| Stitch London: 20 Kooky Ways to Knit the City and More |
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| Written by Barbara Rottman | |||
Title: Stitch London: 20 Kooky Ways to Knit the City and More 
Author: Lauren O’Farrell Date Published: 2011 Review Date: September 12, 2011
Who is this book for? Beginners, bombers, and toy knitters will all naturally love Lauren O’Farrell’s quirky and kooky book, Stitch London. Lauren writes in chatty London-ese that will force snickers, snorts and giggles from the most staid readers. As she says, “knitting should make you do one of two things: squee or swoon.” And what does that mean, you may ask? By Lauren’s definition, “swoony” knits are stitched to perfection from exotic fibers in technically challenging patterns. “When you hold up a finished swoony knit, people will go ‘ahhhhhh’ or oooooooo!’ They may pass out in the glorious radiance of your knit.” At the other end of the spectrum are squee knits, “sometimes made from cheap, squishy yarn in a garish shade you can’t help loving.” Squee knits use simple but cleverly placed stitches; the knitting makes the statement, not the yarn. “When you brandish a finished squee knit, people will go ‘squeeeeeeee!’; they will beam manically and try to steal it.” Stitch London is all about squee knitting. With a basic understanding of knitting and a sense of adventure, anyone can Stitch London. As Lauren says, “All you need is basic knitting knowledge, a willingness to switch on the part of your brain that has crazed ideas and let it run things for a while, and a total lack of yarn snobbery.”
Lauren O’Farrell is also founder of Stitch London , described on the website as a “London-based global knitting community anyone can join.” Stitch London teaches knitting, stages monthly stitch up meetings where knitters gather to knit and laugh, issues a regular newsletter with patterns and knitting challenges and is rumored to engage in knitting graffiti. With a motto, “Keep Calm and Carry Yarn,” Stitch London is devoted to humor and a sense of fun; members proudly proclaim that they “laugh ‘til it hurts.” Stitch London welcomes all comers and all crafts, too, aiming for world stitching domination, one stitch at a time. The book, Stitch London, introduces you to the energetic and slightly wacky group of London knitters. You know right now whether or not this is the book for you. For those with a sense of adventure, oh what a time you will have.
What Yarn Does it Feature?  If you can knit it, use it. According to Lauren, there is no such thing as the right yarn. Stitch London even has a wonderful picnic blanket made with “yarn” reconstituted from those ubiquitous plastic bags. Plastic bag bugs and butterflies are knit to decorate garden patches or hang in swarms from city trees. Speaking as someone who once dulled several rotary cutting blades in cutting yarn from metallic embroidered tulle, I am ready for the picnic mat. If you’d rather use commercial yarn, then anything goes.
What's Inside Lauren O’Farrell writes for knitters who love to knit so much that they feel they may implode, who want to put a stitching stamp on everything in sight, and surviving as a knitter in one of the world’s largest cities. She sees everything in London knitwise and has developed knitting patterns for every London landmark from the Tower of London to telephone box. Critters and people populate the pages, too. There’s a Tube Mouse, Cooey the Pigeon, and Grog the Raven. Queen Liz, the Queen’s Guard and London Police are there for the knitting. On the practical side, there are patterns for laptop socks, a colorful Tubeline Scarf, commuter book cosys, and mug huggers. With a nod to the rainy London climate, there’s a collection of umbrella fellas, small fetishes to beautify your “brolly”. Each pattern starts with humorous introduction that will hook you into wanting to knit it.
Using It
Best Pattern (or Best Advice) Just in case you hesitate to knit one of the projects, Coeey the Pigeon challenges readers to Knit the Pigeon. A complete kit is provided, so there are no excuses for not giving it a try. Post a picture of your Cooey at www.knitthepigeon.com. And always remember: Keep Calm and Carry Yarn.
Recommendation Stitch London presents a refreshing, barrier-breaking approach to knitting using an irreverent, lighthearted, and laugh-soaked style. What’s not to like in that? Overall Recommendation I rate this book #9.
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Lauren O’Farrell writes in a knitting argot that I’ll wager even Londoners need a guide to understand. While she wisely uses standard knitting abbreviations, everything else in the book is written in hipster London lingo. While most of the patterns are written for tourists (beginners needing a lot of direction), the whole point of Stitch London is for knitters to knit their own versions of the patterns. Several projects include hints on altering the design for a new or different look, like turning plastic bugs into birds. Gauge is seldom important, unless the knitting is expected to fit a mug, book or bag. Does it really matter how large (or small) Fleabag the Fox turns out? Every project requires gubbins (stuff and things), an all-inclusive term used to list the yarn, needles and other tools needed for the project. The book is designed to be savored and can be read however you like. You can read this book front to back “like an industrious city worker” or buzz from pattern to pattern “alighting on patterns you take a fancy to in the style of a Hyde Park bumble bee” or randomly select patterns like “an after-hours West End night clubber.”
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