Knitscene Spring 2014: A Review

Knitscene has published their Spring 2014 issue. Let's have a look at it.

The Shelby Creek Shrug. This is a beautiful piece of work.

The Sugar Grove Shawl. I like this one too. I like that it's trimmed with lace rather than all lace, because lace is so snag-prone.

The Mallory Hills Shawlette. Between the photography and the variegated yarn, I can't see the details of this shawl properly but I think I like it.

The Clayton Mill Cardigan. I like the detail on this cardigan, but not the shape. It just looks as though it's too small, and as you can see it's no friend even to this professional model.





The Field Bazaar Sweater. This one's okay. It's basically a knitted sweatshirt jazzed up with a couple of cut-out details. I don't know that I would want to bother knitting anything this basic but it's wearable enough, and it might be a good pattern to showcase a gorgeous yarn.

The Sign of Four Scarf. I like this scarf. I like the Sherlock Holmes short story name of it, too, though I don't understand what the connection is.

The Boscombe Socks. There seems to be a real cut-out theme in this issue of Knitscene. Using a cut-out detail in a pair of socks isn't a bad idea aesthetically, but I can't help thinking the wearer is going to get really weird tan marks from them.

The J. Watson Shawl. Even Dr. Watson would have rejected the premise of this shawl as faulty. And we are definitely getting too carried away with our cut-out fetish, Knitscene.





The Baskerville Tank. Quite like this one, which actually has a very unusual construction. The bias-knit bodice and draped garter yoke give it a body skimming fit and flare.

The Belgravia Tee. This one's classic and delicately pretty from the front and has a surprise cut-out in the back. It works and should be wearable for a lot of women. Those who don't like the back exposé don't have to include the peephole.

The Van Doesburg Pullover. Not bad. The graphic effect is eye-catching and the sweater itself is well-shaped. Lengthen the sleeves and the body of the sweater if you don't feel the cropped lengths will work on the intended wearer.

The Semper Tunic. When someone's designing something unusual like an asymmetrical tunic, they really ought to put the effort in and give us an interesting, well-crafted piece rather than slapping something together and putting it with a bizarrely mismatched skirt and tights. Though to be fair, this tunic might work reasonably well if it was properly styled.

The Laren Mitts. These are really quite striking, if not my idea of spring wear.

The Oud Tank. Can't say I care for this one. It looks like a mésalliance between a lace blouse and a tank top. That racer stripe of lace up the sides is just jarringly out of place. Updating a traditional lace-trimmed top style into a young and modern style would be an interesting design challenge, but this design wasn't up to the task.

The Rietveld Sweater. A very basic colourblock sweater. This is nothing special, but it's not bad either.

The Alexandrite Tank. I very much like this one. Love the collar and the overall lines. I do have one problem with that openwork front and back strip though: the wearer's bra will show through it. I'd be inclined to replace the stitch used for those centre strips with a solid decorative stitch, such as a cable effect.






The Lazulum Shell. Quite like this one. It has simple clean lines and yet it's stylish and high-impact.

The Amazonite Tank. Very cute and wearable retro-style piece.

The Balas Ruby Raglan. Here we have another bad marriage of lace and modern styling. This lacy stitch just isn't working on a baseball-style top.

The Fire Opal Tee. This is a good piece with good lines and a pleasing texture.





The Sunstone Tee. I don't know why anyone thought that this top ought to be shaped in such a way that it bulges out in front. "Looking pregnant" is not exactly on most women's list of goals for 2014, even if they are (or plan to become) pregnant. And while I do kind of like the built-in necklace concept, but I think it deserves a better and more interesting execution than it got here.

The Verdelite Cardigan. Knitscene really put the Peter Pan collar through its paces for this issue. I actually do rather like this cardigan. It's an interesting and modern take on a staid classic, and it's pretty wearable. I usually say the problem with asymmetrical cardigans is that you can't wear them open, but this one basically is worn open.

Knitscene Winter 2013: A Review

The Knitscene Winter 2013 issue is out. Let's have a look at it, shall we?

This the Victor Shawl. Which looks to me more like a really big scarf. Nothing wrong with that, of course, as large-scale accessories can be fun and this one has some clever stitchwork.

These are the Stereo Mittens. They're a nice pair of cabled mittens. They are plain stockinette stitch on the palms, which strikes me as practical idea because it should be easier to handle objects without the extra bulk of cables in the way.





The Quadraphonic Cardigan. Open front cardigans don't usually do it for me, but I like this one because it's designed to hang so well.

I like the Hi-Fi Pullover as well. It's very well cut and flattering. Not every woman would want a sweater this snug, of course, but it can always be knitted to fit more loosely.

There's nothing terribly exciting about the Sylvia Cardigan, but it is a nice, wearable piece.





The Tara Jacket. The back looks great, but the front looks pretty awkward regardless of how much or how little it's zipped up.

The Gemma Pullover. This one's pretty wearable, and I like the little touches of cable at the wrists and waistband. I can't quite figure out what's going on at the neckline, though, and whatever's happening there, it's making the transition between the neck ribbing and stockinette looks a little rough.

The Mauveine Henley is very pretty. If you don't like emphasizing your hips quite as much as the deep border of lace will do, just work one row of lace diamonds rather than two, or just use the sleeve border pattern around the hem of the bodice.

The Purpurpeus Shawl is very, very basic. It might be a good pattern to use for a yarn that you love so much and that it is of such excellent quality it can stand alone, but the yarn used for this sample wasn't that kind of yarn.

The Byzantium Stole is another big, attractive scarf, this time with a nice lace pattern.

The Heliotrope Hat is a pretty standard cabled cap, but it's a good example of one. It looks equally good from every angle.

The Manganese Cowl isn't bad. It has a modern feel to it. I think it would definitely need to be paired with the right kind of coat.





The Tyrian Loop is one of those cowls made long enough to be worn either single or doubled. Which is a great idea, though this one definitely looks much better worn doubled. Worn single it looks a bit like a flat tire hung around the model's neck.





The Boxelder Cardigan is another fairly standard pattern, but it's definitely a very attractive and polished cabled hoodie.





The Gambel Shawl. Not bad. I like the way the Knitscene editors have chosen to tie it on the model. I thought at first it was some new style of cowl.





The Narrowleaf Sweater. I very much like this one, except for that buckle on the shoulder, which at first glance looks like a strip of black electrical tape holding this model's sweater together. The concept of a buckled shoulder isn't bad, mind you, but I don't like this particular buckle on this particular sweater. I'd find a better one, or use buttons. By the way, have I ever expounded on my belief that it's best to buy such notions as buttons and zippers and buckles before you begin to knit an item? That way you can be sure you'll have the right thing to finish off the item, and you'll know if you need to tailor an item to suit what's available, i.e., if you can only get a half dozen of the perfect buttons, you can make six buttonholes instead of seven.

Love the Wild Plum Shawlette, which is intricate and striking.

The Hoptree Scarf uses two different weights of yarn to give an otherwise traditional lacework pattern more a different kind of look. It's not bad, though not really to my tastes — the different yarn weights make it look so cobbled together.

I quite like the Mountain Ash Pullover, which uses solid and variegated yarns in similar tones to create a striped effect. It's a subtle and fresh way to wear horizontal stripes, which can tend to look not only unflattering but rather juvenile.

I like the simple little Pinyon Vest, though to me it does look more like something I'd be more likely to make in a cotton and wear by itself in the summer than a wool piece for winter layering.

The Black Cherry Pullover. This one is rather boxy and isn't terribly flattering even on the model, but that's fixable: fix the dropped shoulders, add waist shaping, and lengthen it to hip length.





The Bristlecone Pullover. One good way to incorporate a bold pattern into knitwear is to use it just on the bodice and make the sleeves, neckband, and waistbands a coordinating colour. This looks quite sharp without being overwhelming as an all-over, large-scale houndstooth pattern would have.

The Chokecherry Scarf is another quite traditional pattern, but again it's a particularly good example of its kind.





I love the back of the Thinleaf Jacket, but I'm not at all sold on the front, which looks awkward and unflattering. It's not sitting well even on this model. I'd be inclined to turn this into a turtle- or cowl-necked pullover and run the Celtic back design up the front as well.