Debbie Bliss Magazine Spring 2013: A Review

Until very recently I had thought that knitting designer and wool manufacturer Debbie Bliss didn't have a preview of her self-named knitting magazine, Debbie Bliss Magazine, online. I can be slow like that. But I have clued in and here's a review of the Debbie Bliss Magazine Spring 2013 issue.

Debbie Bliss has gone with a Great Gatsby theme for this issue. My guess is the issue was timed to coincide with the Leonardo diCaprio/Carey Mulligan version of The Great Gatsby that's due to come out in the spring of 2013. Which is smart marketing, although judging by its trailer, the movie looks like it might be a turkey. It features a very greasy and simian-looking Leo diCaprio improbably cast as Jay Gatsby, who is supposed to be coolly elegant, and I hope that's not the music they're going with. But, I'm always up for twenties- and literature-inspired fashion, I do love the book, and I think Debbie Bliss might just be making a statement by selecting a "Daisy" who looks far more like the Mia Farrow "Daisy" than the Carey Mulligan "Daisy".

Now, about the sweater. I like it. It's cute and smart and wearable and has some interesting detailing, such as shoulder buttons.

I think I like this cardigan, but can't be sure I do because I can't see enough of it. I can't see the shawl collar it purportedly has. I can't see how it's shaped or whether it fits properly. I wish fashion photographers wouldn't get so carried away with art direction that they forget that their first and most important task is to show us the clothes in the photo.

Debbie Bliss calls this a turban, but I'd be more inclined to call it a bandeau. Whatever it's called, I'm not sure how many women will want to wear it. Leave off the beading and it could be a nice alternative to a hat in winter, sure, but this is being presented as an evening accessory for spring wear. It'll be interesting to see how many knitters on Ravelry go for it and how they make it and wear it.

Very nice little beaded clutch.

Very cute version of a twenties tennis dress. I do wish we could see it from the front, though. I have my suspicions about how that skirt looks when viewed straight on.

I do like this, but with reservations. Long, loose tops like this can look really frumpy. If you're going to make this, make sure it's not too long on you, and think about shortening the sleeves a little and adding some waist-shaping. There's a reason why costume designers who are creating costumes for a twenties period piece usually cheat and nip in the waists.

This isn't bad, but again it could use a little shaping at the waist.

Nice little cardigan. I like the ribboned effect of the bobbles. Make sure you make it large enough that it meets in the front, and do consider making the sleeves a little shorter. That right-above-the-elbow sleeve length tends to look dowdy.

This isn't bad, but it isn't anything special either. If you want to make it, I'd rethink the sleeve length. Along with just above the elbow, a few inches above the wrist bone is another sleeve length that tends not to work. The sleeve winds up looking like it shrunk in the wash rather than as though it was styled that way.

This is another design that isn't bad but isn't anything special either. However, sometimes one just need a useful plain top that can be thrown on with jeans or skirts or whatever. I'd give the top a lift by shortening the sleeves a few inches.

Very pretty and delicate lace skirt. I wish there were some way of getting a clearer picture of what's going on with the hemline. I can't tell whether the hemline is longer at the back (which wouldn't be a good thing) or if it hangs down in points at each side (which would be fine) or what. Be prepared to wear a slip with this one.

The description for this pattern calls it a "comfy jacket". I'd call it a shawl with sleeves. I'd invent a new word to describe it (slawl? shawket?) except I'm afraid it would catch on as "slanket" has apparently done. It isn't a bad design and might be a useful item for when you just need a little extra warmth and don't need to do any physical work in it. The description also says this item is "irresistible for morning rambles through field and farm".

Hahahahahahahahahaha! People who have idyllic, pastoral notions of farm life are so cute! This shawl/jacket would get nettles in it and catch on stalks and branches, as would this delicate, floaty, ground-length dress. Watch out for that cow-pie. And the groundhog hole.

Oh dear. This chevron pattern halter top, while not at all a bad piece of design, would be seriously hard to wear. As you can see, even this lovely professional model who has been dressed by professional stylists hasn't quite been able to get away with it. It's so difficult to get the proper foundation garment underneath this kind of top (even a strapless bra will probably show at the back), and the fact is that most of us who are over fifteen and a double A cup size need that support. If you aren't flat-chested and you want to make this top for yourself, resolve the support issue first. And good luck with that.

Quite nice. This is a much more wearable style for a woman who wants to show some skin without ruining her silhouette.

Darling. Debbie Bliss is so good at designing children's clothes that are wearable and classic and cute in a not-too-precious way. I have two of her books and have knitted I don't know how many patterns out of them.

Cute fair isle child's vest. This is an item that will keep getting passed down to younger siblings and cousins and friends' and neighbour's children as long as it's in good shape.

Nice, simple dress. I'd make it longer and then when the child gets too tall to wear it as a dress, pair it with leggings. Putting it over a skirt, especially a full one, makes for too bulky and awkward a silhouette.

I'm not crazy about this one. It is cute, but in a quaint, dated sort of way. I don't think it's a good idea for parents to dress their children in a too-whimsical and quirky way that bears no reference to what other children are wearing. Admittedly this little boy is too young to care about such issues.

Nice, useful little vest. You can put your little guy in this vest and a coordinating shirt and cords if you want to dress him up for some special event and it'll be the little boy's equivalent of semi-formal wear.

Darling little eyelet cardigan that will go with all a little girl's dresses, or over a t-shirt and jeans.

Beautiful, delicate lace shawl. Which even the Debbie Bliss editors didn't suggest as suitable farm wear.

Another one of those combination shawl/sweaters. I am seriously skeptical about how this sort of thing will look on women who don't have a model's figure. It'll just wind up looking saggy and droopy and sad and cause problems for the front view when it lies alongside the breasts.

Lovely little classic cabled cardigan. There's a reason why women have been wearing sweaters very much like this one for the past eight decades straight.

This little cardigan says, "I'm from 1955 and if I could make a girl with a scarf-tied ponytail and a poodle skirt look cute, just think what I can do for you!" This sweater probably will look quite good on you and go with a lot of your trousers and skirts. Though if you're large-breasted, I'd avoid it. It will look matronly rather than sporty.

The description for this item says it's knitted all in one piece in a single rib with batwing sleeves and has a "super flattering shape". I wish I could see it better in this photo so as to determine that for myself, but I think it's probably a competently designed simple little top a woman could wear quite a lot.

Here's another cute little top that will go with your jeans and a number of your skirts. I'd make it a little longer though. That cropped length just isn't all that flattering on most women.

Great concept here: sewing a thematically matched fabric backing to a blanket. It makes for a very sharp look. I'm imagining this done with a striped fabric/afghan. But having gone to all the work of making this blanket, I doubt I'd take it on a picnic and risk getting it dirty and grass-stained. I note the photo stylist went with astroturf rather than risk that.

Useful, basic tote. I notice the designer has managed to endow this tote with an impressive sturdiness; it's keeping its crisp lines despite having a not inconsiderable amount of stuff in it. It's fabric-lined, and probably has a fairly heavy-duty interlining in it as well.

Love this cherry pillow. That is one really well-designed graphic; very simple and striking.

Another nice cherry motif pillow. These pillows will work really well together and can also stand on their own. Or you could make a pillow with the single cherry on it and then an afghan to match with the smaller, repeating cherry pattern.

Not a bad bottle cozy, though I'd do it in a solid colour. Of course a common jibe at crafters is that we put cozies on everything, but it does make sense to put cozies on things that need to be kept hot or cold. And it would be nice to cover up a bottle that was probably some corporate promo item and is kind of ugly with its own little cabled sweater.

This isn't a bad design for what it is... but before you decide to invest the time in making it, I'd think about how much you're going to use it. I see a lot of picnic baskets at thrift shops. People think they're going to use them and then they don't. If you really already do a lot of camping or picnicking and can use it for that, go for it. Otherwise... avoid knitting projects that you intend to change your life to use, because it doesn't usually work that way. It's best to knit for the life you have.

To See Our Knitting as Others See It

The caption specifies that this is about knitting designers, but I think it also has a near-perfect application to knitters in general.

I Am Not a Knit Wit, But I Have One

One Saturday afternoon in late 2008, while I was happily browsing the racks at Value Village, I found a Knit Wit kit. By which I mean one of the above. The Knit Wit, despite its name, is not a knitting tool, but is rather a sort of small, simple hand loom. Knit Wits used to be advertised on TV when I was little. The commercials showed a woman and her little girl happily making afghans by winding yarn around the pins on the tool and then twisting the handle to make the finished rosette pop dramatically off (there was even a special sound effect). In retrospect, the items the two of them made on the commercials were freaking hideous. But I was the kind of child who always wanted to try my hand at every craft going (actually, that's the kind of adult I am as well), and I clearly remember how much I wanted a Knit Wit. So I bought the Value Village kit. It was only $5 and I was pretty sure I could put it to good use. Plus I got to gratify a childhood desire, which is one adult pleasure I totally recommend.

Then I went home and began doing some research. Knit Wits seem to have been around since the 1950s, and this is one of the former reincarnations of the kit.

In company with a lot of TV-advertised plastic gadgets, they don't work quite as easily as the commercials lead us to believe. This is part of the instruction manual from one of the older kits. Apparently there were also several pages of written instructions to accompany these visual aids.

Looking at the official Knit Wit website that night in 2008 made me laugh until I had tears streaming down my face. The company was using the same images they used in their commercials circa 1981, and offered almost no recent designs or patterns. Unfortunately the Knit Wit web site is not extant anymore, or I could show you horrendous pantsuits and mini-dresses and daisy afghans (such as the one above) that dated from the sixties and seventies. They were offered for sale individually, as if anyone would ever buy them. And as God is my witness, I swear I could hear the yarn screaming.

There aren't too many Knit Wit patterns or examples on the net at all, and most of them are decades old and/or terrible. This, for instance, is one of the pattern books from back in the day. I wish I could page through it, because I'm sure it's a gem of its kind.

Here's another book, with two close ups of the afghans in it. On second thought maybe I don't really want to see the rest of the patterns in these booklets.

This is one of the very few recent designs I could find, and it... leaves something to be desired.

But there aren't any needlework techniques or tools that can't be used for good rather than evil — the failing is usually that of the crafter's taste or skill rather than inherent in the craft itself. And there are a few good examples of Knit Wit items on the net that prove that yes, it is possible to use the Knit Wit tool to make something attractive. I don't care for the pink snowsuit above, but I must admit the cocktail dress is quite something.

Blogger Kathleen Gauthier has written a post on her site about her mother's 50s-era Knit Wit dress, which was made out of purple organza ribbon, and gotten her own daughter to model it for us over a vintage slip (Gauthier's mother wore it over a purple silk sheath). It's lovely.

Martha Stewart has featured a few quite desirable Knit Wit designs on her site. There's certainly nothing wrong with this delicate scarf.

Martha Stewart also offers us some Knit Wit décor ideas: making a cushion from Knit Wit rosettes, or using the rosettes to decorate a plain cushion or throw.

But even so I know I will mostly be on my own as far as Knit Wit designs go. And I am afraid but ready. The Knit Wit tool kit doesn't seem to be in production at present, but if you'd like one of your own, try your luck on eBay, or perhaps make your own with pins and cardboard.


Addendum:

A reader named Karen (thank you Karen!) has helpfully pointed out that there are more Knit Wit designs available on the net. Rather than limiting myself to what's under that one brand name, I should have searched under "daisy loom", "bloom loom", "flower loom", and "square loom".

This is not to say that all the flower loom designs are attractive. A western skunk cabbage by any other name would still smell just as bad. You know how I keep saying some designs are too afghan-like in my magazine issue reviews? This photo must be the ultimate illustration of my principle that though an afghan is a fine thing, you can't wear it.

Here we have an afghan/skirt, and a rather cute little top.

Here we have a collection of atrocious items with one that's actually quite good. As you can see, this little cardigan is a clever hybrid: it's partly flower loomed, and partly knit. If you want to try making wearable items with flower looming, you probably will need to incorporate some knitting into it at some point. I don't know how you'd shape the rosettes into a flattering garment otherwise.

Great photo. This woman actually looks chic. The purse and hat are useable by contemporary standards. I'm going to reserve judgment on the blouse because I can't see enough of it to tell whether it's flattering and attractive. What we can see does look promising.

You can see more pictures of flower loom items here, and check out the many related links here.