At the back of the book there are two pages of graph paper that you can copy and use for designing or just to map out a particular tricky pattern. Helped me immensly when I was plotting out decreases on a cable pattern, helped me to see exactly what it would look like.

Also, if you are looking at a particular page and you come across a term you're not familiar with, such as "yarn-overs", at the bottom of that page the term "yarn-over" and the page number on where it can be found is right there. No more going constantly to the back of the book to look up page numbers. I found that a time-saver.

This book is just chock-full of useful information that you will surely use again and again. Buy it and happy knitting!

I just recently received a copy of the 1989 release of this book as a gift from my Mom. It is really great! I contacted Vogue Knitting, and I found out that there were no changes from the 1989 version to the re-release in 2002 (which is this one that is listed). I have been knitting for 22+ years, and I have already learned some INCREDIBLE tips in just my one browse through the book. For instance, I saw the cast on edges for a sweater pattern that were done to look like a machine knit edge (very nice finish), but I couldn't find instructions on how to do it anywhere. To my delight, I opened up this book and found the instructions on how to cast on in several ways to get that effect! The instructions are very easy to follow, with great illustrations, and they really explain everything from history of knitting to the details of yarns and how they react due to their makeup. Being a very frugal person, I can honestly say that this book is worth the money, even if you pay the cover price!

Vogue Knitting: The Ultimate Knitting Book is definitely an important reference for the beginning to intermediate knitter to have on hand, but tread carefully into the more advanced areas of the book, such as the section on designing your own sweater. I'm currently knitting a sweater of my own creation and have been using the designing section for determining the increases and decreases throughout my project. I find the instructions very confusing and somewhat lacking whereas better clarification is needed to determine the appropriate increases and decreases; try reading the instructions for determining the increases and decreases when you really need it, and you too, will be confused. Making things a bit more complicated, are the couple of typos in the designing section, and when you design your own, every calculation is important to get right. In the end, when things just get a bit too confusing, I just end-up relying on my knitting experience to get the portion of the sweater I'm working on to work out fine.

Aside from the questionable designing section, the rest of the book (most of it) has much to offer those new to knitting, especially with clear graphics and lots (hundreds?) of color photos to instruct and encourage creativity. Some of the questions it answers are: What is blocking and how do I do it? What do the international care symbols found on yarn labels mean? What do knitting abreviations mean? Why make a swatch for stitch gauge? What are some of the different methods of knitting? How do I add color? What are some stitch patterns? How do I correct dropped stitches? How is a buttonhole made? How do I cast on and bind off?

The book only very briefly covers novelty yarns which are so popular right now, and so it doesn't really get into how to incorporate them and mix them with other yarns into a project.

Here's an overview of the table of contents:
History of Knitting
Knitting Supplies: Yarns and Tools
Basic Techniques
Understanding Knitting Instructions
Correcting Errors
Circular and Double-Pointed Knitting
Color Knitting
Blocking, Assembling and Finishing
Care of Knitwear
Stitch Dictionary
Designing
Embellishments
Modular Knitting Patterns
Traditional Knitting Patterns
Index

The Modular Knitting section takes a basic sweater pattern and gives the knitter the opportunity to swap out different styles of collar, sleeves and overall looks.

Traditional Knitting Patterns section is simply a collection of six beautiful and seemingly timeless patterns that many long-time readers of Vogue Knitting Magazine will recognize from past issues, some designed by Oscar de la Renta, DKNY, and Isaac Mizrahi.

I can't say that it is a "must have" book for every knitter's library, but it is definitely worth having.

I started knitting about six months ago with a simple scarf, working my way up to circular knitting hats and mittens. This book has provided clear explanations for each one of my projects, including the cable knitting project I have just started. It also has a whole section in the back that shows you how to develop your own patterns. Very cool. Great for any knitter-beginner to advanced.