The Knitter's Handy Book of Patterns: Basic Designs in Multiple Sizes & Gauges (Interweave) (Spiral-bound)

The patterns include mittens, gloves, scarves and hats to vests, pullovers and cardigans. They can be knit in yarns ranging from the lightest fingering and baby weight to chunky and bulky. Each pattern has a table, on which the vertical axis shows gauge and the horizontal the size. So it is a simple matter to take a yarn in your stash and use it for any of these patterns. (And that's good for reducing the huge pile of yarn collected over the years you may be hiding in the trunk of the car or the unused fridge in the basement.) There are also helpful technical tip sections on adding embellishments like colorwork, texture or edgings, and nice drawings of the techniques used. And there is a glossary of techniques and terms used.

This is a "handy" book, but you would still need some kind of sweater design book that gives a schematic for raglan and yoke style sweater designs. These are NOT included in this book. I believe that may have been a tough choice for the author and project editor in order to hold the size of the book down, or to complete the book on time (which, considering the variations of patterns, gauges and sizes must have been intense.) I wish both the yoke and raglan sweaters were here or at least a schematic of the famous "EZ Percentage System" which was devised to knit yoke and raglans in any gauge and size. However, this book is otherwise so useful that this deficiency, though regrettable, is not a showstopper--many basic books for knitters have these schematics. You probably have one on your bookshelf, as I do.

What I also admire about "Handy Patterns" is the choice of binding. This is take-along sized, spiral-bound (lies FLAT!!!) with perfect-bound boards (shiny paper cover, no dust jacket.) The inside back has a pocket for notes and an elastic band for holding the book shut if you put a lot of other loose notations inside. (Good if you attend knitting classes on specialized techniques.)

In summary, this is a really useful book, but should be supplemented by other books in a knitter's essential library such as books of color patterns, edgings and embellishments and books on sweater design. I'd rate it somewhat better for small projects (hats, gloves, mittens) than for large projects, but overall, this is a must-have in my library.

In the introduction to the book, the author voices the exact same feelings, there is a need for just plain patterns. They are needed by beginners, fans of novelty yarns and for gifts when the recipient is conservative. For the most part, this book delivers.

It should be noted that other books have been written on multi-sizes/gauges for sweaters but this is the first book I have seen that is also dedicated to hats, scarves, gloves, mittens and socks. I particularly liked the basic tam pattern (something I searched high and low for as a beginner) There is a breakdown of how different decreasing methods will change the look of the tam and various ways to make the hatband. This is just one example of how useful this book is.

Now for the not so good bits. The sweater section is skimpier than I had hoped. There is only one sleeve option (set-in, I believe) and the sweater does not offer many shaping options. However, it is a marvelous canvas for color or cables though I do not suggest this tweaking for an absolute beginner. Be sure to read through the author's suggestions before undertaking a color/cable project.

(A quick suggestion to a beginner: read the charts very carefully and follow the authors advise to copy the page you are using and circle the numbers you will need, it makes life so much easier when knitting from number charts)

This is a great book for a beginner and great for a knitter with a large stash of "leftovers". (ahem, not me, honest) Armed with this book, I now plan to make matching hats, mittens and socks for my sweaters. This book is almost essential and I would recommend it to any knitter of any skill level.