YarnPlay: Colorful Techniques and Projects for the Creative Knitter [Paperback]

Lisa Shobhana Mason (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 15, 2006

MIX YARNS, COLORS AND TEXTURES TO CREATE BOLD AND BRIGHT HANDKNITS

Why spend hours knitting a boring one-shade sweater? Pile on the color and discover the joys of knitting with multiple hues in unexpected combinations. Choose from over 20 projects, including home décor items, hats, scarves, sweaters, vests and more.

Get ready to dive into a world of color.

Inside YarnPlay you'll find:

• a basic guide to yarn, needles and knitting notions
• a guide to ''playing with color'' that shows you how to choose colors by drawing inspiration from everyday items like quilts, photos and magazines
• a wide variety of projects, both big and small, from a graphic afghan to armwarmers and washcloths
• stash-buster projects for using up all those odds and ends of yarn
• a helpful section filled with useful reference information such as a glossary of knitting terms, a knitting abbreviations key, a knitting needle conversion chart and a list of inspirational knitting books, magazines and websites

Can't you feel your knitting needles itching to get started? Pick up this book, then dig through your stash or visit your local yarn store and get started today.

Playing with yarn and color adds a whole new dimension to your handknits. Each of these patterns features multiple colors used in unexpected ways to create beautiful effects. Whether you like monochromatic shades or lots and lots of stripes or two bold tones side by side, you're bound to find pieces you'll love to knit for your home, yourself, or for a special friend, baby or family member. You'll also get a handy guide to yarn, tools and notions as well as tips for playing with color, a glossary of knitting terms, a knitting abbreviations key, a knitting needle conversion chart and a list of inspirational resources.

Editorial Reviews

Review

...her designs are stylish and charming, but her intuition really sings in her sweater designs -- they are artistic yet wearable. -- Knitty.com, Winter 2006

...it blends the right amount of basics with the tools to help any knitter create projects that are truly her own. -- Bust magazine, Oct/Nov 2006

About the Author

Lisa Shobhana Mason is an astrologer and avid knitter who teaches at yarn stores in the Austin area and runs the popular knitting blog My Life in Stitches. She lives in Austin, Texas.

Product Details

• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: North Light Books; First Edition edition (September 15, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1581808410
• ISBN-13: 978-1581808414
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 0.5 x 10.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,065,700 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Lisa Shobhana Mason is a designer, instructor, intuitive, and astrologer. She is the author of Yarnplay: Colorful Techniques + Projects For The Creative Knitter and Yarnplay At Home: Handknits For Colorful Living. She designed the Big Bad Baby Blanket in Deb Stoller's bestselling book 'Stitch N Bitch' and her designs appear in Vickie Howell's 'Not Another Teen Knitting Book.' She has been a guest on D.I.Y. network's Knitty Gritty. She has written horoscope columns for style. com and the websites for Vogue UK, Vogue Australia, and Vogue Espana, as well as several magazines.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

43 of 44 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars get this book September 14, 2006

By M. Rice

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

if you love knitting anything at all (sweaters, blankets, home decor, baby items, fingerless gloves) then you must get this book. lisa does an incredible job with color and design. just looking through this once i already knew there were several projects i planned to complete.

the layout of this book is really done well. everything is accessible and easy to read and understand. there are projects in here for all levels of knitters which makes it even more appealing. try an easy one and increase your skills and you'll want to tackle another one.

if you love color and appreciate fashion forward yet classic designs then this is the book for you.

43 of 45 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Such Great Color! September 27, 2006

By W. J. Bernard

Format:Paperback

The thing I like best about this book is how the author uses color. People like me stick to the monochromatic, but her designs, as simple as they are, just sing because of all the beautiful color choices she makes. I appreciate the fact that she designs using a lot of different and available yarns, too. This is a great book for beginning and experienced knitters, and I especially love the men's sweater in the book. This one is the only one I have ever come across that I'd actually attempt to knit for my husband. It's simply designed, just like most men like their sweaters, and it's not big and bulky.

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring! April 9, 2007

By L. Kelly VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback

I just picked up a copy of this book and find myself wanting to make almost every design in the book! The designs are simple, colorful, up-to-the minute, and one-of-a-kind. I love the way that the author mixes various yarns, colors, and textures in a single garment. Some designers do this with results which end up looking just plain tacky, but not this author! The cover sweater is one design I am fond of, but one I like even better is a striped sweater called "Everything but the Kitchen Sink." For this design, Ms. Mason recommends using "a minimum of 18 shades of yarn", and the gorgeous sample sweater is make with 35 different yarns. Ms. Mason presents lovely designs for hats, arm-warmers, sweaters, vests, and household items such as table runners and a bath mat.

Also, the book does a great job of presenting designs for a variety of skill levels. There are quite a few great designs requiring only the knit and purl stitch.

I highly recommend this book and will be looking for more books by Lisa Shobhana Mason!

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Yarnplay Is Just That January 28, 2007

By Karin Bole

Format:Paperback

I recently purchased this book and really like it. The premise of the book is to encourage knitters, beginner to experienced, to use their OWN creativity, to build on the ideas and patterns presented in the book. The designs are clean and fluid, and lend themselves to this. The smaller, simpler projects are perfect for beginners and as an experienced knitter, I felt the book respected my ability, while still giving me some fresh ideas.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars I came for the Poppy, I'm staying for everything. January 28, 2007

By A. Talbert

Format:Paperback

When I go to a book store to buy books, or at least look for books before ordering them online, I get a big stack and compare them all before I choose. I did this with Yarnplay and it won. I loved the looks of the cover sweater so much that I went right out and bought the exact yarn it was knit with. Then I got together with a friend to start a knit-along so we can all knit this fabulous sweater.

The best part about this book isn't that the cover sweater is so great though. The best part is that there are many other wonderful things inside to knit. Color and innovative design go well with the clear instructions.

21 of 22 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars not just another knitting book December 8, 2006

By E. Yow

Format:Paperback

With the glut of knitting books on the market, you've got to be careful about where you spend your money. I think that "Yarnplay" is one of the winners. It's definitely more creative than most of the other books available, and encourages you to "think outside the box" in your knitting, in more than one way. Color selection is one of these ways, and it's a big part of this book. Mason encourages you to wander outside of your established patterns, choose colors that you would never think about, and make them work for you. When you're out on a stash-enhacing trip, don't just think about the colors you've already got in your wardrobe and what would best match them, consider what might really stand out, to help you and your knitting stand out.

Another way that she does things differently is in garment construction, and several patterns in the book emphasize this. The Poppy and Lorelei sweaters are made by knitting a horizontal strip, seaming it, and then picking up stitches along one edge for the top part. Of course, that horizontal strip isn't just plain; she breaks it up with color or stitch variation. Poppy incorporates bits of the yarn used in the top of the sweater, as well as the occasional garter stitch rib. Lorelei adds a garter and eyelet motif. Edie is an asymetrical cardigan. Chelsea is a basic drop-shoulder sweater, but I love the big turtleneck, the extra arm length is great for those chilly mornings when pulling your sleeves down over your hands is easier than finding mittens or gloves, and the body is knit in reverse stockinette, giving it an interesting texture. I'm also mesmerized by the Everything But The Kitchen Sink sweater - what a great way to use up all of those scraps of yarn that you can't bear to throw out!...

If you feel like your knitting is stuck in a rut and you could use some inspiration to "kick it up a notch," or you just want to try something a little different, I think that "Yarnplay" is a great place to start. Read more ›