Miller - Once upon a knit: 28 Grimm and glamorous fairytale projects

This book would not be possible without several people and a few good fairies. Special thanks to my family and friends, especially my husband, Wayne, and my children, Sean, Grace, and Madeline. Their support, encouragement, and infinite patience with me during this process has been astounding. Thanks to Kate Epstein for being a champion of creativity. Thanks to Betty Wong, Caitlin Harpin, and the entire team at Potter Craft for turning ideas into reality and for their exceptional attention to detail. Thanks to all my fellow designers who worked magic on these amazing projectsyour creativity never ceases to amaze me! A big thanks goes to Eve Ng and Amy Polcyn for tech editing patterns from so many designers. Special thanks to Therese Chynoweth for creating all the beautiful charts in the book. Thanks to Rebecca Little for taking my photo up at the Hollywood Bowl and to Amy Sly for the stunning visual design. Thanks to everyone who has cheered me on along the way. And a giant-size thanks to the following yarn companies that provided yarn support for Once Upon a Knit!

KnitPicks

Skacel Collection, Inc.

Brown Sheep Yarn Company

Three Irish Girls

Neighborhood Fiber Company

Habu Textiles

Tilli Tomas

Madelinetosh

A portion of the proceeds of this book will be donated to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, who have been granting wishes to very ill children since 1981.

Copyright 2014 by Mary Genevieve Miller
Photographs and illustrations copyright 2014 by Potter Craft, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House LLC.

All rights reserved.
Published in the United States by Potter Craft, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House LLC, a Penguin Random House Company, New York.
www.pottercraft.com
www.crownpublishing.com

POTTER CRAFT and colophon are registered trademarks of Random House LLC.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Miller, Genevieve
Once upon a knit : 28 Grimm and glamorous fairy-tale projects / Genevieve Miller. first edition.
p. cm
1. KnittingPatterns. 2. Costume. 3. Fairy tales. I. Title.
TT825.M563 2014
746.432dc23

2013011851

ISBN 978-0-385-34494-4
eBook ISBN 978-0-385-34495-1

Design by Amy Sly
Project photographs by Heather Weston
by Rebecca Little
Cover design by Amy Sly
Cover photographs by Heather Weston

).

v3.1

nce upon a time there lived a little girl who loved stories. She believed in children who fell down rabbit holes, plucky girls who brought goodies to their grandmothers, and princesses who lived with dwarfs and fairies. Though she never talked to mermaids or spun straw into gold, she discovered her own magical gift: knitting beautiful garments with two sticks and a ball of yarn.

Though its been a while since I was that little girl, I still believe in the magic of fairy talesand knitting. And Ive met many other fairy godmothers who believe, too. Some of us are disguised as moms, others as teachers, and two as roller-derby girls. My knitter friends and I, who honed our designing skills for Vampire Knits, have been absolutely entranced by modern grown-up versions of fairy tales. Ancient folktales inspired modern classics like the Broadway musical Into the Woods and the beloved animated tales from Disney that we grew up with. More recently, fairy tales have invaded pop culture on a grand scale, with blockbuster movies and television shows like Once Upon a Time. Its a good time to be a fan of fairy tales. In recent versions, Snow White is a strong, confident archer, Hansel and Gretel are witch hunters, and the evil sorceress from Sleeping Beauty is a sympathetic character. Meanwhile, the costumes in these revisionist tales have captivated us with their decadent embellishments, feminine silhouettes, and fantastical luxury.

The twenty-eight projects in Once Upon a Knit are destined to add a touch of romance and adventure to your everyday wardrobe. A beautiful lace shawl and dainty fingerless mitts can help anyone feel like a princess. And every brave warrior needs a pair of cozy socks or a warm sweater to remind him (or her) of home. In this book youll find projects that remind you of fairy tales from your childhood and of not-quite-suitable-for-children shows that have turned those bedtime stories into twisted, yet beautiful, fantasies. Youll find grown-up garments inspired by both good and evil characters, cute costumes for children, charming accessories, and toys for all ages.

Why do fairy tales continue to lure us in? Simply put, they help us believe in ourselves. Fairy tales are full of hopehope that great things can happen to ordinary people, or that a frog may become a prince if only a kindhearted person kisses him. Fairy tales teach us to be kind to one another, to beware of a jealousy that can devour your soul, and to fend off villains who darken our lives.

I hope that the designs in this book will inspire you to be the hero or heroine of your own fairy tale and that your happily ever after includes handknits youll want to wear every day. Come with us into this wonderland. Its grim, but its gorgeous.