Pom Pom Quarterly Spring 2015: A Review

Pom Pom Quarterly has released its Spring 2015 issue. Let's have a look at it, shall we?

Vitsippa Hat. Nice work! This design would be effective in any number of colourways.

Tambourine cardigan. This is a nice piece as well, with a certain vintage charm. The cropped length won't work on every woman, but that's easily remedied.

Swedish Pancakes mitts. Attractive and polished. They'd look good in any colourway, but this old rose is very pretty indeed.

Mysa tunic. I'm on the fence about this one. It has a clever construction and some visual interest, but it does come across as a little on the frumpy side. It's not doing this model any favours. I'd consider neatening up the fit a bit.

Mångata pullover. Nice texture and love the striped edgings, but the cropped, boxy shaping of this is going to be hellishly unflattering on most women. I'd do a reshaping and also skip the top stitched triangle at the neck, which looks like an unwise afterthought.

Lysende top. Another one for the "frumpy and dumpy" category. This looks like something one of the Golden Girls would have worn.

Lus top. There isn't a really clear shot of this piece available either in the preview or on Ravelry, but I've got my doubts about how well this sits around the torso. However, it has its good points (i.e., the sleeve detailing, the neckline, the second colour stitch pattern), and, as long as it isn't baggy or boxy or cropped, could be a young, fetching style.

Fika socks. These are on the plain side, but they'll do perfectly well. Not all of us want elaborately detailed socks.

Elske socks. How cute are these? If your answer is something along the lines of "verging on adorable", then you like these socks approximately as much as I do.

Blommande shawl. Pretty little thing, as lace shawls tend to be.

Pom Pom Quarterly Winter 2014: A Review

Pom Pom Quarterly has released a preview of its Winter 2014 issue. Let's have a look at it.

The Fairchild design. Not impressed with this one. That pouch on the front makes the overall shape so unflattering.

The Falling Snow Mitts. I rather like these crocheted mittens. The texture's great and that's an interesting yarn. I would correct the pointy tips though.

The Cidre design. I think this model was styled this way in an attempt to give this item a certain hipster chic, but this model looks for all the world like a university student in the midst of exams, who has thrown on the only relatively clean items she could find on the floor of her dorm room and put her hair any old how before running out to her local coffee shop to fuel up on caffeine, where she promptly ran into that cute boy from her economics class she's had a huge crush on since the first week of term. That's always the way of it, isn't it? Anyway, about the sweater. It has its good points, such as its texture and the way the shaping has become part of the design, but it's too big for this model and that is one depressing colour. Neaten up the fit and knit it in a colour you love, and put it with things that actually go with it, and the wearer won't wind up dying inside when she finds herself standing next to her secret crush at the local coffee shop.

The Into Trees hat pattern. The stitchwork is good, and I admire the way the designer has integrated the earflaps into the design. If this style of hat is not for you, you could omit the ear flaps and the pom poms and have a nice slouchy style cap.

The Sorrel hat. This is the expression the university student had on her face when she ran into the local coffee shop the week after exams wearing a coordinated outfit and a very cute hat and found herself standing next in line to the cute boy from Economics again.

The Aubrietia sweater. Not thrilled with this design, which has a rough, amateurish look to it. A polished, accomplished design needs better shaping, a design concept that is carried steps farther, and a more sophisticated, interesting colourway.

The Brynja cardigan. I think I might make a few tweaks to this one, such as not going with a raglan sleeve, as it cuts into the cabled detail on the front to poor effect, and I think I'd create a cuff that employed some of that cabling instead of going with those ribbed cuffs that don't seem to belong on this sweater.

The Curio Mitts. These are nicely detailed and fit well.

The Trienne Shawl. Now our friend the young university student is trying to attract the boy from Economics class by being all Manic Pixie Dream Girl in the shawl she crocheted back in her gap year, when she was backpacking in the Netherlands and got into doing mushrooms. Honey. One of the cardinal rules of dating is "Don't try too hard," and one of the cardinal rules of crafting is "Anything you craft while high will look terrible, and you won't even know it."

Pom Pom Quarterly Autumn 2014: A Review

Pom Pom Quarterly has released their Autumn 2014 issue. Let's have a look, shall we?

The Coronis design. Hmm, this is very retro as to shape and modern as to the stripes and colourway. It's not a bad piece but that very cropped length is difficult to pull off, so if you don't have a small bustline and/or a waist you want to emphasize, I'd lengthen it.

The Arionette socks. They're nice. Interesting houndstooth pattern.

The Delita Shawl. At first glance I didn't like this, but I think it's that grimy-looking yellow yarn that's putting me off, because otherwise this is an attractive and cleverly constructed piece. The edging is lovely and the contrast edging is a nice touch.

The Selsey scarf. Not a bad piece. It has some interesting detail and it will be fun to pick out the colours for it.

The Wenlock pullover. Oooh, I very much like this one and might just have to add it to my Ravelry favourites. The shape is good and that is one flattering, effective neckline. This is a sweater that will be striking even done in a single colour.

The Seyella mittens. These are cute. They're more than a little twee for me, but then I think Pom Pom Quarterly's target demographic is probably skewed very young. I have a couple of teenaged nieces who would probably be quite happy to wear a pair of these mittens, and who would look very fetching while doing so.

The Endellion pullover. Nice piece, though again it's not going to be the most universally flattering item. Like the Coronis design above, it'll need to be tweaked for those who are well-endowed in the chest department and/or don't care to define their waists too much (i.e., the high-rise ribbed panel can be turned into a waist band). You know, Pom Pom Quarterly, I'm aware that you are designing for very young women, but even very young women aren't always small-breasted.

The Florilegium shrug. I don't care how it's styled or how many ennui-afflicted hipster models they drape it over, I'm really not buying the whole granny square chic thing.

The Kallista cowl. Rather like this one. It has a nice texture and the contrast embroidery is an interesting and effective touch.

Pom Pom Quarterly Summer 2014: A Review

Pom Pom Quarterly has released their Summer 2014 issue. Let's have a look at it, shall we?

This is the Creamsicle design. I'm not too impressed with it because I'm not a big fan of bobbles at their best, and this is a rather unimaginative use of them. The shape isn't great either, what with the boxy body and too long sleeves. The pattern looks a little amateurish on the whole.

The Sombra design. I like this one. The colourway is so well blended and a loose sheer top like this can be useful for summer, as a coverup for the beach or to be worn in lieu of a shawl.

The Seaside Sundae throw is quite attractive. It looks like a baby blanket in these colours, but of course there's no reason to use pastels for this project if you'd prefer another colourway.

The Sceles pattern. As I've said in a number of past reviews, clothing designs should not look like repurposed afghans.

The Flora design. I'm not taken with this one either. It has good points, such as the striped garter stitch collar and the attractive lacework through the body, but the design isn't quite working together as a whole. I think the problem might be the colours, which don't do much for each other, and make the garment look visually chopped up. I think what I would do is make the body of the sweater and the sleeves in a solid colour, and use a second variegated colour as the stripes in the collar and for the button bands and hem trim.

The Emery shrug. I very much like this little wrap. Pretty colour and texture.

The Ananas Comosus design. I'm probably the wrong demographic for this pineapple tank top, which is likely intended to appeal to some cute young hipster type. All I can say is that the pineapple motif is fairly well worked out.

The Baya shawl is a good piece of design. I'm impressed with whomever put these colours together, because it's a risky combination that really pops. The lace pattern is really lovely.

Pom Pom Quarterly Spring 2014: A Review

Pom Pom Quarterly has released their Spring 2014 issue. Let's have a look at it, shall we? This is the cover look. It's a pretty, wearable design.

The Confetti design is nice, or at least what I can see of it is.

The Aroha lace stole is delicately pretty.

The Moss & Deer Horns hat is nice too, if perhaps not quite what I'd think of as spring wear.

The Brill design. I like this sporty combination of stripes and lace, though I wouldn't go with this particular colourway.

The Amenoato is a pretty little cardi, though again I wish I could see all of it.

The Sólja is a fresh take on the standard Fair Isle yoke sweater. I like it and its floral motif, though I think there are better colourways than this one.

The Brolly design is probably my favourite design of this issue. It's eye-catching and drapes beautifully.

Pom Pom Quarterly Winter 2013: A Review

Today's review is of a relatively new knitting magazine I haven't reviewed before, Pom Pom Quarterly. Pom Pom, which was launched in the summer of 2012 is, according to its website, "a quarterly, collectable publication based in London, UK for smart, creative types who like knitting patterns with a modern aesthetic, great photography and interesting writing".

Let's have a look at the ten patterns in their Winter 2013 issue, shall we?

The Anzen crocheted cardigan. This one could have gone badly and wound up looking like an afghan with sleeves (I believe "slanket" is the technical term), but it hasn't. It sits well and has a modern air. I'm really not enthused about the big old safety pin that's holding it together, but that's easily substituted for the shawl pin or brooch of your choosing.





The Aureus cardigan. Love the stitchwork on this one, but not the shape of it. The stylists here have done their level best to give this cardigan a chic look and haven't succeeded. It's going to look just plain frumpy on most women. I'd fix the dropped shoulders, add some waist shaping, and make it large enough to meet in the front on the wearer.

The Fjordland cap. I very much like this little hat. The star on the top and the patterning around the circumference are seasonal in a cute way and yet still suited for an adult.

The Garland pullover. This is the cover look, and it looks fairly pretty in repose, but look at what happens once the model raises her arm. Call me staid if you wish, but I remain unmoved from my conviction that exaggerated cuts like this look just plain sloppy at least nineteen times out of twenty, and no, this is not one of the exceptions. I would cut this sweater down to a standard fit, because it will be a lovely piece that way, given the lacework, the soft mohair, and a delicate confection of a colour.

The Hyoutan mittens. I'm not crazy about these. The mittens look a little big and clumsy, and the colourwork looks a little odd — that pattern doesn't make much sense visually.

The Silver Birch socks are an attractive and nicely finished design.

The Take Heart hat is a pretty standard cabled hat. I'm not sure I personally care for the Flopsy Cottontail-style pom pom which is its one claim to originality, but I suppose it could be cute on the right sassy young wearer. And it's easily left off if you don't think it'll work for you.





The Tuuli fingerless mitts. I rather like these. The texture is good, the subtle slubs of colour add to the interest, and doing the palms in stockinette is a practical move.

The Vintage Bullion crocheted scarf. I seesawed on this one, trying to decide if it was interesting or too BoHo, and I think I'm going to come down on the interesting side. The texture really is very good and pleasing. But I would be careful about what colour I made this in. Don't go with a yarn that makes you think of granny afghans, because it will make your scarf look like an artifact of the seventies, and not in a good way.

The Winterberry shawl. I very much like this piece, which is simple and wearable, will actually keep you warm and not catch on everything, and yet has both visual interest and a polished, finished look. Designers round all these bases less often than you'd expect.