Why: This reference book was actually a gift from Literary Quicksand founder, Joli. I was just starting to get back into knitting seriously after teaching myself in high school (with little success), and Joli surprised me with this in a sweet care package. (It’s tough when best friends live so far away!) I had to review it after reading Anne Bartlett’s Knitting and Bekky’s article on knitting in literature!
At long last, all of your knitting information is in one place, not on bits of paper scattered at the bottom of your knitting bag!
The Story: The Knitter’s Notebook features three main sections: Reference, Projects and Inventory. As described in the useful introduction to the book, the Reference section provides some basic tips in compact form. Quick guide for all those things you know you put on Pinterest somewhere… The Projects portion makes up a majority of the book and allows you to document your work in detail. There are basic questions like the needle size(s) needed and amount of yarn required, but also space to elaborate on changes you made to the pattern and what your gauge swatch ended up working out to. Finally, the Inventory portion offers a chance to take stock of that stash sitting in your craft space – however daunting it may be!
We all have leftover yarn – a.k.a. yarn stash!
Opinion: This is a handy dandy little book. It fits perfectly in my knitting bag, and I have been excited to put it into practice! For more experienced knitters, the reference section is still useful, especially remembering those pesky increases and decreases! The projects section is wonderful because I am a perfectionist and I know I tweak patterns to suit my tastes. This provides an organized space to record these notes in a way that I can go back and use them again. Since I’m always honest with you, the inventory piece terrifies me. For one, I’m not sure I want to know what all is in my stash. Secondly, the details the book asks for are extremely useful, but not the easiest to keep up with. That being said, I am determined to put this together and keep myself on track! My favorite page is in this section though and it is a nice chart that documents the needle sizes I own. With so many needle types and combinations out there, this is an extremely valuable chart as I start a new project!
Not all needles are created equal.
Recommendation: As someone who loves putting pen(cil) to paper, this is a great addition to my knitting bag. I highly recommend it to anyone who, like me, has a few too many projects in the works and has ideas overflowing conscious memory. As alluded to above, I believe the inventory section is a bit far fetched, but should you be able to keep up with it, it would be a huge help! The book is also a great size for photocopying if you wanted to share your notes/ideas with others or simply make a copy to use or annotate without ruining your original. Finally, I can vouch for the fact that this makes a great gift for any knitter in your life! The cute design, pocket in the back, and thoughtful information this books provides earn it my full recommendation!
Soon, you’ll be able to pat yourself on the back for being so creative. After all, you’ll have written proof!
Journaling Prompts: (If you haven’t read any of my other reviews, I enjoy putting together a few questions about the book for those that have already read, or choose to read the book after viewing this post!)
- How do you keep track of your knitting materials/projects?
- Do you prefer written instructions for craft projects or photo/video instructions?
- What is your favorite knitting resource? If it’s online, share a link in the comments below or using #LQknits on social media!
- What are you working on right now? I’d love to see! Use #LQknits on Instagram and Twitter and tag us @LiteraryQuicksand so we can support your accomplishments!
