Monday 28 December 2015

Knitty Winter 2015: A Review


Knitty has released their Winter 2015 issue. Let's have a look at it, shall we?





Tree cowl. This is a rather wearable and fun piece. It's an impressively clever rendering of a fir tree in yarn, without being so obviously a tree that it would make the wearer look silly.





Ribbon Candy scarf. This normally wouldn't be at all my type of thing, but it would be a fun accessory with the right outfit. I don't know quite how the photographer got the scarf to stand sideways on its own like Pippi Longstocking's braids for this photo, but rest assured it doesn't seem to do that of its own accord in real life.





Cache-cache cowl. What a lovely play of colour. This pattern really makes the most of a hand-painted sock yarn.





Willow cowl. Love this one. It reminds me of an Elizabethan neck ruff while being perfectly current and even innovative. It's reversible, will stay in place, and will look good worn either on its own over a simple top, or under a jacket.





Hexadot scarf. This designer accidentally discovered that linen stitch is capable of producing a polka dot design, and used the technique to make a "hexadot" scarf. The result is a good-looking scarf, and a technique I will be keeping in mind for the next time I want a polka dot effect.





Cervus cowl. Another pretty cowl with a lovely play of colour.





Cameo flower shawl. Beautiful.





Mishigos cowl. Not bad. I'm not finding that dirty yellow very attractive, but that's easily corrected, and this piece has texture and good shaping.





Electricity hat. Very pretty hat. This definitely seems to be an issue focused on patterns that are designed to make the most of a hand-painted yarn.





Bimitral hat. Very much like this one, which features bias stripes and can be knitted either as a slouchy tam or a slouchy cap, depending on your preferred degree of slouch.





Attention span hat. Cute and pretty.





Sidekick boot socks. Rather a nice-looking pair of warm winter socks. I appreciate the fact that the designer has reserved the bulky textural stitches for the ankle and kept the feet sleek. This will mean the wearer won't have to stuff her feet in her footwear.





Quinn socks. These socks combine knitted stockinette stitch and crocheted lace to good effect. They're pretty and have an interesting quaint look while being quite wearable.





Kastanienfeuer mittens. These will do, and they are certainly practical and comfortable, but I can't help but wish the designer had gone for fewer cables. This cable design is a little too crowded to be visually pleasing.





Zazie fingerless mitts. The designer of these mitts won nine little balls of yarn in a bingo game and came up with this design as a way to use them all up. This is a design in which the colourway will be important, as the design isn't all that striking. This is actually an alternate pair she made out of some odds and ends of yarn from her stash, and which I preferred to the pair made out of her bingo winnings.





Geldys pullover. This design of this sweater is as simple as it gets. You'll want to choose a really special yarn for this sweater, as a basic design like this depends on the yarn used for visual interest.





Elkko pullover. I think for this one I'd omit the lace work at the neckline, as the stripe pattern doesn't really work with it and is interesting enough on its own. The shaping is very good overall.





Helga pullover. Nicely textured pullover, though I would make it a little longer. This cropped length is a little awkward-looking.






Antipodal lopi pullover. A sweater so attractive it even looks good worn inside out.





Vintage memories pullover. This is a nice design that does have a vintage feel to it while being perfectly in keeping with modern styles. The shaping is good and the motifs are face framing. I'd go with a different colourway for it though, as this colourway is making me hear Johnny Cash's "Ring of Fire" in my mind.

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