Jane Davis - Knitting - The Complete Guide

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Published by Our toll-free number to place an order or obtain
a free catalog is (800) 258-0929.
All rights reserved. No portion of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a critical article or review to be printed in a magazine or newspaper, or electronically transmitted on radio, television, or the Internet. The following registered trademark terms, products and companies appear in this
publication: Anacapa Fine Yarns, Brown Sheeps Lambs Pride, Jaeger,
Knit One Crochet Toos Paint Box, Koigu KPM, Kureon by Noro, Lion Brand Yarn,
Lornas Laces , Louet Gems , Mountain Colors Hand Painted Yarn,
Purled Llama Yarn Company, Rowan Yarns , and Yarn Council of America. Library of Congress Control Number: 2007942698
ISBN-13: 987-0-89689-591-1
ISBN-10: 0-89689-591-2
eISBN-13: 978-1-4402-2123-1
Designed by Katrina Newby
Edited by Toni Toomey
Printed in China Acknowledgments I have had a great time working on this book. It has been a lot of fun trying out new stitch ideas, and collecting them together with many of the classics that Ive used for years.

There have been several people who have helped me get this book together that I would like to thank. All the people at Krause Publications have been a joy to work with, especially my editor, Toni Toomey. Thank you, Toni, for your deadlines, attention to detail, and understanding and patience with the book as it developed. Thank you, Candy Wiza, for saying yes to this idea, and for being so supportive and understanding. Thank you also to all the people who helped to get this book out, especially Chris Redmond our technical editor, and Katrina Newby, who designed the cover and layout of the book. Thank you very much to Lois Varga, owner of Anacapa Fine Yarns, in Ventura California.

It helps so much to bounce ideas off of someone, and you always have such good ideas to make knitting easier and more understandable. Finally, Id like to thank my family, Rich, Jeff, Andrew, and Jonathan, for living with my yarn thats still everywhere. Table of ContentsIntroduction I love books with collections of knitting patterns. There are so many now that you may ask why write another? Well, this book fills in some spaces left in other similar books. All of the charts (except the colorwork and embroidery sections) have both charts and line-byline instructions, which is not found at one end or the other in most pattern libraries currently on the shelves. This book has a section on bead patterns in knitting, a subject close to my heart, and missing completely from most pattern libraries.

Finally, in addition to two scarf patterns, this book has five basic patterns that I think are the staple for a knitter and make this a more complete basic reference than any other. These basics a pair of mittens, a pair of socks, a hat, a dropped-sleeve sweater, and a set-in sleeve sweaterare great projects to use as a basis for future projects. Once you learn to make these projects to your size, you can use them to make many more projects of your own design, using swatch patterns from this or any other pattern book. This book is meant for all levels of knitters, both as a how-to guide and as a reference. I hope you will come back to it again and again for ideas and as a ready source of information on all things knitting from classics to basic instructions. I have tried to put everything in this book that I would need as an ongoing reference.

And I know I will be checking it often to look up a pattern or check techniques. So, this book I have written as much for myself as for you, so I will have all the information I need as a knitting reference that I havent been able to find in one book. Jane Davis Section 1: The BasicsFrom the types of yarn to choose and tools you will need, to how to knit and many of the techniques you will need for advanced knitting designs, here is your resource for learning to knit, and your reference to look up knitting techniques you want to try. Yarn Fibers Yarn is available in many fiber types, each with its own properties. The variety ranges from plant fibers, such as cotton, hemp, and linen, to animal fibers, such as wool, alpaca and angora, to synthetics. Many yarns are blends of several of these types of fibers, each lending an inherent characteristic that affects the feel and quality of the yarn. Following are descriptions of the fibers currently available.Wool Wool yarn, from any type of sheep, is the classic knitting yarn.

It has a springy quality, making it ideal for most types of knitting. It gives a little as you knit, allowing you to accomplish many different types of stitches. The yarn can be course or soft, depending on many factors, including the type of sheep the wool comes from, the processing of the fibers, and the final treatment of the yarn. Alpaca and Llama Yarn made from alpaca is generally smoother and softer than wool yarn. Llama is somewhere in between the two. Mohair