Couture Knits
by Jean Moss
List Price:
Our Price: $12.35
You Save: $12.60 (51%)
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Category: Book
See more book details and other editions
Book Summary Information
Author: Jean MossEdition: Hardcover
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2007-03-01
ISBN: 1861084048
Number of pages: 144
Publisher: Guild of Master Craftsman
Book Reviews of Couture Knits
Book Review: Stunning Patterns but little raving about gauge...
Summary: 4 Stars
I love the designs in this book. They're highly individualized and stylish. The author has taken pains to attend to detail and I'm impressed with the results. The photography is lovely, directions are clear, and the models (especially the red head) are beautiful. This is an "eye candy" book of inspiration. The sizing ranges from 32 bust to 40, in most cases, and as is usually the case, there is nothing to accommodate a larger woman. That's too bad, too, because most of the women I know who have the style and confidence to wear these types of designer sweaters are older and larger women.
My only real "beef" with this book is that the gauge is always calculated over the pattern stitch and in several cases is calculated over a blocked pattern swatch. Huh...how tightly should I block the swatch? Should I pin out all the points or just the corners? Will I be able to block the finished garment to the same actual tension as I have the swatch? Should I steam my blocked swatch? Should I block when I'm in a stressed or relaxed mood? How will the blocking affect the stockinette portions of the garment? How exactly do you count stitches in a cabled or lace pattern when the stitch counts don't remain the same every row? Do I really want to spend so much time doing a patterned swatch and then having so much difficulty counting the stitches? Do you see my dilemma?
If an author is going to go to the time and expense to knit a prototype, doesn't it make sense to go right ahead and calculate the gauge over stockinette stitch or garter stitch with the same yarn, the same needles and the same knitter, so that readers can make yarn substitutions easily and use the pattern over and over for different sizes? I'm running into this same issue more and more often and I've learned to look at the dimensions given in the diagrams and calculate my own gauge with my own yarn from that. Funny, my old books and my mother's old Workbaskets always measure gauge over a simple stitch like stockinette or garter stitch. With all the designer yarns out there that come and go so quickly you would think a designer could make it easy to obtain an accurate gauge with a minimum amount of trouble by just taking one more small step.
I suppose that with the word "couture" in the title I should have expected this. Never mind, it's gorgeous book anyway and I don't feel that I've wasted my money. I'll start with the first sweater using the Old Shale pattern, since I've knit that one for years, and work my way through. Despite my ravings about gauge, I'm quite excited about these projects and I'm looking forward to the results.
Summary of Couture Knits
As one of Britain's foremost knitwear designers, Jean Moss has been creating her own collections for 25 years, as well as designing for Rowan yarns and many international fashion houses. Here, she brings together an exclusive selection of 24 of her classic couture designs, and demystifies the techniques needed to knit beautiful pieces. She provides simple but effective secrets for everything from casting on to simple finishing techniques, and shows how anyone can achieve a professional-looking garment with only a basic understanding of how to knit and purl. Whether you are a beginner looking for easy-to-handle but elegant patterns, or a more experienced knitter who wants to make something chic and glamorous, you'll find what you're looking for!
General Books
Book Subjects
- Arts & Photography
- Audiobooks on Cassette
- Audiobooks on CD
- Biographies & Memoirs
- Business & Investing
- Children's Books
- Comics & Graphic Novels
- Computers & Internet
- Cooking, Food & Wine
- e-Books
- Engineering
- Entertainment
- Gay & Lesbian
- Health, Mind & Body
- History
- Home & Garden
- Horror
- Law
- Literature & Fiction
- Medicine
- Mystery & Thrillers
- Nonfiction
- Outdoors & Nature
- Parenting & Families
- Professional & Technical
- Reference
- Religion & Spirituality
- Romance
- Science
- Science Fiction & Fantasy
- Sports
- Teens
- Travel
Most talked about in General Books
Jelly Roll Quiltsby Pam Lintett, Nicky Lintett
David & Charles; Published: 2008-05-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $15.65
Price in other shops:
Sew What! Skirts: 16 Simple Styles You Can Make with Fabulous Fabricsby Francesca DenHartog
Storey Publishing, LLC; Published: 2006-09-01; Spiral-bound; Book
Best price: $10.39
Price in other shops:
Generation T: 108 Ways to Transform a T-Shirtby Megan Nicolay
Workman Publishing Company; Published: 2006-02-02; Paperback; Book
Best price: $5.76
Price in other shops:
Inspired to Knit: Creating Exquisite Handknitsby Michele Rose Orne
Interweave Press; Published: 2008-06-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $15.76
Price in other shops:
Simply Sublime Bags: 30 No-Sew, Low-Sew Projectsby Jodi Kahn
Potter Craft; Published: 2008-07-08; Paperback; Book
Best price: $12.78
Price in other shops:
Sock and Glove: Creating Charming Softy Friends from Cast-Off Socks and Glovesby Miyako Kanamori
HP Trade; Published: 2007-05-16; Paperback; Book
Best price: $7.34
Price in other shops:
500 Handmade Books: Inspiring Interpretations of a Timeless Form (500 Series)by Lark
Lark Books; Published: 2008-07-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $15.48
Price in other shops:
Build Your Own Electric Vehicleby Bob Brant
McGraw-Hill/TAB Electronics; Published: 1993-09-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $13.26
Price in other shops:
1,000 Artist Journal Pages: Personal Pages and Inspirations (1000 Series)by Dawn DeVries Sokol
Quarry Books; Published: 2008-07-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $15.68
Price in other shops:
The Dangerous Book for Boysby Conn Iggulden, Hal Iggulden
Collins; Published: 2007-05-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $13.00
Price in other shops:
Similar Books and other products
Knit Kimono: 18 Designs with Simple Shapesby Vicki Square
Interweave Press; Published: 2007-09-01; Paperback; Book
Best price: $14.89
Price in other shops:
Knitting Classic Style: 35 Modern Designs Inspired by Fashion's Archivesby Veronik Avery
Stewart, Tabori and Chang STC Craft Melanie Falick Book; Published: 2007-09-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $14.80
Price in other shops:
Favorite Socks: 25 Timeless Designs from InterweaveInterweave Press; Published: 2007-04-01; Spiral-bound; Book
Best price: $14.28
Price in other shops:
Victorian Lace Todayby Jane Sowerby
XRX Books; Published: 2008-04-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $18.67
Price in other shops:
The Best of Interweave Knits: Our Favorite Designs from the First Ten Years (Interweave)Interweave Press; Published: 2007-10-28; Paperback; Book
Best price: $14.98
Price in other shops:
Runway Knits: 30 Fashion-Forward Designsby Berta Karapetyan
Potter Craft; Published: 2007-04-17; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $19.85
Price in other shops:
The Knitter's Book of Yarn: The Ultimate Guide to Choosing, Using, and Enjoying Yarnby Clara Parkes
Potter Craft; Published: 2007-10-16; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $16.00
Price in other shops:
The Best of Vogue Knitting Magazine: 25 Years of Articles, Techniques, and Expert Adviceby Vogue Knitting Magazine
Sixth&Spring Books; Published: 2007-05-01; Hardcover; Book
Best price: $15.65
Price in other shops:
Lace Style: Traditional to Innovative, 21 Inspired Designs to Knitby Pam Allen, Ann Budd
Interweave Press; Published: 2007-02; Paperback; Book
Best price: $15.55
Price in other shops:
Fitted Knits: 25 Projects for the Fashionable Knitterby Stefanie Japel
North Light Books; Published: 2007-02-06; Paperback; Book
Best price: $8.66
Price in other shops: