New Knitting Books for Summer 2022
The list of upcoming knitting (and other crafting books) on Amazon is short but sweet for the summer. There isn't much to choose from but a couple of real gems have been hidden among the crop. These three books stood out for me.
From Norway with Love
Colorwork is not passé – not even in the summer! Norwegian Sweaters and Jackets is the one I'm most excited about in this quarter's bunch. And no wonder: it's a best-of collection of Norwegian knitwear designer Kari Hestnes' most-loved garments spanning her decades-long career.
Kari Hestnes has been a knit designer for almost 40 years—and she's a perennial fan favorite for her focus on gorgeous details and stunning embellishment, her flattering garment shaping, and her playful, vivid use of color. Now, she's revisited those four decades of challenging and endlessly rewarding work in order to bring together the best of the best, in one extraordinary collection: classic cabling, dynamic textures, and brilliant multicolor patterns for sweaters, cardigans, and tops, all featuring Hestnes's inimitable style and characteristic aesthetic flourishes.
That means none of these designs are brand new, though, but they've never been published in English in this capacity. The wide variety of techniques and sheer gorgeousness of these sweaters more than make up for it.
Oline (top left), Hagia Sofia (bottom left), and Suzanna (right) from Kari Hestnes' Norwegian Sweaters and Jackets
The book contains patterns for 37 sweaters, pullovers, cardigans, and jackets featuring not only colorwork but also cables, lace, and texture. Each pattern has instructions for a minimum of five sizes. Granted, in today's demand for size inclusivity it's not be exactly groundbreaking… but it's a start.
Norwegian Sweaters and Jackets: 37 Stunning Scandinavian Patterns comes out on July 19, 2022. If you can't wait to get your hands on these patterns, each one — including the cover design Innanna — is also available individually either on the designer's website karihdesign.com or on Ravelry.
Insta(nt) Knits
Over the past couple of years knitters have dispersed across a wide variety of social media platforms. With Ravelry losing the foothold it once had over crafters' traffic, Instagram has quickly become one of the places-to-be to participate in the online knitting community. But social media is a monster that needs constant feeding with fresh, new content. Melissa Leapman's new book, InstaKnits, wishes to provide fodder for your feed with quick-to-knit instant gratification knits.
We're all so busy nowadays, but even the most time-crunched knitter can create these beautiful designs by beloved designer Melissa Leapman. Her collection of 24 quick-to-knit projects includes accessories such as hats, cowls, and mittens, as well as amazing wraps and sweaters. Patterns are organized by how long they take to knit, so figure out how much time you've got, and choose a design that excites you--and fits into your hectic lifestyle!
Sometimes you need small, one-night projects — I get that. But what I can't get on board with is how the book seems to promote throwaway culture, as if churning out more and more projects in rapid succession is not only achievable but also desirable. Is spending some more time to thoughtfully craft a piece you want to wear for years to come such an antiquated notion? The more you feed the monster, the more it demands.
The publication date for InstaKnits is July 1, 2022.
Shawls in Depth
This last book should be of interest to aspiring shawl designers or for anyone who wants to knit shawls no one's ever come up before. Emma Vining's A Knitter's Guide to Shawl Design delves deep into shawl design, recaps the history of shawls, examines the effect of different yarn weights and fibers, and presents options for shawl edgings and borders.
A Knitter’s Guide to Shawl Design will inspire knitters of all levels to personalize their knitting and create original shawl designs. Author Emma Vining describes her own design processes, encouraging readers to explore and experiment with shawl shapes and stitch patterns.
The bit I'm most interested in this book is a section on different shawl shapes with five chapters dedicated to squares, rectangles, triangles, circles and semicircles, and crescent-shaped shawls. In addition to providing instructions and inspiration for designing your own shawls, the book also comes with five never-before-published shawl patterns: Riverside, Cardiff Bay, Modernism, Open Doors, and the cover design Las Setas.
A Knitter's Guide to Shawl Design is slated to come out on August 1, 2022.
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