Vogue Knitting Fall 2018: A Review

Vogue Knitting has released their Fall 2018 issue preview. Let's have a look at it, shall we?

#01, Fair Isle Shawl. What a variety of fun, beautiful motifs. I'd love to see this one expanded into an afghan.

#02, Fair Isle Hat. Doing this one in an atypical colourway really sets it apart from the usual fair isle hat.

#03, Fair Isle Pullover. A very attractive, classic piece.

#04, Three-Piece Rose Pattern Set. I would find the sight of all three of these pieces a little overwhelming in real life, and those mittens are more than a little oven mitt-y in shape, but of course there's no need to make/wear all three of these pieces and the sweater and the hat are certainly good examples of design. I also like the idea of making these items in two neutrals and a bright contrast colour.

#05, Leaf Motif Pullover. Nice, but I would fix the dropped shoulders and lengthen the sleeves.

#06, Mosaic Wrap. This is another one that would be quite lovely as an afghan as well as a wrap.

#07, Lace Stripe Shawl. Nice!

#08, Offset Triangle Shawl. A fun, contemporary piece.

#09, Tassel Yoke Pullover. Cute sweater. I'm giving the tassels serious side eye, but I think they'd work on a very young wearer. The 25+ crowd should probably leave them off.

#10, Graphic Yoke Pullover. Fun and colourful.

#11, Twisted Yoke Pullover. Beautiful. The yoke is interesting and eye-catching, and the edges have such a finished look.

#12, A-Line Tunic. Another lovely item. I'd be inclined to lengthen this one and turn it into a dress.

#13, Yoke Patterned Pullover. Fun yoke, but the sizing could certainly do with some neatening up.

#14, Yoke Patterned Cardigan. A lovely, classic piece. Although, Vogue Knitting copyeditors, just to be tiresomely pedantic for a minute, this pattern and the last pattern should have been titled "Patterned Yoke Pullover" and "Patterned Yoke Cardigan". These designs aren't patterned with yokes.

#15, Asymmetric Triangle Shawl. A very handsome, polished wrap that looks good however it's worn.

#16, Lace Shawl. Very pretty piece of lace work.

#17, Crossed Stitch Jacket. Not bad at all. This one would make a distinctive outfit out of a plain, neutral top and bottom. The pattern blurb says this design was inspired by the Chanel jacket, and I can definitely see the influence.

#18, Tuck Stitch Dress. Love this one, which would be a surprisingly useful, versatile piece given that it looks equally good worn on its own or worn as a jumper over a turtleneck. The mini-skirt length wouldn't work on everyone, but can be easily lengthened for a wearer who feels she's beyond her mini-skirt years, or just doesn't like minis.

#19, Bell Sleeved Pullover. Alas, I am destined to never wear this, as it's the sort of thing that makes me look terribly dumpy as it's not a style for well-endowed women, but it would be quite cute and smart on the right person.

#20, Shawl-Collared Pullover. This one's an Isaac Mizrahi design from 1998, but honestly Vogue Knitting has so many patterns in their vault that they could have chosen better than such a schlumpy, undistinguished number.

Vogue Knitting Early Fall 2018: A Review

Today we're going to have a look at Vogue Knitting's Early Fall 2018 issue.

Pattern #01, Yoked Pullover. The yoke on this turtleneck is fabulous. What I wouldn't give to have a little more neck so that I might wear styles like this one.

Pattern #02, Tuck Stitch Yoked Pullover. Nice smocked effect on this one. It's a larger, looser fit than I would recommend, but it would be easy to make it a little smaller, and this is a design that suits a relaxed fit.

Pattern #03, Textured Yoke. Another comfy and attractive pullover. I'd neaten up the fit a little.

Pattern #04, Yoked Sweater. A very wearable, classic piece.

Pattern #05, Herringbone Tee. Not bad. This would be a bit on the thick and bulky side as to texture, but it has a certain smartness to its shape and gradient effect.

Pattern #06, Placket Neckline Poncho. I like the tweedy effect of the yarn, but I am sure I would find the shape cumbersome and unflattering. I'm not a fan of the poncho in general though, so your mileage may vary.

Pattern #07, Collegiate V-Neck. Cute and sporty little piece.

Pattern #08, Turtleneck Tunic. I rather like this one, which strikes me as a versatile piece that could be worn with trousers, leggings, or tights and boots. I would add a bit of waist shaping though.

Pattern #09, Gradient Cardigan. Not bad. The shaping is good, and I do like a gradient effect, though I think there are more interesting colourways to do it in.

Pattern #10, Hooded Poncho. Call me rigid, but I don't believe that one's knitwear should be large enough to house more than two people.

Pattern #11, Lace Dress. This one's an undeniable head turner, if not for the faint of heart.

Pattern #12, Cable Cardigan. The cabled texture is great, the lines of the design aren't bad, but I feel like this this one needed edge finishing and a front closure.

Pattern #13, Kimono Cardigan. This looks like neither a kimono nor a cardigan. This looks like an unfinished piece of knitting that's been slung around this woman's body.

Pattern #14, Openwork Tunic. This tunic can double as a shopping bag, but I think I'd use it solely as a shopping bag.

Pattern #15, Mesh Sleeve Pullover. A good, wearable piece. I like the idea of putting the texture on the sleeves.

Pattern #16, Tasseled Cowl. Not bad. As you can see from the photo on this pattern's Ravelry page, this cowl looks better when worn doubled around the neck. Wearing a cowl single strand like this tends to have that unfortunate "deflated inner tube" look.

Pattern #17, Buttoned Gradient Wrap. This one doesn't sit to advantage on the model, but I'm inclined to go easy on it because I like the colours and stitchwork.

Pattern #18, Poncho Fit Pullover. This one has a "frumpy thrift shop number from the 1980s" look to it.

Pattern #19, Ribbed Yoke. As soon as I saw this, I knew I'd seen it before, and indeed I had, as it originally appeared in Vogue Knitting's Winter 2001/02 issue, which I have in my collection. I liked the pattern then and I still like it, but I may need a little time to recover from the realization that a pattern from 2001 is old enough to "bring back".

Vogue Knitting Spring/Summer 2018: A Review

Vogue Knitting has released its Spring/Summer 2018 issue. Let's have a look at it. Unfortunately I won't be able to link to the Ravelry page for each design as I normally do, because as of this writing, only two of the patterns have Ravelry pages.

Pattern #1. This has some impressive stitchwork in it, but the lines of it are not all that flattering or practical.

Pattern #2. Some quite distinctive detailing on this. I'm not sure I care for the rolled effect on the armhole though, or the way the v-neck is finished. I'd be inclined to edge them both with garter stitch to match the bottom hem edging.

Pattern #3. A very nice lacy pullover for summer. I'm imagining this one in a selection of bright, fresh colours or pure white, as this dull oatmeal is doing the design no favours.

Pattern #4. This has a slightly askew, frumpy look. Fixing the dropped shoulders might help somewhat.

Pattern #5. The combination of the romantic, almost Edwardian front with the daring bared back really works, and the varied, yet beautifully integrated stitchwork in this is fantastic.

Pattern #6. This isn't bad. The pattern is attractive, and the little scarf effect is an interesting contemporary touch.

Pattern #7. Really eye-catching and attractive play of colour and pattern here. I'd want to keep going and make an afghan of this. Which is not to say, as I sometimes do, that this wrap would look better on a couch. It's so cool it would work both on a person and on a couch.

Pattern #8. A rather clever and sporty tee.

Pattern #9. A simple tank with its interest lying in the fact that it's knitted in a plush yarn. It would look better if it were slightly neater fitting.

Pattern #10. A very simple yet fetching piece.

Pattern #11. I'm not a big fan of the slit sleeve, but I must admit these sit well and it wouldn't be the same piece if the sleeves were made whole. I would make the body a little longer and slightly neater fitting.

Pattern #12, Cable Tank. This is one of those designs that grew on me as I looked at it. I like the laddering at the sides and the simple cable detailing. I suspect most women won't care to wear such a deep neckline, especially when this is a piece that will require a strapless bra, but that's easily corrected.

Pattern #13. Oooh, this shaped ribbed sleeveless dress is simple and flattering and classic. I would totally wear this.

Pattern #14. A well-shaped mesh tunic. Though the "what a bee threw up after overdosing on a lilac bush"-coloured yarn wasn't a particularly happy choice.

Pattern #15. A lovely wrap. The detail on the edging is fantastic.

Pattern #16. Another very attractive wrap.

Pattern #17, Garter and Lace Shawl. And here's the cover item. Such lovely contemporary-style lacework.