 Faux Taxidermy Knits by Louise Walker, photography by F&W Media International, pub. David & Charles, 2014. Louise Walker is most famous for her taxidermy-look knitting and knitted wigs. I can't find any of her wigs written up in pattern form, but 15 of her wild animal knit designs are collected in this book. I'm going to diverge from my usual review method to talk about the photos first. The F&W Media team did an extraordinary job creating and photographing sets for this book. Louise does her own modeling when required, and hits just the right note, from vintage heiress to explorer-who-has-just-encountered-a-bear. The designs are uniformly cute, but everything comes in only one size. Most of the patterns involve quite a bit of sewing and liberal use of felt pieces for facial features. I don't mind the safety eyes so much as they lend a more realistic look to the pieces, but felt looks cheap to me. I prefer the look of yarn, even if a thinner weight yarn would have to be used to achieve the desired effect. The patterns are presented in a tiny but readable font. Huge charts are given to achieve the random patterns in the tiger stripes and crocodile skin. The "Materials" lists are thorough and might include unusual items such as pliers, florist's wire, or a pair of tights.
 The rabbit's foot calls for two yarns, but no directions are given as to when to use which. I assume they're both supposed to be used at the same time, but I can't find where in the book it says this. Since this is recommended as a good pattern to start with, the instructions should be especially clear. The hedgehog slippers look comfy, but I question the wisdom of chenille soles (not the most hard-wearing yarn). Also, the appealing texture of the hedgehog's back is made up of individually sewn picots. Yes. Every spike is hand-sewn. The bear coasters are adorable, but setting a glass or mug on a lump of knitting seems like a recipe for disaster. But they're very compelling, and Louise's tip to stuff each paw may help. There are some undefined abbreviations (p3c, k14b, etc.). I guess the letters refer to the color of the yarn, but I couldn't find where it specifies this and the colors are listed with capital letters, so it's a little confusing. The book contains some fetching designs. It provides an opportunity for adults to continue a stuffed animal fetish with relative dignity. (Hedgehog slippers are more dignified than bunny slippers, aren't they?) And no animals were harmed in its making. My issues with the instructions notwithstanding, Louise's humor and artistry shine throughout.  Disclosure: Kangath reviewed this book from her personal library. No compensation was provided for this review. The opinions expressed in all Kangath's reviews are her own.
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 opera house shell by suvi simola Knitting Architecture by Tanis Gray, photography by Joe Hancock, pub. Interweave, 2013. This curated volume is a pattern book with "Get Inspired" sidebars accompanying each design. The sidebars include photographs and brief paragraphs describing the work of architecture evoked by that design. A lovely idea, I found myself wishing for more detail in the sidebars. It's impossible for me to knit all the patterns included in knitting books, but I learn from the information in them. Often this is technique-related learning, but sometimes it is tangential to knitting. This book had the potential to teach me about a new field, but merely gave me teasers. Not even appetizers---just their aroma. (Sadly, I don't know an appropriate architectural metaphor.)  sagrada familia cardigan by cirilia rose That said, the patterns really are beautiful. The first chapter, "Form Follows Function," includes both the stunning cover pattern (inspired by the Sydney Opera House) and my favorite pullover in the collection (inspired by the ceiling of King's College Chapel). Tanis says, "Similar to how structures need push and pull to help them move with the elements, we need our knitwear to be able to move with the push and pull of our bodies." This chapter also contains a tote, a pair of socks, the cardigan shown at right, and a really cool hat. I chose to picture the Gothic/Art Nouveau cardigan with all its bells and whistles (bobbles! dropped stitches!), but the hat is a real triumph. Designer Katharina Nopp describes her Fallingwater Hat as an attempt to realize "a sophisticated architectural and urban knit in a most simple, naive way." Inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright's famous Fallingwater, it perfectly portrays the alternating flat roofs and even the flowing water of the mountain retreat.
 bauhaus cardigan by ann weaver The garments in this book are all for women (although the socks, mittens, and Pompidou Wrap could work for men). They are generously sized (from around 30" to 60"), and although the hat is offered in three sizes, both mitten patterns and the shrug come only in a single size. I realize colorwork and textural patterning can make sizing difficult, and that not everyone needs to be able to wear every piece. (Also that a mitten doesn't need to fit like a glove. For that matter, neither does a shrug!) But I think in most cases a little thought can accommodate an extra size or two without too much added pattern length. This is a good book if you like the designs. Take the snippets of architectural inspiration as prompts to discover more on your own, and you have a valuable resource. Disclosure: Kangath reviewed this book from her personal library. No compensation was provided for this review. The opinions expressed in all Kangath's reviews are her own.   Swatching in the round on size 17 needles did indeed yield a fabric that was "just right."
I may go down a needle size or two for the collar, saddles, and cuffs. They will be knit sideways and simultaneously connected to live stitches via k2togs. Using smaller needles will allow these edgings more room to "breathe" between rows. The edging is garter stitch on either side of a twisted slipped stitch. Sideways garter stitch is as stretchy as ribbing, so I won't need to add shaping with decreases even though the collar is fairly wide.  I have a new design in the works: Barn Door Pullover. This saddle-shoulder sweater will feature the large X seen on many barn doors emblazoned on its front in traveling rib. The saddles, cuffs, and collar are a combination of seed stitch and twisted rib. After much deliberation, I chose Malabrigo Mecha for this design. It's a little weightier than I originally conceived for Barn Door, but it meets my requirements of color (Malabrigo rocks!) and responsibility (I try to feature fair-trade and/or organic yarns in my designs).  For color choice, I narrowed it down to Archangel or Volcan. Archangel is a medley of eggplant and roasted carrot with all the intermediary shades plus occasional pale glimmers of cream and celery. Volcan is a melange of browns---chocolate, chestnut, caramel, and ginger. While both are beautiful, I've been longing to work with Archangel for a long time, so that's what I chose. Then came the choice of needle size. I decided to start with the needles I already owned: US sizes 9, 10 1/2, and 13 (5.5, 6.5, and 9 mm). Although lovely, none achieved the result I was after. I had been warned that Mecha was not as thick as many chunky yarns, and this proved true. So I doubled the yarn to see what would happen. Instantly the dimensionality improved. I bought some new needles and tried the motif in US sizes 15, 17, and 19 (10, 12, and 15 mm). As you can see, the smallest needles yield a rather firm result and the largest swatch is too loose. The middle size, while not quite Goldilocks-perfect, has potential.
Since this yarn is hard to match from skein to skein even within the same dye lot, I will be knitting in the round. My gauge tends to be a little tighter in the round, so I imagine the middle swatch, which seems a tiny bit loose to me, will be just right in the final version. The next step is to knit a swatch in the round with the middle size needles. I say middle size, but for someone used to working with US sizes 000 - 2, these suckers are huge.
I get the feeling that once these preliminaries are sorted out, the sweater will fly off my needles! |
Hi! I'm Kangath---knit designer, musician, writer, and mother 
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