| Vogue Knitting Shawls & Wraps |
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| Written by Barbara Rottman | |||
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Author: The Editors of Vogue Knitting Date Published: November 2009 Review Date: March 8, 2010
Who is this book for? Based on the premise that shawls are the ultimate accessory, the editors at Vogue Knitting compiled some of their most popular shawls in a volume destined to become a classic. Inside Vogue Knitting Shawls & Wraps, is a range of styles to please any taste. There are designs for every season and every occasion, including a cashmere beach wrap! Each selection has that inimitable Vogue flair and good taste. Knitters from beginners to experienced will find inspiring projects. Discover the pleasures knitting shawls can bring. These simple garments are one size fits all: you could consider them a giant gauge swatch as there is no fitting, very little measuring and minimal finishing required. Make one for yourself or as a special gift, but once you knit one shawl, you’ll want to try more from this special collection.
What Yarns does it Feature? From exquisitely delicate lace shawls to big knit cozy wraps, you’ll find a style you like in this book. Fine lace weight yarn is used in intricate traditional patterns in the “Spider web and Diamond Lace Shawl.” “Diamond Motif” and “”Beaded Lace Shawl” add iridescent beads to accent knitted lace. Use space dyed yarn to dazzling effect in the “Squares and Stripes Lace Shawl” and “Wavy Edge Lace Shawl.” Not all shawls are gossamer lace. The “Leaf Lace Shawl”, knit at 6 ½ stitches to 4 inches, is impressively bold, especially in the longer full-body wrap length. The fast and snuggly “Oversized Wrap” and “Wide Rib Shrug” are simple enough for beginners. Consider one of the colorful shawls as a tool to hone your colorwork skills. The intarsia “Squares Shawl” and “Geometric Wrap” may seem daunting, but finishing is minimal and you’ll master the technique plus you’ll get a stupendous Kaffe Fassett-designed shawl for your trouble. There are other all-over pattern and stripe shawls to inspire kaleidoscopic variations. Whether you use up your stash or find the perfect color gradations for the “Cashmere Rainbow Shawl” and “Striped Wrap”, you’ll learn a lot about color. Glitzy metallic yarns, luxury fibers, beads and other special effects are used to create elegant wraps for evening wear. The simple “Tuck Stitch Wrap”, in metallic yarn, is a glistening river of ripples.
What’s Inside? Forty-three designs by renowned designers that appeared in past issues of Vogue Knitting are now available in one comprehensive book. The patterns use a variety of techniques that knitters can apply to their own design or other projects. Each shawl included in Shawls & Wraps adds novelty to the collection and builds your knitting skill. There are shawls that feature lace, cables, stripes, intarsia, duplicate stitch, Fair Isle, beads, and medallion knitting. Shawls don’t require form fit, so gauge is not as critical as it might be if you were knitting a cardigan. These one-size-fits-all garments make great gifts if you can bear to part with them.
Shawls can be knit in neutral, pastel, or splashy colors and will still complement almost any outfit, occasion or season. You’ll find shawls for everything from evening to hiking. The photographers even envisioned several shawl as a beach wear, photographing them at the shore. Some of the shawls are perfect for a cold winter’s evening before the fire, while others will lift the chill of summer air conditioning. There are shawls that will chase away autumn chill and wraps that could lead the Easter Parade. Timeless masterpieces, you can knit these shawls without concern for fleeting fashion. Yarns, however, do come and go from the market, and color preferences change over time. Wisely, the editors included suggestions for substituting yarns when the original is no longer available. Almost all the yarns are described in terms of standard weight and yardage. With this information, you can make your own substitutions.
Using It Vogue Knitting Shawls & Wraps is organized into four chapters, each with a long list of projects. The editors sorted the shawls into logical categories: lace, color, bulky, and fancy evening wear. Reminiscent of fabric store sewing pattern books, color-coded page borders separate the chapters, providing an easy visual reference for each section. Each chapter includes shawls knit in all wide range of yarns. For example, not all shawls in the lace chapter are knit in lace weight yarn. Browse through the chapters to see how using a different weight of yarn in the same shape (shawls and wraps) can create widely different results. Bulky yarns do not always have to be used in casual garments.
There’s a helpful appendix with standard techniques and abbreviations, stitch glossary and illustrations of basic techniques. Specific finishing instructions, stitch technique and pattern notes are included with each pattern. You’ll find everything you need to know without the need to flip back and forth to other chapters. If, for example, a shawls is finished with a knitted on lace border, those instructions are included with the pattern. Each pattern is graded according to expected skill level. There is a presumed level of knowledge in some skills such as dressing (wet blocking) a shawl, applying lace borders or working from charts. That said, every designer explains things a little differently. One advantage to this collection of patterns from many designers is that you can “consult” another designer. If you’re not sure how to knit on a sideways lace border, compare Meg Swansen’s, Maureen Egan Emlet’s and Karen Raz’s instructions for applied lace borders. Wearing a shawl with flair and style is a learned art, too. Flaunting a shawl is not the same as strutting into the office wrapped up in a campfire blanket. After you’ve painstakingly knit, stretched and blocked one of these beautiful wraps, you’ll want to show it off with confidence. Study the fashion photographs to see how the shawls are paired with other garments for a complete wardrobe. Ultimately, you may decide not to wear your cashmere rainbow over a bikini, but the fashion shots are otherwise fairly good suggestions of how to wear a shawl. The Vogue photographers have staged the shots to depict the shawls in their best and most fashionable light, not to illustrate intricate pattern detail.
Best Pattern (or Best Advice) Trisha Malcom, editor in chief of Vogue Knitting introduces this collection of shawls as “the best of the best.” She is not overstating her argument when she says that the shawl is the ultimate accessory. Among the uses for shawls, she extols the virtues of a cozy-wrap for “working in an office that is not always perfectly temperature-controlled.” I get that, but Trisha won my heart when she went on to say parenthetically that “In fact, we even have a box labeled ‘Office Shawls for Chilly People’!” Can you imagine that in your office? How much would we improve the world of work if a group of knitters got together to knit up and share shawls? Just imagining the positive environment where this could happen lifts my spirit.
Recommendation This book, with over 40 patterns of timeless shawls for all occasions, is an excellent resource for shawl knitters. All the designs are meet the exceptional Vogue standards for style and finish. Once you make one shawl, you’ll want to try more. I can’t think of a better resource than a collection with 43 choices. Overall Recommendation This book really is among the best of the best. I rate it #9.
You can purchase a copy of Vogue Knitting Shawls and Wraps from Yarnmarket.com.
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