The Knitting Stitch Bible

Rating:
Summary: Great Resource Book
Review: I am not new to knitting but fairly new to designing myself. I have found this book a great resource for adding details to my sweaters and socks. Not having worked from a lot of graphs, I easily caught on the the concept and loved it. When I need an idea, this is the book I dig out.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing!
Review: I practically snatched this book off the shelf at the local bookstore, since I'm a true fan of Barbara Walker's treasuries but always looking to expand my horizons. I'm afraid it's a bit of a disappointment.

Color photos are nice, but getting creative with yarn colors for these pattern swatches was not always a great idea. Tweedy yarns as well as bright-colored yarns (e.g., many of the bobbles which are done in bright red) make it difficult to see the texture; and a large number of the lace patterns, some of them very poorly lit, are shown in light-colored yarn on a white background. I keep finding myself unconsciously tilting the book trying to get some shadows so I can see what the pattern actually looks like.

Another major problem is that some of the symbols in the charts are not listed in the "Chart Symbols" at the back of the book, and some are just wrong. There are at least two "mystery symbols" appearing in the charts. Several patterns which I know are using twisted (or crossed) stitches show cable symbols instead. ("Mock cable," pattern #23, shows cable symbols - how is it a mock cable if you're actually using a cable??)

As another reviewer noted, many of the patterns in the "Fair Isle" section are not actually Fair Isle. The selection of actual Fair Isle designs is rather scanty.

Last and probably least, I wish there were more commentary on the patterns such as Barbara Walker gives, regarding the qualities of the fabric, suggested needle sizes, applications, etc.

I give the book 2 stars only because there are several patterns in it which are new to me and I will probably use. (Unfortunately one of those patterns, #25 "Celtic vine," is one of the charts with mystery symbols, although I think I can figure it out in this case. A beginner definitely could not.)

Rating:
Summary: Not Exactly A Bible
Review: I was very impressed with the collection of stitch patterns in this book. As a advanced beginner knitter, I found much of them inspiring, particularly those displayed in the cable section.

I only wish it had diagrams or better explanations for a few of the chart symbols in the back. I had to reference a completely different book to understand how to do some of the stitches in patterns.

Rating:
Summary: Both useful and not useful
Review: Loving stitch pattern books, I bought this one sight unseen and while not thrilled, I am satisfied. The book is in color, always nice with stitch patterns books, and is well-organized and easy to use. It was nice to see sections on Fair Isle, Intarsia and Sequins & beads. Each section has it's own color "tabs," and there are thumb-nail photos of swatches of all the patterns at the beginning of the book, making it easy to browse. While I miss the discussion of the fabric the pattern produces (as in Barbara Walker's "Treasury" books), finding the type of yarn used in the photo swatches printed beneath them was a consolation. Note that all of the directions are charts (I know that is problem for some people, I've found that it just takes getting used to and has the benefit of giving you some idea of where you are going on the more complicated ones). So why don't I use it more? Probably just a matter of taste and undeveloped skill. I haven't found a pattern in it yet that inspired me to use it. Still, it's a welcome addition to my collection.

Rating:
Summary: Great design resource!
Review: This is not so much an instructional book as it is a design aid. I am kind of a novice but I can read knitting patterns and I like designing my own projects sometimes instead of just copying everything out of knitting books. If you are looking for a how-to-knit book this isn't it, but this is a great pictoral reference of many different stitches that can help a knitter design their own projects or test out newly acquired knitting skills in different patterns. I enjoyed the setup of the patterns, although it is unorthodox, and I thought the setup of the book itself was great. I cant wait to learn all of these interesting stitches, particularly the cool Victorian looking lace patterns!