[.ca] Sweater Workshop, The: Knit Creative, Seam-Free Sweaters ... (ISBN 0892725338)

Great system:
When I first got this book, I thought oh-no, but I went through it step by step and this system for knitting seam free jumpers is fool proof, my whole family has at least one now. I hate sewing together jumper pieces, especially sleeves, but dont do it anymore, with this system i still knit any jumper I want from other patterns but finish with a raglan sleeve (which fits better anyway), it just makes so much more sence, this book lives in my knitting basket. As others have said before my "if you knit, you need this book"!

,,do I ever WISH I had this book right from the beginning!:
I have been knitting for 2 plus years now, taking lots of classes in all sorts of techniques, going to conferences , etc... I have really become rather smitten with this whole needleart process,,,,,,,,, needless to say I now have 3 wonderful grandbabies to knit for! What you need to do is to get past some of the original photos ( this is a reprint) and VISUALIZE this with all of today's yummy yarns! ( dare to dream!) That said, I have also purchased many ( far to many!) books on kntting patterns,,,many will be be sold now, (some will be kept simply for design inspirtation,) I wish I had this book from the beginning! It would clearly have saved me a LOT of dollars (spent needlessly ), searching out patterns that FIT everyone I knit for! ( vests for my husband, some nice pulloversor a cardigan " twin set" for me, etc) With this book ALONE you can knit for EVERYONE! The author respectfully gives credit where credit is due,,and that is to the late Elizabeth Zimmerman and her unique math formula for creating a sweater that FITS anyone! Why didnt I get it when I already own most of the E. Zimmerman books? It is quite simply because this author CLEARLY explains the method, ( to the point of creating a full page for one to work out the "math") and goes much futher into measuring,,, sleeve type, width, and truly makes this whole process far easier for those of us that do not like or are intimidted by the "math". I get it! I REALLY DO! This system ,once explained as simply as this author did,, is SO understandable, ( to a non "math" person like me!) that it hardly makes sense anymore to create sweaters any other way (unless you are not concerned with an accurate fit!) Fit is not the only thing discussed in this book,,numerous options are laid out for one to create their own sweater ,,,,do you want a sweater with a V neck and picot lace edging? OR,,,,,maybe a more tailored cardigan for the sweetheart in your life? Anything goes! I read that someone critiqued this and said these were out of date " boxy " styles,,, if that is the opinion taken, they have missed the entire point of the book! To "update" any look,( be it for anyone you knit for,),forget the ribbbing if you wish and add a few rows of seed or garter stitch on the bottom,and cuffs,,(,this is what is seen in the fashion magazines ,),but remember,,, YOU pick the style,,,YOU pick the yarn,, want to go simple and classic????, or ,, with a new handyed ( maybe knit on size 13 needles???) YOU pick the guage ,,,,,YOU design the entire sweater! It does not get more unique than this! Even for a relatively "new" knitter,,,I WISH that I had seen this book sooner! What it took for me to see this was a class in designing your own sweater for me to see this book! FAR TOO LATE FOR ME! ( I have some very expensive mistakes in the closet!) Any knitter, new to the process, or well seasoned,, will benefit greatly from this book,,, funny thing tho,,,,I have been to several knitting conventions where many new books are sold, by many authors,,,,and I have NOT seen this book at all,, What I DO see is book after book that simply does basic sweaters over and over again with some added updates to bring it up to the current trend,,YOU CAN DO THIS WITHOUT ANY MORE BOOKS!!! (just go to the library for any inspiration you might need,,,,save yourself a lot of $$$$$$ An added bonus to this book ( as if it needs any,) is the very first project, TUBE,socks knit( in any size infant to Paul Bunyan size) For those that make socks,,you know it elimiates the heel etc,, and, is SUPER EASY for babies and kids! , just WISH I had this book right from the get go,,,, would have saved a lot of money! I dare say that I will need to go back and re do some of my other book reviews now, because ALL you need ( as I most humbly see it,) is the E. ZImmerman books,,,the VOgue knitting " bible" and some basic stitch books and MAYBE ,,,one good book on any finishing techniques,,,, that's it!!!!!! the knitting world is then at your feet,,no matter WHAT age you are, or WHAT kind of taste you have,,,,,you need NOT buy new book after new book EVER again!

Great for even a new Knitter:
I originally purchased this book as a reference tool, but then found out that "no one is excused from making the sampler", so I cast-on. I have learned SO much with this little sampler that I HIGHLY recommend it for all other new knitters (or skilled knitters for that matter!). If you know how to do a basic cast-on/bind-off and the knit/purl stitches - you are ready for this book to learn everything else you need to know to make well shaped sweaters. And, once the sampler is complete - you have a reference to the stitches you performed to help you decide which would be appropriate in later use. I'd give this book 10 stars, but since only 5 are allowed..

The ONLY Sweater Book!:
This book is great! I had never knitted a sweater before (all the pieces were too scary), but this book made it easy. The sampler is a great learning experience . . . do it! Plus, I don't have to be intimidated by all those pieces, since the sweater is basically worked as one piece. This is by far the best sweater book out there.

A great design it yourself book:
This is the book I use when I know exactly what I want to knit and don't have a pattern. Its a userfriendly very informative book. I've knit for 30 years, and this is a great tool for me, and great for beginners too.